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

Science and Technology Daily: AI intelligent NPC, leading the transformation of the gaming industry

Not only traditional media, but even professional media in the field of science and technology have begun to pay attention to Taoyuan Township's technological breakthroughs.

"Science and Technology Daily" published a detailed technical analysis article, which deeply analyzed the innovations of "The Mystery of the Hidden Mist Village" in AI algorithms, environmental narrative, dynamic plot adjustments, etc.

"Taoyuan Township's AI intelligent NPC system has reached unprecedented heights. It not only remembers the player's actions, but also responds accordingly based on the player's decisions. In some cases, it can even 'predict' the player's mental state."

The article also quoted the evaluation of foreign AI experts:

"This is not just an advancement in gaming technology, but a major breakthrough in the field of artificial intelligence in human-computer interaction."

Engineers and game developers in the industry have said that the game's AI system is expected to become a new standard for future game development and may even influence the technological direction of the entire gaming industry.

At this moment, Taoyuanxiang is no longer just the name of a game studio, but has become a symbol of domestic games moving towards the world.

From CCTV's special reports, to the high cultural evaluation of China Daily, to the technical analysis of Science and Technology Daily, the entire industry is witnessing the rise of domestic games.

And all this has just begun.

Taoyuan Township's CEO Lu Yu stood in front of the floor-to-ceiling window, looking at the brightly lit city night scene. Behind him, his mobile phone kept vibrating, and countless cooperation invitations, interview requests and congratulatory messages came pouring in.

He let out a light breath, a smile playing on his lips.

"This game has just entered the second stage."

……

Lu Yu, the producer of "The Mystery of the Hidden Mist Village", appeared on a TV program to share his experience in successfully developing the game. He was very Versailles throughout and said that he never thought he would be so successful.

The atmosphere in the studio became increasingly relaxed, and the audience's attention was firmly captured. Many people even forgot that this was a TV show, and were immersed in the in-depth conversation about the game.

Li Ran adjusted the interview outline in his hand, his eyes flickering slightly, obviously looking forward to the next question.

"Mr. Lu, you just mentioned that the success of 'The Hidden Mist Village' stems from 'intuition.'" He smiled slightly. "So, during the development of the game, did you encounter any truly difficult problems?"

Hearing this, Lu Yu pondered for a moment, then slowly said: "Actually, the biggest problem is not a technical problem."

"Oh?" Li Ran raised his eyebrows and looked at him with interest. "What is that?"

"How to make NPCs 'alive'."

Lu Yu's tone became serious, and his eyes flashed with memories.

"The greatest appeal of horror games lies in the 'unknown' and 'uncertainty,'" he explained. "Traditional horror games are mostly script-driven, with fixed jump scares or pre-set plot triggers."

"But the problem is, players might be scared once, and maybe a little nervous after playing it twice, but when they play it a third or fourth time, all the fear disappears."

Li Ran nodded. "Indeed, many horror games stop being scary after the second or third round."

"So, what we want to do is make horror 'come alive,'" Lu Yu continued. "If NPCs can truly 'observe' players, truly 'remember' their behavior patterns, and respond differently based on their choices... then every playthrough will be a brand new experience."

There was a slight exclamation from the audience.

Li Ran couldn't help but sigh: "It sounds like this is indeed a huge challenge."

"Yes." Lu Yu smiled. "Initially, we tried many AI models, but none of them met our expectations. Either the NPC's reactions were too mechanical, making the tricks obvious at a glance; or the AI's computational load was too heavy, causing severe lags during game execution."

"So how did you solve this problem in the end?" Li Ran asked curiously.

Lu Yu raised the corners of his mouth slightly, with a hint of pride in his eyes: "In fact, the most crucial point is to let the NPC 'mislead' the players."

"Misleading?" Li Ran was slightly stunned, as if he didn't understand.

Lu Yu nodded: "The real horror often comes from the player's own imagination. If we let the NPC show a little sign of 'abnormality', such as secretly adjusting the angle of the gaze when the player is not paying attention; or, behind the player, breathing softly..."

“These details are tiny, but they allow the player’s brain to automatically fill in the rest of the horror.”

Li Ran suddenly realized: "So, you're not asking AI to 'completely simulate humans,' but to create a 'sufficiently realistic illusion'?"

