Chapter 161: Pokémon: Go (2-in-1)
At the dinner table, Yueyue seemed unusually quiet and sad since coming home from school. Ren and Jada noticed this and felt concerned.
"What's wrong, Yueyue? Are you feeling sick, or did someone bully you at school?" Ren asked after exchanging a worried look with Jada.
Yueyue pouted, first nodding her head and then quickly shaking it, remaining silent.
"What's going on?" Ren asked, confused. He gently rubbed Yueyue's head. "If someone is bullying you, tell me, and I'll talk to your teacher."
Seeing her reaction, Ren concluded it wasn't a physical illness. He started to worry that someone at school might be picking on her. The thought of school bullying made him angry. His daughter was off-limits to bullies!
"Yes, tell us what's bothering you. Don't keep it to yourself," Jada added, trying to comfort her.
Parents need to pay attention not only to their children's academic and physical well-being but also to their mental health. Neglecting this can lead to issues like withdrawal or extreme behavior.
Feeling the warmth of her father's hand, Yueyue recalled what happened at school and couldn't hold back her tears any longer. She jumped off her chair and into Ren's arms, crying, "Daddy, I don't want to die!"
"Die?" Ren and Jada exchanged another worried glance. Ren gently patted her back, trying to soothe her. "Why do you think you're going to die?"
"Xiaopeng is going to die soon…" Yueyue cried, clutching Ren's neck. She tearfully explained what happened at school, sniffling as she went on. "Since Xiaopeng sat near me, I must have caught his illness… I don't want to die."
Ren finally understood. To Yueyue, all illnesses were contagious, and since Xiaopeng's disease was a sickness, she believed she might catch it too, causing her distress.
This naive thought made Ren and Jada laugh.
Kids always had such innocent, funny ideas.
But Yueyue wasn't happy about their laughter. Feeling her parents weren't taking her seriously, she plopped on the floor, kicked her legs, and covered her eyes with her hands, crying loudly.
"You won't get sick," Ren reassured her after a moment. "Don't worry."
"Really?" Yueyue peeked through her fingers at her father, still wary.
"Of course," Ren nodded but then added with a sly look, "But…"
"But what?" Yueyue asked, confused.
Even Jada raised an eyebrow, curious about what Ren was up to.
Ren didn't answer directly. Instead, he changed the topic slightly. "You know how you can prevent colds and flu, right? How do you do that?"
"By wearing warm clothes and not catching a chill?" Yueyue answered uncertainly.
"Exactly. If you can prevent a cold, you can prevent other illnesses too," Ren continued. "From now on, eat less junk food and more vegetables, especially green peppers and broccoli. They're very good for preventing cancer."
Ren lied without any hesitation, thinking it was a harmless white lie for Yueyue's health.
"Really?" Yueyue tilted her head, sensing something off but unsure.
"Of course. If you don't believe me, ask your mom," Ren said, giving Jada a meaningful look.
Jada found it amusing but played along, nodding in agreement. Yueyue's picky eating was a problem, so scaring her a little into eating vegetables didn't seem so bad.
"Okay…" Yueyue finally seemed convinced, seeing her mom nodding too.
"Good. Let's start today," Ren said, piling green peppers onto her plate and taking the meat for himself.
"Too much… Can I have less?" Yueyue pleaded, looking at the green mound in her bowl.
"Nope," Ren said firmly. "Think about it: if you don't take care of yourself, you won't get to eat your favorite snacks or see us anymore. Do you want that?"
Yueyue imagined this terrible scenario and shuddered, quickly shaking her head.
She closed her eyes and ate the green peppers, determined.
For the sake of snacks, she would persevere!
A Few Days Later
While working on his manga, Ren received good news: Xena's game department had finished developing a new game.
"Pokémon: Go"
This game was inspired by a game from Ren's previous life, combining virtual and real worlds by linking gameplay with real-world maps, creating a unique experience.
Such a game had not been released in this world yet. Ren had thought of this gameplay idea last year and had Xena's team develop it.
In his previous life, because "Pokémon: Go" wasn't available in China, a certain company created a similar monster-catching game that became very popular domestically.
Even though the Pokémon IP wasn't as big in this world, the innovative gameplay alone was likely to attract a lot of attention, boosting the IP's popularity and paving the way for future open-world Pokémon games.
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"Yeah, nice! I caught a shiny Grimer!"
Playing the beta version of Pokémon: GO, Ren held up his phone triumphantly in the restroom, striking a pose. Unfortunately, there was no Pikachu to jump up and shout "Pika Pika."
Even so, Ren was quite satisfied. In his previous life, this game wasn't available in China, and even those who tried to bypass restrictions couldn't play it. But in this world, Ren could finally enjoy it.
