Chapter 70
After the year-end drinking session with Yerin, the new year of 2016 dawned.
However, the term “New Year” felt meaningless as all the tasks postponed during the year-end period began to pile up.
Among them, the most urgent was Reverse Arcadia's Anniversary Event.
Since it was starting next month, the event had to be treated as a top priority.
Actually, this Anniversary Event was based on the Japanese Server launch, so there was no real need to hold an event in Korea.
However, I felt we had neglected our Korean users too much before the Korean server launch, so I decided to push for it this time.
Of course, since the Anniversary Event was based on the Japanese Server, we had to find a different justification for holding an event in Korea.
Thus began the Internal Meeting.
After several hours of marathon discussions on the type of event to hold in Korea, an offline event was chosen.
Many good ideas, such as live broadcasts, concerts, and fan conventions, were proposed.
However, the majority opinion was that an Offline Event, which we had put off until now, was the right size to respond to the support of our Korean users, so there was no other choice.
The overwhelmingly positive response to the Booth Event during G-STAR also significantly influenced the decision.
In any case, since the event next month was decided to be an Offline Event, it meant I was in for a grueling schedule of business trips.
For Offline Events, external contracts and meetings with Agencies constitute the majority of the work, rather than internal Company tasks...
The path of hardship was clear, but I decided to endure it.
It would only be for a month.
Since the event to be held in Korea was decided to be an offline event, the first thing to do was to select the event venue.
Some might ask what's so difficult about choosing a venue for an Offline Event, but selecting the Event Venue to host the event was not that easy.
Capacity.
The Venue Rental Schedule is aligned with the Anniversary Event period.
Consideration of convenient transportation for users.
It was safe to say that no single Event Venue satisfied all these conditions, making the choice even harder.
So, after compiling venue rental list data on available event venues and pondering, I eventually took Yumi to the cafe in front of the company to put our heads together and think.
She looked a bit sullen, probably because she was dragged out of work, but after I bought her a cafe mocha with plenty of whipped cream and some snacks, Yumi's expression quickly softened.
She was so simple yet cute.
“Ooh, Director, I'll enjoy this.”
“Alright...”
Watching her heartily eat a large slice of cake made me feel good too.
“Alright, let’s talk business while we eat. I’ve compiled a list of Event Venues we can rent to match our game’s Anniversary Event schedule. Where do you think a good place to rent would be?
At my words, Yumi sipped her Cafe Mocha through a straw while checking the Venue Rental List Data.
Before long, she finished reviewing the data, placed it on the table, and spoke.
“In my personal opinion, considering symbolism, accessibility, and cost-effectiveness, Sevit Floating Island seems like the best option, ooh...”
Yumi’s opinion seemed plausible at first glance, but I immediately shook my head.
That’s because Sevit Floating Island already had a history of an Offline Event turning into a complete disaster Before Regression.
At that time, the game that held an event at Sevit Floating Island was so popular that few could rival it, and a crowd far exceeding its 3,500-person capacity gathered.
Ultimately, all Users and Personnel who participated in the event were forcibly evacuated from the island, suffering humiliation, with a warning from the Seoul Metropolitan Government that the artificial Sevit Floating Island might sink.
Our game’s current popularity was certainly no less than, and likely even greater than, that of the game Before Regression, so I had no choice but to exclude Sevit Floating Island.
“First, Sevit Floating Island is out. Its capacity is too small, more than anything else.”
“That’s true, ooh... Then, Director, what capacity are you considering?”
“After experiencing G-STAR, I realized we need at least 7,000 people.”
“If we narrow down the Event Venues that can accommodate that many people, it’s about this many, ooh.”
The Event Venue list Yumi compiled included a total of three places: KINTEX Exhibition Center 2, Ilsan; Seoul Olympic Gymnastics Arena; and COEX Exhibition Center.
“So, these three places... are exactly what I was thinking. But why is Jamsil Indoor Stadium missing? That place should have enough capacity too.”
Yumi shook her head at my question.
“That place is specialized for concerts and game competitions, so the audience seating ratio is high, making it difficult to secure space. I had a chance to look into it, so I excluded it beforehand.”
“Right, good job. So, it’s these three places then...”
I circled the three places Yumi mentioned with the red pen I had brought from the office.
“Yumi, you don’t have any Urgent Matters tomorrow, do you?”
“Yes, yes, ooh... Most urgent matters were already finished by year-end...”
Fortunately, Yumi replied that she had no urgent matters, so I nodded and said,
“Yumi, then let’s work on something together.”
***
As quick-witted as Yumi was, she quickly realized what I was proposing and tried to refuse, but I rejected her refusal.
It wouldn't be right for the PM to be absent when the Director is going through hardship.
So, the next day, as we were dragging a despairing Yumi, the first place we visited was KINTEX Exhibition Center 2, Ilsan.