"That's right." Lu Yu nodded with a smile. "In our finalized AI system, NPCs won't make overly 'surreal' moves. Instead, they'll use subtle methods to gradually make players realize that they're watching you."

A burst of low murmurs broke out in the audience again, and many people had expressions of realization on their faces.

"No wonder this game is so scary..."

"So this is a psychological tactic! No wonder I always felt like there was something wrong with the NPC's eyes..."

"This is scarier than traditional horror games!"

The barrage also swiped the screen crazily——

"Fuck! This game doesn't even need Jump Scare. Just the look in the NPC's eyes gives me the chills!"

"So, the core horror of this game is - 'You think it's looking at you, but it's really looking at you'?"

"This is psychological warfare! Mr. Lu, you're too cruel!"

Discussion about the game plot

Li Ran adjusted the topic and continued, "Besides the AI ​​system, many players also talk about the game's plot, especially the character 'Wang Lina,' who has become known as the 'most psychologically terrifying NPC' in the hearts of many players."

Lu Yu smiled and said, "The character of Wang Lina is actually one of the first NPCs confirmed by our team."

"Oh?" Li Ran asked with interest, "Can you tell me about her creative background?"

Lu Yu nodded: "What we want to create is not a 'ghost' in the traditional sense, but a being between humans and monsters."

“Her backstory is full of contradictions. She is both the player’s enemy and possibly the only ‘ally’; her emotions seem to be ‘simulated’, but sometimes, you feel that she is really ‘thinking’.”

Li Ran couldn't help but sigh: "No wonder many players say that they have complicated feelings about the character Wang Lina - they are afraid of her, but also full of curiosity about her."

"That's exactly the effect we want to achieve." Lu Yu nodded. "True psychological horror isn't about 'a monster chasing you', but about 'you don't know whether it's a friend or foe'."

The barrage is swiping again——

"This is the highest level of 'ambiguous horror'!"

"Wang Lina: I'm not a ghost, but you can never be sure what I am."

"No wonder I couldn't look her in the eyes by the end of the game..."

【Disclosure of future plans】

A sly glint flashed in Li Ran's eyes, and he took the opportunity to ask, "Mr. Lu, since 'The Mystery of the Hidden Mist Village' is so successful, do you have any plans to release DLC or even a sequel?"

Hearing this, Lu Yu smiled slightly and said mysteriously, "Well, I can't reveal too much now..."

"But we can tell you that we are definitely considering some 'expansion content'."

"For example?" Li Ran asked.

"For example..." Lu Yu paused, the corners of his mouth curled up slightly, "If NPCs can 'learn' the player's behavior, then can they... 'remember' the save files of the previous game?"

Li Ran was stunned, the audience was in an uproar, and the barrage of comments exploded!

"Fuck! Is this horrible?!"

“Next-generation AI: ‘I remember how you treated me last time.’”

"Help! I'm suddenly afraid to play the sequel!!!"

Li Ran came back to his senses and said with a wry smile, "Boss Lu, your team's idea is really... too crazy."

Lu Yu shrugged, his smile meaningful: "When making games, you always have to give players some... unexpected surprises." The camera lens slowly zoomed out, and the entire studio erupted in warm applause. Speculation about the future of **The Mystery of the Hidden Mist Village** was already spreading rapidly among players around the world...**
……

After the TV interview ended, Lu Yu walked out of the studio alone, facing the cool night breeze, and took a deep breath.

"call--"

He stretched and moved his shoulders, feeling quite relaxed.

The interview went relatively smoothly overall. Although the host kept trying to dig into his inner "game development philosophy," he handled all the questions with aplomb, remaining calm and composed throughout, occasionally letting out a touch of Versailles charm that sent comments like, "As expected of Mr. Lu!"

Now, he can finally enjoy some leisure time.

So, he skillfully took out his mobile phone, opened the map, searched for a cafe with good ratings, and walked leisurely towards his destination.

Today, he is still a game producer who doesn't read the news, doesn't check social media, and lives in his own world.

——He had no idea that his game had already created a huge wave around the world.

Lu Yu's daily enjoyment in the cafe

This cafe, located in the heart of Shanghai, has an elegant environment with soft lighting. The air is filled with the faint aroma of coffee and the gentle jazz music makes people feel relaxed.

