Chapter 64
Reverse Arcadia Gallery.
In this, the largest community for Reverse Arcadia, an unexpected Difficulty Controversy was brewing.
Usually, when difficulty is discussed in online communities, it's because the difficulty is either impossibly hard and frustrating,
or it's a blatant BM-driven Difficulty Adjustment... but this time, it was neither.
The reason for the difficulty discussion in Ri-gael was not that it was too hard, but rather, too easy.
[Nickname: ㅇㅇ]
[Comment List][Newest First]
-This guy's gotten too comfortable lol. He needs to play some games where you can't even touch the End-Game Content without limit breaks to get his head straight.
ReplyReal LOL (slang)
-Honestly, isn't this guy a Non-Player Critic?
[Nickname: Mercure]
[Title: Honestly, it's a bit frustrating that spending money doesn't feel like spending money.]
【Reverse Arcadia Character All-Collection Proof Shot】
After collecting all characters and devouring all the content, one finds there's literally nothing left to do.
What's the point of being a Paying Player if it just means clearing Stages a bit faster and completing character collections?
A Generous Game is good, but honestly, I wish there were some fun content or difficulty that made Paying Players feel like their money was well spent.
It's a Mobile Game, so I don't expect huge rewards anyway.
[Comment List][Newest First]
-If it's not too much trouble, please buy me a Melona.
-You should take it easy lol.
-Honestly, Real LOL, there's not much difference between me and those who just bought a starter account and a monthly pass, which is a bit disappointing.
-Unless the reward difference is huge, I honestly don't mind Difficulty Differentiation.
[Nickname: ㅇㅇ]
[Title: But what happens if truly insane difficulty content actually comes out? lol]
All those guys in the Gallery are whining that the difficulty is a pushover and asking for it to be raised.
I can already see a future where they all get their heads smashed in and cry, "What is this?!". Upvote if you agree lol.
Starting with me.
[Comment List][Newest First]
-Real LOL lol.
-Upvote lol.
They're really going at it.
This was Jaehyeon's primary feeling as he browsed the Reverse Arcadia Gallery.
From Jaehyeon's perspective, he had no interest in this Difficulty Controversy.
He wasn't a hardcore gamer.
and since he was juggling Outsourcing work with gaming, Reverse Arcadia's current difficulty felt just right for him.
Of course, if truly difficult content came out, as the last anonymous user mentioned, one would still struggle and challenge oneself to clear it.
“Whatever happens, I just want to finish this outsourcing work quickly and play games...”
***
It started by chance.
Outrage, the Main Event and End-Game Content, is set to cap off Reverse Arcadia's year.
Unlike the volume of typical events, its sheer volume rivaled that of the Main Story, and I was struggling to find a way to unveil it.
It was too grand to be revealed like a normal event,
yet a bit too awkward in size to be broadcast like an Anniversary Event.
Just as I was about to ask Yumi for help, having run out of ideas,
my Smartphone, resting on my desk, rang.
Few people would call at this hour, so I checked, and it was Suyeon.
*What could she want at this hour?*
[Hojin-ssi? Are you free to talk right now?]
“Ah, yes. Of course.”
Hojin-ssi, would you be interested in participating in G-STAR this year, by any chance?
“G-STAR?”
Yes, my Patriarch just called and asked me to ask you.
G-STAR...
G-STAR was certainly the best solution to my problem.
It offered the Promotional Effect of a Live Broadcast without the pressure, and it was suitable for introducing Outrage.
“But our Company's New Game Booth already has its entries decided, doesn't it?”
That's right. Our Company's Booth has its entries already decided. *Our Company's Booth*, that is.
“What do you mean by...”
Enson Korea has two Allocated Booths at this G-STAR, and it said it'd transfer one of them, the largest one, to us.
“I'd be grateful if you did that for me, but why the sudden change?”
I heard ND Soft is setting up a grand booth this year, almost 100 units in size.
“Ah.”
I roughly understood what was going on.
Having received information that ND Soft was participating in G-STAR with renewed vigor,
the Chairman seemed to want to prevent ND Soft from becoming the star of this G-STAR.
And thanks to that, an opportunity came our way.
“Understood. I have no reason to refuse this opportunity, so please convey my gratitude to the Chairman.”
All right, my Patriarch will be pleased.
As soon as I hung up, I stood up and let out a silent cheer.
A problem I had been agonizing over for days was solved in an instant.
