Hoenn Region, Rustboro City.
Located in the western part of Hoenn, Rustboro City lies next to Meteor Falls and serves as an essential commercial hub for the region.
The headquarters of the giant conglomerate, Devon Corporation, is situated in Rustboro City.
Devon Corporation initially built its fortune in the energy sector. However, aside from energy, the gaming industry accounts for 25% of their financial reports. One of their flagship products, the gaming platform "ORAS", enjoys a significant overseas market.
The platform's most downloaded game is the real-time virtual title "Pokémon: Battle."
Each month, over a hundred new games are launched on ORAS, but only a few become hits. In August, a tower-defense game surged into the platform's Top 10 New Games chart.
Rustboro City Trainer School.
"Did you play the game I sent you yesterday?"
"Ugh, my Sun Kernels keep getting eaten by Rattata!"
"Haha, you need to put Acorns in the front row, you blockhead!"
The bell rang, but a group of teenagers kept chatting excitedly about the game.
"I brought my tablet—watch me play!" a boy's eyes sparkled.
"Huh? But it's Ms. Roxanne's class…"
"It's fine, as long as she doesn't catch us!"
Just then, the door to the lecture hall opened, and a slender teacher entered. Her hair was tied into buns, with two red ribbons holding twin ponytails.
Roxanne, who still looked youthful, wore a flared skirt and pink stockings as she walked in with a stack of books.
After placing the textbooks on the lectern, she cleared her throat, "Today's class is about handling and using Status Conditions..."
Suddenly, a shout came from the students: "Protect or no Protect!"
"Teacher Lu says you just don't have it!"
The class burst into laughter.
Roxanne paused, smiling awkwardly. "Is this some new meme? I can't seem to keep up with you all."
The class monitor kindly explained, "It's from a Bilibili (B Station) content creator who teaches battle tactics and team building!"
"That's just an amateur then…" Roxanne muttered.
"Teacher, Lu has already taught us all about these Status Conditions!"
"His explanation of 'Poison' was more detailed than the textbook!"
Looking defeated, Roxanne sighed, "Alright, turn to page 36…"
Suddenly, her eyes narrowed. She quickly walked up to two students whispering to each other and confiscated their tablet with a smug grin.
"Come to my office after class!" Roxanne declared triumphantly.
After all these years of teaching, she had finally caught someone!
The students turned pale. "But I just beat Dr. Squidking!"
"Teacher, let me finish this level!"
"Playing games in class…" Roxanne grumbled, "No way, we'll talk later!"
The bell rang. Back in her office, Roxanne inspected the confiscated tablet curiously.
"What game is this?"
"Plants vs. Zombies!" a student replied. "It's newly downloaded from ORAS!"
"It was only 20 Pokedollars!" another boy's eyes gleamed. "Ms. Roxanne, you should try it too!"
Roxanne sneered, "I wouldn't play such a boring tower-defense game!"
Twenty minutes later…
"Ms. Roxanne, aren't you going to class? It's already ten minutes in," a colleague reminded her.
"Let me just finish this level…"
Roxanne froze. "Wait, what? I'm late?!"
"I-I-I'm going now!"
In her rush, she forgot to save, tears welling up in her eyes.
"Can't this game pause?! Why is it so addictive?"
Similar scenes unfolded across Hoenn. Due to the popularity of ORAS, Plants vs. Zombies became a surprise overseas hit.
---
One morning, Mr. Wattson from Mauville City called Lu Ye.
Wattson laughed heartily, "Lu Ye, can you send me a guide—or a cheat code?"
"You can't ask the creator for cheat codes!"
"Haha, no problem. It's just too fun. Had to let you know!"
The game's rapid success astonished Lu Ye.
Released on August 1st, it received a modest "New Release" recommendation. Yet, in just three days, Plants vs. Zombies broke into the Top 10 New Games chart.
Priced at 20 Pokedollars per copy, it sold over 5,000 copies in three days, with almost no marketing.
Boasting a 95% positive rating and glowing reviews from nearly ten game critics, it achieved word-of-mouth success even major developers rarely saw.
"It's hard to believe this was made by a small indie studio. The gameplay and polish deserve five-stars!"
"As a fan of Teacher Lu, I bought the game right away. I thought it was just a fun fan project, but it's addictive! Five stars!"
"Pulled an all-nighter to beat Dr. Squidking. Still have to challenge a Gym tomorrow… so tired."
"Teacher Lu makes games too? And they're this good? I'm jealous!"
"Told my mom I needed 20 Pokedollars for a textbook. When she asked which one, I said it teaches Pokémon evolutions, abilities, type matchups, and moves… Yep, it's Plants vs. Zombies!"
Seeing the flood of positive reviews and the backend data stream, Dayou grabbed Lu Ye's hair excitedly. "Lu Ye, you're famous!"
"Stop pulling," Lu Ye said calmly.
With his system skills, he'd faithfully recreated the original game's essence, infused with Pokémon elements. Lu Ye was confident in his work.
"This is your success too," Lu Ye smiled.
"I'm just a coder… Besides, we have a contract. It's employment, not a partnership," Dayou shook his head.
He would be lying if he said he wasn't jealous.
But with his legal background and strong sense of justice, he knew his salary was fair.
Without Lu Ye's creativity, Dayou knew he couldn't have made such a hit game.
"Just add my name to the studio credits!" Dayou grinned.
"No problem!"
"By the way, what's our studio called?"
Lu Ye thought for a moment. Since it was a studio, he considered naming it "Game Freak."
But eventually, it would become a company…
Mentioning Pokémon always brought to mind the gaming giant, Nintendo.
Without the foundation of the FC era, it was hard to make a plumber iconic.
Tactical RPGs weren't a smart choice now.
And MOBAs were just starting to rise…
If he borrowed the future success of that one game…
"Let's call it Pokémon Studio," Lu Ye said.
"Our games will focus on Pokémon, so people who can't capture real Pokémon can still experience their charm!"