Losing Money to Become a Tycoon: Starting with Games
Chapter 370: The Coin-Spraying Hedgehog
Pei Qian silently stood behind Ma Yang, watching him being chased around by the enemy hero in a sorry state.
Huh? Wasn't this supposed to be another "nine protect one" game?
Pei Qian was a little puzzled. Judging from how ruthlessly the opponents were attacking, they didn't seem like insiders.
A team fight broke out. Both sides fought fiercely. Three of Ma Yang's teammates clashed with all five enemies, and through superb mechanics and tight coordination, they managed an extreme three-for-three trade.
Another teammate was frantically split-pushing during the team fight, successfully taking down two towers and threatening the enemy's high ground.
And Ma Yang…
Amid shouts of "Boss Ma, retreat first!" he fled at full health.
Pei Qian took a closer look. The hero Ma Yang was playing was a mythical beast. It looked a bit like a wolf, but with a stout body and a dragon's tail. Its head was huge, topped with two sharp horns like a qilin's, and it constantly held its massive mouth open. The oversized head looked somewhat disproportionate, yet strangely adorable.
Pei Qian vaguely remembered this hero. It was called Taotie, an IP from an old domestic animated series. Of course, the animated version itself was inspired by the traditional mythical beast Taotie from Chinese culture.
There are many depictions of Taotie, with no single "correct" version. The animated portrayal had gained relatively wide recognition, so the IP had been purchased and adapted into the game.
In GOG's design, this hero combined protection and initiation abilities. It could swallow allied or enemy heroes, apply crowd control in a small area, and activate a skill to increase its own damage reduction.
In theory, this was quite a beginner-friendly support hero. Even if you didn't know how to play it well, you could simply charge into the enemy backline during team fights or use the devour ability to protect a key teammate and still contribute something.
Yet in Old Ma's hands, the hero did absolutely nothing, running away at full health and decisively abandoning three teammates…
Pei Qian couldn't help but sigh. He had seen plenty of "four protect one" strategies, but "four protect one support" was truly a first!
Looking more carefully, Pei Qian confirmed that the opponents really weren't insiders. They were probably just random players matched online.
During the previous "nine protect one" games, although the enemies' acting had been fairly convincing, Pei Qian could still detect the performance.
After all, to let Old Ma rack up ten kills in a single game, sometimes it required some rather clumsy acting.
But now, these opponents seemed to be going all out against Ma Yang. They didn't look like employees, they looked more like ex-employees.
Luckily, Old Ma had run fast enough. Otherwise, he probably would've died miserably.
By now, some employees had noticed Pei Qian standing behind Ma Yang. But when they saw President Pei make a "shh" gesture, they cooperated and stayed quiet.
Ma Yang had headphones on and was fully focused on the screen, completely unaware that someone was standing behind him.
Of course, even if he had noticed Pei Qian's arrival, he probably would've just greeted him briefly and continued finishing the match.
Old Ma might slack off, but he never went AFK and sabotaged his teammates.
In that sense, he was still fairly reliable—if you didn't consider his in-game performance.
After all, with gameplay like this, there wasn't much difference between him and an AFK player.
Pei Qian actually found it pretty entertaining.
If he himself were in this match as Old Ma's teammate, he probably would've already started swearing.
But as a spectator, Pei Qian had only one thought:
Got any food?
Bring me two bowls, I'm starving!
He couldn't help but feel a bit sorry for Ma Yang's four teammates. They were clearly stronger than their opponents, yet struggling so hard.
However, as Pei Qian kept watching, the smile on his face gradually disappeared.
Joy turns to sorrow!
Wait a second… this GOG version… something didn't seem right?
Ma Yang's last-hitting was absolutely terrible. So how was his equipment not that far behind?
And wasn't this hero supposed to be a support?
With his teammates' help, Ma Yang picked up a kill and directly received an 800-yuan bounty?
Because this kind of setup was relatively familiar to Pei Qian, he didn't immediately realize anything was wrong.
But after thinking about it for a moment, he instantly sensed something was off!
GOG's original design wasn't like this at all, because the game had originally been a straight copy of Divine Revelation!
Looking more closely, not only had the rules for last-hitting and bounties changed, even the map seemed smaller than before, and the elements on the map had also been subtly altered!
Pei Qian's heart skipped a beat, and he felt a chill run through him.
What was going on?!
Who changed this game? Why was it getting more and more problematic the more it was modified?
Before he could take a closer look, the match had already ended.
Although they were effectively fighting four versus five most of the time, Ma Yang's four teammates were just too strong, and they still secured the victory.
Ma Yang took off his headphones and said with satisfaction, "Another win streak!"
