You said you were going to make games, how did you become the richest man without doing anything?

Chapter 506: Mr. Lu's Reverse Development Method

After seeing this promotional video, the comment section exploded:

1. @西游迷123: Oh my god! Someone finally combined Journey to the West and Werewolf! This is literally my dream game! I can't wait to play it!
2. @Game Master 007: The trailer is amazing! The scene with Sun Wukong fighting the monsters was so exciting! I hope there are more action elements like this in the game.

3. @Mystery Lover Xiao Wang: After watching the trailer, I'm filled with questions. Who's the traitor? Why did Sha Seng transform? What does Tang Sanzang know? This plot is so captivating!

4. @Cultural Researcher: By combining traditional Chinese culture with modern game mechanics, "Journey to the West: Werewolf" has created a whole new genre. We hope it will help more people understand and appreciate Chinese culture.

5. @颜值就是义 (appearance is justice): Oh my god, the characters in this game are so good-looking! Especially Sun Wukong, he's so handsome! I want to play this game just for the looks!
6. @StrategyMaster: Finally, a Journey to the West-themed game that requires some serious thinking! The deduction, strategy, and betrayal—just thinking about it is thrilling. This will definitely be a breath of fresh air in the Werewolf world!
7. @佛系玩家: Although I don't usually play games, the themes of "test of faith" and "inner redemption" really touched me. Perhaps I can gain some life inspiration from this?
8. @VoiceActorFangirl: Oh my goodness! I can tell! These are definitely some of my favorite voice actors! I'm giving them my support just for that! I look forward to hearing more of their performances in the game.

9. @Hardcore Player: I hope this game isn't too easy. It would be best if there were some challenging hidden plots. If possible, I'd love to have multiple endings to increase the game's playability.

10. @Light Player Xiaomei: Although I'm not very good at Werewolf, this Journey to the West version looks super fun! I hope there will be a tutorial in the game so that a newbie like me can get started quickly.
……

At this time, Pei Shengnan and other potential competitors bribed the gaming media to publish negative articles about Taoyuan Township, criticizing Taoyuan Township's new work "Codename: Village".
Media Name: Game Pioneer Network
Written by: Chen Zhiyuan

Title: Codename: Village: A rural simulation game lacking innovation
Recently, the highly anticipated new work of Taoyuanxiang Studio, "Codename: Village", finally released more game details. However, after careful study, we have to say that this game does not seem to meet the expectations of players, but instead seems mediocre and boring.

First, the core gameplay of "Codename: Village" lacks innovation. The game focuses on themes of "village building" and "interpersonal relationships," but these elements have been repeatedly used in business simulation games over the past decade. Players must manage resources, develop agriculture, and build infrastructure—mechanics that are no different from other farm management games on the market. Even the addition of some so-called "Chinese characteristics" cannot mask the stale feeling of the gameplay.

Secondly, the game's graphics are disappointing. For a game released in 2024, Codename: Village's graphics are barely above the level of five years ago. Character models are crude, scenes lack detail, and lighting and shadow effects are perfunctory. With players demanding increasingly high-quality graphics, this performance undoubtedly detracts from the gaming experience.

Furthermore, the game's plot seems superficial. Reportedly, the game attempts to explore social issues such as rural revitalization, but based on the information currently available, the plot is overly idealistic and lacks in-depth consideration of real-world issues. The character development is also thin, failing to resonate with players emotionally.

Furthermore, the game's operating system also presents numerous issues. The interface design is complex and cumbersome, making it difficult for new players to get started. The operational logic of many functions is unintuitive, adding unnecessary learning curves. These issues can cause many players to lose interest early on.

It's worth noting that Codename: Village's business model has also sparked controversy. While the game offers a basic free-to-play model with in-app purchases, much of the core gameplay is locked behind a paywall. This approach undoubtedly impacts game balance and could potentially lead to a significant gap between players who spend heavily and those who don't.

Finally, the game's technical issues shouldn't be overlooked. During recent small-scale testing, many players reported significant lag and crashing. With less than two months until the official release, there are concerns about whether these issues can be resolved in time.

Overall, "Codename: Village" comes across as a hastily completed game. It offers no breakthroughs in gameplay, nor does it meet industry standards in graphics or storyline. In today's fiercely competitive gaming market, such performance is unlikely to win over players.

