I will be stronger after the remake

A typical king from a Japanese fantasy novel appeared before him, pretentiously saying, "Hero from another world, go and defeat the Demon King!"

Then, the protagonist, carrying a wooden sword and a wooden shield, arrived at the entrance of a cave. The bottom of the cave was where the Demon King was located, and his task was to go down level by level.

"..."

Yuan Ji's feelings at this moment were hard to describe. If he had to describe them, it would probably be something like, "Where am I?", "Who am I?", "What am I supposed to do... Oh, I know, I'm going to fight the Demon King."

The first half of this opening video is from clips from "The Invisible Guardian," while the second half was filmed by Tang Ping with the extras who were pretending to be in a fire to deceive Ma Yiming. The video is quite rough and has many continuity errors.

But it doesn't matter anymore. The core selling point of the game "Invisible Survivor" is its gameplay, and the plot is not important at all. If Tang Ping didn't want to use this to expand his reputation and leave an impression on players, he could have just deleted the opening video.

Yuan Ji clicked casually, and the screen displayed "Crypt Level 1". He could then control a chibi-style male protagonist to walk on an empty map, with hordes of slimes and goblins surging towards him.

The male protagonist will automatically swing a wooden sword to attack. Yuan Ji's only control is to move the character. Touching monsters will reduce his health. Defeating monsters will drop experience orbs. Picking up the orbs will level him up. After leveling up, there will be options that randomly provide one piece of equipment and a skill.

That's right, the game Tang Ping made was inspired by the previous game, "Vampire Survivor".

The simple and easy-to-learn gameplay mechanics, the constantly positive feedback upgrade system, and the random growth rewards provide players with a "low threshold, high ceiling" and "suffer first, then dominate" experience. Especially in the first ten hours, the combination of various skills and equipment, and the constantly unlocked new professions will keep players feeling fresh at all times.

Unlike the original game's system where characters are unlocked as you progress, Tangping made this game to promote himself, so you can only play one character, but you can unlock different classes such as "Warrior," "Mage," "Thief," and "Hunter."

He also thoughtfully included his own cosplay photo with each character on the character selection screen.

Tang Ping can already imagine that in the future, he will definitely encounter a lot of players complaining that the producer is too vain.

Yuan Ji, blessed with the ability to see beauty in the eye of the beholder, naturally didn't see anything wrong with the game. Moreover, after getting into the game, she quickly went from being inattentive to being completely absorbed.

Although she only played for ten minutes in the first game and lost because she didn't understand the weapon skill combinations, she was not frustrated at all and immediately started the second game.

With the help of producer Tang Ping, Yuan Ji successfully cleared the first map and couldn't help but smile with satisfaction as he looked at the new class he had unlocked.

Just as she was eager to start the third round, Tang Ping asked, "What do you think?"

Yuan Ji thought for a moment and said, "I haven't played many games, so I can't give a professional evaluation. If I had to say, it would be that it's fun."

Chapter 138 Another Success

In Tang Ping's memory, there are only two indie games that can be called pioneers after 2010: Kill the Spire and Vampire Survivor.

These two games are not only phenomenal in their own right, but they have also inspired a large number of imitations, becoming a distinct game genre and enabling countless newcomers to the industry to earn their first pot of gold.

Slay the Spire may seem simple on the surface, just a card game, but it actually has extremely high numerical requirements. Although each game generates enemies and rewards randomly, the theoretical success rate is over 99%, which means that as long as you choose the right strategy, there is almost no situation where you cannot defeat the enemy.

In contrast, Vampire Survivor is much more forgiving in terms of stats. If a skill combination is too weak, it can be strengthened with a patch later. If a weapon combination is too strong, it can be left alone. After all, it's a single-player game, so having a "wheelchair" is normal. Moreover, it has a random element, and players may not be able to draw it in a single round of the game.

Tang Ping is not a fundamentalist and did not completely copy "Vampire Survivor". As the pioneer, the game itself has many rudimentary aspects.

For things like graphics and music that can be improved by spending money, there's no need to be stingy. Even if it doesn't reach AAA level, it should at least be of the first-class standard of indie games.

The game mechanics also incorporate many advantages from subsequent similar works, further enhancing the game pace and providing positive feedback to players.

