Chapter 83
Chapter 83
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 83
Chapter Title: The Release of Hellic 3
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“You’ve worked hard.”
I said to the directors of Development Team 2.
The two of them smiled bashfully, but soon their eyes met and they started growling at each other again.
Some things never change.
The only things that had changed were their nerdy fashion being replaced with functional activewear, and their body fat percentage having decreased while their skeletal muscle mass had increased.
The thought that something was wrong crossed my mind, but I ignored it.
Whatever the case, a director just needs to be good at development, right?
Health is just one of the requirements for that.
So, let's set aside trivial matters like their sparring.
Now, ahead of *Hellic 3*'s release, it was time to give a new task to those who had just finished one.
“You've had about two months off, right?”
“Yes!”
“President! We've been itching to get back to work!”
“Yes, let's get straight to the point. Please prepare for the next project.”
It was at that moment.
“Ah, about that.”
Nishimura adjusted his glasses and took a step forward.
“Would you please take a look at this?”
“What is this?”
“It's a proposal we drafted after some discussion during our break.”
I was a little surprised.
So they weren't just fooling around.
Seeing their enthusiasm as directors, I felt a sense of satisfaction.
“Then let's take a look.”
The moment I received the proposal, I quietly swallowed my surprise.
Copson said.
“*Demon's Relic*. It's a unit-based RPG that combines a beautiful girl dating simulation with a JRPG.”
I gave it some thought.
I flipped through the proposal, half-listening to his words.
Meanwhile, a thought occurred to me.
‘Is there some kind of cosmic inertia at play?’
In my past life, *Demon's Relic*, the game they created as a team called KawaiDemon, had manifested in the exact same form in a different time and space, without any external pressure.
I suddenly wondered if this was the result of some great, unstoppable current beyond human control.
But that thought was soon erased.
Because I was able to arrive at an answer to this question more rationally, more humanly.
‘...Every creator holds their own universe within them.’
It was a rather famous saying.
According to that saying, this result, *Demon's Relic*, must be the outcome of the collision between the worlds that Jellen Copson and Nishimura Keisuke had each perfected.
Wasn't it quite an interesting chemical reaction?
A relationship where, because they were polar opposites, they could compensate for each other's shortcomings.
Copson must have been the one who chose the 72 demons of Solomon as the theme.
And Nishimura must have been the one who turned those demons into cute characters and added the dating sim elements.
The compromise to bring out both features was likely the JRPG format.
I'm quite looking forward to it.
In my past life, I didn't play this game due to personal taste, but that was from the perspective of Cheon Yeon-ho the user, not Cheon Yeon-ho the director.
‘There might be something to learn from it.’
If *Demon's Relic* was a clash of ideas I had never encountered, I too might be able to draw inspiration from it.
Repetition is synonymous with stagnation.
Both to maintain the series' legacy and to secure my own skills, it seemed necessary to periodically check in on Development Team 2's project.
“This is good. Of course, since it's just a draft, I can't say too much... but yes, I think you can proceed with this.”
As I handed back the proposal, broad smiles spread across both their faces.
They had healthy teeth.
“We'll work hard!”
“Just trust in me!”
“Huh?”
“What?”
Whip! The two of them turned their heads and started growling at each other again.
I said.
“...You can go now.”
If you're going to fight, I'd appreciate it if you did it somewhere else.
* * *
The world moves quickly.
There were moments when what I thought was the distant future was suddenly right around the corner, and times when something I thought would be a long wait arrived, making me think, ‘Already?’
The release of *Hellic 3* was like that.
Before I knew it, it was mid-October.
Pre-orders for *Hellic 3* began.
Along with special bonuses for them.
『(Chat)WaitingForHellic3: You're giving us the Alice costume, right? Huh? I already bought it!!! Don't go back on your word!!!』
Those who pre-ordered *Hellic 3* would receive the costume of Alice, the protagonist of *Hellic 2*, as a customization part.
