Chapter 75
Chapter 75
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 75
Chapter Title: War History (1)
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The night the first day of E3 ended, a post appeared on a Korean gaming community.
It was a review of Hellic 3 by the game journalist, Jin Woo-hyeong.
『(Review)S2PoppyS2: Here's my E3 Hellic review!』
(Photo of the E3 venue)
I was originally going to write this after returning to Korea, but my fingers were itching so I couldn't resist ^^
It was a more enjoyable and surprising E3 than I expected!
Cutting to the chase, let's get right into Hellic 3.
This new installment showed a lot of distinct differences from its predecessors.
Above all, the sophistication befitting a AAA title was the first thing that stood out!
(Publicly released in-game photo)
I was stunned!
Studio Rewind's craftsmanship is well-known, but I never dreamed the modeling would turn out this well!
Especially the moment I encountered the monster dancer that's already heating up the internet...』
From the very beginning, it was high praise.
However, it wasn't just hyperbole; Woo-hyeong's review was backed by solid evidence, like photos that matched his impressions.
This satisfied the community users.
After all, a review from someone who had played the demo was just what those who had only seen the trailer needed to quench their thirst.
Among these points, what particularly satisfied the Hellic fanbase were the parts about the narrative, the setting, and the customization.
『As revealed in the trailer, the narrative is about war.
But it's not just any ordinary war!
Hellic's battlefield transcends time and space, featuring soldiers from every era of human history!
They've integrated that right into the game's systems!
(Publicly released game info screenshot)
The concept of borrowing the abilities of war heroes from different eras, represented as farmable parts, blended perfectly with the protagonist's cursed sword setting!
What more needs to be said about this part?
For anyone even slightly interested in subculture, it was a joy reminiscent of how a certain ‘Moon’ comes to mind!^^
Next is customization, an extension of the parts system.
Personally, I found it to be a very interesting format...』
The review, which scratched every itch, continued to satisfy the users with its subsequent content.
The end of the review, as expected, was a few photos that clearly showed Woo-hyeong's desire to get his post to the top.
『Finally, Studio Rewind's cosplay, which was a hot topic at G-STAR, is back again!
I'll drop a few photos and wrap this up.
Thank you^^7!
(Photo of A-yun's tree cosplay)
(Photo of Yeon-ho as the playable character)
(Photo of Seo-rim cringing in her queen cosplay)
(Photo of Myeong-gyu (in dancer cosplay) with a soul-crushed expression between the cackling, over-the-top duo)』
The review shot straight to the top of the main recommended posts.
The comment section also exploded.
『
WaitingForHellic3: Yeon-ho... cross-dressing again...
zGreatHand: lolololololol
BangbaeBloodyLord: Same as ever, for real lol But wow, the game looks so fun.
└ IsThisANationalExam: Did you see the combat footage? The action was insane.
└ CrystalClearT: The parts system looks fun too. They reduced the number of weapon routes, but the number of builds has doubled;;
└ BangbaeBloodyLord: Did you see the Ghost Horse Lu Bu video? It looked so satisfying.
SrCorpSwordMaster: I need to get discharged soon... My body's feeling weird looking at that monster...
└ zGreatHand: That's normal. Me too.
└ SrCorpSwordMaster: But you're a public service worker;
└ zGreatHand: ?
FlowerJaeheeCherryLips: Seriously, what's with that customization lollll
NationalPaladinAssociation: Looks like nothing about the story for this installment has been released.
└ S2PoppyS2: Yep! I tried to guess from the narrative, but there's too little information revealed up to Chapter 2 ㅠㅠ We'll have to wait and see!』
There was so much to look forward to that the reactions were scattered all over the place.
But they were positive reactions.
Above all, the intuitive structure that allowed people to immediately grasp the game's direction was effective.
The reaction overseas was similar.
There, James's live stream in particular fueled the vividness and anticipation.
“The dancer. Beware the dancer.”
That day, James rubbed his face and emphasized those words over and over.
“It's different in the game. It's different. You have to be careful.”
The sincerity in his voice was beyond what could be described as merely earnest.
『Dadbom: This dude's eyes are glazed over.
Luka: Why is he standing so awkwardly?』
And so, Hellic 3 was quietly making its presence known amidst the 2013 E3 lineup, which was so stacked it was beyond 'legendary'.
***
It was late afternoon on the final day of E3.
“Haa... The crowd is finally thinning out...”
Jo A-yun, the event's greatest contributor, said as she let her leaves droop.
I patted Jo A-yun's shoulder and said.
“You worked hard. I think we did this well thanks to you.”
It wasn't an empty compliment.
Although we had initially planned for two shifts, Jo A-yun's cosplay was so popular that she couldn't leave her spot for even a moment.
Especially today, the last day, the crowd was so large that we had to increase our management staff, leaving Jo A-yun as the sole person in charge of cosplay.