We hope that Taoyuanxiang Studio will listen carefully to player feedback and comprehensively optimize and improve the game before its official release. Otherwise, "Codename: Village" is likely to become a major Waterloo in the gaming industry this year.

……

Lu Yu pushed open the door to the conference room and was greeted by a wave of angry voices. The entire newly recruited project team members were gathered here, their faces filled with anger and unwillingness.

"This is absolute nonsense!" Li Ming, the company's new technical director, slammed the table. "How could our image quality be stuck at the level of five years ago? We pulled countless all-nighters to create those lighting effects!"

"That's right," Art Director Zhao Xiaohong took over. "The character models are crude? The scene details are missing? Are they lying with their eyes open?"

Planner Wang Lei couldn't help but interject, "What do you mean by a superficial plot? We hired several rural grassroots workers as consultants, and revised the script over a dozen times."

The entire conference room was filled with indignation and anger. The three project leaders, Mo Xiaoxuan, Hua Wu, and Wan Xiaotong, sat at the head of the group, their brows furrowed, and they remained silent.

Just then, Lu Yu cleared his throat and everyone's eyes were focused on him.

After seeing this negative article, the project team members were very angry. Although Lu Yu was secretly happy in his heart, he took the opportunity to comfort everyone on the surface.

"Everyone, calm down for a moment," Lu Yu said in a steady and firm voice. "I understand how you feel. We've invested so much in this project, and yet we're being slandered like this. It's truly hard to accept."

He glanced around and continued, "However, we need to look at this issue rationally. Although this article is full of malicious intent, it is not completely without reference value. For example, it mentions issues with the operating system, which is indeed an area we need to further optimize."

Lu Yu's words eased the atmosphere in the conference room slightly. He continued, "We must trust our work and the players' judgment. Once the game is officially released, players will naturally use their actual experience to verify the authenticity of this article."

"That's right," Zhang Wei finally spoke. "Mr. Lu is right. The most important thing for us now is to focus on making the game well. We must use facts to refute these false accusations."

Lu Yu looked at his colleagues who were gradually calming down, and was secretly delighted in his heart.

This negative article is exactly what he wants!

Not only did this undermine the morale of the project team, but it also laid the groundwork for his future actions. However, on the surface, he still maintained a caring and encouraging attitude.

……

As the development of "Codename: Village" entered a critical stage, the project team's work pace became increasingly tight. However, just when everyone thought everything was going according to plan, an unexpected problem quietly surfaced.

At first, the problem wasn't obvious. The planning team raised it at a routine meeting, citing player feedback that some of the mission designs in the test version were too monotonous. But soon, this seemingly simple problem snowballed, growing larger and larger. Zhang Wei convened a meeting of core members to discuss the issue. "Our original project idea was to create a game that blended traditional culture with modern rural development," he said, frowning. "But now it seems that the combination of these two elements isn't as smooth as we imagined."

Wang Lei took over the topic: "Yes, during our design work, we found that many traditional cultural elements conflicted with the concept of modern rural construction. For example, how to protect traditional architecture while promoting modernization? This balance is difficult to strike."

Technical director Li Ming also expressed his concerns: "In addition, we have developed many special visual effects and interactive mechanisms to present traditional cultural elements. This additional development work has greatly increased our workload and may affect the release date."

Lu Yu had been quietly listening to everyone's discussion, and finally spoke up: "I think we now face two choices. First, stick to the original plan and continue to improve the game content, but this may miss the best time to launch. Second, simplify some functions, speed up the development progress, and strive to launch before our competitors."

Zhang Wei fell into deep thought. Simplifying functionality meant abandoning some carefully designed content, which ran counter to their original pursuit of high quality. But if they stuck to their original plan, they risked losing their market advantage.

At this moment, art director Zhao Xiaohong came up with a bold idea:

“Maybe we can try a new approach. We can release a core gameplay version first, and then add those traditional cultural elements through subsequent updates. This way we can ensure timely launch without losing our uniqueness.”

This proposal sparked heated discussion, with some believing it was a good compromise, while others worried that it would affect players' first-time experience.

After a heated debate, Zhang Wei finally made a decision: "Okay, let's follow Zhao Xiaohong's suggestion."

