Chapter 116
Chapter 116
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 116
Chapter Title: The Awards Ceremony - Identity (2)
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Upon arriving at the venue, the first thing I saw through the subdued tension was a massive stage in the distance.
“This way, please.”
Guided by Ayado, I headed to our studio’s designated table.
It was a round table set with water and refreshments.
Once seated, I took a look around.
“Do you know anyone here?”
To the question posed, I answered.
“How could I not, being in this industry?”
The director from Flare Soft, the creators of Demon Soul, was somewhere to my left. The director of Unchted was somewhere to my right, and in the seats ahead, Blizzid.
‘Hmm…’
Besides them, quite a few other formidable developers were in attendance.
The ones I could recognize were the Last Fantasy team, the Persona team, and the Civilization team.
Just as the rumors of a dry year suggested, the familiar faces ended there.
No, there was one more.
‘Nintender.’
I already knew what award they would be taking home.
It was then that I realized something.
“…Russo isn’t here. He’s not the type to miss an event like this.”
“Ah.”
Ayado let out a short sigh.
His expression seemed quite uncomfortable.
Or perhaps, troubled.
“…Is something the matter?”
“Russo is in seclusion. It happens from time to time. He cuts off all outside contact and disappears for years at a stretch.”
“That’s…”
“It’s not something to be overly concerned about.”
Ayado adjusted his glasses.
“If anything, it’s something to look forward to. He always emerges from such seclusion with a masterpiece.”
In other words, he was in deep, focused training.
I nodded my head.
The awards ceremony began around that time.
My gaze shifted to the stage, where a host appeared with the music.
His smooth opening remarks drew a roar of cheers from the audience.
They didn’t start with the main awards.
Various events, performances by industry celebrities, and then the awards themselves would follow.
The beginning was marked by a single trailer.
*Rumble!*
I watched it with a mix of tension, excitement, and a little bit of awe.
I couldn’t help it; the game currently filling the giant screen was the very reason I had avoided the year 2017.
“Congratulations! ‘The Legend of Link: Breath of the Wild!’ has won this year’s Most Anticipated Game award!”
Cheers erupted.
Somewhere amidst them, Han Seo-rim, who was next to me, muttered softly.
“Hmm, is it really that good?”
Jo A-yun added.
“Doesn’t look that great to me…”
The two of them wore expressions of utmost seriousness, gravity, and solemnity.
Ayado, hearing their assessment, was smiling with satisfaction.
But I wasn’t so sure.
“It really is that good.”
“Director?”
“It’s true. That IP is no ordinary IP.”
This man, pretending to be so rational, had soured the moment Nintender won an award.
He was probably just sizing up the competition, but unfortunately, I can’t tell a lie.
“I’m looking forward to it too. Breath of the Wild.”
Within me, there is a gamer and a director.
The gamer in me loves games like Breath of the Wild, which excel as a form of ‘play.’
The director in me holds a deep admiration for the game’s craftsmanship and structural beauty.
Games are a matter of taste.
I wish people would respect that.
It’s just that I, as a person, love Breath of the Wild so much that I can’t just blindly criticize it, even if it’s from the rival camp.
To be honest, the game I was most eagerly awaiting was that one.
It had been well over ten years since I last played it.
Memories were bound to resurface.
“We’ll move on to the next award.”
Even as we chatted, the ceremony continued.
One by one, award winners took the stage.
My palms were growing sweaty.
Action Game of the Year is Doom. Best Role-Playing is Witch 3, released last year. Best Mobile Game is Pokémon Go, which sparked an AR revolution.
They were all deserving.
I accepted this, calmed myself, and let it all pass. Then came the moment.
“Next up is Sound of the Year!”
Finally, an award we had a shot at.
At that, Jo A-yun froze solid.
Fortunately, the tension didn’t last long.
“Congratulations! Rewind’s Identity! You have won the award for Sound of the Year!”
*Clap, clap, clap!*
The sound of applause and music.
When I looked at Jo A-yun, she was just tilting her head, looking lost.
It seemed she hadn’t even understood what was said.
Yang Gil-sang stepped in.
“A-yun! You won! Get up!”
Only then did Jo A-yun let out a “Huh?” and look toward the front.
And she froze again.
“?”
Her mouth hung open in disbelief.