It was a good thing she willingly volunteered for the role; otherwise, it would have been a real disaster.
Jo A-yun replied with a bashful smile.
“I-It was fun...! Doing it all together...!”
“Still, hard work is hard work. I'll treat you to something delicious when we get back. It's a promise.”
“Ah! Then, drinks...!”
“Hmm... Sure. But this time, just the two of us. We can't cause trouble for everyone else again.”
“Okay...!”
Jo A-yun's smile deepened.
I didn't bother to voice my worries.
I, too, wanted to be purely happy in this moment.
‘It went better than expected.’
When I thought about it, this E3 was the biggest event I had ever managed, across both my past and present lives.
As such, I had quite a few worries before it started, but thankfully, the booth ran without a hitch for all three days.
Of course, there were minor incidents.
Like when visitors, fresh from finishing the demo, saw Myeong-gyu in his dancer cosplay and made complicated, subtle expressions, or when Han Seo-rim, in her queen cosplay, couldn't bear the shame and teared up.
There were also other things, like Yang Gil-sang stumbling when some snot-nosed idol whose name I can't remember visited, or Ayado Goro freezing up when he came to our booth and saw me.
But they were all things that could be dismissed as minor happenings.
Putting those aside and looking only at the results... yes, that expression would be fitting.
‘We survived.’
The main attractions were End of Us releasing tomorrow, GTV5 coming out at the end of this year, and Valhalla's Road to Harthin, which would sweep all the GOTY awards next year.
We safely survived amidst that terribly spectacular lineup.
It goes without saying, but Hellic 3 is not the star of the year.
Masterpieces here, masterpieces there.
Even searching through all my memories, I could count on one hand the number of events where so many high-quality games gathered. How could we possibly act like the main attraction among them?
Compared to them, Hellic 3's brand recognition in the AAA space was paltry.
On top of that, with only a trailer and a single demo released, it would have been presumptuous to even dare challenge their dominance.
We simply made our presence known without being crushed by those star-studded giants.
Just by doing that, Hellic 3 had done its job.
I was lost in thought.
When I spotted a large Caucasian man approaching from a distance.
“How's the event going!”
Alid Russo. It was him.
I gave a short bow and replied.
“Yes, it's been very busy, but.”
“Heh heh, these expos are always so hectic, aren't they? I feel like my energy gets drained every time I come.”
Even as he said that, Russo's face was bright.
Speaking based on what I knew as a fan, he had probably gained satisfaction from watching users play his game.
“You've worked hard too, Director.”
As I said that, Russo put his arm around my shoulder.
“Hardly. More importantly, have you made the preparations?”
A grin spread across Russo's lips.
I knew immediately what he was talking about.
Ayado had given me a heads-up, and Russo had shown interest the whole time.
“I've saved a spot for you. Over there in the corner.”
In this moment, he too was a user playing Hellic 3.
I had prepared a spot for him at this time today.
Personally, I was more nervous than when Sona had evaluated it.
After all, my former role model was about to play my game. How could I not be?
Russo pouted.
“Aww, not a center seat?”
“There are still other people here. If there was still a line, you wouldn't have even gotten to play the demo.”
“That's quite considerate. You're an excellent director.”
Russo chuckled and sat down.
“You have no idea how much I've been looking forward to today. Anyway, my team members just wouldn't let me go.”
In the direction he was looking was Studio Valhalla's booth, which boasted an exceptional size.
There were familiar faces.
The legendary level designer Manderson and programmer Joseph, who had written myths alongside Russo.
My heart fluttered slightly.
Russo spoke to me.
“Alright, let's begin. First, as a fan, thank you for saving me a spot like this.”
He put on the headset.
‘A fan.’
Could that word be any more unfitting for someone?
The moment I thought that, Russo had already turned his eyes to the monitor.
Click.
His controller began to move.
***
What Russo had said to Yeon-ho was not a lie.
He was unequivocally a fan of Hellic, and also a fan of Yeon-ho.
It might seem strange to outsiders that a legend of the industry would view the up-and-coming Studio Rewind in such a way, but there was a clear reason for it.
It was none other than an occupational hazard.
Having become a director, he tended to take an analytical approach when playing other games, which often highlighted their flaws too much and diminished his interest.
For that reason, the number of games Russo could purely enjoy was small.
Hellic was one of the few games Russo could enjoy.
‘Good.’
Russo smiled faintly.
If he were to give an interim evaluation, it was a game that was truly faithful to the fundamentals.
This didn't mean it was predictable, but that it had faithfully implemented the elements a AAA title should possess.
Russo knew of games that, thirsty for innovation, neglected the basics.
He knew of games that, buried in the basics, missed out on innovation.
In that respect, Hellic was well-balanced.
