Chapter 46
When all of today’s classes were over, I turned down my classmates’ offer to eat dinner together and went back to my one-room apartment.
The moment I sat down in front of my laptop, I spoke to Zero.
"Zero, you said Seongsam Electronics wanted a proposal before we made the app, right?"
"That is correct."
"Then make the proposal for Crazy Bird yourself. It’s going to Seongsam Electronics, so keep it as clean and professional as a business document can be."
"Understood."
The instant I gave the order, PowerPoint appeared on the laptop screen.
And then.
Scribble, scribble, scribble, scribble, scribble.
[Table of Contents.]
[Game Overview and Planning Intent.]
[Character Design Drafts.]
...
[Expected Revenue Model and Marketing Impact Analysis...]
The proposal was finished in no time.
Red birds, yellow birds, black birds, and more.
And the wooden, icy, and stone structures they would hurl their bodies at to smash apart, along with the pig villains.
It kept the core fun of the original Crazy Bird, but with Zero’s attention to detail added in, the overall quality was far higher.
"The proposal is complete. It is a 52-page presentation file."
It didn’t even take a minute to make.
A normal planning team would have needed five or six people burning the midnight oil for weeks to produce something of this length and quality.
To finish it this fast was exactly why Zero was such a reassuring presence.
"If we deliver the proposal too quickly, that won’t look good. Let’s do it tomorrow morning."
People were funny that way.
If something got whipped up in an instant, they were likely to think, Is this just some sloppy rush job?
You had to at least make it look like you’d stayed up all night agonizing over it. Then the person receiving it would feel properly respected.
Even sending it in a day was still a little fast, though.
"Then I will deliver it tomorrow morning."
"Good."
Crazy Bird's proposal was handled.
Now all that remained was making the actual thing.
Click, click.
I loosened the joints in my fingers and set my hands on the keyboard.
"Seongsam Electronics hasn’t asked us to make Crazy Bird yet, but... they’ll want it soon enough anyway. So let’s just make it now."
Unless they were hopelessly lacking in taste, there was no way they would reject that game.
Without hesitation, I started typing out the code.
Tap-tap-tap-tap-tap-tap!
Rustle, rustle, rustle.
As always, I laid out the broad structure, and Zero filled in the details.
"We should make the physics engine feel a little weightier, right? We can’t have the wooden blocks feeling light when they fly off in-game."
"I have adjusted gravity and friction coefficients. Shall I also add debris scatter effects on impact?"
"Debris scatter... The joy of destruction is the core of it, so that effect would be nice, but the smartphone specs won’t be amazing. We can’t make the app too heavy. Let’s pay more attention to optimization."
"Proceeding."
And so the night deepened.
By the time dawn came and the window outside had turned bluish, Crazy Bird was complete on my laptop monitor.
"All done."
I saved the file, closed the laptop lid, and headed for bed.
"Today’s classes are in the afternoon, so... I should sleep a bit before I go."
Now that it was finished, I really was looking forward to it.
I wanted to see just how shocked Seongsam Electronics would be when they saw my Crazy Bird proposal.
At 10:00 a.m., in the Future Innovation Office conference room at Seongsam Electronics’ Seocho headquarters, Kim Hyeoncheol sat at the head of the long table, with the wireless division’s development team leader, the marketing executive, designers, and the UI/UX staff seated on either side.
In other words, the core members of the entire Galleon project were all present.
On the conference room screen in front of them was the proposal for Crazy Bird that Another Technology had sent over.
...
...
Hmm...
...
Ahem...
But the atmosphere was not good.
No one was speaking up.
Everyone’s eyes were fixed on the screen, on the red bird with its fierce little eyes and the villainous green pigs.
"So..."
The first person to break the silence was Seo Haeun, the marketing executive.
She had a short bob, a sharp expression, and bright red lipstick.
"This is the proposal sent by that supposedly amazing Another Technology?"
Her tone already carried irritation.
Kim Hyeoncheol noticed it too, but he answered calmly.
"Yes, that is correct. This morning, Another Technology proposed it as the killer application to be installed in the new smartphone, Galleon."
