Chapter 70
Chapter 70
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 70
Chapter Title: Evaluation (2)
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Spring had arrived.
It had been a year since Studio Rewind came to Pangyo, which also meant a year had been invested into the development of *Hellic 3*.
It felt like all they'd done was develop, but looking back, quite a lot had changed.
On a smaller scale, Jo A-yun had become a college student, Yang Gil-sang's hairline had receded by about two centimeters, and Myeong-gyu had earned the nickname "Horny Meter." On a larger scale, there was the success of *Hellic 2*'s console version and the completion of the *Hellic 3* demo.
There was the tragedy of losing my first kiss to Mike in the process, but I'd do anything for the game's quality.
Somehow, the *Hellic 3* demo was completed with a quality that exceeded expectations.
And so, today was the day.
"It's been a while."
"Yes, I trust you've been well."
Ayado Goro had come to visit Studio Rewind.
It had been nearly a year.
***
Ayado was a veteran who had been in this industry for over twenty years.
As such, he had experience visiting all the major game companies, and based on that, his assessment of Rewind was singular.
'Typical.'
In other words, its layout was more open than a typical office company.
In truth, it couldn't be helped.
When you display reference materials, your own company's games, and related merchandise, figurines and posters end up serving as interior decor. So, even for an IT company, it was bound to exude that distinct subculture scent.
It was nothing unusual.
Besides, Ayado hadn't come to tour the office.
His purpose was to evaluate *Hellic 3*, a game receiving worldwide anticipation and one that might become a flagship title for the PS4.
"A year has already passed. Time flies."
"It does. We've been running nonstop, and suddenly a year of development has gone by."
"May I have high expectations?"
"It's a lot of pressure, but... yes, this isn't the time to shy away from it."
Ayado chuckled softly at Yeon-ho's response.
'He's confident, then.'
His curiosity soared.
That was part of the reason he'd rushed over, even though this wasn't an event that required his personal attendance.
After all, this was the game that had captured the full attention of Alid Russo.
Ayado had already played Russo's next title, scheduled for release in '14.
It was a game that offered such a phenomenal experience he thought '14 might once again be Valhalla's year.
Yet, even after creating such a game, he had said:
—"That Cheon Yeon-ho fellow is no pushover. I have a feeling. A feeling that he would never create something mediocre."
He wanted to know if Russo's feeling was right or wrong.
And Ayado had chosen this visit as the way to find out.
"Well then, shall we begin?"
Yeon-ho nodded as Ayado spoke.
He didn't know much about Yeon-ho yet, but if he had to pick one thing he liked, it was that straightforwardness.
The two moved to another room, arriving in one with a large monitor, a computer, and a PS controller.
He had already received written documents on the development progress and concepts; what Ayado had to do today was play the actual game in the director's presence.
Ayado asked.
"The playtime is around four to six hours, as I recall."
"Yes, with a standard playthrough."
"Standard, you say?"
Ayado's eyes gleamed.
Yeon-ho replied with his usual indifferent expression.
"I'm not fond of games that force you down a single path."
"Is that so?"
For someone who says that, didn't *Hellic 1* and *2* guide the narrative in a rather consistent direction?
When he subtly hinted at his doubt, Yeon-ho answered.
"Money is always the issue."
Should he take that to mean they approached this AAA title differently?
A smile formed on Ayado's lips.
"Excellent. My playstyle is rather eccentric."
"I hope you'll be able to find it."
"A hidden route?"
"A sub-route, or a shortcut. You can think of it that way."
"Hmm..."
Would the final product truly reflect his confidence?
He had already received written materials about the game, but Ayado, with twenty years of experience under his belt, knew.
He knew that you couldn't understand a finished game from documents alone, and that every element of the plan was merely a component meant to achieve the ultimate goal of 'fun'.
To use a food analogy, no matter how many interesting ingredients you mix, you won't know if it's a combination of ramen and mint chocolate or soy sauce and egg until you taste it.
Ayado intended to examine it meticulously.
Which elements the game chose and which it excluded to achieve commercial success; what it focused on as its main point and which systems it pushed to the forefront to support it. And how the balance of each element was adjusted to maintain the game's equilibrium.
'If even one thing is off...'
The game won't sell.
Because customers don't tolerate flaws in a product.
The hidden routes and shortcuts Yeon-ho mentioned were no exception.
If they made the gameplay feel cluttered, Ayado would boldly request their removal.
He subtly informed him of this fact.
