章節 73: Thoughts (2-in-1)
At Home
"Sigh!"
Jada was putting on makeup at the vanity when she suddenly heard a deep sigh from Ren. She turned to look at him and asked, "What's wrong?"
"Yueyue has been ignoring me lately."
As a father, Ren felt very upset.
In the past, Yueyue used to play magical girl games with him when she was resting.
She would often ask him for hugs.
But now? When she sees him, she just huffs, stomps her little slippers, and runs away quickly, as if he were some big bad monster.
Oh, and she doesn't completely ignore him. Whenever she wants something, she'll sweetly call out "Daddy," but once he buys it, she acts like she doesn't know him anymore.
It's been two weeks since he last got to pinch her soft little cheeks!
"Hehe," hearing Ren's words, Jada couldn't help but laugh, "Serves you right. You know, it's because of your 'Magical Girl Madoka' that she's been so distressed. Do you know she calls you the 'Big Bad Boss' at her kindergarten now?"
"Ugh..." Ren flopped onto the bed like a dead fish, "Jada, help me talk to her. You're her mom; she'll listen to you. At least let me pinch her cheeks sometimes. And recently, she's even locked up her snacks. I can't eat them anymore."
Hearing this, Jada couldn't help but feel exasperated.
So, in the end, he just wants to bully Yueyue?
"Stop bullying Yueyue," Jada said irritably, turning her face, which was covered with seaweed-green makeup, toward him.
In the dim light, Jada looked even more sinister, making Ren jump in fright.
After a while, Ren realized it was his wife, then he turned over and stared at the ceiling, "I can't help it. Confucius' teacher Zhuangzi once said: 'If children aren't for playing, what's their purpose? For example, snacks taste better when snatched from Yueyue. It's like looking at the food in your bowl while eyeing the pot."
"Oh? Do you also think the same about other women outside?" Jada's voice came, as she squinted at Ren.
This made Ren sit up immediately, shaking his head vigorously with a survival instinct, "How could I? You are so beautiful, with such a great figure, and you earn so much. You are the most perfect woman in the world. No other woman compares to you. Marrying you is the greatest blessing of my life!"
"What about Xena?" Jada asked, her tone dangerous. "She is so beautiful, with a great figure, and she's a game company owner. Do you have thoughts about her?"
"Of course not," Ren shook his head, got off the bed, walked to Jada, and held her face. This made Jada's makeup-covered face blush, and she slowly closed her eyes.
And then… nothing happened.
"..." The room fell silent.
"Why didn't you kiss me?" Jada glared at Ren.
She had closed her eyes!
"Uh..." Ren scratched his face awkwardly, "Your face is all green. I couldn't bring myself to do it."
There was no way; his wife's green face made her look like a monster.
"!!!!!ヽ(｀⌒メ)ノ" Upon hearing this, Jada was furious. He was disgusted by her!
Without saying a word, Jada grabbed Ren's face, "I'll make you kiss! I'll make you kiss!"
Mwah mwah mwah!
Ren could even feel Jada's tongue!
After a while, Jada let go of Ren's face, snorted coldly, removed her makeup, and reapplied it.
After all, it had wrinkled because of what had just happened.
"Anyway, make sure you appease Yueyue soon," Jada waved her hand and then walked out of the room.
Ren touched his lips, which felt a bit swollen, and fell into deep thought.
Indeed, this time Yueyue seemed serious. Their usual cold wars never lasted this long.
So, he needed to do something to make her happy.
Snacks were out of the question. He had bought plenty recently, but she still hadn't forgiven him.
In that case...
Yes! Since 'Magical Girl Madoka' had made Yueyue sad, he should find something else to divert her attention.
Looking at the projects in the system this month, Ren immediately gave up.
'Magical Girl Site' was even darker than Madoka, a work that was dark just for the sake of being dark.
'Goblin Slayer'? Definitely not for kids. Some content was not appropriate for children, so that was a no-go.
'Disgusted Face Panty Viewing'? Hmm, although he couldn't draw it, he could redeem it and watch it in his mind from time to time, and it wasn't expensive.
So, after redeeming the work, Ren rubbed his chin with a grin, "Hmm... this expression is great... No, no!"
Quickly, Ren realized that he wasn't there to look at panties and disgusted faces. He was supposed to find something to attract Yueyue's attention.
Since there were no suitable comics...
How about a game?
After thinking for a while, Ren suddenly remembered a plan he had not yet implemented—Pokémon!
Also known as Pocket Monsters or Pokémon.
But... should he ask Jada to hire people?
The capable ones were probably working at big companies, and hiring those without skills would be useless.
Picca Comics was not big enough to handle both the film and game industries simultaneously.
So, did he need to find a partner?
"Huh?" Ren suddenly thought of something.
That was Xena, who owned a game company. What if he collaborated with her on the Pokémon project?
This wasn't a bad idea. Although he wanted to do it alone, he had to consider the reality.
With that thought, Ren took out his phone and dialed Xena's number, "Hey, how about making a game together?"
"..." There was silence on the other end, only the sound of breathing, "I don't think I can do that now."
"Why? Is there a problem with your company?" Ren suddenly remembered the news he had seen about Xena's company failing several times recently, losing a lot of money.
"Yeah," Xena's voice was low, "The old folks on the board kicked me out."
Ren wasn't surprised. Sometimes, one wrong decision could lead to a company's downfall, let alone repeated failures.
But...
"What about you now?"
"Looking for a job. Although the old folks kicked me out, I didn't sit idle these years. I took some people with me."
"That's great!"