……

Two weeks later, "Invisible Survivor" was officially released.

The creator of "Vampire Survivor" was unknown before releasing the game and did not do any promotion after its release. It relied entirely on word-of-mouth from players and recommendations from game streamers. However, Tangping is the top-selling domestic game and is still breaking records. Therefore, the new work received a lot of attention as soon as it was released.

In just three days after its release, "Invisible Survivor" sold over 400 million copies, surpassing the sales of "Vampire Survivor" after a year, becoming the hottest topic in the gaming world.

A week later, sales exceeded 600 million.

Two weeks later, the sales growth rate not only did not decline, but actually increased, exceeding 1000 million, because the game had broken out of its niche, with 200 million of those sales coming from overseas players, and the growth rate showed no signs of slowing down.

It's worth noting that the original Vampire Survivor only sold 750 million copies on Steam. The fact that Invisible Survivor surpassed it is due not only to its superior quality and the greater fame of its creators, but also to a significant factor:

This game is priced at only $1!

The price in China is 5.8 yuan, less than a quarter of the price of "Vampire Survivor".

In theory, even if the game sells 3000 million copies, Tangping's revenue will not be as high as the original creator's. However, he didn't make games for money; using low prices to boost sales was the right way to go.

You can't go wrong with $1, especially since this is a phenomenal game with rave reviews and sales exceeding ten million. Even if it's just to add another game to your library, you should give it a try.

However, "Invisible Survivor" also falls short of the original in some aspects; its approval rating is only 96%, which is lower than the original's 98%.

Tang Ping glanced at the comments section; the reasons players gave negative reviews were all predictable, falling into three categories:

1. "The bizarre live-action opening animation is recommended to be deleted." This type of animation is mainly used by foreigners, but Chinese people laugh at it and find it nonsensical and funny.

Second, suggestions such as "The producer is too narcissistic, I don't want male characters, I want beautiful girls" and "I strongly suggest the author create a witch class and add a picture of her in women's clothing" are all ignored by Tang Ping. The game is just a means to an end; the purpose is to spread his reputation and increase his fans. He cannot put the cart before the horse.

3. "I was scammed. I wanted to play a narrative game with depth, not a 4399 mini-game." "I thought it was a sequel to 'Invisible Guardian,' but it turned out to be completely unrelated. They won't refund my few dollars. I'm giving them a bad review and leaving." "The author has fallen. They actually made an electronic version of 'Crow P.'"

Since it borrowed the name of "The Invisible Guardian", it had to accept the backlash from fans of the previous game. Fortunately, many players changed their negative reviews after actually playing the game, and these reviews did not receive any praise from others. The reason is simple: the game was priced too cheaply.

"No way, no way, does anyone really think that 5.8 yuan can buy a live-action movie game like 'Invisible Guardian'? You can't even watch a movie for that price these days!"

"I think anyone with a brain should realize when they see the price that this game has absolutely nothing to do with 'Invisible Guardian'."

"I'm also a big fan of Invisible Guardian. I was a little disappointed at first, but I quickly became a fan. I've played for over 100 hours now. But there's something I have to say: the producer's previous work only had a story and no gameplay, and the next one is just gameplay with no story. Should I praise you for listening to the players' suggestions, or criticize you for being too biased?"

Tang Ping doesn't care about negative reviews; she just wants to gain more followers.

Overall, game sales are booming, and Lingo's performance is soaring; everything is moving in a positive direction.

……

Three months after its release, Invisible Survivor successfully sold over 2800 million copies. At this time, the counterpart to Black Myth: Wukong had not yet been released, and Tang Ping continued to hold the throne as the top domestic single-player game producer.

Even if similar titles emerge, it's hard to say who will win based solely on sales figures, as Invisible Survivor is still steadily growing, and more than half of its players are from overseas.

Of course, when it comes to sales figures, "The Invisible Survivor" is simply not even worth mentioning.

Within three months, Tang Ping trended on social media several times and participated in many TV programs, further boosting her popularity. Many businesses have approached her to shoot commercials, but the prices are not high, only at the level of third or fourth-tier celebrities.

Because his situation was so unique, no one could pinpoint his exact location.