Then she started looking at me.
“P-P-P-President…”
“Yes.”
“That…”
“It’s yours. You have to go give a speech.”
“Ugh…”
Jo A-yun rose like a zombie and headed for the stage.
Once at the microphone, she just kept glancing around.
Was she scared of being on stage alone?
Or did it still not feel real?
Whatever the case, it was clear she was overjoyed at winning an unexpected award.
At that moment, something came to mind.
It was something the person from a now-gone timeline had said.
—Team Leader! We have to go to the GOTY! Let me win just one award for sound!
It was a relief to finally be able to keep that promise.
I felt as if a chain that had been binding my heart had been broken.
Meanwhile, the host spoke.
“A few words, please!”
Jo A-yun, her face pale white, looked back and forth between me and the host.
Then she spoke.
“Ba…”
“Ba?”
“Can I go to the bathroom…?”
Silence fell.
*Pfft!*
A burst of laughter escaped from somewhere.
It was understandable.
Jo A-yun’s legs, standing on the stage, were trembling so much they were visible even from this distance.
It must still be difficult for her to stand in front of so many people.
In any case, one thing was certain.
“…Perhaps you could go after the ceremony?”
“My-my-my-my-my stomach hurts…!”
It was the most unconventional acceptance speech in TGA history.
***
The ceremony continued after that, but we didn’t win any other minor awards.
Han Seo-rim, in particular, trembled like a personal massager when we failed to win for Art.
But it was an acceptable outcome.
The winner for Art of the Year was Outside.
It was a game that elevated its direction through strictly visual effects, set in a dystopian world under the grammar of horror and escape.
In contrast, Identity employed an intuitive and fairytale-like cartoonish graphic style.
It was a decision made to appeal to a wider audience, and it resulted in suppressing the ‘unique sensibility’ that Han Seo-rim had, unlike with Hellic.
“You know, right, senior? If I had really gone all out…”
“I know.”
Han Seo-rim, with her strong competitive spirit, grumbled her complaints, as if seeking validation from me, if no one else.
I did feel sorry.
After all, I was the one who had reined her in.
Even knowing her competitive nature, I had made her put her pride aside for the sake of my directorial judgment.
But, fortunately, I had words of comfort.
“You can win with the next one. I’m going to work you pretty hard.”
“…You really mean it?”
The fact that she was happy about being worked hard showed she wasn't normal either.
I let out a hollow laugh and replied.
“Remember the designs from Hellic 2?”
“The ones that looked like a college assignment?”
“That kind of thing.”
“That’s truly dreadful.”
Even as she said it, Han Seo-rim smiled crookedly.
That was the end of our chatter.
“And now, for the grand highlight! The Game of the Year award!”
The moment I had been waiting for arrived.
No, could I even say I had been waiting?
*Thump—*
My heart pounded.
It wasn't the lightness of excitement, nor the thrill of tension.
Like a prisoner awaiting sentencing, a heavy beat pressed down on my chest.
I lifted my head.
The verdict was imminent.
A sentimental thought crossed my mind.
The stage looked quite cruel.
The stark contrast between the brilliantly lit stage and the dark audience where I sat gave rise to that feeling.
The script in the host’s hand, and the words that came from his mouth, would separate the winners from the losers.
Everyone sits in the same place, but the moment the verdict is delivered, the winner is bathed in light, while the loser can only embellish that light with applause from the darkness.
This was that kind of place.
Perhaps for as long as I remain a director, I’ll never be able to shake this anxiety in this setting.
But, I didn’t mind.
In fact, I enjoyed it.
‘Because this is what I’ve always wanted.’
I was grateful to even have this opportunity now, having only ever watched such scenes as a spectator outside the screen, not from the audience.
“The Game of the Year is…!”
Alright, let’s be dignified in the face of the verdict.
Let’s leave the lingering remnants of the past here.
“…This is a tense moment. Well then, I will announce it!”
Once I steeled myself, I felt it instinctively.
Like birds taking flight at the sense of a disaster, like animals fleeing through the trees.
The atmosphere itself gave me the answer.
And it was right.
“…Congratulations! Rewind’s Identity!”
“Kyaaaaaa!!!”
“We did it! We did it!”
My team members burst into an uproar.
