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    Chapter 88: A Real Full Manchu-Han Feast

    Sunday morning, 9:00 am, East Jin.

    Abundant sunlight bathed the scene. A giant exhibition hall building with a distinctive inverted triangle design at the top, standing tall at almost sixty meters, loomed over the green plaza.

    This was the East Jin International Exhibition Center.

    Built in 1996, guided by the international renowned organization-type design firm “Sato Integrated Design,” this international convention center had always been one of the most iconic buildings in East Jin, even in all of Neon.

    Every year, countless large and small exhibitions were held here.

    And this year’s Asian Electronic Sports Game Developer Conference, as one of the largest game exhibitions in the Pan-Asian region, naturally chose this location for its grand event!

    At this moment, inside the venue, the conference entrance phase was underway. Players and media members poured into the hall, a buzzing cacophony of voices filled the air.

    “Covering game news, focusing on player love, hello everyone, I’m Tian Tian, a reporter from Daily Game News!”

    Standing on the side of the entrance passage, Tian Tian held a portable microphone, waving to the camera on the camera dolly:

    “Welcome everyone to watch Daily Game News’s special live stream program today!”

    “As you can see, I am now in the West Wing Hall 1 of the East Jin International Exhibition Center,”

    “The quadrennial Asian Electronic Sports Game Developer Conference is about to take place here.”

    “According to our understanding, this year’s Asian Competition Association has gathered manufacturers and designers from over ten countries across five regions,”

    “The conference has a total of twenty-five nominated games, fifteen small games, five medium games, and five large games,”

    “Later in the exhibition, we will see the showcase of the ten medium to large games,”

    “And the final Crown Award will be determined among these ten games.”

    “So now, let’s follow the live stream camera and see how the participating manufacturers have prepared!”

    With that!

    Tian Tian beckoned, and the camera followed, moving towards the manufacturer seating area in the front right corner of the venue.

    In the live stream, a lively discussion ensued—

    ‘Wow, this venue is so huge!’

    ‘Fun fact: Hall 1 is called the International Conference Hall. It can accommodate thousands of people at the same time. The venue is equipped with conference systems, efficient audio-visual systems, and simultaneous translation in seven languages, etc.’

    ‘Damn, it’s a quadrennial intercontinental developer conference. It’s really something!’

    ‘My opinion is—compared to the closing esports league venue, this one is a little brother’

    ‘(Laughing Cry) Yeah, the closing league was held at the Bird’s Nest. If you compare that, this venue really isn’t anything special.’

    ‘It’s the league in our own hometown. Whether it’s the game champion or the league champion, one of them has to stay at the Bird’s Nest.’

    ‘Compared to that, I still hope the game is our own.’

    ‘It feels promising. This time, representing us are Rage Fire Games and Golden Wind.’

    ‘Rage Fire is pretty strong. After all, they’re an established big company. They reportedly directly maxed out their budget limit, investing 150 million for this. The game genre is their specialty, racing games. But Golden Wind… hard to say…’

    ‘Right, although Golden Wind has been pretty strong lately, their scale is just that. When I first heard they were participating in the Asian Competition Association, I thought they were in the small game group. But they turned out to be in the medium game group.’

    ‘The minimum investment for the medium game group is 50 million. Golden Wind must have been selling everything to pull this off.’

    ‘Feels like they’re gambling with their lives this time.’

    ‘But on the other hand, Shengzi Ge’s second-generation FPS concept is truly amazing. If they strike while the iron is hot and make a “Hot Pursuit” for second-generation FPS, they shouldn’t be in danger of a crushing defeat.’

    ‘Let’s hope so. Little Yellow, bro, I’m not asking you to win at the Bird’s Nest. I just hope you don’t destroy yourself in this one.’

    ‘The name Little Yellow is too hilarious.’

    ‘Hahahahahaha real talk…’

    ‘I really like this little Golden Wind game though.’

    ‘Let’s leave the winning to your Rage Fire Beans. Little Yellow, just focus on participating. Staying alive is victory!’

    ‘…’

    It was clear!

    Players still loved Golden Wind.

    But they didn’t have much hope for “winning”.

    After all, Little Yellow’s current scale was, at best, a medium-sized game company. Logically speaking, even if they participated, they should have been in the small game group.

    But now, Golden Wind had gone all-in, literally, squeezing themselves into the medium game track.

    It was like a lightweight boxer forcing their way into the middleweight or even heavyweight division.

    The consequences were predictable.