"Ha..."
At that, Seo Haeun let out a baffled laugh.
She tapped the desk with her pen and pointed at the screen.
"Setting aside the fact that they sent this proposal in a day... Director Kim, do you really think that’s appropriate?"
Kim Hyeoncheol outranked her, so Seo Haeun was being as polite as she could manage.
The marketing side had always been full of strong personalities and strong opinions, so even this level of restraint was a fairly serious check on her temper.
"You’re asking whether I think it’s appropriate?"
"May I be blunt?"
"Of course. Speak freely."
"Since you told me to speak freely, I will. Haa... how should I even put this."
Seo Haeun sighed and said,
"You’re asking whether a game about shooting birds from a slingshot to knock out pigs fits the concept of our Galleon smartphone."
Her voice rose gradually.
"What is the concept of the Galleon we’re launching this time? Isn’t it 'your personal assistant' and 'a partner for successful business'? That’s why we gave it such a grand name, Galleon, and emphasized that metallic, cold-city-businessman image in the device color."
"...Right."
"And now we’re supposed to launch this childish little game as a major marketing point? We’re already killing ourselves over the marketing plan..."
Seo Haeun shook her head.
The expression on her face made her disgust plain.
"Absolutely not. This damages Galleon’s brand image. Do you really think customers buying Seongsam Electronics’ latest product, which costs over a million won, are going to open their wallets just to play some slingshot game? All it does is make people think, 'Seongsam phones are just toys for kids.'"
"..."
"I’m completely against using that game as a marketing point. Of course, since you have full authority over this project, if you tell us to install the game by default and use it in marketing, I’ll come up with ideas somehow. But please, reconsider."
"So... even if we preinstall it, you don’t want to use it as a marketing item."
"That’s right."
The reason Kim Hyeoncheol had offered the expensive concession of "helping suppress the taxi industry’s backlash" to Another Technology was to make Another Technology’s new app a marketing point for Galleon.
He wanted it to be the strong weapon that would help sell the Galleon smartphone.
So if they only preinstalled the app and never marketed it, the whole thing was pointless.
"Hmm..."
Team Leader Park from the wireless division chimed in as well.
"Director, to be honest, I agree with Executive Seo."
"You think so too, Team Leader Park?"
"Yes, Director. From a technical standpoint as well... this is too simple."
He scanned the proposal’s technical section as he continued.
"They say they used a physics engine, but honestly, a game with a physics engine like this is something our own staff could make quickly. A college student could build this."
Kim Hyeoncheol agreed with that part too.
He knew his way around computer science, after all.
"I don’t know how impressive a physics engine Another Technology plans to put into the game, but... in any case, a casual game like this isn’t the level of technology we were looking for."
"..."
"Since it’s a new app from Another Tech, I expected something groundbreaking, or some revolutionary software we could never have imagined. But this? Just a casual game... honestly, it’s a bit disappointing. The fact that they drafted the proposal in one day makes it feel like they just handed over a game concept they’d already been planning to make themselves."
With the two of them speaking, the room’s mood shifted sharply toward the negative.
Maybe the foreign representative from Vincent Lightman’s side didn’t understand Korean tastes?
Maybe Americans liked that cartoon style, but Koreans wouldn’t go for it.
Unless it was go-stop or poker.
Or maybe an RPG would be better.
Ah, right. If it had to be a casual game, a rhythm game might be okay too.
Actually, even then, I’m not sure a game app gives us any real advantage if it comes preinstalled.
Kim Hyeoncheol listened silently to all of it.
...What am I supposed to do now?
He trusted Another Technology deeply.
So if possible, he wanted to push this through.
But if the opposition is this strong...
Even with full authority over the Galleon project, it would be hard to force something through when the staff opposed it this strongly.
He wasn’t the owner of the company.
And, to be honest, even from Kim Hyeoncheol’s perspective, Crazy Bird looked far too light as a game.
Of course, the proposal itself was excellent.
It included every detail and development direction Seongsam Electronics wanted, perfectly.
The problem was the content itself.
