Chapter 50: Exploration
Chapter 50: Exploration
No. Wait, no.
For a brief moment, Insu considered suggesting that they use their newfound free time to develop multiplayer functionality. But he quickly shook his head.
Even now, they were technically still testing rather than truly resting, and because he still had not completely forgotten the perspective of an ordinary worker from his previous life, he realized just how unforgivable it would be to bring up additional development work right after everyone had barely survived that battlefield-like production process and finally begun catching their breath.
So instead, he decided to save multiplayer development for later, when the timing was right, and merely jotted the idea down in his notes for now.
About two weeks passed like that. Then Insu realized something.
At this point... it really feels like there aren’t any more problems, right?
Perhaps thanks to the repeated and meticulous RC cycles after beta testing, no fatal bugs or major issues appeared anymore. Of course, the game was not completely bug-free, but the remaining problems were so minor that he worried fixing them might actually create entirely new bugs instead.
The only issues discovered so far were things like certain random tiles occasionally failing to apply their impassable property, allowing characters to walk through them, or rare cases where characters suddenly turned red after casting magic under some unknown condition.
Is that a fire-damage effect? Or maybe a demon-race character texture?
It felt as though some path in the graphics-loading process had become twisted somewhere, but since it happened very rarely and did not seem to affect the systems or balance in any meaningful way, Insu decided to simply ignore it.
The Gold Master had already been handed over to the distributors. If they tried requesting revisions over tiny issues like this, the distributors probably would not even accept them, and if something went wrong, it could create the nightmare scenario of already-manufactured packages becoming useless.
The correct answer was simply to keep quiet about these things.
People will probably just assume it’s some kind of Easter egg and move on.
In any case, after no serious problems appeared for such a long time, everyone naturally relaxed, and the atmosphere in the development room loosened considerably.
And so, one lazy workday passed after another.
“I’m leaving first. You guys can head home whenever.”
“Yes!”
Around four in the afternoon, Insu became so sick of playing the game that he simply left work early. Somehow, it reminded him of the brief period of unemployment in his previous life when he would get tired of gaming at the PC café and just head back home out of boredom.
“I’m home.”
“Insu, you’re back?”
For the past few days, he had repeatedly come home early like this, but Hyein was not particularly worried. She knew people needed rest, and she also knew Insu had pushed himself far too hard lately.
“Can you come here for a second?”
“Huh? Okay.”
Insu instinctively shrank back slightly as he approached his mother, wondering if perhaps he had become too lazy lately. This was not because he was physically young. It was probably just the automatic reaction any child would have toward their parent.
Fortunately, it was not what he feared at all.
“Son, you have some free time these days, right?”
“Yes. That’s true.”
“Then how about we all go to America together this time?”
“America?”
In truth, whenever he heard classmates talking about going on trips during vacation, Insu occasionally felt a little tempted too. But his plans always mattered more, so he simply buried those feelings.
So Mom and Dad really wanted to travel together as a family after all?
“But didn’t you say getting an American visa was difficult?”
“We already applied in advance.”
More specifically, they had changed the previously canceled visa interview application, originally intended for negotiating with Velocity Entertainment, into a family application and reapplied.
“I thought it might be necessary for all of us to go and take a proper look around at least once.”
“Ah...”
Insu himself had already encouraged Seongcheol and Hyein to consider moving to America, and Velocity Entertainment had even proposed supporting the establishment of a development studio there, so his parents had begun taking the idea more seriously as well.
“We haven’t decided completely yet.”
Although Hyein said that, the fact they were already planning an exploratory trip meant their minds had already partially leaned in that direction. And while this was not exactly the vacation trip Insu had first imagined, it was still something he desperately wanted, so his face immediately brightened.
“I definitely want to go! Ah! But don’t I need to do an interview too?”
“No. Children under fourteen traveling with family are exempt from interviews.”
“Oh. Really? Then let’s go!”
And just like that, the family’s trip to America was decided.
A few days later, at Gimpo International Airport, Insu looked around curiously. He had already accompanied his father here once before when Seongcheol traveled to America, but knowing that this time he himself would actually board the plane and go there made it feel completely different.
Even in my previous life, I never actually made it to America.
He had traveled to Japan several times, but America had remained something he only planned for before his life ended.
Still, there was one thing he regretted. If not the others, he at least wanted to bring Eunha noona along.
Even if they established a development company in America, Insu wanted to keep working with the teammates they had already built chemistry with. And Eunha noona in particular was one of the founding members.
After developing two games already, her experience and ability had become more than sufficient, and in terms of instinct, enthusiasm, and overall talent, she was not someone easily replaced.
If we try hiring some local American artist over there, what if we end up with somebody drawing some weird Yankee-style cartoon art?
Of course, some people might like that kind of style, but it definitely was not Insu’s taste. As a professional, he could adapt if necessary, but ideally, it was always easier when compatible blocks naturally fit together. The final product also turned out more unified that way.
And although Eunha noona liked pretending she was an adult now that she had become a high school student, in reality, much like her body that had not changed much since middle school, she still felt quite childlike.
If they suddenly told someone like her to move to America, a distant country across the ocean she barely knew anything about, her first reaction might easily be fear and hesitation. So Insu thought it would be better if she could visit casually first under the excuse of a trip and get used to the idea without pressure.
Though now that I think about it, getting her visa probably wouldn’t have been easy either.