    So, the players let out cries of “Please don’t die”.

    Don’t even think about winning, just stay safe, don’t explode.

    Following the discussion in the live stream!

    Tian Tian also walked along the stairs to the manufacturer seating area.

    There, the manufacturer representatives had all arrived. Tian Tian also interviewed representatives from several companies.

    There was Lionheart Games from the Southeast Asian region, bringing a game called “Super Energy Showdown”, a MOBA game with a total investment of about 80 million. It was one of the five medium games.

    There was Gerard Technology from the Western Asian region, a game company that had only been established last year, but their ambitions were big. Their entry for the conference, “Burning Track,” was a racing game with a total investment of 150 million, aiming to be the biggest competitor to China’s Rage Fire Games.

    There was also Kol Corporation from the Neon region, a veteran sports game company. This was their second time participating in the Asian Competition Association. This time, they poured about 70 million into creating “Baseball Heroes EX,” an adaptation of a manga, hoping to win a place in this conference.

    After interviewing all the way down!

    Finally, Tian Tian arrived at the Chinese manufacturer zone in the front.

    And there.

    Gu Sheng was chatting with Li Xiaofeng, the Chief Supervisor of Rage Fire Games.

    Actually, the two hadn’t met before.

    But at this intercontinental conference, as fellow Chinese citizens, they naturally felt closer.

    Moreover, both companies were deeply collaborating with Art Tour, making them almost “family.”

    After a brief exchange of greetings, the two struck up a conversation.

    Li Xiaofeng praised Gu Sheng’s talent and creativity, while Gu Sheng also highly commended Rage Fire Games’ pioneering spirit.

    For a time, the two chatted enthusiastically.

    They completely failed to notice that Little Nezha, the mascot on the very edge, was already close to being bored to death.

    Ah… what are they talking about? … Old Gu, Old Gu, come play with me… is this ever gonna end…

    I just made a stupid stir-fry game. Why are you chatting with a real participating manufacturer about this…

    Little Nezha looked left and right, tapped his fingers, and tugged at Gu Sheng’s clothes, utterly bored.

    And just then!

    “Excuse me? Ms. Shen? I’m Tian Tian from Daily Game News. Would it be alright if I interrupted you for a two-minute interview?”

    A voice rang out beside them. Shen Miao Miao turned to see Tian Tian bowing slightly beside her, reaching out.

    Finally, someone is willing to talk to me, sniffle…

    Shen Miao Miao was about to cry with gratitude. She quickly got up and shook hands with Tian Tian: “Oh, of course.”

    Seeing the familiar figure appear, the barrage erupted with cheers—

    ‘Woohoo! Boss Ou!’

    ‘Boss Ou’s hairstyle is so conservative today’

    ‘Hahahahahaha, you can’t have a Little Fragrance wind suit with two buns, that’s too weird’

    ‘It’s not impossible.’

    ‘Boss Ou is so cute’

    ‘…’

    “Thank you, Ms. Shen,”

    Tian Tian smiled:

    “I noticed that Golden Wind is participating in the medium game track this time, right? So could you please tell us a little bit about the investment amount for Golden Wind’s entry this time?”

    “Sure, hehe,”

    Shen Miao Miao chuckled and nodded:

    “As everyone knows, Golden Wind is still a newly established game company. It’s a little difficult for us to shell out hundreds of millions like other large game companies,”

    “So this time, we used a 50 million investment, just barely scraping the standard line to get into the medium game track.”

    “Oh—that’s still pretty good,”

    Tian Tian gave a praising smile:

    “After all, Golden Wind has only been established for a short time. It’s already a legend in the industry that you’ve made it to the Asian Competition Association. I believe Golden Wind will continue to soar to new heights in the future.”

    Shen Miao Miao’s mouth twitched, her smile a little strained: “Hehe, thank you for the kind words.”

    Not noticing Shen Miao Miao’s discomfort, Tian Tian continued to ask:

    “We all know that Golden Wind, under your leadership and Director Gu’s guidance, has always been conquering the market with its creativity, attracting countless players,”

    “So this time, what kind of game is Golden Wind going to bring to the players?”

    At this point!

    Shen Miao Miao’s eyes lit up!

    Now you’re talking!

    “We’ve brought… well…”

    Shen Miao Miao pondered the wording in her head.

    After all, she hadn’t seen Gu Sheng’s planning document. She had no idea what the core of this game actually was.