A game where you launch birds with a slingshot to smash buildings and defeat pig villains...
The Galleon project was a life-or-death matter for Seongsam Electronics. Failure was not an option.
And yet they were supposed to put a game about flinging birds from a slingshot front and center on such an important stage?
Even if I trust Another Technology... the risk is just too high.
Still, shouldn’t Another Technology be worth trusting?
As Kim Hyeoncheol wrestled with that thought, Seo Haeun spoke again.
"And Director, you know who our Galleon ad model is this time, right? Actor Lee Minheon."
"I know."
Lee Minheon was Kim Hyeoncheol’s friend.
Of course, they hadn’t chosen him just because he was a friend. His recent drama had been a major success, and his image happened to fit perfectly, so he had been selected as the model.
"Yes. We spent tens of billions of won trying to borrow that solemn, luxurious image Lee Minheon has. Three TV commercials and two smaller pieces, and that’s how much we spent just on the advertising fee."
"..."
"Are we really going to tell an actor like that, 'Come on, everyone, fire birds at pigs like me! Wow, this is so much fun! If you want to play this game, buy the one-million-won Galleon smartphone right now! Your personal assistant, Galleon!'? I mean... if we ask him to do it, he probably will. He can’t really go against us."
Hoo.
Seo Haeun let out a long breath and finished.
"But after seeing that kind of ad, would consumers really buy Galleon?"
"..."
"Besides, Lee Minheon already finished filming two of the ads in a sharp suit, looking incredibly polished. If we suddenly jam a game in there, wouldn’t the whole flow of the commercial feel completely off?"
At her words, everyone in the room nodded.
There was no real rebuttal. Anyone could see that Galleon’s marketing direction and Crazy Bird were far too different.
The meeting dragged on past lunch and into the evening.
For good measure, Kim Hyeoncheol even asked the marketing staff on the ground for their opinions, but the responses were much the same.
"The birds are cute. But whether it fits Galleon... I’m not sure.","I don’t know if the game itself would even be fun. Maybe it’s different once you actually try it.","Wouldn’t it be better to have a schedule management app that helps with work efficiency instead?"
If this many people are against it... then I really can’t do much about it.
In the end, a conclusion was reached late that night.
Kim Hyeoncheol let out a deep sigh and spoke quietly.
"...Let’s put it on hold."
At that, everyone in the conference room nodded.
They all thought that was the right call.
"I’ll contact Another Technology myself. I’ll tell them it doesn’t fit Galleon’s premium strategy, so we can’t preinstall it. I’ll refuse politely and ask them to propose another practical app instead."
"Good thinking, Director."
Seo Haeun nodded with satisfaction.
"In any case, they’d probably want to keep working with Seongsam, wouldn’t they? I’m sure they’ll come back within a few days with some plausible business app proposal."
"Whether they’ll want to keep working with us... I wonder."
Kim Hyeoncheol couldn’t answer that immediately.
If it were another company, maybe. But if it’s Another Technology...
While he was lost in thought, the staff one by one left the conference room.
In the empty room, Kim Hyeoncheol remained alone.
He couldn’t turn off the screen, and just stared at it blankly.
The red bird on the screen seemed to glare silently back at him.
...!
...Why does this feel so wrong?
Logically, his staff’s arguments were all correct.
Crazy Bird didn’t fit Galleon’s marketing direction.
He thought so too.
Brand image, target audience, marketing strategy. In every respect, the Crazy Bird game was terribly unsuitable.
There was no way to present it as Galleon’s main weapon.
And yet... it feels like I’m making a huge mistake.
His instincts kept sending warning signals.
It was the same sickly feeling you got when you bought a lottery ticket, accidentally threw it in the trash, and then heard your numbers come up on a live drawing while only half-watching the broadcast.
Damn it...
Kim Hyeoncheol had risen from a rookie employee to the head of Seongsam Electronics’ Future Innovation Office.
But for a project this enormous, one that would decide the company’s direction, the pressure was simply too much.
Tick, tick.
"Haa..."
As he smoked in the conference room to steady his nerves, Kim Hyeoncheol felt something else.
