Game development begins with destroying Girls' Frontline.

Just like the game "Girls' Frontline: Siege" which has garnered significant attention from both domestic and American players.

in Japan.

Now open the video website.

These are all clips from the first demo of "Destiny's Path".

Moreover, each video has a high number of views.

After listening to Eguchi's words, Hirai Kazuo remained silent for a while.

For Lin Li and Xing Huo.

Kazuo Hirai is a somewhat unfamiliar name, but not entirely unfamiliar either, given that his name has appeared in many reports recently.

Also.

Last month, he also filmed a video at Xinghuo's invitation.

Therefore, he knew that Xinghuo was a new Chinese company, the developer of FGO, and had considerable influence in the anime and manga market. Sony had also discussed PS4-related collaborations with Xinghuo.

However, in the later years of his tenure as CEO, Kazuo Hirai did not have much energy to understand what Spark was actually like.

Now, Eguchi has told him these data.

He slowly nodded.

"Unbeknownst to many, China has once again created a monster through the market."

For the Chinese market.

Sony Electronics Entertainment is more valued than many domestic companies.

This emphasis is not only on the market, but also on the domestic development environment.

Kazuo Hirai had already sensed this before he became CEO.

Given the size of the Chinese market, it is certain that some studios with international influence will emerge in the future. Based on this judgment, Sony launched the Sony China Star Program in August 2016.

Although Sony Stars did not make much progress until Kazuo Hirai left, Hirai himself generally agreed with this assessment.

The sudden emergence of sparks now confirms that his judgment was correct.

The only problem.

Sony failed to find this shining gem in the first place.

"You believe that Spark has already obtained the key to the next big trend, and you want to invest in Spark, make PS5 exclusive to Spark on the console, and take a younger approach. This idea is fine."

Kazuo Hirai spoke, seemingly in agreement.

But Kazuya Eguchi on the other end of the phone frowned. He knew very well that when Kazuo Hirai agreed with you first, there was always a "but" behind that statement.

He knew Kazuo Hirai all too well.

Sure enough, that was Kazuo Hirai's next sentence.

"But it's too late now, Eguchi. Let me ask you, how much profit did Sony Entertainment make last year?"

"Sales revenue was 2.3 trillion yen, and net profit was 3111 billion yen."

Kazuya Eguchi blurted it out.

"Yes, 3111 billion yen, which is about 180 billion yuan. Now tell me, what was Xinghuo's revenue last year?"

Upon hearing this question, Eguchi fell silent.

Admittedly, a company's size cannot be judged solely by its profitability.

In terms of revenue, Sony still has a crushing advantage over Spark.

But Eguchi already understood Hirai's meaning.

"Don't think that just because Sony is an old or big company, you can be anything. Do you remember what the first thing I said to you was when I took over as CEO?"

Jiang Kou blurted it out.

"Walk with your head up, and do things with your head down."

Kazuo Hirai nodded.

"Yes, don't forget these things just because Sony has made some progress in the past two years. Walk with your head held high and show the grandeur of Sony, but when doing things, don't carry the name Sony on your back."

“I agree with your assessment of Spark, but now, if you want Sony to catch this wave, you should take the initiative to approach Spark to discuss cooperation, instead of condescendingly saying that you want to invest in Spark and talking about empowering them.”

"Cooperation is rational and equal; it's about what I can give you and what you can give me."

"However, cooperation can also be emotional. If you treat the other person as a friend, then the other person is more likely to be your friend."

Kazuya Eguchi nodded; Kazuo Hirai's words had enlightened him.

"Yes! I understand."

After finishing his conversation, Kazuya Eguchi exchanged a few pleasantries and prepared to hang up.

"Don't rush. Are you confident you can secure a deep collaboration with Xinghuo if you just go like this?"

Kazue Eguchi was also confused, but he answered honestly nonetheless.

There is no absolute certainty.

"I'll take charge; I can still contribute something in this matter."

Upon hearing this, Kazuya Eguchi was overjoyed.

Even if Kazuo Hirai resigns, he's still Kazuo Hirai! His influence in the gaming industry is still terrifying.

“Great! I’ll send out invitations right away, inviting Xinghuo and President Lin to Japan.”

"It's not about sending out invitations."

"Not sending invitations?"

"Let's go visit them."

"Ah? But, but you're Kazuo Hirai, this..."

That's giving the other person way too much face. Kazuya Eguchi didn't say the second half of his sentence, but his meaning was still very clear.

"Even you are surprised that I took the initiative to visit you, so this matter is sure to succeed. While my reputation is still valid, make the most of it."

"Yes!!"

~~~

Hang up the phone.

Kazuo Hirai suddenly laughed a few times, which attracted his wife to come over and take a look.

"Why are you so happy suddenly?"

Kazuo Hirai returned.

"Because I have something to do again. By the way, can you help me pack my luggage? I'm going to China tomorrow."

Kazuo Hirai's wife frowned.

"Haven't you already stepped down? Why are you still going on business trips?"

"Hehe, the last time, the last time."

Chapter 386 Dark Horse

Three days later.

The Spark Carnival is coming to an end.

But the players' enthusiasm has not waned.

The carnival lasts for three days.

For the vast majority of players, it was an event that went far beyond the word "carnival".

Many players who failed to buy tickets in person are now filled with deep regret.

First, I regret not buying a ticket this year.

Secondly, I regret it; I might not be able to buy tickets next year.

After all, given the programs revealed at the current carnival, those who participated want to continue participating, and those who didn't participate want to participate even more.

With this level of popularity, tickets for next year's carnival will probably sell out in seconds.

In retrospect, let's look at the situation.

This year's carnival tickets were actually the easiest to buy.

Unfortunately, they didn't buy it.

regret!

And besides the players.

At this year's Spark Carnival, there was another unexpected group that also became fans of Spark.

This group consists of voice actor enthusiasts worldwide.

For them, these past few days have been like Chinese New Year.

To be precise, it was even more enjoyable than celebrating the Chinese New Year.

Tickets for the Spark Carnival.

It includes morning, afternoon, and evening sessions.

Correspondingly, voice actors' live events are held in the morning, afternoon, and evening.

Because there are many games available on Xinghuo.

And each of them is a game with a huge number of characters, whether it's FGO, Battlefront, or Azur Lane.

There are many characters, and naturally, many voice actors as well.

generally.

When these manufacturers hold events, they usually invite one or two well-known voice actors, and some don't invite any at all.

The cost of hiring a voice actor to perform in China is secondary; the key issue is scheduling. Very few voice actor agencies would adjust their schedules to participate in events in China.

But Spark is different.

Xinghuo currently holds a very special position in the Japanese voice acting industry.

Unlike most games.

The main storyline of Spark is often fully voiced. To achieve this, Spark even created a dynamic audio management tool in the game's background.

Players can choose to download or delete audio by chapter.

To avoid situations like FGO, Battlefront Girls, and Arknights, where long storylines lead to bloated audio data.

That being said, full voice acting means work for voice actors.

Moreover, it's a stable job.

Why do so many people envy the voice actors who get to play the main roles in Spark games?

The reason is that as long as Xinghuo's games are still being updated, they will have a long-term source of income.

When Arknights was recruiting voice actors, more than 20 voice actors came for Amiya alone, including many industry celebrities.

In this situation.

Other manufacturers may not be able to persuade voice actor agencies to change their schedules.

But what about sparks?

Excuse me.

Having money really does allow you to do whatever you want.

At this carnival, in addition to almost all of the voice actors from Spark's Starry Sky agency, there were also more than 20 voice actors from Japan.

It can be said that it has gathered all the well-known voice actors.

Because there are many people.