Unlike with Hellic 2, I wasn’t dazed. I stood up with a more practiced composure.
I was the first to head toward the stage.
Feeling the pats on my back from Han Seo-rim, the force of Yang Gil-sang shaking my shoulders, and the tight grip of Jo A-yun’s hand in mine.
“We meet again!”
The host gave me a sense of near déjà vu.
It was the same man who had hosted the awards for Hellic 2.
He said.
“You kept your promise. You said you’d stand on this stage again.”
At his beaming smile, I too, for this moment at least, could smile brightly.
“Promises are meant to be kept.”
“Then, a few words, please.”
He handed me the microphone.
Down below were my seniors, who had graciously yielded their spots for me today.
The sight of them brought a surge of emotion.
I calmed myself and tightened my grip on the microphone.
“First of all…”
I could finally shed all the remnants of my past.
That fact brought me immense joy, and it felt like I could finally move forward with a clear heart.
It had been a long forty-nine-day rite.
The shadows of regret and resentment that had followed me had finally been laid to rest, so it seemed I could run faster from now on.
…As if I could say something like that.
I had no desire to be seen as a lunatic or an angsty teenager.
This feeling was mine and mine alone.
So as long as I, the one feeling it, fully embraced it, the praise of others didn’t matter.
So I put that aside and said.
“Thank you.”
What was shaped into words was the sincerity that remained.
“I ask for your continued support in the future. I dedicate this honor to all the users who have loved our game, to my team members who worked so hard alongside me, and to everyone who has congratulated us.”
I added to my speech.
“I won’t say this is the end.”
This is just the beginning.
From the moment this life began—no, even before that, I was a person who would die if I stopped, a person for whom this was the only way.
Unable to stop, I have no choice but to mark this day as a turning point in a long marathon and move forward.
There were still so many things I hadn’t tried.
Excitement washed over my heart.
I spoke without hiding my emotions.
“I’ll see you again next time. In the same spot.”
When I turned, I saw the smiling faces of my team.
If these people were the proof of the path I had walked, then it was a path I had built remarkably straight.
“Here.”
If I was to share this glory, it had to be with them.
I passed the microphone, and Jo A-yun, who still wanted to go to the bathroom, took a step back.
The host burst out laughing.
***
The Korean game industry received some exciting news.
『AdenIsAGodGame: First Korean AAA GOTY. I’m so hyped my tits could burst lolololol』
『BloodlordOfBangbae: Landlady… you can stop pouring the drinks now… open the shutters…』
『TheFutureIsBleak: cex』
『WannaQuitJaehee: Rewind’s sound designer is so cute lololol』
『ㅇㅇ: Where’s that Blizz-fanboy who said High Watch would get GOTY? Where u at? Where u at? Where u at?』
From the torrent of praise setting communities on fire to the subsequent reports from various media outlets.
The news didn’t just resonate within the game industry.
Literally, the entire Korean press was spreading the news about Rewind.
Was there any special reason?
You can never have too much national pride.
It was the hottest topic that had the media and the public in a frenzy.
The world’s best.
A giant tree sprouting in a barren land.
These were the most common phrases used to describe Rewind.
Who would have known? In a country where the prevailing perception was that they could produce gamers but not games, a title that would crown the year as the world’s best would emerge.
The fire that lit up the year-end showed no signs of dying down.
If anything, famous celebrity gamers mentioning Identity on social media caused the flames to spread, making the game even more well-known among the general public.
It was on one such day.
At a drinking gathering, Neosoft’s President, Park Yeong-jun, spoke to Yeon-ho.
“Want to go on a variety show with me?”
“A what-now?”
“A variety show.”
President Park Yeong-jun saw this as an opportunity.
He grinned and filled Yeon-ho’s glass.
“Help me out here.”
This year was the release year for Neosoft’s make-or-break game, ‘Clear Zone.’
It was a time that called for some buzz marketing.
A president’s reputation, their marketability as a personality, and their human charm were among the unseen metrics for a game’s success.
In short, President Park Yeong-jun’s intention was to brand himself on national television.
An opportunity had just arrived.
It was an unprecedented situation for the domestic media to be highlighting the game development industry in such a positive light.
He had to get a piece of that pie, didn’t he?
“Let’s go get some celebrity autographs. Huh?”
Yeon-ho tilted his head.