Tokyo Video Game Tycoon.

Chapter 224 Planning for the Future

After several years, Zhu Youxing was able to enjoy Chinese hot pot once again.

The last time I ate this was in my past life; I haven't had the chance since I came to this world.

However, I can consider preparing some at home to enjoy whenever I go back in the future.

Jeff never imagined that his meeting with his big spender would take place in a hot pot restaurant.

As he sat down, feeling slightly uneasy, he realized how wrong it had been to wear such a suit.

The smell of hot pot could make his suit smell like hot pot for weeks, which was truly torture.

But the person in front of him was a big spender, and he couldn't possibly change his clothes right now.

Now he can only feel sorry for his clothes and hope they don't get too much of a smell.

At this moment, he was actually a little envious of his friend Bob, who was dressed casually and seemed completely indifferent.

"Hello, please have a seat. You are both very welcome."

Upon seeing the two of them, Zhu Youxing warmly invited them to sit down.

Strictly speaking, they are both around the same age. Bob is only about twenty-three or twenty-four, and Zhu Youxing is about twenty-two. Both of them are very young.

Now, Bob is the founder of one of the most famous social networks at several universities. Before even graduating, they had already secured millions of dollars in investment, and countless people envy Bob and Jeff's future.

As for Youstar Electronic Entertainment, which invests in social networks, not many people know much about them yet.

Bob was very casual. No matter who he was facing, he seemed to remain very calm. When he saw Zhu Youxing, he looked Zhu Youxing up and down with a curious gaze.

He wondered what kind of person could create such an interesting video game industry.

Now that he's in close proximity, he doesn't think it's a big deal. Zhu Youxing doesn't have the slightest bit of a leader's aura.

However, the brilliance that belongs to the creator is quite obvious.

Indeed, this seems to be the case.

The company's main business, Bamboo Star, is almost entirely managed by professionals.

Only when the company occasionally has some problems will he try to intervene, drawing on things he'd learned from the internet in his previous life.

For the rest of the time, Zhu Youxing devoted almost all of his time to making games.

Ultimately, the quality of video games is fundamental; running a company is secondary.

After everyone took their seats, Jeff appeared somewhat reserved. He still regarded Zhu Youxing as a very formal and important client and dared not be negligent.

Bob, on the other hand, quickly struck up a pleasant conversation with Zhu Youxing.

The two sides actually share some similarities in terms of creativity.

Bob is probably basically the same Mr. Mark from the previous life. The creation of a social network that is famous all over the world is definitely not something that can be described as accidental or lucky.

Bob possesses considerable personal strengths, including but not limited to his creativity and ability to handle investors.

If Mark were just a quirky programmer with some programming skills, he would have been brutally exploited by financial giants long ago and would never have been able to stand on his own.

So Mark may appear to be a docile little lamb on the surface, but he definitely has the heart of a big bad wolf.

Bob in front of me is the same.

After talking with him, Zhu Youxing quickly saw that this guy was ambitious. He was willing to actively accept all kinds of new technologies and was also brave enough to try, experience and further modify him.

As they chatted, the conversation drifted to their respective fields. Bob praised Zhuyouxing's video game console and felt that he should pay more attention to video games, perhaps he could help Zhuyouxing program a social network for the game console.

At this moment, Bob had clearly set his sights on the million users of the Bamboo Star game console.

Using a game console for social interaction sounds outrageous, but Bob is someone who dares to try it.

Moreover, he is very technically skilled, so writing a social program for a game console would be no problem for him.

And Zhu Youxing actually had the same idea.

The social aspect of future video games will inevitably remain a part of the gaming experience.

Whether it's console games, or later PC online games, mobile games, and so on.

The richer the social features, the higher the probability of the game's success.

However, one should not rely too much on the social features, as this will cause one to forget the original purpose of the game and result in something neither fish nor fowl.

"I think your idea of ​​a social network for game consoles is great, and we could definitely have a chance to try it out in the future. But I think we should skip the SFC and try testing it on a new console instead."

"A new console? Mr. Takeyusei, are you already preparing to develop a new console?" Bob asked.

Zhu Youxing nodded: "We already have this plan, and the research and development should be about 80% or 90% complete. I think you've all seen the PN2 game console from Su Rui Electronics, right?"

Bob nodded, then exclaimed, "Suri Electronics is also a Japanese company. Their PN2 game console is very innovative. They want to use brand-new 3D graphics to create games. This kind of graphics will make video games look more realistic. I think this is indeed the future direction of video games."

Bob's foresight was truly remarkable; he almost immediately saw the future trends of video games.

But he probably didn't know who the real leader was; Bob still thought that the game console from Surrey Electronics was entirely his own idea.

But in reality, it was Zhu Youxing who secretly guided Su Rui Electronics to develop related industries first.

3D graphics games and game consoles are completely new and unknown territories. Before Zhu Youxing came into contact with them, they could only try various methods like blind men touching an elephant, helping Zhu Youxing to step out of some pitfalls first.

