Chapter 303: Creating a New Game
Akari joined Hinotori Publishing, first receiving brief training and then departing from Tokyo to recruit personnel starting the second week.
She would call Takumi every few days to report on the situation, but things didn't go as well as they had hoped. After two weeks, only three people were willing to participate in the construction of the manga street. Readers without money, interest, or plans did not participate.
The plan was especially important. Some readers had money and interest, but they were asked to start a business in an unknown location, and they didn't know what to do or what the market was like. These people naturally chose to refuse. No one would easily dare to open a shop and start a business. Most people with financial resources chose to observe, resulting in very few participants.
This result inevitably disappointed Takumi, but it was also within his expectations. He asked Akari to continue working. However, at the end of a call to report on the situation, Akari asked curiously, "Mirai-sensei, I've heard that the Pokémon game... it seems to be called Pokémon. Is it about to be released?"
"No, I haven't received that news." Takumi frowned and asked, "Where did you hear that from?"
"His fans just said it has spread." Akari replied strangely, "The source of the news is quite reliable. It seems someone from the company said it. How come you don't know, Mirai-sensei?"
Takumi really didn't know anything about it. After ending the call, he immediately called Yoko to ask.
The result was somewhat different from what Akari said. Pokémon is not about to be released, but it is about to be completed. The main work on Pokémon was completed a long time ago, but it was forced to be delayed because Takumi moved personnel to create Gundam SEED and Tsuki Animation Company expanded its staff a while ago. The staff of the game production department returned to their original jobs. They moved to Suhua City and are now working hard on Pokémon. It will be finished soon.
The news leaked by Hinotori Publishing was that Pokémon was about to be completed, but after it spread, it was soon learned that it was about to be released, which led to misunderstandings.
"Yoko, couldn't you keep it a secret?" Takumi sighed, "That game hasn't even been tested yet, but now everyone knows."
"No way, Mirai-sensei..." Yoko's voice sounded helpless, "Pokémon has been in development for a long time. It was discovered by others a long time ago, and it can't be hidden even if we wanted to... But speaking of testing, we've already made its beta version. Master, do you want to try it?"
Her voice became expectant again.
"The beta version is ready?" Takumi nodded, "Then send someone to bring it, I'll see how the game works."
He was eager to try Pokémon, and Yoko was also very fast. The next day, someone brought the handheld console to test it and find Takumi. Takumi played enthusiastically for a few days. He compared it with other handheld games and then asked several employees of Tsuki Animation Company to test it. He came to a disappointing conclusion: it wasn't up to par.
Takumi concluded that it wasn't up to par. The beta version of Pokémon received unanimous praise from other employees, but it was still a failure. This was because although the employees appreciated the game, they didn't think it was much more fun than other games for the handheld console. The overall evaluation was very consistent: the graphics were excellent, but the gameplay was similar to other games.
Takumi had the same feeling. According to the company's general standards, Pokémon had to be an excellent game. But for Takumi, it was a bad game. It wasn't much different from other games. How could it compare to the Pokémon of his previous life?
This game must be remade! Takumi gave this order, which caused a great stir in Hinotori Publishing's production department. Some artists and programmers did not accept it.
"Why? It's already a success. Why do we have to start over from scratch?"
"What's the point of our efforts this year?"
Everyone seemed disappointed and angry. When the news spread, Mirai-sensei's readers were also outraged. The production of this game had been leaked half a year ago, and many Pokémon viewers were eagerly awaiting its release. But just after it became known, a sudden uproar broke out saying it had to be remade. Everyone was a little incredulous.
"Isn't it already a success?"
In Mirai-sensei's forum, the Pokémon section was even noisier.
"Why do we have to start from scratch? Don't they say it's great?"
"What's wrong? What is Professor Mirai-sensei thinking?"
Takumi sensed the unrest in the forum, even in Japan. He rarely visited it, but he saw voices of doubt, so he published a post to explain:
"Many people say that Pokémon is a success, and I don't deny it. I played the beta version and it is undoubtedly a successful game. But this success is only general. The Pokémon I want is not a general game. I have higher expectations, so I decided to remake it."
