Almighty Video Game Designer

Chapter 201: New Version and New Game

Chen Mo started going over the basics for the new version.

“The new version will be called Reaper of Souls. The biggest update are the two new classes, Crusader and Necromancer. There will also be some more elements added to the story, the main character will enter the Pandemonium to battle the final boss.

“There will be more side quests for Covetous Shen, Haedrig Eamon, and the three followers.

“Of course, the story is just to supplement the content of the update, the main updates aren’t story updates.

“There will also be new mechanics in the game, including Transmogrification, Paragon Levels, and Expert mode. The information in the concept draft should be enough for you guys to work from as it’s quite simple.

“The key point is the two game modes that will increase the lifespan of the game. I estimate that this should extend it by one or two years.

“About Challenge Rift and Seasons.

“Challenge Rift is a gamemode designed to help players get rare equipment.

“The players probably don’t care much about the story when they reach this stage, probably caring more about grinding rare items. It won’t matter where they grind the items as we’ll provide time a shortcut through Challenge Rift.

“The competitive seasons are equivalent to ranked ladder. However, the way of climbing the ladder is different from Warcraft. In this game, older players have a significant advantage over newer players, which is why players will have to start from scratch at the start of every season.

“Each season should last anywhere from three to six months, we can freely adjust that according to how the players are doing.

“That’s about it, any questions?”

Chen Mo checked their reactions after going through the overview.

They all looked at one another. Evidently, most cared more about the new story and classes than the Challenge Rift and Ranked Seasons.

“Uhh manager, obviously adding new story and classes are a must, but I’m doubtful if the Challenge Rift and ranked seasons could extend the lifespan of the game. I thought you would make an editor in games like Plants vs Zombies and Warcraft,” asked Su Jinyu.

Everyone else nodded along, they clearly had the same thought as Su Jinyu, but was too embarrassed to bring it up themselves.

Chen Mo laughed, “It’s not the same. The core of the enjoyment of Diablo somes from hacking and slashing. Moreover, the maps are all randomly generated, even if we allow players to add assets, they wouldn’t be able to make many meaningful additions.

“Why are the players getting bored? Because they don’t have a goal anymore.

“In other words, players were happily grinding away because they weren’t sick of the game yet. But for the players that got the few key equipment but have no other goals in mind, they quit the game because they aren’t sure what to do next.

“The competitive seasons are there to create competition, to allow players to try and compete against one another and to introduce a goal for the players. Challenge Rift on the other hand is more of an aid to reduce the more repetitive aspects of grinding, making the grinding process less offensive.

“Is there something like the map editors in Warcraft to extend the lifespan of Diablo indefinitely? Unfortunately not. It’s because this is a hack and slash game, and we have to take care of any remaining hardcore players.

“Are there any other questions?

They were still doubtful, but the majority of them understood where Chen Mo was coming from.

Nobody was going to challenge Chen Mo’s thought process as he was the boss, and it was fine as long as the boss knew what they were doing.

Chen Mo continued as they seemed to have understood the problem.

Design document for Don’t Starve.

There was an incredibly simple concept art at the start of the document featuring a small pale man with messy hair sitting next to a campfire in the woods among trees, bushes and angry spiders.

The moon on the top right had the words Don’t Starve ominously written on it.

Everybody was confused to see this name and concept art.

“Don’t Starve? Like don’t starve to death?”

“That concept art also looks really weird, it looks like an indie game.”

“Yeah, it doesn’t look like it’s from a big company. From the looks of it, it’s going to have a niche audience.”

“Is the manager done making money?”

“Let’s see what he has to say.”

Everyone was waiting on Chen Mo’s explanation.

“First, it’s just as you guessed. This game is reminiscent of indie games. As I said before, this game will serve as a practice to get everyone in the mod. It shouldn’t be too hard.

“I’ll quickly go over the gameplay. It’s a survival game. The settings on this game are quite free, as science, magic, and weird monsters coexist in this world. Within reason of course.

“The only aim of the game is to survive, similar to survival mode of some other games. The difference is that we’ll provide an incredibly rich equipment system. The players can collect rocks and branches around the map, craft tools, and finally create their own base, from nothing to everything.

“You could view it as a sandbox game.

“Of course, as a survival game, the main character should face various dangers at all times, including darkness, weather, and monsters. The players will die if they don’t pay attention.

“We’ll need to recreate a situation where the player is abandoned alone in the wilderness. They could die from cold or starvation, and also survive long into the game.

“That’s the main gist of it, any questions?”

Chen Mo looked around.

Su Jinyu said, “I think it’ll be a good game, I’m quite interested in it.”

Qian Kun scowled, “Manager, I don’t quite understand the selling point of the game. Although it sounds like a really cool game, I think it’ll be really niche and won’t sell many copies.”

“There’s no point in trying to estimate the number of sales before the game is made. The driving force of the game is to survive. The players will try their hardest to not die, and even be able to live more and more comfortably,” answered Chen Mo.

“The desire to live, and exploring and gathering in order to do so is a very fun thing for the players to go through.

“It doesn’t matter how popular or niche it will be.. You guys can treat this as a fun exercise and enjoy the process.”