"That special training I did a while back really paid off. I can even get win streaks in solo queue now!"
The employees around him immediately burst into applause, showering him with flattery.
"Boss Ma is improving so fast!"
"Actually, Boss Ma's mechanics were always good. He just never had the right teammates before."
"Even though Boss Ma didn't get MVP this round, his contribution was actually the greatest among the five on the winning side!"
Pei Qian: "..."
Old Ma, Arbor Day has been over for more than half a year now. How come you still haven't managed to plant even a single 'B-tree' in your heart?
And wow, you've hired a whole bunch of bootlickers… I can't even listen to this anymore!
Whatever, the bootlicking isn't important.
What matters is figuring out what's going on with GOG!
Pei Qian felt speechless. Weren't Li Yada and Bao Xu already off vacationing in the U.S.?
How were they still causing him trouble from across the ocean???
Or did they deliberately plant a landmine for him before leaving the country?
Good thing I came to borrow notes from Old Ma today, otherwise I might've been kept in the dark for who knows how long!
Pei Qian instinctively wanted to ask about the game, but then thought better of it. This bunch at Dream Fulfillment Ventures were investors, how would they understand GOG's design details?
Forget it. He'd investigate it himself!
Someone nearby had already pulled over a chair for President Pei to sit next to Ma Yang.
Pei Qian cleared his throat. "Did you bring the thing?"
Ma Yang nodded quickly. "Yep, brought it. Brother Qian, take it."
As he spoke, he pulled out a very low-key-looking black hardcover notebook from the drawer.
Pei Qian reached out to take it and handed it to the driver, Xiao Sun, who had come with him.
Xiao Sun hurriedly put the notebook into his business bag and secured it for President Pei.
No one else dared to take a closer look.
What was in that notebook?
Most likely some extremely important piece of business intel!
Otherwise, why would President Pei make a special trip just to personally receive it from Boss Ma?
With the notes for the only closed-book exam during exam week safely in hand, Pei Qian planned to find a copy shop to make a copy later and cram a bit when he had time.
But the urgent priority was still to sort out what was going on with GOG.
"It's been a while since we duo-queued together. One round?" Pei Qian suggested.
Ma Yang was delighted. "Sure, Brother Qian! Perfect timing, you can see the results of my special training lately!"
Pei Qian: "..."
He had zero faith in the results of Ma Yang's "special training"!
Four top-tier players carrying you, never flaming you no matter how badly you play—if someone like Ma Yang, a veteran freeloader, could actually improve in that environment, the sun would rise in the west.
Still, Pei Qian's main purpose was to observe the current state of GOG.
Soon, the ten-player custom match started and everyone entered the hero selection screen.
Looking at the dazzling array of heroes, Pei Qian felt a bit at a loss.
Of course, there weren't that many, just a dozen or so, since the game was still in development.
But for Pei Qian, he hadn't played any of these heroes before, so naturally he felt out of his depth and had no idea who to pick.
He clicked through the heroes one by one, checking their skills and descriptions.
When he got to a hero called "Guardian of Justice: Zadkiel," Pei Qian noticed a line of small text under the hero's description:
"Dedicated to President Pei, the chief game designer of Tengda Group."
Huh?
Pei Qian's mood instantly brightened.
This kind of casual, low-key flattery—totally irresistible!
Since it was "his" exclusive hero, he might as well try it out.
Without hesitation, Pei Qian locked in the hero called "Guardian of Justice: Zadkiel."
Only after locking it in did he notice something odd, why was this hero carrying so many weapons stuck in his back?
Swords, spears, halberds were one thing, but why were there pitchforks and brooms in there too?!
What was this supposed to mean?
Gilgamesh "Treasure of the King" is hidden in the void, ready to be summoned at any time.
Mine is literally stuck in my back?
Other people's Iron Throne is something they sit on.
Mine is something you carry on your shoulders?
Isn't this… a bit questionable in terms of design choices?
Just as Pei Qian was about to ask, Ma Yang turned his head toward him.
"Huh? Brother Qian, you're playing the 'Coin-Spraying Hedgehog'?"
Pei Qian: "…"
Hey, that's rude!
His face darkened. "What do you mean 'Coin-Spraying Hedgehog'? Isn't this Guardian of Justice?"
Ma Yang nodded. "Yeah, yeah, Guardian of Justice."
"But it really does look like a hedgehog, and when you get backstabbed, it sprays money everywhere. Super fun!"
Pei Qian: "…"
At that moment, he really wanted to know who had designed this hero. He wanted to generously sponsor them for a fully paid 'world tour' to broaden their horizons: the Sahara Desert, Antarctica, and the tropical rainforests of East Africa.
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