Sorry, everyone, for not uploading these past few days. I have been busy with my job, so my attention is focused elsewhere.
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Hearing the report from his team and seeing how wildly the game was spreading online, John couldn't help feeling completely speechless.
"Do you dare to directly 'borrow' from Resident Evil? And the funniest part is, you chose Resident Evil when it first entered the country. Now it has been out for almost a year before you finally show up to imitate it? You're late to the party. The popularity has faded."
Staring at the game Alien Crisis, John felt the corners of his mouth twitch helplessly. Even though its setting and storyline are different from Resident Evil, the UI style and the over-the-shoulder shooting angle make people instinctively think it is Resident Evil at first glance.
"Marketing, huh? Our Resident Evil 2 just released a brand-new promotional trailer, and judging from Martel's development schedule, we should be able to launch about a year ahead of them. From that perspective, their timing with Alien Crisis is actually smart." In the PixelPioneers Studio office, John and Luna had temporarily returned. Listening to Armani's analysis, John felt a throbbing headache coming on.
"The key issue is that this game isn't sold as a buyout title. It's free with internal purchases. Whether people praise it or curse it, as long as visibility rises, they achieve their goal. I also investigated Alien Crisis. The lead designer is from Faustin Oli, a subsidiary of Moondustries, and he's no amateur," Armani continued.
A well-known developer, he had produced several major hits. Although his games always carried traces of other classics, his strong technical foundation and distinctive art style, combined with clever borrowing of successful elements, let him carve out a path of his own. From early 2D side-scrolling shooters to later 3D open-action titles, he had gathered countless fans.
But afterward, he seemed to rest on past glories. Several consecutive projects relied heavily on copying formulas, then used free-to-play monetization to secure results. Now it's obvious that their sights are firmly locked onto Resident Evil.
"It's really brazen…" John muttered, shaking his head at Armani's collected data, unsure whether to laugh or sigh.
He'd never been overly sensitive about referencing. Even with his memory, he polished and reshaped ideas rather than copying them. So when small studios rode on PixelPioneers Games' popularity, as long as it wasn't blatant theft or damaging the IP's image, John usually let it slide.
But this time… they went too far. If not for the different characters and plot, he would have genuinely mistaken it for an official sequel to Resident Evil. The problem is, as long as the core gameplay changes and the UI gets tweaked, while retaining a similar visual tone, there's no grounds to sue for plagiarism.
Unless they were foolish enough to make it identical to Resident Evil, which they clearly aren't. Their expansion content proves they understand legal boundaries extremely well.
While John and Armani were discussing, online players were already locked in a fierce debate. Fans of Resident Evil and PixelPioneers Games clashed with supporters of Alien Crisis and Oli.
"Oh, come on, with this UI and style, you still call it Alien Crisis? Why not just name it 'Crisis of the Gods'? Isn't that more dramatic?"
"Seriously? Moondustries is one of the big three, and they still pull stunts like this?"
"Everything clearly traces back to Resident Evil. The entire aesthetic feels copied! Interesting move!"
The account of Alien Crisis was being bombarded.
Meanwhile, plenty of outside players jumped in just for drama. Some hadn't even bought Resident Evil, yet loudly defended it just to stir the pot.
On the other side, Alien Crisis had genuine supporters too. Oli wasn't some newcomer and once enjoyed glorious success, so naturally, fans remained. Add to that the fans of PixelPioneers Games and competitors quietly fanning the flames, and the chaos only grew.
Yet Oli, the original instigator, showed zero intention of responding. They were no strangers to public cursing, and this was exactly the strategy.
John frowned at the endless online arguments.
"That guy really is unafraid of problems," he sighed helplessly.
From PixelPioneers' perspective, it was tricky. If they responded positively, what could they even say? Express understanding? That would feel like moving trash dumped at your doorstep and pretending nothing happened. Condemn them? They couldn't sue anyway. Worse, if personal relationships were involved, speaking out could turn ugly.
"But we can't just sit back silently. Whether we win or not is one matter. Whether we act at all is another," Armani said calmly.
"For now..." John nodded slightly, though irritation lingered in his chest. Sitting in the office, he glanced across his monitor, and his eyes landed on the newly serialized Resident Evil comic. Suddenly, inspiration flashed.
"How about using Resident Evil… to directly snipe Alien Crisis?" John asked.
Armani, who had been preparing to continue handling matters, froze and looked back in surprise. "Is the timing right? They've already announced a late-December launch, and despite the porcelain-touching, the game quality itself isn't bad… plus it's free."
Even without saying it outright, John clearly understood Armani's concern: if they failed to suppress it, they'd become a stepping stone instead.
"It's not about timing. We can update slowly, release by chapters. And who said we need to make a new game? Isn't Resident Evil Resistance already prepared?" John replied, eyes gleaming. Staring at the comic on his screen, John's idea was already taking shape.