Some called it a cowardly marketing tactic that relied on the halo of the previous game, but at least the users themselves didn't complain about it.
After all, users who were willing to pre-order were already hardcore fans of the *Hellic* series.
In any case, since most of them were willing to play the game and judge for themselves, they were ready to gladly accept the welcome reward.
That wasn't all.
Studio Rewind's first AAA release.
That alone was enough motivation for long-time fans and the few users who hoped for the underdog's success to decide to pre-order.
The users were already preparing to celebrate.
And there was news that made them even more excited.
It was the press reviews, released one week before the launch.
『(Chat)BloodyLordOfBangbae: Holy crap lol Is a Metacritic score of 94 for real? lololol
(Metacritic screenshot)
(Review link)
This is a pretty great start, isn't it?
Can I get my hopes up?
SpaceWarLover: Those are paid reviews; don't believe 'em;
└ WaitingForHellic3: Look who's here, the conspiracy theorist
└ SpaceWarLover: Whatever, you traitor.』
A Metacritic score of 94.
For packaged games, beta keys and guidelines for review are distributed to relevant media outlets before release to get professional scores.
While doubts about their credibility were slowly growing within the industry and among consumers, it was an undeniable fact that they served as a guarantee that a game was worthy of someone's praise.
The review that drew so much attention was clean.
It maintained a reasonable balance, clearly pointing out both the pros and cons.
『Diving into Rewind's New Console Title, Hellic 3.
—Jin Woo-hyeong, Jinseong Daily
After a journey of about three years, *Hellic 3* has finally revealed itself to the world.
Personally, I want to give high marks to the fact that a Korean indie developer has entered the console market after achieving global success, but I won't let such personal feelings interfere.
Because even without that, it is already an excellent game.
(In-game scenery screenshot)
As always, Rewind's art possessed a beauty that stirred one's emotions.
It's not that it has exceptionally amazing technology or minute details.
Nevertheless, the first impression of its composition was so powerful that this writer could feel the anguish the development team must have gone through to perfect this scenery.
What more needs to be said about the impact of backgrounds and textures on a game's immersion?
I will not add any more idle chatter on the matter.
Next is the game's actual content.
(Combat screenshot)
It was excellent.
The pacing of the combat was so tight you couldn't let your guard down, and yet it wasn't overly fatiguing.
Should I say it fulfilled its duty as an action game? Its refreshing and fluid action was a feast for the eyes.
The highlight, of course, was the boss battles.
Just like the previous installments, *Hellic*'s boss battles provided great satisfaction with their diverse mechanics and unique visuals.
In fact, it makes me wish there was a separate mode just for the boss fights.
Another impressive aspect was the controller's vibration; like many PS4 masterpieces, it made excellent use of the controller's sensors.
In summary, the combat is fun, and the diversity of builds leaves no room for boredom.
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Of course, where there are strengths, there are also weaknesses.
How could there be a perfect game in this world that satisfies every single player?
Ironically, *Hellic 3*'s weakness lay in what brought Rewind to this position: its narrative.
In other words, the story.
This is not to say the story was disappointing.
On the contrary, the story of *Hellic 3* was excellent.
For the fanbase, in particular, it was close to a masterpiece worthy of endless praise.
To put it simply, while omitting details to avoid spoilers, *Hellic 3* serves to supplement the narrative and lore of its predecessors, *Hellic 1* and *2*, concluding the series as a trilogy.
The reason I still describe it as a weakness is simple.
To fully digest this story, an 'understanding of the previous games' is required.
It's obvious, but saying you need to play the previous games to fully understand it means that newcomers to the series might be left feeling bewildered.
I was left with a slight sense of regret, wondering if it would have been better to pursue a more self-contained and complete story.
Of course, this wasn't a major issue.
Whatever the case, this is a game, not a movie, and *Hellic 3* was designed so that one could progress without any problems, even without knowing the story from start to finish.
