Chapter 45
Chapter 45
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 45
Chapter Title: Check Swing (3)
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‘Lee Hyeonho… I’m going to crush that bastard.’
From that day on, I poured everything I had into developing the prototype.
I had always intended to do my best, but that resolve grew even stronger after meeting Lee Hyeonho.
A piece of trash who treats his subordinates like disposable parts, obsessed with trampling over others.
Having been tormented by people like that my whole life, I refused to lose to someone who had picked a fight with me.
No… just as Lee Hyeonho had said, I was the one who was going to crush him.
“I've sent over the detailed design document for the second combat encounter! Please review it quickly so we can have a meeting!”
“Oh… yes. Is the document already out, PD-nim?”
God Game Maker's acceleration skill was a huge help, but to keep up with the pace I wanted, I had to work day and night.
If the planning phase fell behind schedule, it would overload the graphics and programming teams.
To prevent any issues, I made sure to deliver the documents a day… or even two to three days ahead of the original schedule.
And so…
“PD-nim, all the resources for the first combat section of the prototype are ready.”
“Okay, I'll check them. I'll send a separate list later with parts that can be reused in other encounters and anything that needs a retake. For now, please proceed with the work on the second combat encounter.”
Heo Yuri would take that and create the assets.
“PD-nim, I've compiled a build that includes only the first combat encounter.”
“Great, I'll playtest it. I'll start the QA and list any necessary revisions, so please continue with your work. Unless it's a game-breaking bug or a major usability issue, we'll fix it all at once during the final QA.”
Jeong Yosep would take that and implement it into an actual combat sequence.
We postponed fixing minor bugs and trivial issues that came up, choosing instead to push forward with the subsequent tasks even faster.
The plan was to finish the build as far ahead of schedule as possible, then repeat the QA process as many times as we could to push the quality to its absolute limit.
After nearly a month of this frantic pace…
“I've shared the final build through the company messenger, PD-nim.”
“Whew… You've all worked so hard. Now, all that's left is the QA.”
At last, we had completed the prototype for Pass On Dream.
‘The deadline is still about seven days away… That's plenty of time.’
Thanks to our mad dash, we had ample time before the build submission deadline.
It was crucial not to slack off now, but to raise the quality of the current build as much as possible.
Bugs, usability, and so on… a game is the kind of thing that naturally improves the more you polish it.
I was determined to present the best possible product to the higher-ups.
And right now, I had an ability perfectly suited for this task.
‘First, let's check the build's grade.’
<<God Game Maker will now assess the grade of 'Pass On Dream'!>>
[Prototype Game / Pass On Dream]
- A prototype for Jo Hyunsoo's new game.
While there are many promising aspects overall, its status as a prototype means many shortcomings are also visible.
- Grade: B-
‘Damn… It's much lower than I expected.’
The prototype's grade was B-... Not bad, but it fell far short of my standards.
To clear the main quest, I needed at least an A+.
Besides, even if Oh Geoshin had shown interest, this game was far from mainstream compared to current mobile titles.
That's why I had to present something truly overwhelming to pass the build evaluation.
In the remaining week, I wanted to raise this game's grade to the quest-clearing threshold of A+... no, at least an S- or higher.
However, with a team of only two people, raising the grade by two full tiers at once was difficult… no, to be honest, it was damn near impossible.
‘…How many points do I have left?’
After a moment of thought, I checked my God Game Maker status.
Current level: 7. Remaining stat points: 25.
With this many, I figured I could probably buy something amazing from the shop.
‘Open shop.’
<<Displaying the Developer Shop!>>
[Developer Shop]
- Greetings! Welcome to the Developer Shop. The items in the shop are updated periodically, and the selection may change based on the developer's level and situation!
(※ Shop-Exclusive Points: 20 / Level-Up Points: 20)
‘Ah, I still have the exclusive points.’
When I opened the shop window, I saw that the 20 shop points I received from clearing the last quest were still there.
A total of 40 points… If the shop had a good selection, I might be able to find a solution here.
But…
(1). Boost your team members' morale! 'Passion, Passion, Passion!' - 5 points
(2). Increase the T.O. for one intern-level team member! 'Supply Drop' - 15 points
(3). Refresh Shop Immediately - 1 point
(4). (NEW) Premium Shop Refresh - 3 points (Refreshes the shop list with items of a higher level than your own.)
The current list didn't have anything that looked immediately useful.
The team's morale was already high, and adding an intern right now wouldn't solve the problem.
Besides, even if it was a skill, it's not like a new person could be hired and start in a single day…
Due to these various constraints, my eyes naturally drifted to the fourth item on the list.
‘Should I gamble 3 points on this or not…’
Premium Shop Refresh.
Use 3 precious points to generate a higher-level shop list.
Using it just twice would cost 6 points.
Considering I only get 5 points per level, the risk was too great.
After a long moment of deliberation… I had no choice but to make a decision.
‘It's too risky to try and break through this situation with only the cards I'm holding.’
If I somehow managed to grind my two team members to the bone, I might be able to hit an A+ grade.
But what I wanted now was to create an overwhelming prototype with an S grade or higher.
To achieve that, I had to take a risk.
‘Purchase Premium Shop Refresh.’
<<Spending 3 points to perform a Premium Shop Refresh!>>
A moment later, a new status window appeared before my eyes.