"I think it failed, but I don't want to blame anyone. Pokémon is different from visual novels. It's not a game that can be made with scripts and characters. For Pokémon, fun and gameplay are the most important things. This remake seeks to make it more interesting. I'm not happy that Pokémon has to be remade. I hope everyone, and all the employees of the game production department, understand."
After this explanation, the situation quickly calmed down.
Takumi felt a little regretful. The failure of Pokémon was the result of his negligence. During his absence, although he occasionally asked about the game's progress, he didn't really have much contact with Hinotori Publishing and spent most of his time on manga. Without his knowledge, the video game production department made it more like conventional games.
He had to go back to the drawing board and supervise the production this time, but unfortunately, he didn't have time, so he had to put it aside.
"I didn't expect creating a game to be so troublesome."
Takumi underestimated video games. After all, real games are different from galgames. Galgames are probably the only game genre that can be created smoothly by providing a script, images, and music. At first, Takumi still thought about creating World of Warcraft someday, but now he feels it's simply an unattainable dream.
"As for future games, I'd better stick to making galgames..."
Thinking about it, that night, Kenji Sato called him and spoke directly about the matter.
"Since Pokémon failed, how about creating a new visual novel? Mirai-sensei, it's easy for you, right?"
Kenji Sato called him because Takumi planned for the game production department to take a collective vacation. Pokémon needed supervision, and he wasn't free now, so he could only give the employees a vacation.
But no one was willing to give up their income, so Kenji Sato wanted to give them paid vacations with a reasonable salary. Just kidding, these guys spent a year doing a failed job, and now they have to take paid vacations. Of course, Kenji Sato refused. Instead of letting them take vacations, it would be better to let them make galgames.
"Mirai-sensei, you said at the celebration that you would let the three winners do the voice-overs for your new work, right? Your new work will be out soon. Visual novels are good, and their development is very fast. Now many video game companies are ahead of us. Mirai-sensei, please release another excellent product to consolidate our position in this market!"
Kenji Sato seemed very enthusiastic. Takumi was a little surprised by his enthusiasm, but still replied, "I want to make an animated film. If you don't want them to take vacations, I'll ask them to help in the animation department..."
"No!"
Kenji Sato interrupted Takumi's proposal. After the excitement, the financial director sighed and revealed, "Mirai-sensei, animated films are films, and films cost too much! You must consider it carefully. The company is under great financial pressure... If you release a new work, manga and visual novels are the most economical options, and games can make the most of the staff. I hope you discard the idea of films for now."
Kenji Sato told Takumi that Hinotori Publishing is facing enormous financial pressure.
Hinotori Publishing is not publicly traded. Its main capital comes from two shareholders, Takumi and Genji, and all profits are destined for business expansion. In recent months, they first acquired Tsuki Animation Company, then the sudden increase in business and staff growth after the bankruptcy of Manga Paradise, and the integration of resources throughout the Japan region. Hinotori Publishing has been investing, and it is likely that the capital chain will have problems.
They find it difficult to face another large expense. In the coming months, they will also have to carry out market promotions in the Suhua area, which will also require a large investment. Kenji Sato hoped that Takumi could stop for the moment.
"..." Takumi was speechless. He was so busy with the expansion that he didn't pay attention to the finances. He walked too fast without realizing it. Although Japan is just one region, the expansion here has pushed Hinotori Publishing to its limit. He asked, "When will the financial situation improve?"
"It will take at least a year to recover our investment in Japan. However, if the financial pressure is reduced..." Kenji Sato paused. He skimmed the report and replied after a long time, "About three months. We are now using Japan's resources. In a few months, we will see results and the financial pressure will be much lower."
"If Mirai-sensei wants to make an animated film, why not continue after three months?"
Three months... According to this timeline, Takumi can only make galgames to be profitable. Hinotori Publishing has enough experience in creating galgames and can produce full text scripts and character designs in three months.
"Alright, then I'll prepare a game first..."
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