Since an opportunity had arisen, I needed to start preparations as quickly as possible, so I immediately called a meeting.
Thus, all Director-level and above personnel, including me, gathered in the Conference Room, and Yerin was the first to ask a question.
“Senior, participating in G-STAR is good, but don't we have anything to showcase at our Booth?”
“I plan to make a grand public announcement for the Outrage event.”
“Ah.”
“Honestly, it's called an event, but if you include the story, it's easily the length of a Main Episode. That's enough.”
The Team Members nodded at my explanation.
So, we're also planning to set up an Experience Zone at this G-STAR Booth, Taeseon.
“Yes.”
“Is the Content Implementation for Outrage finished?”
“Yes. Implementation is complete, and we just need to activate the Dummy Data that was put in on Update Day.”
“Then, based on that version, let's create a trial version to be used in the Experience Zone at G-STAR.”
“If you mean a trial version, to what extent...”
“I think it would be enough to reveal only up to the 2nd stage of Outrage's content difficulty selection and remove a few patterns from the Mid-Boss and Final Boss.”
At my words, Taeseon seemed to ponder for a moment before nodding.
“If it's just that much, it won't take long to implement. The work itself is simple.”
“Alright, and I'll personally be doing the Quality Check this time, so contact me as soon as the trial version implementation is done.”
“Understood.”
With Taeseon's reply, the meeting rapidly picked up pace.
“Then, finally... Yena?”
“Ah, yes?”
Yena, who had apparently been quietly talking with Yerin, replied with a surprised expression when I called her name.
“After G-STAR, I'm thinking of serializing a 4-Panel Comic story for Outrage's promotion. Are you interested in doing it?”
“If I say I can't...”
“Then we'd have to find a new Freelance Writer/Artist.”
“Ah, um... Is this also going to be an Outsourcing contract, like with Girls Memorial?”
“That's right.”
Yena thought for a moment about my answer, then nodded.
“Then, I'll do it.”
“Good thinking. It's much more convenient to entrust a Media Mix to a single artist. Now, for the next agenda item—”
The meeting continued for over 30 minutes before finally concluding.
***
One day, about two weeks after the first G-STAR participation meeting, I received a call from Taeseon.
It was a notification that the trial version for the G-STAR demonstration and the Outrage content experience was complete.
If it were a regular Update, I would have entrusted the Quality Assurance to the QA Team as usual... but this time, I couldn't.
Outrage, as New Content, was a Game Changer that could completely shift public opinion regarding the current difficulty discussions.
It put my mind at ease to manage everything from start to finish myself.
If I had entrusted it to the QA Team and unwanted information had leaked, that would have been an even bigger problem.
Anyway, after receiving Taeseon's call, I arrived at the Development Team, listened to a brief explanation, and immediately began Quality Assurance.
Sitting down and turning on the monitor, I immediately saw Reverse Arcadia's Main Screen.
Amidst the familiar UI, a sinister red icon labeled 'Outrage' caught my eye.
With anticipation, I clicked the icon, and a grand Original Soundtrack began, accompanied by an eerie sound.
Full-fledged gameplay began, accompanied by an overwhelming Original Soundtrack befitting End-Game Content.
The Play Style of Outrage itself wasn't significantly different from the existing gameplay.
It was just that the map changed to an Event-Exclusive Map, and the Final Boss became an event Boss.
If one saw only this, many would ask what kind of End-Game Content this was, but Outrage has a differentiated system from other content.
That was 'Covenant'.
Right from the start, the 'Covenant' system involved applying various buffs that strengthened enemies when cast on them, and conversely, applying various debuffs that weakened allies when cast on them.
At this G-STAR, only certain stages of this system would be revealed.
Participants at G-STAR could only experience up to the 2nd stage out of the maximum 3-Stage Effect.
While the 2nd stage was harder than the currently available content, it was a difficulty that might leave users who desire hardcore difficulty content feeling a bit disappointed.
Therefore, negative reviews expressing disappointment would likely outweigh positive ones, but I was prepared to accept that.
Revealing only a portion and keeping the rest as a surprise card would undoubtedly elicit a much better response than showing all our cards.
When I played the trial version with that thought in mind, the result was exactly as I had envisioned.
A difficulty that was challenging but not so much that it would prevent completion.
Taeseon, seeing my satisfied expression, seemed relieved and let out a sigh of relief.
One month remains until G-STAR.
I was already starting to look forward to the Users' reactions.