    But she couldn’t just say, “We’ve brought a game where players play as chefs and compete in stir-frying,” in front of a media reporter.

    So!

    The clever Shen Miao Miao, with a flash of inspiration, changed the wording:

    “It’s… a game that can satisfy the taste buds of all players! The appearance of this game will bring a culinary feast to the gaming world!”

    Cooking, stir-frying!

    Wasn’t that about satisfying the taste buds of all players, serving the gaming world a full Manchu-Han feast?

    And it was a [“Real Full Manchu-Han Feast”](physical).

    Whoa—!!!

    At these words!

    Tian Tian couldn’t help but tremble!

    Sounds so powerful!

    Could it be that Golden Wind has another big move up their sleeve this time?

    However!

    Before she could continue asking.

    She heard the host’s voice on stage:

    “Ladies and gentlemen, esteemed manufacturer representatives and outstanding designer friends, honored guests and media friends,”

    “Please take your seats in an orderly manner,”

    “Our conference is about to begin…”

    Hearing this, even though countless questions lingered in her mind, Tian Tian could only hold back for now:

    “Alright, thank you, Ms. Shen. I’ll stop the interview here for now. I’m really looking forward to the formal unveiling of Golden Wind’s game in the introduction segment later.”

    The two shook hands again in acknowledgement, concluding the interview.

    Shen Miao Miao took her seat again, secretly laughing.

    I’m waiting for the introduction segment too.

    It wasn’t that she was particularly excited about this game.

    After all, it was just a stir-fry game. Even if it was done with bells and whistles, it would only be like “The Iron Chef,” with the dishes radiating light.

    She was just looking forward to seeing the expressions on the faces of the other manufacturers when the game was announced.

    She was sure everyone present, upon seeing such a ridiculous game presented at this prestigious Asian Competition Association, would have some amazing expressions of shock and astonishment!

    With this thought in mind, the lights in the venue began to dim.

    The 6th Asian Electronic Sports Game Developer Conference officially opened with a round of warm applause!

    First, Jiang Ying Cai, as the representative of the organizing committee, took to the stage to give a speech.

    Then, the representatives of the manufacturers who had won the Crown Award in the previous session also went on stage to deliver speeches, returning the Golden Crown representing the [“Asian Best Esports Game Crown Award”] and the Golden Scepter representing the [“Asian Best Esports Game Designer Award”] to the organizing committee.

    This was a tradition of the Asian Competition Association.

    The Golden Crown and Golden Scepter were not permanent possessions.

    The winning developer would only keep them for four years. After four years, the organizing committee would create a 1:1 replica of the crown and scepter and gift them to the winning manufacturer as a souvenir. The original crown and scepter would be returned to the organizing committee.

    After the handover ceremony, it was time for the “Game Introduction Segment”, which the media and players eagerly awaited.

    According to the organizing committee’s rules, in the following time, the ten games eligible for the Crown competition would be presented on stage one by one.

    The designers or manufacturer representatives would introduce their work, including the investment amount, game type, and general gameplay.

    It was a kind of pre-release promotion.

    After that, the 200 game media and 500 invited guests present would vote anonymously on the spot to elect the [“Most Anticipated Game Award”] for the closing ceremony.

    After the host finished introducing the rules!

    The audience burst into applause!

    Next!

    The manufacturers took the stage one after another to introduce their games.

    Since it was an electronic sports game conference, the game types were inevitably limited to shooting, racing, sports, MOBA, and card games.

    Among all the games presented, the one that elicited the most applause from the entire audience was an FPS game from the Korean region, “Heir to the Sun”, produced by Kim Tak Games’ lead designer, Pu Dong Wang.

    This was a multiplayer competitive shooting game with a modern warfare theme.

    The part that made players and media alike marvel was its so-called “Weapon Competition” mode where 20 players fought for themselves.

    In the game, players fought independently. Killing other players would earn experience points.

    But once the experience points were enough for a level-up, what awaited players was not a promotion, but a weapon downgrade.

    With each level-up, the weapon in their hands would drop a level. From the initial assault rifle, to the submachine gun, to the sniper rifle, to the pistol and even the knife!

    Each level-up was a test of the player’s skills.

    In the end, the first player to get a kill with a knife would be crowned the victor.

    Such a novel and fun setup, once revealed, sparked heated discussions among almost all the players in the audience!

    For a moment, the venue buzzed with whispers, with media members, players, and even manufacturer representatives exchanging curious and surprised remarks.

    (To be continued)

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