……

As the Codename: Village project encountered difficulties, Lu Yu secretly rejoiced, seeing a perfect opportunity to realize his plan. Over the next few days, he began to spread some seemingly innovative but actually absurd ideas to the project team, euphemistically calling them "innovative game development processes" and "optimized workflows."

First, Lu Yu proposed the concept of a "flexible work system." He passionately addressed a general meeting: "Colleagues, we all know that creativity knows no time. Why confine ourselves to a 9-to-5 schedule? I suggest we implement completely flexible working hours, allowing everyone to choose when they're most inspired."

The proposal immediately piqued the interest of some young employees. However, Zhang Wei, the project leader, frowned and asked, "Will this affect teamwork?"

Lu Yu was prepared: "No, we can use online collaboration tools. Moreover, I believe that giving employees more freedom will give full play to their creativity."

Although Zhang Wei still had some doubts, after Lu Yu's lobbying, the project team decided to try out this "flexible working system".

Lu Yu then proposed an even more outrageous idea: the "random character development method." He explained, "We all know that the biggest feature of Codename: Village is its rich NPC population. To make these characters even more unique, I suggest we use a random sampling method to design their characteristics."

"How does it work specifically?" Art Director Zhao Xiaohong asked curiously.

Lu Yu said enthusiastically, "We can create a 'character trait wheel' that includes various personalities, backgrounds, hobbies, and so on. Every time we design a new character, we spin the wheel and create based on the results. This way we can avoid clichés and create more unique characters."

This idea sparked considerable debate within the team. Some felt it was too arbitrary and might lead to inconsistent character design. Others, however, believed this approach could yield unexpected creative insights. With Lu Yu's strong urging, the project team decided to experiment with this approach in the design of some minor NPCs.

But Lu Yu did not stop there. He proposed the concept of "reverse development method".

"We always design levels based on gameplay," he said. "But what if we do the opposite? We can start by designing levels that seem impossible to complete, and then think about how to get players through them. This can spark our creativity and lead to more novel gameplay."

This idea puzzled many. Technical director Li Ming questioned: "Will this make the game too difficult and affect the player experience?"

Lu Yu smiled and said, "This is exactly the problem we want to solve. In this way, we can come up with some unprecedented innovative gameplay. Besides, don't players nowadays like highly challenging games?"

Although many people in the team were skeptical about this idea, under Lu Yu's eloquence, the project team decided to try this method in some small levels.

With the implementation of these "innovative" methods, the project team's work efficiency began to decline significantly!
Flexible work schedules made team collaboration difficult, often resulting in situations where someone needed a module but the responsible person wasn't online. While the "random character development method" created some interesting characters, it also resulted in many inconsistent and even absurd settings, requiring significant time to adjust. Furthermore, the "reverse development method" led to a bottleneck in level design, with designers spending countless hours struggling to come up with a reasonable solution.

However, whenever someone raised questions, Lu Yu always found various reasons to defend these methods.

He said: "Innovation is always accompanied by pain. The difficulties we are facing now are precisely because we are breaking the routine and exploring new possibilities."

In this atmosphere, the project team's progress slowed significantly, and some employees began to slack off, thinking that since they were still "innovating," a slower pace wouldn't matter.

Lu Yu took the opportunity to encourage everyone: "Don't put too much pressure on yourself. Creativity takes time to mature. We must believe that good works are polished over time."

Zhang Wei began to realize that something was wrong, and he privately approached Lu Yu to express his concerns: "Mr. Lu, I think some of our practices may have affected the project's progress. Should we return to a more traditional development model?"

Lu Yu cleverly shifted the topic to competitors: "Xiao Zhang, do you remember our competitors? They use the traditional development model. If we do the same, how can we stand out in the market? I believe that as long as we persist in this innovative approach, we will eventually create a revolutionary product."

These words made Zhang Wei fall into deep thought. Although he still had some doubts, he had to admit that what Lu Yu said made sense.

Thus, under Lu Yu's leadership, the development of "Codename: Village" fell into a state of seemingly innovative but actually inefficient progress. Team members "worked" daily, but produced little. Lu Yu, however, secretly gloated, as his plan was gradually coming to fruition—in this way, he could not only slow down the project's progress but also secure more benefits for himself at a crucial moment.

(End of this chapter)