Yujin's Game Development Club (1)
There's one thing I need to point out here.
About game development.
The board game business has completely been handed over to Liana now. I just toss her ideas every now and then. Like Catan, Splendor, or Halli Galli—stuff from my old world. She takes those and has her newly established Game Workshop at the Liana Merchant Guild produce and sell them as-is.
And they're still a massive hit. Apparently, some coffee houses these days aren't just for sipping coffee and chatting—they're treating these board games as the main attraction. Board game cafes hitting the market before modern-style ones. Liana, you've got talent. And luck too. Keep it up just like this.
But when it comes to game development through Cubes? That's a whole different story.
Right now, in this entire world, there's only one person who knows how to do game development.
Yujin Feltro. Me.
Wiki's just auxiliary AI, and even Master Arkythia has basically zero knowledge about "games."
In other words, I'm starting to get overwhelmed working solo...!
Even in my old life, solo dev was tough unless you were indie—and even indies needed 2-3 years minimum. For the AAA titles I'm aiming for? Prototyping alone requires at least 40-50 people. And once full production hits, including the final crunch? Easily over 150.
That's why I chose a mafia social deduction game for my first one.
'Cause it's easy to develop.'
No need for custom modeling. Just slap on some decent outfits. Set the rules, drag in existing assets to build a mansion, and boom—background done.
The next one, the psychological horror game Dementia: Lost Memories? It was made for the investigation, sure, but honestly easier than Lancaster Family's Ripper. Recycled assets from the mafia game, added some details and effects, threw in a simple storyline. Even reused the pursuer, just tweaked the behavior patterns and linked the triggers.
But things have changed now.
Mafia's meant for playing with friends you already know.
And our core customers in this Cube room? Library-using mages. The higher their circle, the worse their social skills get. No way a social deduction game flies with them!
These guys' only "friends" are spirits they can barely communicate with.
No spirit affinity? They spend 365 days a year going library-home-library alone.
Ever seen a total loner play mafia? Like at school retreats where everyone's doing real-life mafia, but you're the one in the corner on your phone playing online? I've been there. For our kind, social games are just trauma machines.
No wonder PTSD hit right after Hanna insta-killed me on first play.
It had been ages since real-time mafia!
On the flip side, Dementia sells to mages as a single-player game. But it's too niche—horror games inherently repel people. Fear's a negative, painful emotion. Who pays to torture themselves?
That's why in my past life, I'd bribe streamers with cash to play horror games. Watching someone else suffer is fun.
Tried it with Liana—20 minutes in, she threatened to void all contracts unless I kicked her out.
What'd Hanna say, tagging along? Something about awakening new sadistic tastes...
Anyway.
'Good for events, but not the IP to hook everyone upfront.'
Plus, Claude's "weird phenomenon" is still unsolved, and it's too case-specific for public release.
Conclusion: We need a new title. One with ongoing updates. Massive volume forcing multiple playthroughs. Single-player tailored to mages. A world so mind-bending even battle-hardened veterans go wide-eyed.
With goals like that, recruiting a team isn't optional—it's mandatory.
Naturally, recruitment starts with—
"Game production? You made one last time, making another?"
My great patron and total scaredy-cat, the Golden Daughter herself, Liana Aishinkiore.
"This one's bigger scale. I can't handle it alone."
Truth is, Liana's special to me. Not romantically or anything... She's the first to experience Dimension.
In a way, she took my "virginity" (kinda). Perfect first teammate.
"Pardon? You're asking me to make a game together? Not board games—Dimension-exclusive?"
"Yes, you're my first—mmph."
Liana freaked and clamped my mouth shut.
"Aaa—! Listen, Sir Yujin! You can't just blurt that out! You know the rumors flying around the guild lately?!"
"What rumors?"
"That I'm... involved with you or something! Going to the library after closing two or three times a week...!!"
"Hm, isn't that just facts?"
"Hey!"
"Look at us. Does this scream lovers? You start swinging fists first thing."
Post-horror game, Liana's gotten touchier. That "touchy" includes cap kicks, soccer kicks, solar plexus jabs, windmills—full martial arts. Not a secret.
She used to show up in qipao for free hugs, but now reactions are way more violent. Kinda sad...