Reviewing his collection of Pokémon, Ren picked up the phone and called his wife. "Hey, honey, it's ready. I think it's good to go. Have the game department check for any bugs, and let's start the promotion. This time, let's get a big-name star. We've got plenty of money from selling the broadcast rights for Kuuga."
A few days later, the fifth episode of Kuuga aired. Daniel and many viewers eagerly made themselves a bowl of instant noodles and settled in to watch.
In this episode, Kuuga faces a high-jumping locust monster and gets beaten badly. In desperation, he transforms into a blue warrior with great jumping ability – the Dragon Form.
However, just when viewers were looking forward to seeing Kuuga defeat the locust monster with his new form, they were disappointed. The Dragon Form had high jumping power but very weak punching and kicking strength. After a fierce battle, he still couldn't defeat the locust monster.
But it made sense. Kuuga wasn't a typical hot-blooded hero. His strength wasn't something gained instantly but something he developed step by step by facing battles, enduring injuries, and protecting humanity.
Fortunately, Kuuga had reliable teammates. As Kuuga fought the locust monster, Claire successfully deciphered the ancient text, revealing that the Dragon Form could turn long objects into deadly weapons. Riding her beloved scooter, she rushed to remind Kuuga, "You're Kuuga, not empty-handed! Use a weapon, you idiot, Yusuke!"
"Huh? A long stick?"
Yusuke, ever quick to learn, snapped off a railing and created a staff. With a staff in hand, Kuuga quickly turned the tide, defeating the locust monster.
After watching the sixth episode, viewers who felt frustrated by the fifth episode finally smiled.
Their joy wasn't just because Kuuga won. They were thrilled because the Porter had secretly posted something new on his Weibo.
"Is it a new manga? A new movie? Or a new animation?" Daniel wondered aloud as he looked at the notification on his phone, filled with curiosity.
To his surprise, this time it was a video. Usually, the Porter posted text and images.
"Is it really a movie or animation?" Many fans, like Daniel, clicked play.
With soothing background music, the video began. The narrator's voice accompanied the scenes:
"On this planet, many wonderful creatures have already been discovered."
"Not only that, new, unprecedented species are continually being found."
"And these creatures are what we call Pokémon."
As the narrator spoke, scenes of lush forests, snowy mountains, and vast oceans flashed by. Fans could see familiar creatures in these scenes.
"Whoa, Pokémon?"
"A Pokémon game?"
Fans who played Pokémon Go were ecstatic. They loved the gameplay and the Pokémon. Now, the Porter's company had made another Pokémon game?
And from the looks of it, this one seemed even more fun than Pokémon Go!
The next part confirmed their guesses. After scenes of forests, oceans, and grasslands, the screen settled on a lakeside view, slowly zooming in.
A popular celebrity appeared: Jay Chou.
"Jay Chou?"
"Whoa, it's Jay Chou!"
Fans were astonished. Jay Chou himself was in the promo? That's a big deal for Picca!
In the video, Jay Chou stood by the lake, pulling out his phone. Around him, familiar Pokémon appeared.
A group of Squirtles swam lazily on the water, looking a bit dopey. Pidgeys and Spearows flew overhead. Pikachus played under the trees.
When Jay Chou aimed his phone at them, the Pokémon noticed and scattered. Some even attacked with Water Gun and Thunderbolt. As people around him gasped, Jay Chou swiped on his phone, and a Charizard appeared, using Iron Tail to deflect the attacks.
With a wave of his hand, Jay Chou sent Pokéballs flying toward the Pokémon.
Next, the scene shifted to Picca's headquarters, showing a gym badge at the top. People were divided into two teams, fiercely competing for control of the gym.
Jay Chou reappeared, standing in a square facing a girl.
The girl shyly looked at Jay Chou and asked, "What am I to you?"
"You're my Pokémon," Jay Chou replied with a smile.
"What, I'm just a Pokémon?" The girl glared at him, clearly dissatisfied.
Jay Chou smiled warmly. "That way, I can keep you in my hand."
The video ended with Jay Chou saying, "Hey, not bad!"
Fans were beyond excited.
Following the release of this promotional video, Jada launched a nationwide advertising campaign for the game the next day.
The game instantly became a hot topic of discussion among fans.
In no time, countless players learned about this unique game.
The first AR game in this world, where players could use smartphones to find, capture, and battle Pokémon in the real world.
"Whoa, what's AR? Sounds advanced."
"You don't know AR? You've heard of AV, right? Animal Video. AR is similar."
"?? This is the first time I've heard AV explained that way!"
"Nonsense, AR means Augmented Reality!"
"Whatever it is, I'm in for Pikachu!"
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