In the entertainment industry, both domestically and globally, there has never been an example like Tang Ping, who debuted as a star through video games instead of relying on serious film and television works.

Although games are a form of entertainment, they are still two distinct fields from the entertainment industry.

Many entertainment companies wanted to follow suit and imitate her, but after sending expert teams to study her carefully, they all chose to give up, believing that Tang Ping's situation was too special and basically impossible to replicate.

While Tang Ping was enjoying the surge in Ling Ge's performance, she had a slight worry in her heart, because four months had passed since the exploration of Qin Shi Huang's mausoleum, but there was still no news about Gu Linglong.

Whether he has advanced to the fifth rank, whether he is alive or dead, is completely unknown.

During a colleague's gathering, he asked the director again, and received the same reply: "Don't ask."

When Yuan Ji saw Tang Ping return looking disappointed, he asked in a low voice, "Still no news?"

As one of the witnesses, she was also concerned about Gu Linglong's situation, and from the perspective of a psychic, she also wanted to know whether she could break through to the fifth level, even though she had no hope of it.

Tang Ping nodded and sat down in her seat with a thoughtful expression.

Yuan Ji asked, "What could be the reason?"

While organizing her thoughts, Tang Ping replied, "If she hasn't tried to advance to the fifth level yet, there are only two reasons: either the injuries she sustained in the battle with Qin Shi Huang were too severe and she is still recovering, or considering that advancing to the fifth level is of great importance, she might also need to heal her previous hidden injuries and adjust her condition to its best."

"Either the injury heals, but the requirements for advancing to the fifth level are extremely strict. For example, there are requirements for the time and place, and you also have to be wary of interference from external enemies. After all, no one has ever done it before, so it is normal to be cautious."

Yuan Ji chimed in, "What if we've already tried it?"

Tang Ping pondered, "If the promotion is successful, it means that he doesn't want other psionic organizations to become wary, so he deliberately concealed the information and waited for a suitable opportunity to appear. If the promotion fails, he is currently recuperating from injuries, so there is even less need to announce it to the outside world, and he has handled it discreetly."

Yuan Ji lowered his voice and asked, "Is there any possibility of the worst-case scenario?"

The worst-case scenario, of course, is that failing to get promoted leads to death.

Tang Ping thought for a moment and shook his head, saying, "If that's the case, there's no need to hide the news. Admittedly, the loss of a fourth-level psychic is a huge loss to the country, especially since this fourth-level psychic possessed the strongest individual strength. However, our country doesn't rely solely on Gu Linglong. Even without her, there are still four fourth-level psychics who can maintain the eldest brother's position. Even if we don't publicly mourn her, we will still make an internal announcement to respect Gu Linglong's past contributions."

Yuan Ji sighed, "From this perspective, no news is actually the most reassuring news."

"Ah."

“What are you two whispering about?” Ma Yiming walked over and put his arm around Tang Ping’s shoulder. “This isn’t your engagement party today, so no entertainment for just the two of you.”

Hu Ze chimed in, "Yi Ming's criticism on this matter is reasonable. We need to distinguish between primary and secondary tasks. You are not the main characters today. You need to take on the responsibility of creating a lively atmosphere and not just think about yourselves."

Tang Ping reached out and said, "How about you send me a task list? I'll try my best to be the leader of the atmosphere group."

Hu Ze waved his hand and said, "There's no fixed task for this. You have to learn to adapt to different situations. This is just a small matter for you."

Ma Yiming asked curiously, "It's amazing that you two can still be so lovey-dovey. I thought that even the best couples would only be able to be lovey-dovey for two months. Even if you try new things every day, your hormones should have worn off by then. Especially since you two live together. As they say, distance makes the heart grow fonder, and living together reveals the ugliness."

Yuan Ji narrowed his eyes, feigning anger, and said, "What, you can't stand to see us happy together?"

Ma Yiming quickly said, "This has nothing to do with my personal wishes. No matter how hard most couples try, over time, the initial excitement will fade, and after two years, they will stop caring about what the other person is wearing. Ultimately, the relationship will end because the other person farts in front of them."

Yuan Ji said speechlessly, "Your analogy is too crude. Can't you be a little more elegant?"