The birds on the screen. Earlier, it had felt like only the red bird was glaring at him.
Now it seemed like the yellow birds, the green birds, all of them were staring at him too.
...!
...!
...!
...!
As if they were saying, "How dare someone like you reject us?"
...It really was too unsettling.
And there was another, more irrational anxiety too, the feeling that he might be making the same mistake as Team Leader Choi from the wireless division had once made.
I should think about this a little more... and then speak to Another Technology as politely as possible.
A few days after Kim Dohyun sent the proposal to Seongsam Electronics, Friday morning arrived.
Since I had no classes that day, I planned to eat, clean my apartment, and then go back to my parents’ house.
Come to think of it, Seohee’s March mock exam was on Wednesday. I wonder how she did. She hasn’t called. If she did badly... I can’t exactly ask first, can I?
Munch, munch.
I was eating happily when I froze at Zero’s words.
"Master, Seongsam Electronics has contacted us and asked that Crazy Bird be put on hold."
"...Put on hold? You mean they’re rejecting the game?"
Before I knew it, the words were out of my mouth.
"That is correct. They say 'put on hold,' but in practical terms it is a rejection. I just spoke with Director Kim Hyeoncheol, and to summarize his position, Crazy Bird does not fit the premium business image that the Galleon smartphone is pursuing, so installation would be difficult."
"..."
"He also said that if we could propose another practical utility app, they would review it as a top priority, and he added several times that he was sorry to reject something we had worked so hard to prepare."
Sorry, huh...
Then why do something you’ll need to apologize for?
They should’ve just taken what I gave them... No, if they were going to reject it because it didn’t fit their strategy, they should’ve asked for an app like that in the first place.
They had said everything I wanted to make was fine, and now this.
That annoyed me.
"In my assessment, Director Kim likely wanted to approve it if he could. He trusts your judgment that much, Master. However, the opinions of the marketing department and other employees likely differed."
"The marketing department?"
"Yes. If they plan to market and sell the Galleon smartphone as a 'premium business image,' then it would be difficult to sell a game as the core item. It is true that it does not match the marketing direction."
Hearing that, I understood it just a little. Maybe 0.1 percent.
I had been around companies long enough to know that they were full of different opinions and that it was a pain in the neck.
But that didn’t make me feel any better.
Strictly speaking, I wasn’t angry so much as disappointed in Seongsam Electronics’ judgment.
If I were some nobody with no name, fine... but they knew my ability, which is why they came to me in the first place.
Seongsam Electronics had kicked away a golden egg that had rolled right into their lap because they thought, This egg doesn’t look like something we should eat.
Even though a golden egg was never meant to be eaten in the first place.
"Well then, whatever. Nothing I can do about it."
If they couldn’t take the chance I offered them, I had no intention of prying their mouths open and forcing it in.
Business was cold that way.
And honestly, I don’t need Seongsam Electronics’ support for Ride Together either.
If they didn’t run Ride Together in Korea, so be it.
Even without that, I was confident I could make hundreds of millions, even billions of dollars a month across the world.
There was no need to get insulted in Korea and drag myself through some mud-slinging business war.
I had nothing to lose.
Zero. Contact Kim Hyeoncheol and tell him we respect his opinion and will treat this proposal as if it never happened. And scrap all the source code we made for Crazy Bird on Android.
"Understood. Shall I send that message immediately? Then should I delete the Crazy Bird project?"
I wrapped some grilled seaweed with napa kimchi and rice, then issued my next order to Zero.
No. Convert it for IOS. Submit it to the Apple App Store as soon as the work is finished.
"Because Seongsam rejected it, you intend to sell it through Apple’s app store."
"Yeah. It’s time to teach Seongsam Electronics a proper lesson."
The reason I needed to teach them a lesson was because I still had to keep working with them in the future.
Again, if Seongsam Electronics succeeded with smartphones and kept Apple in check, I would have even more room to profit in the middle.
But that’s that, and this is this. It’s time to put them back in line.
Right now was the time to swing the stick at Seongsam Electronics to sort out the hierarchy.
The stick of skill.