Insu himself was exempt from interviews because he was traveling with his parents and still young. But unless her parents accompanied her, Eunha noona would have needed to attend an interview alone as a minor. And if her stated purpose was merely tourism, there was no guarantee she would even pass.
In any case, it was already too late now, so all Insu could do was hope that when the time came for him to move to America later, Eunha noona would choose teenage recklessness and youthful courage over fear and agree to come with him.
“Let’s go. We need to hurry if we want to finish boarding procedures in time.”
Seongcheol, who had already visited America before, confidently led the family forward.
Their seats were economy class. Considering the amount of money Insu had earned, they could easily have afforded business class, but the entire family was still young, and neither parent felt comfortable spending their son’s money extravagantly. Business class never even entered their minds.
Honestly, even paying for economy seats already felt expensive to them.
This really isn’t uncomfortable at all?
That was only natural for Insu, whose body was still small. But surprisingly, his parents did not seem especially uncomfortable either. Then again, neither of them were particularly large people to begin with.
Still, the flight itself was boring. Smartphones obviously did not exist yet, and this was still an era before personal seat TVs.
Good thing I brought a book.
It was a book on network programming he had recently started reading.
Back in 2025, while studying game development, Insu had learned some networking as well. But his knowledge in that field was comparatively shallow, and the technological environment here differed so drastically that most of what he knew was nearly useless. Even understanding advanced future technology meant nothing if the surrounding infrastructure could not support it.
Still, the concepts themselves were similar enough that his prior knowledge helped considerably while studying.
Seongcheol looked at his son studying development even on the airplane and felt deeply impressed.
Well, I suppose this level of dedication is exactly why he succeeded so much.
At the same time, the hesitation he still felt about moving to America weakened a little further.
Fourteen hours later, Insu’s family finally arrived in Los Angeles.
Velocity Entertainment, the company that would play the largest role and serve as the strongest foundation for their entry into America, was based in Texas. But that did not necessarily mean Parallel Soft also needed to settle there.
First of all, Los Angeles was a major center for entertainment industries, including gaming, making it ideal for observing trends and gathering talent and information. Moreover, in terms of economy, finance, and infrastructure, Los Angeles generally held advantages over Texas. In other words, it provided a better environment for business overall.
Lastly, Los Angeles also had a large Korean population, making it far easier to adapt and settle there.
“HELLO... Are you Korean?”
Using some business card he had apparently obtained somewhere, Seongcheol called a taxi from the airport phone booth, and before long, a driver who appeared to be a Korean-American immigrant arrived. He looked to be a somewhat heavyset man in his thirties.
In truth, the airport already had a dedicated taxi stand, and both Seongcheol and Hyein spoke English fluently. But in an unfamiliar place, they naturally preferred receiving help from someone from the same country if possible.
This really looks just like the movies...
Old elevated highways, giant roadside billboards, palm trees, and low buildings stretching endlessly beneath the clear blue sky in the distance all spread out before him exactly like the Los Angeles he remembered from films.
The taxi soon entered the city proper, but strangely enough, it did not feel especially “old.” When Insu first awakened memories of his previous life back in Korea, the era difference had felt overwhelming. But this place looked almost identical to the Los Angeles from the movies he remembered in his previous life.
“This place is pretty good. It’s not super luxurious, but it’s clean enough and not too expensive.”
Insu’s family settled into the accommodation recommended by the taxi driver. And the Gaju Hotel genuinely was not bad at all.
“This is nice.”
“Maybe because it’s a hotel?”
It was not especially large, but it was clean and seemed perfectly adequate for a family of three staying several days.
More importantly, at this time in Korea, common accommodations were still mostly inns and cheap lodgings with fairly poor conditions, so Seongcheol and Hyein’s standards were already low enough that they would probably have been satisfied almost anywhere decent.
“Oh! A Korean sign!”
“You’re right!”
Together with Insu, Seongcheol and Hyein enthusiastically wandered around like tourists. During his previous trip, Seongcheol had only worked and returned immediately, so he seemed determined to make up for that missed experience this time.
The wide roads, movie-like atmosphere, and towering palm trees lining the streets all left a strong impression.
But they were not simply sightseeing either.
“So a small condo suitable for a single person costs around seventy to one hundred fifty thousand dollars?”
Apparently, in this neighborhood, apartments with individually owned units were called condos.
“Really?”
“And if you rent monthly, it’s around five hundred to nine hundred.”
They visited various real estate agencies. Since they hoped to settle near Koreatown if possible, they deliberately searched nearby agencies, and just as expected from the Korean writing beneath the signboard, a woman in her fifties with permed hair and heavy Korean-American makeup sat inside.
And the single-person condos were intended for the development team members they hoped to bring from Korea. Whether they would actually come or not remained uncertain, but Insu wanted to bring them if possible, and he believed offering conveniences like housing would improve the chances.
Besides real estate, they also visited supermarkets to check local prices.
“Isn’t this cheap?”
“It is. It’s incredibly cheap.”
Since Hyein usually handled grocery shopping, Seongcheol looked uncertain and turned toward her instead. Hyein responded with obvious surprise.
Compared to the America Insu remembered from his previous life, America during this period was economically far more stable. Income levels were vastly higher than Korea’s while some living costs were actually lower, making it an excellent era not only for ordinary citizens but also for immigrants trying to settle down.
“Doesn’t this place seem pretty good?”
After spending considerable time exploring Los Angeles, Seongcheol muttered the words almost to himself.
And both Insu and Hyein silently agreed.