Chapter 308: You Will Regret It Sooner or Later
On November 20th, Takumi received a message:
"Mizuki Games has released a campus comedy visual novel, with an initial launch of 150,000 copies."
The person who brought him the news was Eiji Takashima. Although he was not a producer of Clannad, the matter caused him some dissatisfaction.
Mizuki Games launched a new game, but Clannad had already promoted it. Many found Mizuki Games' game very similar to Clannad. The advertisement for Clannad was prepared by Mirai-sensei himself, mainly featuring images of cherry blossoms, and everyone knew that Clannad was a cheerful game.
However, the new game produced by Mizuki Games this time met both objectives. It is a romance game set in spring, depicting a campus surrounded by cherry blossoms, and its atmosphere is very relaxed and fun. Even if the name of the game in the Clannad ad is replaced with this game's, others wouldn't feel it's out of place.
Furthermore, after the release of the new game by Mizuki Games, rumors began to circulate on the internet that it was a simplified version of Clannad, and its popularity had everything to do with Clannad's advertising. Some players bought it just because of the rumors.
The game's plot is very short, only a few hours long, and the price is 400 yen, making it easy for other players to accept. The circulation broke the record of Mizuki Games' previous games. With an initial launch of 150,000 copies, this figure alone allowed Mizuki Games to confidently announce that the game's sales had tripled its price, which could be considered a great success.
"..."
Takumi looked at the newspaper Eiji Takashima had brought him. It was the local Suhua daily. Although he was in Japan, to know the situation in mainland Japan, Takumi had subscribed to newspapers from Osaka and Suhua.
Unfortunately, this Suhua daily only included Mizuki Games' external statement and sales data, but did not spend much time on the game itself. After Takumi asked Eiji Takashima to leave, he turned on the office computer and searched the internet; he knew that Mizuki Games' new work was related to Clannad. But it was unclear to what extent the other party would go.
The internet is a convenient tool, and Takumi found the specific data without much effort.
Mizuki Games' new game is called Laughing Sakura Academy, a very simple name, and it is a game that only has an 18+ version. Judging by the online reviews, this game has received unanimous praise from readers, and the most common opinion is that it is short and exquisite. Although the story is brief, it is full of laughs.
'No... It's precisely because it's brief that there are so many laughs...'
Takumi considered Mizuki Games' positioning of the game to be very clear. It is a game with comedy and love at its core. The script is very short and has traces of the original. The script of the first few chapters of Clannad is not very heavy for the person in charge of the story content. Takumi felt some pity. In fact, if Mizuki Games managed to turn it into a very long comedy masterpiece, he could greatly admire this company.
Of course, that's impossible. After seeing Laughing Sakura Academy, Takumi discovered that Mizuki Games is a company with more integrity than Manga Paradise.
This game did not completely plagiarize Clannad. As for the character setting, only one male supporting character is similar to Clannad. There is something to be said about that. In fact, if Clannad is considered a comedy game, 10% of its laughs come from the male supporting character Sunohara.
Sunohara is the male protagonist's friend in Clannad. He is stupid, loves to show off, and is lecherous, but he is the main character who brings the most humor to the work. He entered the school as a sports-recommended student but was forced to leave the soccer team. His behavior is exaggerated and stupid, and he is the typical funny supporting character.
Laughing Sakura Academy also plagiarized this character. Mizuki Games' unique vision surprised Takumi a bit, but he must admit that if Clannad is positioned as a comedy game, Mizuki Games' approach is very correct. They only chose the funniest characters, used other settings for other characters, and introduced many of their own jokes. It's not correct to say they plagiarized.
At this point, Laughing Sakura Academy was a success. Of course... there is the premise that Clannad is a funny game.
Takumi soon lost interest in Laughing Sakura Academy. Perhaps Mizuki Games wanted to imitate Clannad to create a game. But their original intention was wrong. Clannad is not a funny game. The jokes are just some variations. It doesn't matter if they imitate it.
For example, Sunohara, Mizuki Games simply imitated the character, but they didn't understand the later script, nor did they know that this funny character was actually a key figure that ran through the main and dark lines of the work. Therefore, Takumi concluded that Laughing Sakura Academy and Clannad were two completely different games, and he forgot about it in the blink of an eye.
Of course he believed it, but others didn't know, especially at Mizuki Games. The character adventure production department had already started toasting.