As an event venue that consistently appears in various game and animation-related events, this venue was our top priority for consideration.
The problem, however, was that we had severely underestimated KINTEX's notorious reputation.
We had expected it would be difficult to get to KINTEX, located in Ilsan, directly opposite Pangyo, but we never imagined it would be this bad.
We departed at 9 AM and only managed to arrive at KINTEX Exhibition Center 2, Ilsan, after transferring between Express Buses three times.
As soon as we got off at the bus stop, I checked the time, and it was already well past 11 AM.
The one fortunate thing, I suppose, was that the bus stop was right in front of the event venue, so we didn't have to walk.
“W-we finally made it, ooh...”
Exhausted, we got off the bus, looked at each other, and couldn't help but burst out laughing.
We certainly didn't look like people who had just gotten off a bus.
“Still, since we’ve arrived, shall we start looking around?”
“Okayyy, ooh...”
We entered Exhibition Center 2 through one of its many entrances and began looking around.
There was a spacious Hall that could accommodate over 1,000 people, though divided by temporary walls, and a Terrace on the Second Floor offering a panoramic view of the large Hall.
And after checking out the Large Conference Rooms clustered together on the 3rd and 4th Floors, I was quite satisfied.
“I can definitely see why it’s often used as an Event Venue for various game and subculture-related events, ooh.”
“Right. The Hall is bigger than I expected, and the Large Conference Rooms and Terrace seem versatile enough. It’s pretty good, except for the transportation.”
Feeling more satisfied than I expected, I noted high scores for all Evaluation Report Items except for transportation, then moved to the next Event Venue with Yumi.
The next event venue we visited after KINTEX was the Seoul Olympic Gymnastics Arena.
It was indeed the place known as the Seoul Olympic Gymnastics Arena.
“Wow... its exterior is really cool since it’s an actual arena, ooh.”
“Right. I’ve never actually been here, so I didn’t know it would be this impressive.”
Indeed, the actual Seoul Olympic Gymnastics Arena had an overwhelming exterior that left both of us in awe.
The Landmark Triangular Structures surrounded the exterior of the Seoul Olympic Gymnastics Arena, boasting an overwhelming grandeur.
“First, let’s go inside the Arena.”
“Yes, ooh.”
This time, perhaps because we had notified them of our visit in advance, as we entered the Arena, an employee who was waiting greeted us.
“Welcome. You must be Ji Hojin and Kang Yumi, who called yesterday, aren't you?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
“Then I will guide you. Please follow me.”
As we followed the Employee into the Arena, a vast interior appeared, different from KINTEX, which was divided by temporary walls.
Being an Arena, it had a wide-open, circular interior without any obstructions.
However, the actual usable Indoor Area wasn't as large as expected, perhaps due to the audience seating.
It was an awkward size, slightly larger than the First Floor Hall of KINTEX, Ilsan.
Yumi, who was looking around with me, also seemed to have a similar impression, her expression ambiguous.
As if sensing our mood, the employee quickly added,
“The Arena you see now is in its state immediately after a concert rental. If you remove the first floor audience seating visible on the opposite side over there, you’ll be able to utilize the indoor area more efficiently.”
Following the Employee’s words, it seemed certain that at least 30% more Indoor Area could be secured when I considered the First Floor audience seating as part of the Indoor Area for comparison.
After we had checked ancillary facilities like the restroom, nearby convenience stores, and restaurants, two hours had already flown by.
Current time: 4 PM.
There was still one more Event Venue to visit, but time was too tight.
“Yumi, what do you want to do? Come back tomorrow? Or finish it today?”
Yumi seemed to ponder my question for a moment, then nodded and replied,
“I think it would be better to just finish everything today, ooh...”
“Alright, let’s move then.”
***
We were on the way back to the Company after finishing the site visit to COEX Exhibition Center.
She didn't say anything, but her small body must have found today's schedule overwhelming, as Yumi was already asleep beside me.
It was certainly a tough schedule.
Still, this site visit allowed me to decide definitively where to hold this event.
That place was the Seoul Olympic Gymnastics Arena.
COEX had an ambiguous capacity and excessively high rental fees, so it was excluded from the candidates immediately after the site visit.
Honestly, in terms of facilities alone, KINTEX, Ilsan, had a slight advantage, but it received a significant deduction for transportation, so there was no choice.
Because it was an event for Users, I couldn't help but consider User accessibility.
As we were lost in these thoughts, the bus we were on soon arrived at our destination, Geumtocheon Bridge.
Realizing this belatedly, I woke Yumi and barely managed to get off the bus.
Dragging our tired bodies, Yumi and I returned to the Office, where we immediately sensed an unusual, chaotic atmosphere.
To find out what had happened, I asked a passing Team Member, and the reason became clear at once.
“They say something blew up with the PC Game Development Team?”
...Already?