"What do you mean?" Xena was puzzled by Ren's words.
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Three More Years
"You mean you want me to join your company?" Xena was stunned by Ren's suggestion over the phone, "Is your company planning to start a game company now?"
Xena was a bit surprised.
From what she knew, Ren's wife's company had just acquired a production company called Guyuan not long ago.
And now they want to start a game company?
Aren't they afraid of biting off more than they can chew, hmm...
"No, no, no, not starting a game company. We're just opening a game department for now, to make a small game and recoup some costs first." Ren shook his head repeatedly, "My wife's company is a bit tight on cash flow right now."
After all, the acquisition had cost a lot of money.
Next, they would need to produce "Ultraman Tiga" once the suits and models were completed.
Everyone knew that special effects were very costly. Although the reasons for Tsuburaya's acquisition in the previous world were multifaceted, the lack of funds due to special effects production was one of the reasons.
Even a big company like Tsuburaya felt the financial pressure; how much more so for Jada's company?
"A small game?" Xena nodded after hearing this but continued, "Okay, let me first see what kind of small game you're talking about. If I think it's feasible, I'll bring my team and join you."
"Alright, let's meet at the Secret Café at 3 PM tomorrow."
"Okay."
"Bye."
After hanging up the phone, Ren fell into deep thought.
Should he make the first version of the Pokémon game pixelated like in the previous world?
Pixel games weren't hard to make with today's technology, but were pixel games a bit outdated?
Although pixel games still had a market and a loyal fan base, maybe it would be better to make it 3D modeled?
How about making it an open world like Zelda?
What is an open world? Open world games, also known as free roam games, are a type of game level design where players can roam freely in a virtual world and choose how and when to complete tasks.
In the previous world, Ren had always thought that a Pokémon game would be more popular if it were open world.
However, the huge cost and long production time were also issues. Picca Comics wanting to make such a game now was clearly a pipe dream.
Wait a minute!
Ren suddenly thought of a fun and easy-to-make game that could also build popularity for the Pokémon series!
Just then, Jada walked in and asked curiously, "Who were you on the phone with just now?"
"It was Xena," Ren didn't hide it, nor was there a need to, "Here's what I'm thinking..."
Ren then explained his idea.
"Do you have enough money? If not, ask me for more."
Not worrying about failure, Jada asked a heartwarming question, 'Do you have enough money?'
"Don't worry." Ren smiled, wrapping his arms around Jada's waist from behind.
...
The next afternoon.
After a good sleep, Ren arrived at the Secret Café.
He immediately saw Xena sitting in one of the seats. She saw him too and waved with a smile.
After sitting down, Ren took out some sketches and a written proposal, handing them to Xena.
These were things he had put a lot of effort into last night and this morning.
Xena took what Ren handed over without thinking much, then shifted her gaze to the papers, examining them carefully. She then showed a surprised expression, "A card game?"
"Yes, for now, let's make a card game."
Ren's card game wasn't the usual kind that relied on illustrations to lure players into spending money. It was a card game that had been hugely popular—Three Kingdoms Kill!
Of course, Ren turned it into "Pokémon Kill."
That's right, Pokémon Kill!
After all, Pokémon was the phonetic translation of "Pocket Monsters" in the previous world. Names like "Pet Little Monsters" or "Magical Babies" sounded more familiar than Pokémon.
In his plan, this Pokémon Kill was just like the Three Kingdoms Kill in the previous world. In the game, there were four roles: Rocket Boss, Alliance Investigator, Rocket Grunt, and Undercover (who developed inappropriate thoughts after three years).
The task of the Rocket Boss and Rocket Grunt was to eliminate the Alliance Investigator and the Undercover; the Alliance Investigator's task was to destroy the Rocket Team. The Undercover had to eliminate everyone except the Rocket Boss (including other Undercover agents).
At the start of the game, each player would randomly draw a role card. The player who drew the Rocket Boss had to reveal their role. The other players' role cards remained hidden.
Ren also replaced some of the cards inside.
For example, he replaced the Three Kingdoms characters with Pokémon.
Basic cards were also renamed.
For example, he replaced [Kill] with [Go!]; [Dodge] with [Quick, Dodge!]; [Peach] with [Revival Herb]; [Duel] with [Pokémon Battle]; [Snatch] with [Thief]...
As for equipment cards? Just replace them with items from the game.
See? The vibe is there, right?
And the development cost for this game wouldn't be high, mainly the artwork. But who was he? In this world, he was known for his drawing style. He could easily draw exquisite illustrations.
Then he could get his assistants to help. No need to release hundreds of cards at once; releasing them gradually could also extend the game's lifespan.
Using this game as a foundation, he could attract a fanbase, gather funds, and then develop an open world version of Pokémon or other game types, like a MOBA version.
Moreover, what was the main thing about Pokémon? The merchandise!
Cute little figures, Poké Balls, etc., could all be made. They could even hold Pokémon battles in the future, allowing people to compete and further expand the popularity!
Of course, the most important thing was for his Yueyue.
Then he could release the card game and let her take it to school to show off to her classmates.
After all, besides entertainment and competition, Pokémon Kill, like other tabletop games, was a healthy game.
Players didn't have to sit in front of a monitor for hours like with computer games. A game of Pokémon Kill could take thirty to forty minutes or as little as ten minutes. It's relaxed and perfect for a break.
This way, his daughter's eyes would be protected to some extent, as she loved staring at her phone.
And it could also ease the awkwardness between him and Yueyue caused by the magical girl story.
It's a win-win! He's truly a genius.
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