"Let's toast to defeating Mirai-sensei!"
The employees of this department celebrated with great enthusiasm at the barbecue restaurant. The director personally took the wine glass and laughed out loud, "It took us a little longer this time, but we've created a funnier game than Clannad. This is a real success!" As we wait for the release of Mirai-sensei's Clannad, the comparison between the two will undoubtedly provoke a new round of purchases for Laughing Sakura Academy. "This time we can rely on Mirai-sensei's decline to achieve fame!"
In the Japanese visual novel industry, Mirai-sensei has always been the target that many wish to surpass. He pioneered this game category and, at the same time, his deep mastery of the plot is unattainable for others.
However, this phenomenon will soon be a thing of the past. Everyone at Mizuki Games is so confident that their Laughing Sakura Academy surpasses Clannad. Laughing Sakura Academy did not completely plagiarize Clannad. It has been adapted dozens of times based on the latter. After absorbing the jokes from Clannad, it has added many new ones. Speaking of humor, Laughing Sakura Academy is undoubtedly the winner.
Clannad will be released in December. As soon as it is launched, players will discover that it is not as fun as Laughing Sakura Academy, and Laughing Sakura Academy will usher in a new wave of frantic purchases.
"I toast to Ryohei! This time we can succeed, thanks to him!"
The minister raised his glass and toasted Ryohei.
"You're too kind..."
Ryohei was a little excited. He took a sip of wine with the director and said with slightly red cheeks, "Laughing Sakura Academy is the result of everyone's effort. I toast to everyone. It is the joint effort of everyone that made this game better than Clannad."
His words were very useful to everyone at the table, but some laughed.
"Ryohei, do you want to toast each of us?"
"Of course you're right. Come... Don't be polite. Let's all toast to Ryohei!"
The Mizuki Games employees made a fuss and served Ryohei wine. This is a common thing at the wine table. Ryohei has good alcohol tolerance, but after the banquet, he was still a little dizzy.
"Yuki, you and Ryohei live in the dormitory, you can take him."
Leaving the barbecue restaurant, the director asked an employee to take him back. He patted Ryohei on the shoulder and said, "Ryohei, you can ask if there is anyone else from Hinotori Publishing willing to come. Our company is in full development and we will not treat them unfairly."
"Alright." Ryohei nodded dazedly.
He returned to the dormitory, washed his face to remove the alcohol, then, despite being drunk, turned on his phone and sent a text message to his former roommate, Satoshi.
"Satoshi, Laughing Sakura Academy was a complete success! This is my first job after leaving Hinotori. The future of visual novels is in the outside world. Do you want to come work with me? The colleagues and department heads at Mizuki Games are very good people. I can introduce them to you. The salary will undoubtedly be higher than what you earn now..."
Shortly after sending the message, he received a reply.
"Sorry, I'm not interested in working with a traitor!"
Ryohei almost laughed when he saw it. Traitor? Changing jobs is a natural thing in today's society. How can you get a raise without changing jobs? How stupid would it be to stay in one place and refuse to leave!
Due to the growing smell of alcohol, Ryohei couldn't stand it anymore and dialed the phone. After connecting the call, he cursed loudly, "Satoshi, are you an idiot? You won't accept it even if you die? Laughing Sakura Academy has surpassed Clannad, and you're still a fool. Clinging to one tree is stupid!"
"I think you're the stupid one!" On the other end of the phone, Satoshi's tone was also quite aggressive. "He's already putting the final touches on Clannad and it will be released in two weeks. Ryohei, open your eyes and see clearly: you compare Laughing Sakura Academy with Clannad, they are not the same! I think your brain is rusty!"
"What did you say?" Ryohei's face turned red and his anger worsened. "Do you think I haven't read the Clannad script? That game is not good. You are too superstitious about Mirai-sensei. The Pokémon matter is not..."
"Well, you'd better not mention Pokémon." Satoshi interrupted him coldly, "We are not superstitious about Mirai-sensei, you underestimate him too much. Pokémon is a hard blow for people, but I can't explain it to you. If you were still at Hinotori Publishing and participated in the production of Clannad, you would have a different opinion, like me."
"Mirai-sensei's standards for games are different from ours. What we consider good games are worthless to him, so remaking Pokémon is the right decision... You will regret it sooner or later, Ryohei... And don't bother me anymore!"
Satoshi hung up the phone.
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