Yeon-ho's perfectionism was controlling the game's pacing with razor-sharp precision.
There was a part where this was particularly prominent.
—If you don't kill, you will be killed. My tribe, myself, all of us.
It was a line that came out right after defeating a monster at some point in Chapter 1.
‘He held back on something that could have been made into a cinematic. Yes, this way, the flow of the action isn't interrupted.’
Hellic 3 is an action game.
At the same time, it's an adventure game that builds its story through narrative.
To achieve both simultaneously, the narrative had to be woven into the action to maintain the player's tension.
The narrative had to penetrate the user's awareness in a natural, unobtrusive form.
To do that, Yeon-ho must have used the weapons of 'characterization' and 'dialogue'.
To distinguish the four souls within one body, he had to clearly express each character's personality and make the player curious about them.
—Life is a choice. It cannot be avoided. Nor can it be undone.
Words are a vessel that reveals a character's capacity and worldview.
In that respect, the barbarian's character revealed this brilliantly.
—I killed, and I protected. It was a choice. I am not evil.
A single value that remains unshaken even after falling into this hell.
Russo naturally came to realize during his playthrough that this was a character who steadfastly moved forward for that value.
From there, he realized something else.
It was about a unique feature of this game.
‘The weapon build and the focus on a character are connected.’
Russo used the barbarian's axe as his main weapon.
As a natural consequence, among the lines heard in-game, Russo found himself paying particular attention to the barbarian's.
It was inevitable.
The 'me in the game,' represented by the main weapon's character, would be the one that most deeply aligns with the 'me in reality.'
The effect this would have was obvious.
‘Yes, this way, it's not four protagonists, but one protagonist and three companions.’
The clutter from distributing the narrative is eliminated.
The user's brain will unconsciously divide them into main and supporting characters and allocate importance, and the true story will only be revealed after multiple playthroughs, by collecting and analyzing all the weapons' dialogue.
This was also related to the game's depth.
‘Gamers know the thrill of the moment a puzzle is completed. That's why they'll delight in the truth that is revealed with each playthrough. Even if they don't, if the hidden truth is revealed by someone else, they'll cheer for it and raise the game's rating.’
Having many elements to delve into was a common characteristic of games with a core fanbase.
Hellic 3 was the same.
Russo thought as he picked apart the game's elements one by one.
‘Now I'm starting to see it.’
The inner workings of this massive machine called Hellic 3 were beginning to show.
The process of dissecting the machine was enjoyable.
And the moment he realized that the dissected inner workings fit together exquisitely, a shiver of thrill ran down his spine.
—The wenches, their bare skin is showing.
It was the barbarian's line upon entering Chapter 2.
A sultry BGM played in his ears.
Before his eyes, the dancer that Manderson had praised so highly was dancing.
Russo had no interest in how sexually provocative the design was.
His attention was solely on the direction, the narrative within it.
His ignited passion made such a task a little easier.
His thoughts, which had been creaking with age, were now turning with a strange nimbleness.
This phenomenon could be expressed in numerous words.
But, in the truest sense, there was only one word to express Russo's feelings.
‘It's fun.’
Fun.
The alpha and omega of all games, and a director's calling.
Russo found Hellic 3 to be fun.
Just like in his boyhood days, long ago, when he was crazy about games, not a director.
—Fufufu...
Letting the dancer's laughter wash over him, Russo controlled his character.
Crack!
The axe split a skeleton soldier.
And so, the game ran towards its end.
Although it was a demo with many things omitted, Russo felt immense satisfaction from it.
What grew was a thirst.
What would it be like when this was released in its complete form?
How would the questions currently in his mind be resolved and meet their conclusion?
“Khuhu...”
Russo realized he was letting his imagination run wild and laughed.
This was it.
The reason Russo held Yeon-ho in such high regard.
Yeon-ho was a man who could make people's blood boil.
A man who could make one feel a fervent desire through games.
‘As expected...’
I want to compete with him.
But it also seems like it would be fun to have him as an ally.
He couldn't escape that conflict until the moment he put down the controller.
***
Russo's monitor went black.
Only then did I let out a tense breath.
A strange sense of relief washed over me because Russo's laughter, which had been present throughout, had continued to the very end.
At that moment, Russo took off his headset and looked back at me.
“Hey.”
Before I could answer, he continued.
His words made me freeze.
“So, you still don't want to make a game with me?”
A familiar offer. The reason I was surprised anew was because of Russo's expression.
He looked like he was about to cry.
Yet he was trying to force a relaxed smile, and it was painfully obvious.
How should I put it... I know this expression is rude, but I couldn't think of a better one.
“I'll treat you well. Huh? You know I don't make this offer to just anyone.”
He was just like someone clinging to their ex-lover in front of their house on a rainy day.
“A merger and acquisition...”
“Not happening.”
I refused flatly.
War History (1)