Chapter 77
Chapter 77
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 77
Chapter Title: Marketing Preparations (2)
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Since the day I promised to marry Rokhui, my life has become a little simpler, and a little more intense.
‘For Rokhui's sake, I have to make *Pass On Dream* a success, no matter what.’
It was a game I always wanted to make, but thinking about starting our wedding preparations after its release made me want everything to proceed in the best possible atmosphere.
‘I'll fill it with content while polishing it as much as possible.’
The game's overall systems were already complete in the first build.
Now, how well we could fill it with outstanding direction and storytelling would ultimately determine POD's success or failure.
Fortunately, the interference from Seo Donghyuk's faction had noticeably decreased since the incident with the first build.
‘They must be afraid, with the negative rumors circulating within the company and President Oh Geoshin throwing his full support behind our project.’
After that, we continued to refine the combat system with the help of team leader Jang Ho.
The flow of using the 'Inspiration' stat, gained from drinking or progressing through stages, to battle paintings was well-established. Jang Ho created level designs for each chapter and battle that perfectly matched my intentions.
‘The cinematic videos are better than I expected, too.’
Furthermore, the Seojong University industry-academia cooperation group, which had caused trouble before, was now consistently producing high-quality animations after I intervened directly.
In particular, the stop-motion animations created with the help of Oh Hana, the student who did the sand animation, had a unique feel in every piece, satisfying me more than 100% of my expectations each time.
Personally, we exchanged many ideas about the work, laying the groundwork for a long-term relationship.
And things within the team weren't bad either.
“PD Hyunsoo! As of today, all the resources for Chapter 4 are finished! Yosep DD has implemented them all, too!”
“Great work, Part Leader Heo Yuri. You finished five days ahead of schedule?”
“My team is just that good! Ahaha!”
Of course, a large part of the project's smooth sailing was due to the two part leaders, Jeong Yosep and Heo Yuri.
Since I was essentially a one-man planning team, it was difficult for me to dedicate much effort to managing the team members. The two of them understood this well and handled things on their own, managing quality and schedules to a point where I barely had to worry.
Thanks to them, the second build review at the end of June and the third at the end of August passed without any issues. Development was progressing at an unstoppable pace.
By around October, game development was already over 70% complete.
‘If we keep going like this, we'll definitely be able to show the world the game we've been dreaming of next year.’
But I didn't know it at the time.
Just how many unreasonable things one has to endure when releasing a game under a company.
****
The business department conference room on the 16th floor of NB Soft.
Here, Director Jeong, the head of the business department, and his subordinate managers were holding a meeting.
“The Christian team's build evaluation for this third build was nearly a perfect score. On the other hand, while the Gold Digger team's evaluation wasn't bad, their development speed has been delayed due to some members leaving as work hours increased.”
“Hah. So Jo Hyunsoo, that arrogant bastard's team, is still doing well.”
Director Jeong Yongseok, a man with sharp features and graying hair.
In his late fifties, he was the oldest of the company's directors and a veteran who had been through the wringer of the game industry for over 20 years.
While his understanding of game development itself was lacking, his defining trait was his control over the organization, built on a network of connections and information so vast that there wasn't a business department employee in any game company he didn't know.
Because of him, the reputation of NB Soft's business department was simple.
Incompetent at their jobs, but competent at politics.
They had an uncanny ability to sense shifts in the company's power dynamics and knew exactly how to position themselves.
If there was a successful game, they'd get their slice of the pie, and if a game failed, they were just as quick to cut their losses.
‘In the end, I'll have to build a connection with Bonbujang Shin Chihwan's side. It seems President Oh Geoshin is throwing his weight behind them, too.’
Until now, Jeong Yongseok had been so close to Seo Donghyuk, the head of Division 1, that it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say they ate from the same pot.
That's why he had knowingly turned a blind eye even when some of the business department staff were dancing to Seo Donghyuk's tune.
But now, the picture had changed slightly—no, a lot.
The game by PD Jo Hyunsoo, whom he had dismissed as an arrogant brat, was now gaining momentum within the company, and above all, the external reactions were overwhelmingly positive.
For the business department, which needed to produce results, the POD project was like a honey-drenched prize.
The problem was how to shove that prize down their gullets.
“How many feedback documents have we sent over to them?”
“We've sent two for each build, so six in total. But they haven't implemented our feedback in the game even once.”
“Still?”
At his subordinate's words, Jeong Yongseok's brow twitched.
“Completely ignoring our feedback, huh.”
This was an action that would normally be impossible for a typical game team.
Usually, the business department has a significant influence on a game's evaluation and is involved in the overall management of the project, including marketing and press releases.
For a game team to be at odds with the business department was tantamount to trying to fly with one wing.
The business department had always used this power to meddle with the development team's business models or monetization structures, securing their own stake in the game's development.
However.
“It seems they can get away with ignoring it because the president is backing them.”
Jo Hyunsoo's team was a very special case.
Somehow, he had captured the heart of Oh Geoshin, the company's highest authority and a layman in gaming, and used that power to fend off the business department's feedback and lead the project thus far.
And the meaning behind such actions was clear.
“‘I won't give you a chance to get a piece of the pie.’ That must be it, the arrogant bastard.”
“Director Jeong, why don't we just give up on Bonbujang Shin Chihwan's side for now and focus all our efforts on the Gold Digger team?”
