I created the myth of the Great Old Ones.

Lu Ban explained.

He has made some changes to this swamp, and now it has become the spawn point for players.

"You mean, is it a bit too difficult to get them to cross over here?"

Trist found it somewhat strange. After not seeing Lu Ban for a while, he realized that Lu Ban had mastered the technology to allow people to travel to other realms, which was beyond Trist's imagination.

He thought of what Lu Ban had mentioned about him dying in his world in the future, and suddenly felt a pang of sadness.

"Only certain special creatures or beings of higher status can physically transport people to other realms. Of course, I can't bring them here. Besides, it's too dangerous here. Physical transport would actually cause them to lose their greatest advantage."

Lu Ban explained.

"The change I made to this swamp is that it can create mimicry creatures to a certain extent. Then, I use some methods to let the players in my world project their consciousness onto these mimicry creatures, and that's how the summoning is completed."

"He's just like a necromancer."

Xia thought Lu Ban's idea was very far-fetched, but in a foreign land, anything is possible, so she still chose to believe Lu Ban.

"Shall we begin the summoning now?"

"No, we have to wait a little longer."

Lu Ban said, picking up another twig from the ground.

"What are we waiting for? What preparations are needed for the summoning?"

Stone pressed for an answer, puzzled.

"We still need some time for publicity and promotion."

As Lu Ban spoke, he closed his eyes.

Meanwhile, in his home, a drop of Lu Ban gradually swelled up and transformed into the shape of Lu Ban.

However, due to its insufficient mass, this Lu Ban only resembles a paper doll and cannot be seen from the side.

Lu Ban, the paper doll, quickly turned on his computer, arranged a document, and then sent it to the work group.

Shi Ming, the person in charge of Silent Games, saw Lu Ban's document immediately.

His expression shifted from confusion to shock, then to anticipation and expectation, and finally to complete excitement.

"Sure enough, there's another way to use it."

Shi Ming was impressed by Lu Ban's brilliant idea.

After the creation of [Morning Star], Shi Ming felt that it would definitely bring about a completely new revolution in the human game industry.

【The Night of the Summoning】 was just an appetizer, an experiment. What could truly transform 【Morning Star】 was undoubtedly the open-world gameplay.

Just as the emergence of a few female gamers in the past brought about a new era in online games, captivating all players with their vast and realistic worlds, the open world of virtual reality is absolutely capable of revolutionizing the entire gaming industry.

After all, open worlds played with keyboards, mice, and gamepads are ultimately only realized through specific player actions. While WYSIWYG sounds appealing, most games are simply plays set within a predetermined framework. Now, an opportunity is before players: will they continue to drown in those old games, or embrace virtual reality? The answer is self-evident.

However, Shi Ming's only concern was the game's development timeline.

Although some game companies release one open-world game a year and are jokingly called "canneries," that's because they have mature supporting tools and different studios release games at different times. In reality, a game still needs two or three years to develop.

As for Lu Ban, this involves both virtual reality and an open world; it should take at least four or five years to realize.

However, Lu Ban's second document arrived quickly.

Shi Ming was dumbfounded when he saw it.

Because this is promotional material.

Lu Ban instructed Shi Ming to recruit the first batch of testers from some domestic and international game forums, with the first round of closed testing to begin tomorrow morning.

When exactly did he do all this?

Shi Ming couldn't help but sigh.

Previously, during the [Morning Star] project, Lu Ban only used Shi Ming's production line facilities, channels, and registration materials; Shi Ming did not participate in the actual game development.

As a game industry professional, Shi Ming is well aware of how difficult it is to develop an excellent open-world game.

Developing a high-quality open-world game requires hundreds of excellent software engineers working day and night to debug and create, a team of nearly a thousand artists to provide realistic textures and materials, an innovative and detail-oriented design team, a powerful game engine capable of supporting various designs, and, most importantly, a visionary and talented producer.

Whether Lu Ban is that kind of person or not, Shi Ming dared not say, because judging from [Summoning Night], Lu Ban did not actually make many breakthroughs in gameplay. The excellence of [Summoning Night] lies in the immersive experience after combining virtual reality technology, and the gameplay is exactly the same as Lu Ban's initial interactive video.

To use a computer to draw a picture drawn on a canvas is innovation, but to use pixels to interpret and express it is creation.

Open world is a popular and enduring game genre, and all game developers continue to innovate and interpret it, leaving Lu Ban with limited gameplay options.

Despite his doubts, Shi Ming followed Lu Ban's instructions and posted the test announcement on the forum and some social media, and also invited some well-known players to experience it.

In an instant, the players went wild.

Chapter 703 Closed Test

On a game forum in China that started with female users, Shi Ming posted a test recruitment notice under the operations team's post, and within just a few minutes, there were hundreds of replies.

Holy crap, Lu Ban is releasing another new game, and this time it's an online game?!

[Open world? Director Lu, I don't play many games, don't lie to me. Doesn't [The Conjuring Night] count as an open world?]