"I trust you know I'm not here for a simple demonstration."
"An evaluation. I've heard a lot about you, Director."
"About me, you say?"
"The rumors are quite widespread. That you've scrapped more than a few games right before completion."
Ayado hid his surprise and chuckled.
"A nostalgic story."
I was like that in my youth.
Back when Sona was just starting to build its first-party teams, I was more energetic than I am now.
In other words, I was ruthless, which caused a great deal of friction.
The games I intervened in have now become Sona's representative titles.
Now he managed things under the title of Sales Director, but Ayado had originally been someone directly involved in development.
This was especially true when it came to handling the business side of it.
"Then I won't hold back."
*If he knows, this will be easier.*
Feeling a sudden sense of nostalgia, Ayado picked up the controller.
Has it been about seven years?
Back when he was in the trenches, Ayado Goro was known by a certain name among the industry's developers.
"Please forgive my harsh words. I'm the type who has trouble choosing my words when the blood rushes to my head."
The Language Murderer, Ayado Goroshi.
He returned to his past self for the first time in a long while.
Ten minutes passed.
*Click, clack!*
That was the time it took for Ayado to start mindlessly manipulating the controller.
***
The moment he fell silent, I quietly stepped outside.
Ayado was playing the game inside the booth, and as soon as I was out, Rewind's key personnel swarmed me, shaking me.
Han Seo-rim, who was more sensitive about evaluations than anyone, asked first.
"Sunbae, are you sure this is okay? I'm getting nervous..."
"About what?"
"The Director's expression is so blank."
"Isn't that normal? Everyone gets a blank look when they're gaming. Even you..."
"Quiet."
"..."
Just as Han Seo-rim was about to bite her nails, I stopped her.
But now, there was a commotion from another direction.
"Ah, if he goes in there the wrong way, there's a bug..."
Myeong-gyu was trembling.
That's right.
The demo version of *Hellic 3* was still an unfinished product with bugs popping up here and there.
If any unexpected gameplay variables occurred, problems would start leaking out one after another.
But that wasn't a concern worth considering.
"The Director knows that, so don't worry. The game is still three months from release, so bugs aren't a major demerit."
What Ayado Goro would focus on in this evaluation was none other than the game's marketability.
In other words, assuming the game runs smoothly, he was looking at how fun it would be—or rather, how well it would sell.
From that perspective, Ayado's reaction was actually positive.
Right now, having finished the prologue chapter, tested each character's weapon, and moved past the cinematic.
Swinging various weapons around in the air with the combined character's body was a clear sign that he was interested in the game's system.
There was one reason I was sure of it.
A recent email from Russo.
[There's a famous horror story about that guy. He once shut off a game that a team had spent two years developing after just ten minutes, called it trash, and threw it away. I hope nothing so unfortunate happens to you.]
It was the decisive reason I started researching Ayado Goro.
'The Language Murderer, Ayado Goroshi...'
I don't know who came up with it, but what a chilling name.
And that's the man who's now lost in the game, staring blankly from beyond the booth.
Shouldn't I be relieved that it wasn't judged as a piece of crap within ten minutes?
It was at that moment.
"Yeon-ho, Yeon-ho! The Director is swapping parts!"
"It's Joan of Arc!"
It was the fuss-making duo.
They were talking to me, but their hands were slapping Myeong-gyu's arm.
Myeong-gyu shuddered.
I ignored the scene and looked at Ayado Goro.
He had stopped playing for the first time.
The part-swapping tab was open.
Suddenly, my heart skipped a beat.
'Is the system too complicated?'
The thought crossed my mind.
And for good reason. Ayado, who had been playing without a hitch until now, had the window open for over two minutes, just staring at it.
He wasn't just looking; his brow was furrowed.
The understanding of a game between its creator and a consumer is naturally different.
I had designed it with that in mind, but since the part-swapping system itself was a first for the *Hellic* series, it might feel unfamiliar.
'...A mistake?'
Just as that doubt arose.
*Click.*
Ayado moved his hands.
At that moment, Jo A-yun said.
"Oh, it's transgender..."
Silence filled the room.
*Click, clack.*
Because a smile was playing on Ayado's lips as he tapped the controller.
And also because the character he was controlling had Joan of Arc's body, Napoleon's head (with a double chin), and the hairy limbs of a barbarian.
A line he'd said earlier flashed through my mind.
—*Excellent. My playstyle is rather eccentric.*
...Could it be?