The subordinate's suggestion was extremely realistic and a plausible idea.
But Jeong Yongseok had no such intention.
“What kind of nonsense is that? Does it make sense for the business department not to be involved in a project the president is pushing?”
“But they won't accept it. What are we supposed to do?”
“Use your head. Manager Kim, have you only been working here for a day or two?”
“I-I'm sorry. Then what should we do?”
“Listen carefully. If we do it this way, even that arrogant punk will have no choice but to accept our proposal. We just have to throw him some very tempting bait.”
Jeong Yongseok began to lay out his thoughts, a smirk playing on his lips.
****
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[Business Department Office 5, Opinion on *Pass On Dream*]
-No additional monetization structure currently exists in-game.
Recommend adding character skins, sound packs, additional endings, etc., to the monetization structure to increase ARPU.
(#. At the current level, there is a limit to the marketing budget.)
-The combat act of 'painting' and the Inspiration system may not be intuitive for existing gamers. Suggest approaching it with the concept of Van Gogh seeing illusions due to drug addiction, simply defeating monsters.
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● If all of the business department's proposals are deemed to have been implemented, it is understood that a full-scale execution of the marketing budget will be possible after assessing future profitability.
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Bonbujang Shin Chihwan's office.
I was sitting with Shin Chihwan, reading the feedback document sent by the business department.
“What do you think of this feedback document, PD Hyunsoo?”
“It's bullshit. Do you think any of this makes sense?”
Until now, the business department had persistently sent us feedback documents.
But I had intentionally ignored their feedback all this time.
This was because the feedback itself contained many suggestions that would shake the game's core content to its foundations.
‘I've never seen anything good come from non-developers meddling and arguing about a game.’
The business department is, in fact, a team that specializes more in business models and monetization than in the realm of game development.
Making games is great, but a company is a place that needs to make money to survive.
That's why a competent business department can act as wings for a well-made game.
The problem is that with the transition to the era of mobile games, these business models and monetization have become overly important factors.
Because of this atmosphere, most game companies recently have seen the importance of the crucial development team diminish, creating a deformed structure where the business department gets involved in the development team's planning and even development.
Naturally, in that process, the sharp initial ideas the developers had are dulled, and as they tack on various things to the game to make money, it usually ends up as a mishmash of a product that's neither here nor there.
I had absolutely no intention of letting POD become like that.
“Hah. I don't think this is right either, but Director Jeong Yongseok contacted me recently.”
“What did that old geezer say?”
“He said we should all get along and work together. As it says in the feedback document, they can only execute the marketing budget if it looks like we're accepting some of their feedback.”
“Just how much are they planning to invest to be saying that?”
“They said they could burn up to 5 billion won.”
“5 billion won? Does that even make sense?”
A marketing budget of 5 billion won.
Considering our team's total development cost wouldn't even exceed 1 billion won, this was an absurdly large amount.
It was a budget typically used for large-scale MMORPG projects with teams of at least 70 to 80 members. Jeong Yongseok was boasting that he would spend that money on POD if we just listened to him.
“Well. It's their way of telling us to take their hand.”
“To me, it sounds like a threat.”
“To be honest, it was half a threat.”
The moment I heard that, I was dumbfounded.
To sum up the business department's words: if we didn't listen to them, they wouldn't execute the marketing budget for the POD project.
“Well, executing the additional marketing budget is their prerogative. And since we haven't given them any room to get their slice of the pie, they probably feel they have to do something.”
“What do you think, Bonbujang-nim?”
“Honestly, I think the right move is to just throw them a bone and accept the offer. It's obvious that spending 5 billion on marketing versus not spending it will make a huge difference in the game's performance.”
This was another harmful consequence born from the shift to the mobile game market.
As the gameplay of individual games became less distinct and the rate at which new games were released accelerated, the trend of determining a game's lifespan and success by how many initial customers could be attracted through marketing spend grew more common.
Because of this, most games poured marketing funds equivalent to their development costs, creating a strange system that only fattened the pockets of ad channels and the celebrities who filmed the commercials.
This is the typical flow of the Korean game industry today.
This was an unavoidable reality, even for a console game like POD.
However.
‘If I blindly accept this proposal, the meaning of me making games here will fade.’
My goal is to change the current of NB Soft, and by extension, the entire game industry.
This includes keeping the abnormally powerful business department in check.
But to let the rotten business department get their hands on this?
Putting all else aside, the thought of those bastards in the business department swaggering around, claiming POD's success was thanks to them, made me grind my teeth.
“Well, let's try to think positively. The fact that the business department is trying so hard to get a piece of it means the game has a high chance of success, after all.”
“Bonbujang-nim, if we don't receive marketing support from the business department, will the BEP (break-even point) be set lower?”
“Of course, it will. We'd be cutting out 5 billion won. But why do you ask?”
Shin Chihwan's brow twitched as if he sensed an ominous premonition.
In response, I stated firmly, my voice full of conviction.
“How much of Division 5's own budget is left for this year?”
“About 300 million won, I think? Why?”
“I was thinking, what if we handle the marketing for the POD project ourselves, without going through the business department at all? Please allocate 100 million of that to our team.”
“Ehhhhhh? A-Are you serious?”
I nodded silently.