It felt as if the developers were aware of this issue and focused on enhancing the visuals and gameplay to compensate for the narrative's weakness.
The result was a success.
Thus, my personal score is 4.7 out of 5 stars.
It's a game I can strongly recommend to anyone.』
The reactions grew even more heated.
Of course, since all of this was happening before the game's actual release, it was still too early to judge it hastily.
But that period of debate did not last long.
A week is a period of time that can be described as flying by for anyone other than a soldier about to be discharged from the military.
『(Chat)WaitingForHellic3: Delivery complete!!!』
October 29th.
The day of the big reveal had come.
* * *
Community nickname ‘WaitingForHellic3’, real name Kang Seok-hun.
A job seeker when *Hellic 1* was released, he was a new employee when *Hellic 2* came out, and now he was settled enough in his career to be called 'Assistant Manager Kang'.
One might call it the transience of time.
Anyway, feeling this sense of novelty, Seok-hun checked the message that had appeared at the top of his smartphone screen.
[Sujin♥: Honey, it's our 1st anniversary tomorrow hehe]
Kang Seok-hun, one year into his relationship.
He thought he'd never have a girlfriend in his life, but he'd somehow met someone, and tomorrow was the day they would celebrate their first anniversary.
That's how society and public perception were.
A first anniversary is a day to be spent with one's significant other.
A day to eat at a nice place, talk, and celebrate the fruits of their love.
Seok-hun knew that too.
Under normal circumstances, he would have gladly chosen to go to bed early tonight for it.
After all, a first-anniversary date would take up the whole day, so he'd need to conserve his energy.
But he couldn't.
‘Why, of all days...!’
The first anniversary and the *Hellic 3* launch rush on the same day!
At a crossroads in his life, Seok-hun agonized.
‘*Hellic 3* or Sujin.’
Should he join the launch rush for *Hellic 3*, which he had waited three years for?
Or should he go straight to bed to prepare for his first anniversary with his girlfriend?
The current time was 11:40 PM.
He had less than twenty minutes left to decide.
Seok-hun felt his stomach churn and gritted his teeth.
Neither was unimportant.
Both were crucial events in Seok-hun's life that he couldn't miss.
Seok-hun wished he had two bodies.
One to go on a date, and the other to join the *Hellic 3* launch rush.
He hadn't wished for it this desperately since the day he enlisted!
As cold sweat trickled down his back, the time was suddenly 11:55 PM.
It was then.
Ding!
He saw the post on the refreshed community page.
『(Event)SweetBelfGuy42: Launch rush,,, event,,, I've planned,,@―@
I'm,,, getting,,, old,,, so games aren't easy for me,,,
But my passion,,,! is still like a youth in his prime,,, so in the spirit of,,, giving it my all,,, I've planned this,,,
For our,,, community family,,, the first 3 people,,, to verify their clear,,, will get a department store gift certificate,,, worth 50,000 won each,,, I'll generously hand them out,,,!』
Snap—
Seok-hun's reason snapped.
‘Huh?’
If that's the case, couldn't I just play *Hellic 3*, win the department store gift certificate, and then repay Sujin with a fancy gift?
It felt like his mind had cleared.
A broad grin spread across Seok-hun's face.
‘Right! That's what I should do!’
Or so, at least, Seok-hun thought.
...That's how humans are.
When you're agonizing over a problem for which you already have an answer, even the smallest variable can tip the scales.
The time he made his decision: 11:59 PM.
Click!
Seok-hun immediately grabbed his controller and turned on the game.
He screamed inwardly.
‘Sujin, I'm sorry! I'll make it up to you twice over on our second anniversary!!!’
His eyes shot wide open.
A sight that would make someone lament, ‘Even a loser like that has a girlfriend’!
But, no one could stop Seok-hun today!
Not even his mom could stop him (he lives alone)!
[Aaaaaaah!]
With the familiar intro scream, Seok-hun's playthrough began.