Game Development: Starting with Recreating the Anime Game Style

Chapter 599 The Wheel of Time

It's understandable that players would consider Game Science to be a studio directly under StarCraft, and it's not just players; many media outlets clearly think so too.

This can be seen from the chaotic scene after the press conference.

When the logo of "Black Myth: Wukong" froze on the screen, and when Chu Chen walked back onto the stage and smiled as he announced the official end of the press conference, the entire venue was like a powder keg that had been detonated.

The applause and cheers created a sound wave that almost lifted the roof off, but even faster than the sound waves were the reporters in the media area.

Like a group of sharks that have smelled blood, they bypassed all obstacles and charged directly into the interview area.

Chu Chen, who had just come off the stage, was immediately surrounded by a crowd.

Flashes of light illuminated the room, and dozens of microphones were thrust at Chu Chen from all directions, almost shoving him in the face. Questions rained down like a storm, a cacophony of Chinese, English, Japanese, and Korean, making it unbearably noisy.

Chu Chen maintained his composed smile, raising his hand in a gesture of calm, indicating that everyone should remain patient.

However, just as he was about to speak, he caught a glimpse of Feng Yi at the edge of the side stage, watching the show with his arms crossed.

So, Chu Chen smiled and said a couple of words.

"Everyone, everyone! You've got the wrong person. This is the producer of Black Myth."

Then, smiling broadly, he walked over to Feng Yi and pulled him close.

Feng Yi was taken aback for a moment because there was no one next to him before Chu Chen walked over.

He was originally planning to just watch the show, but Chu Chen suddenly pulled him into the center of the spotlight, and after pulling Feng Yi over, Chu Chen didn't leave.

Instead, she stood behind Feng Yi.

At first, Feng Yi didn't realize what was happening until he saw a large group of media quickly surrounding him.

This is Chu Chen using his influence to promote him.

At that moment, Feng Yi couldn't help but sigh in his heart again, it's really hard not to be completely devoted to a boss like that.

Just as he was sighing, the reporters' questions began to pour in.

"Mr. Feng! Is Game Science a newly established internal studio of StarCraft?"

"Mr. Feng, how long has the Black Myth: Wukong project been in development? Was the entire thirteen-minute gameplay demo entirely real footage? What kind of machine was it running on?"

Will the game be a PC exclusive or will it be released on consoles? When is it expected to be released?

The questions came one after another, sharp and direct.

Although Feng Yi wasn't the type to reject publicity, he was technically inclined and had never seen anything like this before. For a moment, he was a little stunned, opened his mouth, but didn't know which answer to give first.

At this moment, Chu Chen spoke up again.

"Everyone, one at a time."

The sound wasn't loud, but it clearly drowned out the noise at the scene.

"Our producer needs some time to adjust to everyone's enthusiasm."

He half-jokingly helped Feng Yi out of the awkward situation, then gestured with his eyes to the blonde female reporter at the front holding the IGN microphone.

The female reporter immediately seized the opportunity to ask a question: "Mr. Feng, I'm a reporter from IGN. First of all, congratulations! This trailer is one of the most stunning PVs I've seen in my ten years at E3. My question is, what is the relationship between Game Science and StarCraft Games? Why have we never heard of you before?"

This is indeed a crucial question, so other media outlets refrained from commenting for the time being. Feng Yi took a deep breath, trying to calm himself down, before speaking.

“Game Science is an independent game studio, and we were also among the first participants in the Star Project. Star provided us with funding and technical support. In addition, Mr. Chen also provided us with a lot of creative foundation, so he can be considered our mentor.”

"As for why people hadn't heard of us before, it's because we felt our names were insignificant until we created something that people would remember."

Feng Yi was quite tactful during the interview; his words were met with good-natured laughter and applause.

~~~
Los Angeles, a corner of the venue.

Zhao Ming's face was very ugly, and the faces of the Tencent executives around him were even uglier than his.

"Mr. Zhao, should we still have our meeting later?"

Zhao Ming did not answer.

His mind went blank, and all he could hear was the throbbing in his temples. Because he was right there in the audience, he could hear the reactions of the players around him very clearly.

Even though the press conference had ended, the players at the scene continued to discuss it, just like how after a good movie ends, the crowd always continues to talk about it with lingering interest.

These direct signals from the players made him feel increasingly pressured; what this thirteen-minute demonstration revealed was terrifying.

before today.

Even though Zhao Ming, as an industry insider, knew that Starcraft had invested a lot of money in game engines and was poaching talent everywhere.

Um.
You asked Zhao Ming why he knew this?
Actually, it's because Tencent also poached many people.

According to internal estimates from Tencent Games, StarCraft poached at least dozens of game engine talents in China last year, not only from Tencent but also from EPIC's Unreal Engine China division.

Moreover, they are very generous.

It is said that StarCraft America is also poaching a large number of people.

At the time, Tencent Games staff actually mocked this, thinking that StarCraft's spending was too haphazard and what effect such a sudden spending spree could bring.
It's a complete waste of money.

In fact, this judgment is not wrong, since in most cases, it takes time for such rapid expansion to be transformed into technology.

Even if you find a top student to take the exam, they still need to spend time doing the questions.

Unfortunately, Tencent didn't anticipate that Xingchen would recruit people not through exams, but by having them copy answers.
Therefore, in just over a year, the "Reality" engine, which once represented cost-effectiveness and could only be used to make reskinned online games in China, has actually been able to produce AAA-level graphics.

Besides the engine, Black Myth's art style is also very unique.

Even though Zhao Ming himself doesn't understand games, to be honest, when he watched the PV just now, he, like many others, clearly felt his heart pounding with excitement.

This is the most terrifying place.

Can Tencent make something like this?
Countless internal project approval meetings flashed through Zhao Ming's mind.

Skip over those PowerPoint presentations filled with data, KPIs, retention rates, paying users, and ARPU. Skip over those ideas that were rejected because they "didn't conform to mainstream user habits."

Skip over the art assets that were cut back in order to "control costs".

Technically, it was possible for Tencent to do it, because at that time Tencent owned 40% of EPIC's shares and could fully utilize the Unreal Engine.

In reality, could Tencent create such a game?

(End of this chapter)