Tang Ping covered the other person's hand and comforted them, "Don't worry, my love for you will never be less than the swamp gas that comes out of my body."

"That's not the kind of elegance I'm talking about!"

Yuan Ji didn't want to waste time on this kind of nonsense, so he changed the subject and said, "Where's the main character? Why hasn't he arrived yet? No matter how well the atmosphere team does, it's meaningless if the main character isn't here."

Ma Yiming took out his phone and glanced at the time, saying, "We should be there soon. I'll go out and check."

Hu Ze stood up and said, "I'm going to the restroom."

Only two people remained in the private room.

Tang Ping said, "You weren't shy when you were teased just now, have you finally gotten used to it?"

"I've just figured it out. It's like when I get a perfect score on a test, there might be a lot of luck involved, but as long as I didn't cheat, it's an honor and I can be proud of it."

After saying that, Yuan Ji, seeing that no one was around, put his arm around Tang Ping's neck and kissed her until he heard footsteps approaching the door before letting go.

"The main character has arrived!"

Ma Yiming pushed open the door and entered. Behind him was Ma Feiyan, dressed in a peculiar outfit. She wore a blue top with puff sleeves and a high collar with white lace trim, and a fluffy yellow long skirt. The colors were bright and vivid, giving off a fairytale-like dreaminess. She also wore a red bow headband and a pair of black round-toed leather shoes.

In short, it's the outfit of Snow White from the Disney animation.

"Brother, the clothes you ordered are so childlike! I feel like everyone's staring at me the whole way here," Ma Feiyan said somewhat shyly.

"Today is your birthday, you are undoubtedly the star, isn't it normal for you to be the center of attention?"

"The key isn't attracting attention, but the clothes themselves. They feel a bit childish. How did you come up with the idea of ​​ordering these kinds of clothes?"

As a news anchor, Ma Feiyan wouldn't care about being watched by others.

Ma Yiming said, "Didn't you used to point at the TV and say, 'I want to wear the same clothes as Snow White,' and when Mom and Dad disagreed, you even threw a tantrum?"

Ma Feiyan was speechless: "Your 'before' is way too far back, it goes back to elementary school."

"But you still wore it, didn't you?"

"I just want to see what kind of scheme you're plotting. You've been acting strange lately, being nice to me in some inexplicable ways. I thought my birthday would be the day you finally revealed your true colors. Bring on whatever schemes you have. I'm mentally prepared for this today," Ma Feiyan said seriously.

"There's no conspiracy at all. I'm being suspicious of you just because I'm nice to you." Ma Yiming felt very wronged.

Tang Ping wanted to laugh when he heard this, and he naturally knew why.

Ma Yiming has resolved his inner conflict and no longer believes that his sister has been replaced. However, based on his past suspicions and wariness, he inevitably feels the urge to make amends.

"The cake is here!"

Yu Shujiang walked in carrying a birthday cake, and Hu Ze followed closely behind.

Tang Ping stepped in to help her good friend out of the predicament: "No matter what Yi Ming's conspiracy is, today is Fei Yan's birthday. Let's just celebrate properly and not think too much. Let's light the candles quickly, I'm starving."

"So there was no conspiracy," Ma Yiming weakly defended himself.

The crowd ignored him, placed the cake on the table, and began the whole process of lighting candles, singing birthday song, making a wish, blowing out candles, and cutting the cake.

Just as Tang Ping was enjoying her cake, she received a phone call. She glanced at the caller ID and saw it was from Feng Maimai.

As soon as the call connected, I heard an anxious voice on the other end: "Come to the Illusionary Realm quickly!"

"what happened?"

Tang Ping frowned instinctively, thinking he had encountered a demonic calamity.

"The Imperial Dew has appeared!"

Chapter 139 The Phantom Fox

Celebrating a friend's birthday is naturally less important than seizing the opportunity to improve one's cultivation, so Tang Ping decisively entered the Realm of Illusion through the Illusion-Breaking Stone.

As soon as he crossed over, he noticed something unusual. The night sky turned an eerie silvery white, and rays of light as thin as hair pierced through layers of clouds from the depths of the Milky Way, shooting straight down to the ground.

Tang Ping once again felt that primal attraction, that burning desire to absorb it, though it was still much weaker than Xu Fu's elixir.