Chapter 32: You Were Born to Make Games!

You Were Told to Lose Money By Making Games, and You Actually Did It? 

Chapter 32: You Were Born to Make Games!

January 23rd.

In just a few more days, it would be the Spring Festival.

Most of the company's affairs had already been arranged.

Chen Xu had also communicated with the AQ testing team and agreed to schedule testing according to their holiday plans.

As for school, there were no more classes or exams to attend.

For all practical purposes, he had already graduated.

All that remained was returning next semester to take graduation photos and wait for his diploma.

The only thing left now was going home for the New Year.

Although he had been reborn into a parallel world and obtained the system, he hadn't started as an orphan.

His parents were still the same as in his previous life.

In fact, they had even sent him 1,500 yuan for living expenses not long ago.

The only thing Chen Xu found somewhat regrettable was that the system's first funding settlement hadn't arrived yet.

Otherwise, returning home in wealth and glory would have felt amazing.

As for explaining where the money came from?

That would be easy.

He could simply say that he had made a small game and earned some money, then he used the profits to start a studio and gradually expanded it.

After all, the system's money wasn't from any suspicious source.

At most, he would just need to provide credit reports and proof of assets later to show that he hadn't engaged in any illegal activities or scams.

Leaning back in his chair, although it was still working hours, Chen Xu's thoughts had already drifted back to his hometown.

Inside the palace of his imagination, he was driving a Bentley and living in a luxury villa.

Tsk!

Just imagining it was exciting.

But in the very next moment, his fantasy was shattered by the financial report sitting on his desk.

The system still had nearly twenty million yuan in unused funds.

Should he really pour all of it into marketing?

Granted, all the game's development costs had been provided by the system.

No matter what happened in the end, he would still make money.

The only difference was whether he made more or less.

But his original goal had been to completely outplay the system.

The plan was to lose money during the settlement period and then make a fortune afterward, teaching the system a harsh lesson.

If he dumped the remaining funds into marketing now, wouldn't all of his previous efforts become counterproductive?

At least veterans like President Pei and the other masters of "loss-making strategies" had been betrayed by their employees.

But in his case?

After executing all sorts of elaborate schemes and maneuvers, he might end up putting the noose around his own neck.

That would be incredibly embarrassing.

Yet if he left so much money unused and didn't advertise the game, he wasn't sure whether the system would even approve.

And even if it did, the unused funds sitting in the company's accounts would eventually be counted as profit.

That was way too much money.

Just as Chen Xu was deep in thought, someone knocked on the office door.

"Come in."

The door opened, and Xiao Dao and Xiu Fu walked in carrying documents.

"What's up?" Chen Xu stood and asked curiously.

"Brother Xu, the official website for Sekiro, along with all the related trademarks and registrations, has been completed."

Xiao Dao handed over several original documents.

After briefly reviewing them, Chen Xu placed them in the company safe.

"Oh right, Brother Xu," Xiao Dao continued, "how should we price Sekiro? Since we're launching on Steam, we need to submit the relevant information."

Chen Xu thought for a moment.

"Unified overseas price: $59.99. Domestic price: 268 yuan."

He had already tested the system's limits before.

The price couldn't be set too low, but it couldn't be set too high either.

There were no loopholes to exploit.

If the price was too low, the cost of trying the game would be minimal.

What if sheer sales volume triggered a qualitative change and made Sekiro explode in popularity ahead of schedule?

That would be disastrous.

As for raising the price?

The system wouldn't allow some absurdly high figure either.

298 yuan was basically the upper limit.

Judging from the experiences of loss-making veterans like President Pei, unexpected betrayals could happen at any stage and suddenly turn a game into a massive bestseller.

A higher price would indeed mean higher revenue and better long-term income growth, but what if those extra thirty yuan became the thing that crushed his Bentley dream during the crucial early stage?

That simply wasn't worth the risk.

So Chen Xu felt that keeping the same 268-yuan price tag as in his previous life was the safest choice.

A bit ordinary, perhaps.

But flexible enough to attack or defend depending on the situation.

"Then, Brother Xu, aren't we releasing a Deluxe Edition?" Xiao Dao asked curiously.

"Yeah, Brother Xu," Xiu Fu added. "And what about DLC? I think features like the New Game Plus difficulty modes after completion and the Boss Rush battles could easily be sold as DLC. If nothing else, we could release them as free DLC. Both options would be great for the game's reputation and publicity."

After all, this was something most game publishers loved to do.

But release it as paid or free DLC?

Then announce it, generate hype, and boost sales?

How could Chen Xu possibly allow that?

Whether it was paid or free, the end result would still be increased revenue.

Of course, he couldn't say something that blunt.

"Old Xiu, Old Xiao, do you guys like hamburgers?" Chen Xu asked.

"Brother Xu, are you treating us to burgers? I heard a handmade burger shop just opened near the university gate. Their beef burgers are really good."

Xiu Fu's eyes lit up.

"What if I treat you to a hamburger with no beef patty, no lettuce, no pickles, no cheese, no tomato slices, and no mayonnaise?" Chen Xu asked with a smile.

"Brother Xu, you might as well just say you're treating me to bread. Can that even still be called a hamburger without all that?" Xiu Fu rolled his eyes.

But Xiao Dao's eyes suddenly brightened as he immediately connected the dots.

"Brother Xu! I get what you're saying!"

"Games in the past were like complete hamburgers, with beef patties, lettuce, and all the proper ingredients. DLC was like paying extra to add another beef patty."

"But nowadays, many game companies take the lettuce, pickles, and even the beef patty that should already be inside the burger, remove them, and then sell them separately as paid—or even free—DLC. They forget that those things were supposed to be part of the burger in the first place!"

Xiao Dao suddenly understood.

"That's true, but every other game company does it this way."

Xiu Fu understood as well now, though he still sounded hesitant.

After all, whether domestically or internationally, this had become the mainstream approach in the industry.

"What other companies do isn't really something we have the ability or authority to control," Chen Xu said seriously.

"But at the very least, we can choose not to go along with it."

"Brother Xu! That's awesome!"

Xiu Fu couldn't help feeling excited.

At the same time, he felt a wave of guilt and self-reproach.

That's right.

This was exactly what made Brother Xu different.

Why did Morning Star Games have benefits that could practically be described as luxurious?

Wasn't it because Brother Xu was different from ordinary game developers?

"Alright, alright. Let's leave it at that."

Seeing the admiration in Xiao Dao and Xiu Fu's eyes, Chen Xu couldn't help coughing lightly.

After all, he knew his own motives.

The main reason he was saying all this was because he wanted to squeeze more money out of the system.

Of course, if he was being completely honest, these were also things he genuinely believed.

The reason he could speak so confidently and actually follow through on these ideals was largely because the system gave him enough financial backing.

So when faced with such admiration, Chen Xu felt somewhat undeserving of it.

"Still, Brother Xu," Xiao Dao continued, "even if we don't sell DLC, I think we could release a Deluxe Edition. A lot of players genuinely enjoy collecting things related to games they love."

"As long as we're clear that the Deluxe Edition doesn't contain any additional gameplay DLC—just things like a digital art book, digital soundtrack, and similar extras—it should be fine," After thinking for a moment, Xiao Dao offered the suggestion.

"Yeah, Brother Xu. I personally love collecting game-related merchandise." Xiu Fu nodded in agreement.

Chen Xu had been about to refuse, but the moment he heard Xiao Dao and Xiu Fu's words, he suddenly froze.

How should he spend the remaining twenty million yuan?

Wasn't the solution right in front of him?

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Tn: I updated the story once a day, but if you want to see more chapter of this story ahead of time, please go to my Patreon.

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