Once they've paved the way, Zhuyouxing can start its new game console project. By then, the cost of the chips needed for the game console should be significantly reduced due to Surui Electronics' involvement, allowing them to ride the wave and reduce their own R&D investment.

Of course, these plans are only known to the senior management of Youxing Electronics Entertainment so far. Only they know how cunning Youxing really is, while outsiders still believe that Su Rui Electronics will have great development and that Youxing Electronics Entertainment may fall behind.

Zhu Youxing smiled and nodded, saying, "That's right, their game consoles are indeed one of the future development directions, so we have decided to enter the market as well. However, we think we will be a bit slower than them. This is a good opportunity for us to polish the system quality of the game console itself, and at the same time, bring your imagined social network into the game console."

Bob paused for a moment after hearing this, then said, "In that case, the workload will probably be quite heavy."

"Yes, that's why I invited you today. This invitation isn't just about meeting you; I want to try recruiting some outstanding future employees through your channels."

Chapter 225 Proactive Automakers

Bob is now one of the most prominent figures at Harvard University.

His social network has become popular in colleges and universities across the United States.

Bob is also one of the people who knows most of the programming talent in schools today best.

This channel allows for more precise identification of potential stocks that are not typically found.

This is Zhu Youxing's idea.

“Here’s what I’m thinking,” Zhu Youxing said. “I plan to invest in Harvard University and several other universities to host an event called ‘Hero Challenge.’ Any programmer who is interested can join the event, and the winners will not only receive a prize, but also a high-paying job contract in advance, which is equivalent to locking in their future.”

Bob listened attentively.

This sounds like a game, but the final reward will be a real, tangible reward.

Not only can Zhu Youxing find talented people in this way, but I can too!

At this point, Zhu Youxing added, "However, what I need more are people with creativity, not just people who can program. So we can work together. I will select those with creativity, and you can select people who meet your company's criteria. Our two companies can work together to snatch up the best talents from universities in advance."

Bob nodded: "That's a great idea. Honestly, I want to go back and organize one right now. It would be amazing."

Zhu Youxing said, "So it seems we've reached a consensus. Now it's up to you to see how well you promote yourselves on social media. I also want to see for myself what kind of outstanding talents your universities can produce."

After the meeting, Jeff returned to his dorm with his suit reeking of hot pot, while Bob immediately began helping Zhu Youxing search for so-called talent.

He found this to be a very interesting thing.

In this process, he can also find some capable people to work with him.

Then, with Bob's encouragement, a group for the challenge activity was quickly formed at his school.

The only requirement for this team to recruit is excellent programming skills.

This programming ability is not limited to programming software and systems, but also includes people who have programming skills in music, painting, and other areas.

Bob quickly contacted some computer geeks he knew in his field and invited them to join him. At the same time, he also posted a bounty notice on his social media.

The name of this bounty notice is "Hero of the Challenge".

The so-called "challenge" naturally involves overcoming challenges, and the first challenge is a series of puzzles about programming and creativity that were released along with the announcement.

Everyone is welcome to come and give it a try.

If you are truly outstanding, you could receive a job offer with an initial annual salary of up to $500,000.

For these top universities in the world, such an annual salary is considered relatively high.

But that's also the most likely way to attract people.

When the bounty notice spread throughout the social network, every college student with even a little programming ability immediately became eager to participate.

Most of them were lured by the high salaries, but some were attracted by the so-called puzzles.

"Want to take risks? Want to pursue excellence? The world's best video game company invites you to join us, solve the puzzles, and become one of us."

To attract these cutting-edge young people, high salaries alone are not enough; they also need to feel a sense of accomplishment in achieving something.

This challenge is a test for them.

Regarding employee recruitment, Minoru Matsuhashi and Bob will work together to handle it, with each getting what they need.

At this moment, Zhu Youxing received a phone call that surprised him.

The call came from a German car company.

If we were to draw an analogy from a previous life, this car company would be BMW, but in this world it's called the Rennes Brothers.

The other party's purpose was clear: they wanted to discuss cooperation with Zhu Youxing.

As for the content of the collaboration, it's related to Need for Speed.

They wanted to provide sponsorship and were willing to pay for their cars to appear in Need for Speed ​​without any licensing fees.

This was not a decision made suddenly by the company.

In the beginning, Minoru Matsuhashi tried to invite several of the world's most famous car companies to grant them permission to have their car brands listed in his Need for Speed ​​game.

However, the invitation was rejected by most car companies, who said that Matsuhashi's licensing fee was too low.

They hope to license the license to Yuxing Electronic Entertainment at a higher price.

However, this did not include the car company, the Rennes Brothers, which chose to remain silent and did not respond to Matsuhashi Minoru.

Many car companies initially refused, but in the end only Japanese car companies were willing to provide brand licensing. Moreover, when they heard that the game was intended to be promoted overseas, they did not even ask for a single penny in licensing fees.