"Director, you're brilliant!" John immediately flattered him. "I also think a pirate theme is very likely!"
"Mm." The director nodded in satisfaction. "John, you did a good job this time. Go to the finance department later to collect your bonus."
"Thank you, Director!" John replied with a face full of smiles.
The group waited anxiously for a few minutes until Subnautica was finally downloaded.
"Director, you should try it first!" John said again.
"Mm." The director nodded. This young employee was quite perceptive.
The director then began putting on the motion-sensing suit. "I'd like to see just how good New World Studio's new game really is."
"If it's an ocean-themed game, then most of the scenes would take place outdoors."
"Outdoor scene modeling is far more difficult than indoor scenes! Maybe this new game won't even be as good as Silent Hill!"
People in the game industry all understood that when it came to game modeling, the wider and more open the scenes were, the harder they were to create.
Many games had very realistic indoor scenes, but as soon as they switched to outdoor environments, the illusion would break and the artificial feeling would become obvious immediately!
To be honest, the director was secretly hoping that Subnautica would turn out to be a flop. After all, competitors were natural enemies.
Soon, the director finished suiting up, stepped onto the VR platform, and entered the game.
The employees gathered around him, silently waiting for the director's feedback.
Then, the director who had been talking nonstop suddenly fell completely silent.
He simply stood straight on the VR platform, not moving an inch.
The employees looked at each other in confusion.
After waiting for nearly half a minute like this, one employee finally couldn't hold back and asked:
"Director, what's going on with this game?"
This question from the employee seemed to finally snap the director out of his trance. He silently removed the helmet.
Only then did the employees notice that their director was actually crying!
Tears were streaming down his face.
The employees were utterly stunned but didn't dare ask what was wrong.
After a while, the director slowly spoke up himself. "Do you know why I'm crying?"
"First, I was once again shocked by how incredibly realistic this game feels. This time, the sensation is even stronger than it was with Silent Hill!!"
"Second, I'm feeling a deep sense of powerlessness. I feel like the games our company develops may never be able to surpass New World Studio."
"This studio is like a massive mountain standing right in our path."
Was it really that exaggerated?
Upon hearing the director's words, the employees were all somewhat skeptical inside.
"You should all try playing it yourselves." Seeing the doubtful looks on his employees' faces, the director weakly waved his hand.
So, with some doubt in their hearts, the employees began taking turns stepping onto the VR platform to experience the game personally.
Then, every single employee fell into the same mysterious silence as the director had.
They finally understood the feeling the director had described.
The entire office hall fell into a heavy, oppressive atmosphere.
Watching a competitor unveil a generation-defining technology right before their eyes created a feeling of powerlessness that was truly hard to accept.
It was just like professional CSGO players personally facing off against S1mple or Donk, only to be completely crushed.
"Alright, stop standing around like idiots!" The director was the first to pull himself together. He clapped his hands and said.
"Everyone, don't get discouraged. Although our current technology is indeed inferior to New World Studio's, we can learn from them and study what they've done.
With that, the director began giving orders:
"Let's divide the work the same way as last time. Some of you will focus on experiencing the gameplay content of Subnautica, while the others will analyze the files. I hope this time we can get something valuable out of it."
"Even if it's just a little bit, it'll be good."
At the director's command, all the employees began to move.
The first thing they needed to do was make several more copies of the game to make it easier for everyone to work.
"Wait a minute. Does this Subnautica not have an activation code?" The director suddenly thought of something and asked.
"No activation code." John shook his head. "You can play it right after opening it."
"That's not right." The director frowned.
Normally, to prevent piracy, developers would add activation codes to their games. Without an activation code, you shouldn't be able to play.
What was New World Studio thinking, casually handing out a game that hadn't even been released yet for people to play?
Weren't they afraid of people spreading it around?
Impossible. New World Studio couldn't possibly be that naive.
Could it be that this game had other anti-piracy and anti-distribution measures in place?
Thinking of this, the director immediately ordered: "Darren, check if this game has any other hidden anti-piracy measures!!"
"Yes, Director!"
Darren, who had a mohawk and an extremely unconventional hairstyle, immediately walked over to the computer and began analyzing the files.
[Adv. 30 chapters on my patreon .com/EdgyReader]