[Other games create in-game stores as part of the premium gaming experience; this damn in-game store you created is just deliberately frustrating for players, halving their gaming experience first, and then forcing them to buy back what was rightfully theirs? This is laughable.]
[Not fun. Nothing else to say, the game wasn't fun, goodbye.]
Industry insiders mostly viewed this matter with amusement.
Even in the workshop where the Dragon Slayer Sword was made, some employees brought up this topic.
However, they didn't really remember Zhu Wenshu; the rumors circulating were like this:
"I heard someone's copying the boss and creating a pay-to-win in-game store?"
"Are you courting death?"
"You can copy what you see, but you can't learn the game's core concepts. If you could, I wouldn't have come here to learn from the Dragon Slayer Sword."
"They only learned how to scam money, but didn't learn how to make good games. That's putting the cart before the horse."
Yu Bing, the third runner-up in the Star Show competition, had mixed feelings upon learning of the disastrous failure of "Beast Horde Vanguard".
During the Star Show competition, Zhu Wenshu, as a judge, condescendingly gave "Fingertip Hero" a score of 3.0.
Unexpectedly, times have changed.
In less than a year, "Finger Hero" was successfully transformed by Tu Long Bao Dao Studio into "Idle Hero," which has a monthly revenue of over 500 million yuan and is regarded as the "profit bible" in the industry.
However, Zhu Wenshu's highly anticipated new work, "Beast Herd Vanguard," has achieved dismal results!
According to insiders, it would be difficult for the Dragon Slayer Sword to even be listed on the paid ranking list of the Sixth Star Province—that list has a full two hundred positions.
It's fair to say that this was a resounding slap in the face.
If success or failure were the sole measure of a hero, then Yu Bing would probably have to be a judge for Zhu Wenshu.
"It's not that my game is bad, it's that you don't understand real games!"
At this point, Tingxi Studio was in a complete mess.
Above them, those with cruise ship capital were pressuring them to make a profit, but "Beast Horde Vanguard" was simply hopeless.
Given this initial result, many marketers would be unwilling to work for them, because one look at the quality of the work tells them there's no hope; even a miracle couldn't save them.
On the other hand, there is the issue of player opinion; the studio's reputation has completely collapsed, and many "Empire's Grip" players are still demanding an explanation.
The more glorious the past, the more devastating the fall today.
Later, on one occasion, he made it clear that he was having dinner with Xia Cheng outside.
The people at the next table happened to mention "Beast Horde Vanguard". Xia Cheng listened and said to Mingyan, "It's a pity. Even now, there are still people within the IPP platform who think Zhu Wenshu is talented. After all, he was able to come up with the idea of Imperial Grip. It's also unexpected that 'Beast Horde Vanguard' performed so poorly."
Chief Designer Ming is indeed a master designer. He immediately grasped the key point and said, "I have experienced 'Beast Horde Vanguard.' This game is based on the idea of Zhu Wenshu. It requires players to be distracted by playing cards during tense battles. It requires the brain to multitask, which goes against human physiological habits and is naturally difficult for players to accept."
Everyone else was lamenting the downfall of Zhu Wenshu and discussing the issue of the tragic loss of Zhong Yong.
Some people also look down on Tingxi Studio for starting to use some low-level hype tactics after it was acquired by Cruise Capital.
But as expected, Mingyan's focus remained on the game from beginning to end.
He had played Empire's Grip and thought it was pretty good, so he tried out Horde Vanguard, hoping to see something that would impress him.
But he ultimately made it clear that he was very disappointed.
He didn't expect that Zhu Wenshu had made an extremely simple yet fatal mistake.
—He allows players to multitask!
The essence of games lies in exploring the spiritual entertainment of humankind.
As Mingyan said, it is physiologically impossible for humans to do two things at once.
Most gaming experiences either require players to use their brains to make choices or to use their hands to perform actions.
For example, it's impossible for someone to play League of Legends while simultaneously racking their brains to deal with their girlfriend checking up on them at work.
Only one thing can be done at a time; otherwise, there wouldn't be so many conflicts like, "Do you want the game or me?"
And "Beastmaster" committed this major taboo.
Zhu Wenshu actually brought to life the idea he made at the Star Showdown that allowed players to "fight while playing cards."
Perhaps it was precisely because of his explicit opposition that he made up his mind.
In this game, players must think about how to play their cards while controlling the main character to run away, fight, and use skills—all in real time.
The result was nothing but chaos and confusion!
Most players simply don't have time to react; they either only remember to play their cards or play cards randomly without any regard for the cards on the table, and they keep getting beaten up by the minions—the minions' AI can easily multitask.
Over time, such battle scenes will only make players feel irritable and frustrated, and their brains will no longer be able to control their hands.
Playing cards and fighting are two systems that each have their own fun, but combining them doesn't necessarily mean that one plus one equals more than two.
In fact, it's even less than one.
Players simply cannot complete the game operations required by the designers, which gradually leads to a lot of unresolved frustration, and naturally causes them to leave the game.
Unlike Mingyan, who can see things clearly and understand them perfectly, they naturally cannot explain why.
They only had one thing to say: "It's not fun."