***
Ayado had not forgotten his purpose.
This was work, not leisure, and playing the game was for the purpose of evaluation.
As such, for his first playthrough, he chose a basic playstyle, without any tricks.
In other words, he adopted the playstyle that users would most commonly take when first encountering the game.
For example.
He didn't skip the cinematics.
If there was a main road and a side path, he took the main road. He hunted monsters with a frontal assault.
While playing this way, he came to an assessment.
'Intuitive.'
Both the system and the story were quite intuitive.
The roughly three-minute cinematic at the beginning briefly showed the personalities of the four pilgrims, and the subsequent tutorial battle drilled their traits, the game's playstyle, and how to use each weapon into his very being through combat.
In short, it didn't demand a forced understanding of the system.
It was the same afterward.
The overlapping of characters into one body was handled through a quick-slot style stance change.
Their objectives and backgrounds were conveyed not through separate cinematics, but through voice-over subtitles.
'He minimized the space dedicated to narrative. He melted it in.'
All those elements were melted into the 'gameplay'.
Around that point, Ayado realized something.
The idea of cramming four people into one body was, in fact, a way to explain the world-building through natural dialogue.
The descriptions in item tooltips and the objects represented in-game were all connected.
This must have been what Russo praised so highly.
'Skillful.'
For his young age, Cheon Yeon-ho was a calculated and skillful creator.
Within that, one could feel an obsession with perfection that was almost pathological.
From the perspective of a player who wasn't analyzing the elements, this would translate directly into immersion.
His admiration was brief; Ayado farmed Joan of Arc's corpse.
It was then.
That Ayado went from being an evaluator to a gamer.
'...They're big.'
They were big.
It would be indecent to say what was big, so let's just say they were big.
Seeing them reminded him of something.
A manga character he had once loved.
—*My dear, life was never meant to be easy.*
—*But doesn't that make it more fun?*
What does it mean to be strong?
To walk one's own path, unyielding to any worldly values—that is strength.
In that respect, that manga character perfectly matched Ayado's idea of a 'fucking strong-looking character'.
Ayado had his own sense of romance.
His youthful romance had been directed toward a pair of new-half (androgynous) characters.
It was nostalgic, and he had forgotten to even move the controller, lost in that feeling.
But it didn't last long.
Ayado quickly regained his composure and checked the part's options.
'Let's see...'
『Joan of Arc's Body
The heart chosen by God beats with faith and justice.
Trait: Gain Faith.
Faith: Attacks are converted to magic damage.』
The moment he saw that, a build came to him quite naturally.
'Napoleon's head had a critical hit bonus.'
Among the parts he had obtained earlier, Napoleon's head was one that gave a bonus to the critical hit chance of each weapon.
If he combined that with this body and used a gun, he could go for a 'ranged magic shooter' build.
In Ayado's view, it was the most efficient option at the moment.
He immediately went with that build and ran, gun in hand.
He didn't bother to change the appearance of the parts.
Because Ayado was quite fond of this state.
And so, the moment he escaped the Chapter 1 Swamp of Grief...
*Ppiiiii—*
*Chu, chu, chu, chu.*
The BGM begins.
A BGM with a low orchestra, its rhythm kept by sticky kissing sounds.
Ayado felt a tickling sensation run down his spine.
Then came the scenery.
Beneath a pitch-black sky, blue candlelight flickered.
The ground was littered with skulls, and tombstones rose here and there above them.
—*Fufufu...*
Laughter could be heard.
What appeared was a dancer with a bewitching silhouette, escorted by skeletal soldiers.
Her deathly pale skin gleaming, she danced lightly, all alone, atop a tomb shrouded in darkness.
It was in that moment.
'Hah...!'
For the first time, Ayado was impressed by something other than the game's systems.
Chapter 2, with its blend of art and sound, held an exotic charm of its own and was captivating him.
It was as if he had stepped into the night streets of a bygone era.
The dancer was a siren, her movements bewitching, and the kissing sounds mixed into the BGM were her seductions.
When the laughter was added to that, Ayado felt a shiver, a thrill.
His imagination was stimulated.
'With those legs, arms, and torso...!'
Wouldn't Napoleon's double chin stand out even more!
I want to kill that monster.
In other words, Ayado's interest in customization had been piqued.
It was then.
—*Brother...!*
Ayado Goro (53 years old, married for 21 years).
He felt the presence of his long-slumbering other self.
It was a reunion after ten years.
Evaluation (2)