Lu Yu pushed open the glass door and walked straight to the seat in the corner. He ordered a cup of hand-brewed coffee and a piece of exquisite small cake as a gift.

The waiter looked at him, and he seemed familiar. He asked hesitantly, "Sir...Excuse me, are you Lu Yu, the producer of **"The Mystery of the Hidden Mist Village"?**"

Lu Yu picked up the spoon and scooped a bite of cake elegantly, saying casually, "Hmm? Yes."

The waiter's eyes lit up instantly, and he said excitedly, "Oh my God! I love this game so much! You are really amazing!"

Lu Yu was slightly stunned, then smiled politely: "Thank you."

Although he had no idea about the popularity of the game, it was not the first time he was recognized, so he did not think much about it.

However, the next second——

When the customers around heard this, they all turned to look at him in shock, whispering among themselves.

"Wait, he's the producer of 'The Hidden Mist Village Mystery'?!"

"Is this true?! I was so scared by Wang Lina last night that I couldn't sleep!"

"Look at the trending searches on Weibo! This game has already sold over 1200 million copies! The world is going crazy!"

Lu Yu's hand, which was about to elegantly enjoy the second bite of cake, stopped in mid-air.

He was stunned.

"...Hmm? How many sales were there?"

He subconsciously took out his phone, opened Weibo, skillfully ignored the pile of unread messages in his follow list, and slid directly to the hot search list.

Then, he saw a piece of news that was ranked first in the trending searches—

#The Mystery of the Hidden Mist Village has sold over 1200 million copies worldwide, making it the pinnacle of domestic gaming! #
Lu Yu: "..."

He felt like his brain was short-circuiting.

No, wait...

1200 million sets?!
When did this happen? !

How come I didn’t know anything about this?!

Lu Yu blinked, forced himself to calm down, opened the comment section, and found that the players had already fallen into a crazy celebration mode.

——"This game is truly amazing! The AI ​​NPCs are an epic innovation!"

——"Wang Lina really has her own consciousness, right? Please, the authorities, please reveal the mechanism behind this!"

——"Chinese games have finally reached the top of the world! Taoyuan Township is awesome!"

Lu Yu: "..."

He was silent for a few seconds, took a deep breath, slowly put down his phone, as if he had just accepted reality, picked up the coffee and took a sip.

Then he sighed silently.

...It's over. It seems I can only pretend to be cool invisibly.

[Lu Yu's Versailles Road is forced to begin]

A few minutes later, the customers in the cafe seemed to finally muster up the courage and gathered around, each with excited eyes, speaking one after another -

"Mr. Lu, how did you come up with the idea of ​​making a game like 'Mystery of the Hidden Mist Village'?"

"Yeah, how exactly is your AI system designed? Can NPCs really 'learn' player behavior?"

"Mr. Lu, did you know this game would be a huge hit? Is that why you're so calm?"

Lu Yu: "..."

Can I say that I actually have no idea?!
The corners of his mouth twitched slightly, but as a seasoned game producer, he still maintained a calm and composed smile on his face.

"Hmm... Actually, I only just saw the sales figures a while ago," he said casually. "But, this game was just made for fun, so I didn't expect it to sell so many. It's a bit surprising."

As soon as these words came out, everyone was shocked.

"Just doing it for fun?!"

"Mr. Lu, your Versailles attitude is really too much!"

"Please stop pretending! This game's AI system is practically pushing the boundaries of the industry, and you're still just doing it for fun?!"

Lu Yu: "..."

No, I really didn't pretend...

I really didn't know it would become so popular...

But now, he was no longer able to explain.

So, he could only sigh helplessly, pick up his coffee, narrow his eyes slightly, and casually add: "But since everyone likes it, then in the future... maybe we can consider making a sequel?"

The players in the cafe were instantly excited!

"Sequel?! Mr. Lu, did you just hint at a sequel?!"

"Record it quickly! This is what the official said!"

"Please! Bring Wang Lina back to the sequel! She's the pinnacle of NPCs!"

Lu Yu looked at them, who were so excited that they were about to jump up, and sighed silently in his heart.

Forget it, let them be.

Anyway, he has long been accustomed to this kind of "invisible pretense" scene.

——At this moment, Mr. Lu's legend continues. (End of this chapter)