Is it the kind of open world I'm imagining, the kind where you can run around freely and pick apples?

[Even in virtual reality, you're still thinking about picking apples? Haven't you picked enough in Hyrule? Of course you're going to do some scary things in an open world!]

[Pick me! Pick me! Director Lu, pick me now!]

I really want to be Director Lu Ban's dog, but he says he likes cats. But it doesn't matter, because I'm just a mouse.

[I knew it! How could this gaming setup not have a major title? I wonder what genre Lu Ban's game is. Just thinking about experiencing those terrifying scenes firsthand is making me incredibly excited!]

I probably won't be selected. I'll wait for a streamer to do a live stream, or maybe just a game session.

[This test only recruits 300 people, so it's going to be incredibly competitive.]

Faced with Lu Ban's new game, everyone is vying to be a denominator, hoping to be selected. Regardless of whether the game is good or bad, [Morning Star]'s first large-scale game will definitely be recorded in history.

Moreover, participating in the test myself is definitely worthwhile. It's impossible to be unable to log out after entering the game and have to complete the game to leave.

At the same time, some streamers who had previously collaborated on promotions also received invitations.

For example, old eggplant is one of them.

Without any complicated selection process, he directly obtained the download code and started downloading the game on his device.

However, the name of the game made him feel somewhat uneasy.

[The Cage]

Judging from the name alone, it's hard to tell what kind of game it is.

Since it's an open world, there must be a large map, right?

However, this is just a test, so the map area may not be very large?

Once the game finished downloading, Old Eggplant immediately put on his helmet and entered that sea of ​​stars.

He noticed that next to the [Summoning] dungeon, which he had already cleared, there was an additional door.

The door looked equally rustic, but it was more ancient and Western-style than the one in the "Summoning the Soul" event, resembling the gate of a castle or fortress.

Some dark green leaves were peeking out from under the door.

Old Eggplant reached out, trying to push open the door.

But the door seemed frozen in place, and it couldn't be moved an inch no matter what it did.

After trying for a while, Old Eggplant even went around to the back of the door to take a look.

Of course, behind every door is another door.

He logged out of the device and opened a web browser to search for "prison".

Sure enough, some people who had already obtained the test qualification, like him, had already leaked the name of the game, and the internet was flooded with discussions about the game.

Some people think this is an escape room game where players might solve puzzles and escape in a very spacious area, or a survival game similar to battle royale.

Some people think that this might still be Lu Ban's previous eerie and horror-style games, perhaps even having players locked in a coffin and trying to find a way to escape.

Some researchers have suggested that this architectural style of door is only similar to that of the Night Kingdom in the alternate universes that Lu Ban has appeared in so far, so this game may be related to the Night Kingdom.

Old Eggplant thought the last statement made a lot of sense.

He imagined a similar game, wondering if it would involve riding through the forests and towns of the Night Kingdom, solving monsters and crises encountered by ordinary people, or entering the Gray Tower of the Night Kingdom to learn and master magic at school.

Either one is quite exciting.

Moreover, according to the recruitment post, this is an online game, a massively multiplayer online game.

The open-world games that Lao Qiezi used to play were mostly single-player. Even online games with similar open worlds couldn't compare to the freedom of today's open-world games. However, under virtual reality devices, traditional open-world games with invisible walls and restricted operations are definitely not feasible.

The experience of jumping around in a game using a keyboard and mouse and being blocked by an invisible wall is completely different from the experience of jumping around in a game using [Morning Star] and being blocked by an invisible wall.

This is one of the reasons why games for virtual reality devices are difficult to develop; if complete immersion cannot be achieved, then the character's movements will be restricted.

Old Eggplant quickly saw the group chat for the game content creators in his area buzz with messages, which quickly reached 99+.

[Old C]: Have you guys gotten the testing qualifications for [The Cage]?

【Leisurely Wanderer】: Got it, downloading it now, it's urgent and crucial.

[Drink herbal tea if you're worried about getting a sore throat]: No way, no way, surely no one didn't get the test qualification?

[Old C]: I'm just asking. I've already downloaded the game and am waiting for the server to open.

[A]: Let me state in advance that I'm a really nice guy. Don't blame me when you get in. Let's put aside our differences and work together to solve the problem.

[Spicy Steamed Bun]: Who's playing Werewolf with you? I feel that this Night Kingdom themed game might have more freedom than we imagine. You see, in previous games, everyone who wanted to leave was killed. But Night Kingdom is so vast, the map will probably take a while to explore.

Old Eggplant also agrees with this.

During the previous "Summoning Night," some people tried to leave by walking along mountain paths, and even wilderness survival experts tried, but they all failed and died tragically.

Just how big is the map in this game?

Aside from the game streamers and review teams who were directly invited, the remaining 300 people were quickly identified. The vast majority of them were veteran players, and almost all of them had completed "The Summoning Night".

The following evening, at six o'clock, the closed test of [The Cage] began.

Old Eggplant had eaten early and, after taking care of his personal needs, put on his helmet and entered the virtual world.