Rebirth 08: Can a mobile game company also build a tech empire?

Lu Chen walked to the window, looked at the bustling street below, and continued assigning tasks:

"In particular, there can be no shortage of core components."

For example, the supply of components such as the screen, battery, and flash memory absolutely cannot be interrupted!

"I see."

Zhao Yongqiang nodded firmly.

Last time, due to the failure of the publicity, the Journey Z1 project almost died before it even got off the ground.

This time, he was determined to complete the mission no matter what.

"good!"

After discussing the supply chain, Lu Chen's gaze fell on Zheng Yong.

"Continue to expand the distribution channels."

Previously, we mainly focused on the Yangtze River Delta and Pearl River Delta regions.

This will free up our resources to expand inland.

"Isn't this... a little too fast?"

We haven't fully grasped the potential of our existing stores yet.

Zheng Yong asked.

"So fast?"

Lu Chen shook his head.

This group of people had never witnessed the speed at which products were distributed in later generations.

Once a product becomes popular, people want to distribute it all over the country in an instant.

"If our distributors can't keep up, who will we sell our daily production capacity of 10,000 units to?"

So don't hesitate, expand boldly!

In the north, distribution began in the capital; in the northwest, it started in Chang'an; and in the southwest, it began in Chengdu.

We will first consolidate our position in first-tier cities, and then expand to surrounding cities.

Also, don't forget online.

Each shopping platform continues to increase the amount of advertising.

At least 4000 units need to be deployed daily.

"yes!"

Zheng Yong was also affected by the atmosphere at that moment.

To be honest, he didn't expect the Z1 to become so popular.

After all, "Zhengtu" is a new brand with no recognition whatsoever.

They were able to sell 4000 units a day.

But Boss Lu's appetite was still not satisfied.

The goal is to achieve daily sales of 10,000 units.

If that were truly possible, the sales figures would be terrifying.

Even if big manufacturers like Apple and Samsung were to sell it, it wouldn't be much different.

The final production end.

Wu Zhixuan had been listening to the conversation between Lu Chen, Zhao Yongqiang, and Zheng Yong.

He feels immense pressure right now.

"Old Wu."

"what?"

"Keep a close watch on Shenzhen."

Five production lines aren't enough, so we'll add more.

If they can't reach an agreement with Foxconn, they'll turn to BYD.

"We'll talk to any contract manufacturers in the Yangtze River Delta and Pearl River Delta regions that can produce consumer electronics!"

"clear!"

Wu Zhixuan's voice came through the speakerphone on the other end of the phone.

After assigning the tasks, Lu Chen sat back down at his desk.

"Alright, let's proceed with the hardware development in this direction. I'll say one more thing before we adjourn."

Lu Chen glanced at the two of them, his tone solemn.

"The Z1 is our first shot in the hardware field, and this shot must be fired and make a splash."

So, thank you all for your hard work!

"yes!"

The two of them answered in unison with the person on the other end of the phone.

He hurriedly left the office with a new task.

After the door closed.

Lu Chen didn't pause and called to Susie, who was standing beside him:

"Susie, call Jiang Chang over."

Five minutes later, Jiang Chang pushed open the door and entered.

Unlike the two people in the hardware team who looked travel-worn.

Although Jiang Chang also had dark circles under his eyes, he was unusually excited.

This is due to the success of Plants vs. Zombies on both iOS and Android platforms.

This gave him, the newly appointed game team leader, a lot of confidence.

After all, the new game is built into the Conquer Online Z1.

Doesn't this mean that as long as a certain number of Conquer Online Z1s are sold, that's how many players the game will have?

Moreover, he had just had a private conversation with Zheng Yong.

The Z1 from the game is selling like hotcakes, and there's simply not enough stock.

Jiang Chang was ecstatic.

"Mr. Lu, you wanted to see me?"

"sit."

Lu Chen gestured for him to sit down.

Then, he took a thick stack of documents out of the drawer and pushed it over.

"Take a look at this."

"This is?"

Jiang Chang opened it with a puzzled look. The first page had four big characters written on it: "Minecraft".

Lu Chen finally couldn't hold back.

Aiming for the highest sales record in game history.

Minecraft is a sandbox game created and released in May 2009 by Swedish developer Markus Persson.

The game is popular all over the world for its highly free gameplay and endless creative possibilities.

My world is built in a 3D procedurally generated world made up of pixelated blocks.

In survival mode, players can gather resources, build shelters, defend against monsters, and explore diverse biomes.

You can also gain unlimited resources and flight ability in Creative Mode, allowing you to focus on architecture, art, or the design of complex redstone circuits.

The game includes three dimensions: the Overworld, the Nether, and the End, and supports single-player adventure and multiplayer online play.

Minecraft's openness and scalability have contributed to its enduring popularity, with countless player-created mods, texture packs, custom maps, and more.

As of now,

Minecraft is the best-selling video game of all time, with over 300 million copies sold!

It far exceeds the 200 million copies of that game 5 and the 100 million copies of Tetris.

It will become a milestone in gaming history!

of course,

Any great work may be ignored in its early stages.

My world is the same.

The game did not cause much of a stir in its early stages.

They even sold fewer than 2000 copies.

After the Alpha was released in June 2010, sales quickly exceeded 100,000 copies.

By the end of 2010, sales reached 100 million units.

Later, on September 15, 2014, Minecraft was officially acquired by Microsoft for a staggering $25 billion.

From then on, Minecraft sales soared.

Ultimately, they achieved remarkable results.

Let's get back to Jiang Chang's side.

He quickly glanced through a few pages, then his eyes widened.

This proposal details the entire concept behind the game Minecraft.

This includes the concept of sandbox games.

An infinitely large map is composed of countless squares.

This is a world made up of pixel blocks.

It features blue skies, white clouds, grasslands, mountains, lakes, oceans, and more, mimicking real-world terrain.

Players are free to create, destroy, survive, and build.

Almost any gameplay mechanic a player can imagine can be implemented in the game.

"This...this is our new game?!"

Jiang Chang asked, stammering.

In this plan,

A series of brand-new concepts challenged his existing understanding of games.

To be honest, over the past six months...

He went from being a programmer who could only write code.

To grow into a team leader capable of leading a team to complete projects of the caliber of "Plants vs. Zombies".

Jiang Chang thought he had figured out what a "good game" was.

For example, the exquisite graphics, ingenious level design, just the right level of difficulty, and addictive gameplay loops.

But the concept of "Minecraft" completely overturned all his understanding.

Jiang Chang never imagined that games could be made this way.

Let's just consider maps of infinite size.

How large of a game would it take to achieve that?

Each map also needs to be different.

How is that possible?

"right!"

Lu Chen crossed his arms and looked at Jiang Chang.

What are your thoughts?

"This... I never imagined there was such a game."

"Now we have it."

"Let me think about it."

Jiang Chang finally calmed down.

According to the description in the plan

This game doesn't even have a clear objective.

What are the players doing here?

Just digging blocks? Building houses?

Lu Chen shook his head. It seemed that Jiang Chang had not yet grasped the essence of Minecraft.