"Lady Liana, you said running the guild's gotten boring lately. Capital's basically your monopoly, right? High society—same people, same talk... Aren't you bored?"
"...N-no, not bored?"
"There you go again. Just read the scenario first?"
I finally pulled out the cherished proposal from my bosom.
Ten minutes later, her lips twitched after skimming the outline.
"Hm, ahem... So, what do I do?"
Yujin Feltro. Victory declared upon arriving at the guild.
Actually, the reason I approached Liana first wasn't just that.
'She can source most of the tech crew.'
Like with Margareta Lancaster's forced Dimension drag last time, Liana Aishinkiore and her guild hold absolute sway in the capital.
"First, we need modeling."
"Modeling?"
"Last time with Jack the Ripper, you wore a maid outfit instead of your usual clothes, right? That's modeling. Can't implement non-existent stuff in Dimension."
In short, original art and 3D modeling art team.
The department with the most people in game dev—and the most suffering. Alpha and omega of development. Turning shitty concepts into masterpieces.
"Existing items can be bought via guild and imported to the system, but new ones? We make 'em ourselves."
"We can outsource the whole thing to the guild. We've got a crafting department. Board games are all made by Shape Memory Branch artisans. I can probably snag a few."
"Perfect. Let's proceed. I'll sketch initial designs."
Liana delivers, as expected. Knew I could count on her.
Art team—biggest headache—solved.
We don't need full game polish like concept art, modeling, UI/UX anyway.
Programming's me and Wiki duo. Skip that.
Next: Planning and system design.
In games, design's crucial, but planning's just as vital.
People think planning's like corporate product proposals, loose concepts, or just scenarios.
But no department's more specialized than planning.
Narrative and quest planning. Level design. Enemy NPC patterns and character planning. In-game economy balancing scenarios.
Screw up even one? Even god-tier graphics tanks to dogshit.
This needs trusted elites.
"Juniors, seniors, alumni, or guild staff. Can you scout fitting people?"
I handed Liana the job ad. Her eyes narrowed reading it.
"This'll actually work?"
"Have you been burned your whole life? Trust your senior this once!"
"Senior only when it suits you... Fine, I'll have staff post it."
Just two days after the ad went up across Romanium.
People buzzed about the weird posters everywhere.
All God's creatures interested in connecting and creating worlds.
Explorers who yearn to peer deeper into games.
Writers, artisans, mages, alchemists, adventurers, thespians, explorers, musicians, gourmets, ecologists.
Tight deadlines, little leisure, overwork, weeks of all-nighters, endless debates, no guaranteed clock-out, success brings honor, glory, and big money.
—Central Imperial Magic Library—
"Central Imperial Magic Library? That place with the weirdo librarian?"
"Don't get me started—you're behind! That librarian's the creator of Path of Gold and all those board games!"
"What?!"
"One of Archmage Arkythia's rare disciples too. Buddy mage who's been in and out says they're prepping world-shaking magic!"
"Haha, what, dimension magic? When they can't even restore lost teleport..."
"With the continental magic council soon? Probably announcing then."
"Yeah, heard Liana Merchant Guild's fully backing it?"
"What?! If Liana's in, that's different!"
"...Says non-mages can apply too?"
"Curious—maybe apply? I was an adventurer back in the day..."
"Nah! Heard it's an expedition to a new world. Arkythia's back from beyond the Silent Sea—new continent!"
Rumors snowballed, twisting Yujin's game dev plans into Archmage Arkythia and disciple's "mysterious mega-event."
Hundreds soon swarmed the library.
Including one saying,
"Board games were fun... And the later ones were all so unique."
The empire's acclaimed top literary figure and playwright—
Dante Otter Dubois.
Frankly, he'd been in a rut lately.
If the game's creator was behind it, even if not his style, the meeting itself would spark inspiration.
And Dante's expectations hit dead-on.
"Dante? Hmm, rings a bell. Sounds like a guy who'd write about heaven. And your application fits."
"Ah—yes, I'm the—"
"Question time. When and how should the heroine die to make furious readers hunt the author for a rewrite?"
"?"
"Too deep from the start? Describe a female character's personality: charm point inside chest, blonde twintails, heavy makeup but shy about short skirts. Add three sizes, physical traits. Infuse your aesthetic philosophy."
Questions he'd never considered rained down.