Chapter 55: Chapter 55: Meticulous Planning to Earn the Manager's Money!
Currently, everyone's opinion of these characters is that they are pretty cute, with distinct features, but it's unclear what kind of strange creatures they are...
This was expected by Alex Parker. Evaluating characters out of context wouldn't reveal much.
Alex asked, "Amy, if you were to complete these character illustrations, including detailing and colouring, how long would it take? They don't need to be too refined; just follow my sketches."
Amy Johnson thought for a moment, "Hmm... these cards aren't too complicated; four to five days should be enough."
Alex shook his head, "Three days."
"Ah?" Amy hesitated, "Three days is possible, but the quality might suffer."
Alex replied, "That's fine. These are small cards displayed on a mobile phone, so a slight drop in detail is acceptable. Lower quality can be refined later; we need quantity now."
Amy reluctantly agreed, "Alright, I'll try my best."
Jessica Thompson offered, "If it's detailing and colouring, I can help too."
Alex was surprised, "Are you sure? These must be official game assets, at least good enough that players won't find fault."
Paul Wilder reminded him, "Manager, she's a skilled art student who takes on illustration jobs regularly."
Alex realized, "Oh right, Jessica and Paul were making posters and boards in the school's promotion department. They wouldn't have become heads without good skills."
"Great, if you can help, it will save a lot of time," Alex said.
Jessica smiled slyly, "So, how much are you willing to pay? My illustrations usually cost $5000 each, and that's a friendly price."
Alex was taken aback, "I didn't expect you to be such a pro!"
For card illustrations, different artists charge vastly different prices, ranging from hundreds to thousands of dollars per piece, even higher for top artists.
Jessica continued, "But those $5000 prices include designing composition and client communication. You've already done the sketches, and the size is much smaller than usual. How about $2000 each?"
Jessica pouted, "Stingy."
Alex: "..."
Jessica relented, "Alright, considering your situation, $2000 each, three days per card. But with just Amy and me, don't expect fast results."
Alex looked at Paul and Lily Emerson, "You two can draw if you want..."
Paul quickly declined, "We don't have Jessica's skill level. We can help with some monster cards, but not the main ones."
Alex nodded, "Alright, you can handle the monster cards. I'll pay market rates."
Paul shrugged, "Money isn't important; just pay us what you think is fair."
Jessica interjected, "That's not fair! The manager earns $200,000 a month from 'Plants vs. Zombies.' He can afford a few thousand."
Paul agreed, "True. Alright, market rates it is."
Alex: "..."
Jessica added, "And how about Amy? She deserves payment, too."
Alex responded, "Same as you, $2000 per card."
Jessica was satisfied, "That's more like it."
Amy initially wanted to refuse the money but then thought better of it. Why turn down money? She accepted happily.
Alex was exasperated; these people were meticulous in earning his money!
Alex divided the cards. Jessica and Amy's high skill levels made them suitable for the main characters, so they were assigned the most crucial ones. He reserved some monster cards for other classmates.
At a rate of one card every three days, it would take Jessica and Amy a crazy 54 days to finish 36 main character cards, which was too slow. And with a total of over 300 cards, it was clear more help was needed, possibly from art outsourcing companies.
Alex asked, "Do you know any reliable art outsourcing companies?"
Jessica thought for a moment, "I know one. Some friends work there, and their skills are decent."
Alex nodded, "Great, give me their contact info. Also, do you know any animation studios?"
Both Jessica and Amy shook their heads, "We know a few but no personal connections."
Alex replied, "Alright, start with the main character cards I picked."
He turned to go upstairs.
Amy asked, "Wait, manager, what type of game are we making? Why so many card illustrations?"
Alex replied, "You'll know in a few days."
Back upstairs, Alex felt tired, likely from the Super Accelerator's side effects. He contacted the outsourcing company to discuss his requirements.
By providing the sketches, he could reduce costs and time. They agreed on $2200 per main character card and $600 per monster card.
In total, Alex estimated spending about $357,600 on all the card illustrations. Though pricey, he was satisfied with the deal.
Alex assigned the critical cards to Jessica and Amy: Mute, Shaman, Rogue, Hunter, Lady, Leader, and Big Sis, expecting them to take a month.
Amy would also handle game design tasks so that Alex couldn't always have her drawing cards.
Paul and others would work on monster cards at market rates.
The rest would go to the outsourcing company, ensuring all cards would be ready in two months.
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