(1). Increase a target's comprehension to B- up to 3 times (Consumable). 'The All-Seer' - 30 points
(2). Secure T.O. for a regular employee-level staff member (Permanent). 'Enhanced Supply Drop' - 20 points
(3). Drastically increase team members' stamina for 1 week (Consumable). 'Zombie Legion' - 30 points
(4). (NEW) Premium Shop Refresh - 3 points (Refreshes the shop again at the current level.)
‘Increase team members' stamina for a week… That's not bad, but…’
The new shop list was definitely an improvement over the last one.
But even these items were difficult to make immediate use of.
There was the skill to boost my team's stamina for a week, but it had clear limitations.
‘Ultimately, it's no different from telling them to pull all-nighters for a whole week.’
It's common to work overtime around a build deadline, but our team had only been together for a little over a month.
In this situation, I didn't want to, nor did I have any intention of, forcing my team to work overtime for an entire week.
Even if some overtime was unavoidable, people still need a bare minimum of rest.
I knew that all too well from my own days as a team member. Besides, these two needed to grow into lead roles and become the core of our team in the future.
I didn't want to burn out their morale and stamina right from the start.
No matter how amazing someone is, passion has its limits.
‘The maximum price in the premium shop seems to be around 30 points… I can afford to refresh the list a couple more times.’
In the end, I refreshed the shop list once more.
<<Spending 3 points to perform a Premium Shop Refresh!>>
But this time, it was another bust.
I only had one chance left.
If a useful item didn't appear on the last try, I'd have to pick something, for better or worse, and move on.
I, who hated gacha games so much, was now playing gacha myself. The irony wasn't lost on me.
<<Spending 3 points to perform a Premium Shop Refresh!>>
‘There it is!’
(2). Provides a detailed analysis and report on the programming, graphics, and design aspects of your game. (※ Skill lasts until the end of Chapter 2). 'The Ultimate Advisor' - 30 points
A detailed analysis and a comprehensive report.
It was exactly the ability I needed right now. Plus, it seemed I could use it repeatedly until the end of Chapter 2… meaning, until the completion of the ‘Pass On Dream’ title.
I let out a silent sigh of relief and immediately reached into the air to select the second item on the list.
<<Spending 30 points to purchase 'The Ultimate Advisor'!>>
Now… all I had to do was activate this skill on the prototype!
“PD-nim, are you okay?”
“Hmm?”
Just then, I turned my head to see Jeong Yosep and Heo Yuri looking down at me with pity in their eyes.
“What's wrong?”
“Um… well… it's just…”
When I asked, Jeong Yosep hesitated, as if he had something to say but couldn't get it out.
Seeing his frustration, Heo Yuri stepped forward and bluntly asked the question.
“You were just staring blankly into space and moving your hands around strangely. You're not so tired that you're losing it, are you?”
“What?”
It seemed the two of them had seen me using God Game Maker.
Then again… anyone watching me would have thought I looked pretty bizarre.
I made a mental note to be more discreet next time.
“I was just lost in thought, drawing up a structural diagram in my head. Hmm… think of it like how you, Heo Yuri, spin your tablet pen when you can't think of something. Is that easier to understand?”
“Oh, I see. You never did that when you were on the Phoenix team… I thought maybe you were so tired you were having sleep paralysis or something.”
“Haha, thanks for your concern. It's nothing, so don't worry about it.”
The two of them finally seemed to understand, nodding before returning to their desks.
I returned to what I was doing.
‘Activate The Ultimate Advisor on the Pass On Dream prototype.’
As I strongly willed the skill to activate…
<<The Ultimate Advisor is activating!>>
An additional status window, packed with text, appeared before my eyes.
[Pass On Dream Analysis and Improvement Report]
[Design]
Q1: The current composition is too weak for players to fully enjoy the 'potion' combat system in the second and fourth battles.
A1: A way must be found to unify the four battles, each with its own theme.
Find something with symbolic significance, like the Seven Deadly Sins (for the prototype, it would be advantageous to find a symbol related to the number 4), assign a connected theme to each battle, and improve the combat presentation accordingly.
Q2: Some historical details regarding Gauguin and Van Gogh are incorrect. While this may not matter to the average user, there is an 80.2% predicted probability that President Oh Geoshin will point this out.
A2: The incorrect historical details are…
…
[Graphics]
Q1: In an attempt to create an oil painting feel, the saturation has been lowered excessively. However, when played on an OLED panel, the saturation will appear even more muted, creating an unpleasant visual experience.
A1: To capture the vibrant 'yellow' feel of Van Gogh's paintings, a yellow tint should be added to the overall color palette, and the saturation must be increased.
(#. Sample Example)
Q2: The animation that plays during the third phase of the Chapter 1 battle lacks polish.
A2: Apply squash and stretch effects at frames 17 and 36, respectively, and add a hold effect at frames 10 and 19.
…
[Programming]
Q1: During combat scene transitions, all resource prefabs are being reloaded each time, causing overload.
A1: Improvement is needed. When combat begins, all required resources should be loaded at once and kept waiting in memory.
Q2: For the first and third battles, instead of adding separate assets to the build, it would be more efficient to use an in-tool inverted version of the first battle's background.
A2: Using the function within Unity…
…
‘Holy… what is this?’
The moment I saw the contents of the report, my jaw dropped.