“What do you think is the hottest game in China right now?” Huang He asked back.
“It’s your company’s Warcraft III, of course!” Zeng Qing said insincerely. At this time, the hottest game was still Legend, but in a couple of years, it would become Fantasy Westward Journey.
However, the hottest single-player game would always be Warcraft III.
“So, you should develop games that have both single-player and online content, like Warcraft III!” Huang He said.
“I see!” Zeng Qing nodded thoughtfully. “But I’m familiar with major game companies worldwide. Games like this are great, but they’re probably very hard to get the distribution rights for!”
“Why do you insist on distributing them yourself? Why can’t you develop them yourselves?” Huang He glared at Zeng Qing with a look of disappointment that made Zeng Qing feel dejected.
He was being lectured by someone more than a decade younger than him, and he had no way to refute it. After all, the other person was more successful.
However, Huang He’s words did touch Zeng Qing. That’s right, why couldn’t Tengda develop games themselves?
After all, Tengda still had quite a few programmers left from the QQ era. Dealing with these programmers was a problem, and it seemed like a good choice for them to transition directly into game development.
Moreover, the cost would be far lower than importing and distributing games.
Thinking about this, Zeng Qing made up his mind, but he still hesitated and said, “But Mr. Huang, this is like trying to quench thirst with a distant river. It takes at least two years from the inception to the development of a game.”
“And I can’t guarantee that a game will really become popular!” Zeng Qing added.
“That’s easy!” Huang He nodded. “Actually, 'Triumphant Return' can still be salvaged. First, you can try to optimize the game to consume fewer computational resources.”
“Actually, why don’t you remove the impractical full 3D feature? A 2.5D interface would be sufficient. That way, domestic computers would at least be able to run it.”
“Additionally, your 'Triumphant Return' can be launched on the QQ Game Center. I’ve already promised you that within ten years, your Tengda can enjoy platform-fee-free benefits for one game. You can change the game object each year. Let’s start with 'Triumphant Return' this year!”
“However, I must warn you that once you’re on the QQ Game Platform, your other channels must charge the same as the QQ platform. Any price differences will result in hefty compensation!” Huang He stated.
“Understood, these are not problems!” Zeng Qing said quickly, his face beaming. Getting 'Triumphant Return' onto the QQ Game Platform was his original intention.
“Also, regarding your concern about whether self-developed games will be popular, this is actually a rather pointless question. Any business endeavor carries risks, and this is not a question a normal entrepreneur should ask!”
“But since you’ve asked, let me tell you: game quality is paramount, but even more important is adapting to Chinese players’ gaming habits. Furthermore, finding an excellent IP can help a game take off quickly!” Huang He said.
“What do you mean by an excellent IP?” Zeng Qing was taken aback and asked.
“Anything well-known is an IP!” Huang He said casually. “For example, Warcraft III is an excellent IP. I use Warcraft III to sell related blind boxes, which is leveraging this IP to drive other products!”
“To give you a simpler example, if you were to make a game, one would be an entirely new world you developed yourself, and the other would be a game world created based on Journey to the West. When both games are released simultaneously, which game do you think players will be more enthusiastic about?”
“Of course, it’s the game world based on Journey to the West!” Zeng Qing replied.
“Exactly. NetEase’s 'Fantasy Westward Journey' launched earlier is a typical example of using IP. At that time, Stephen Chow’s 'A Chinese Odyssey' was very popular, so he used the movie’s plot to create a game, which earned NetEase over 100 million yuan in profits within a year.”
If NetEase’s game had been the same game but was named something like “Great Battle of the Wolf” instead of “Journey to the West,” could it have achieved such success in a short period?
“I understand!” Zeng Qing nodded vigorously, feeling like he had opened up a whole new world.
However, after understanding the importance of IP, Zeng Qing fell into new difficulties.
“Mr. Huang, but our Tengda doesn’t have any famous IPs.” Zeng Qing said.
“Why don’t you just buy one from the market!” Huang He rolled his eyes. “Look at which movies, TV shows, or novels are suitable for adaptation into games, then buy them and make them into your own games.”
“Then, what if I say I’m interested in your ‘Drawing Sword’?” Zeng Qing said softly.
“What are you interested in?” Huang He was stunned for a moment.
“‘Drawing Sword’!” Zeng Qing said seriously. “Mr. Huang, the hottest TV series recently, the one that caused a nationwide frenzy, isn’t it your ‘Drawing Sword’? If your ‘Drawing Sword’ were adapted into an online game, wouldn’t that be the biggest IP in the world!”
“But how can ‘Drawing Sword’ be adapted into a TV series…” Huang He realized that he, as a transmigrator, was struggling to keep up with the native Zeng Qing’s imagination.
This was Huang He’s lack of foresight. Little did he know, ‘Drawing Sword’ had already been adapted into a game once, and it was a network game similar to “Conqueror’s Path.” Impressive, wasn’t it?
“‘Drawing Sword’ is very adaptable!” Zeng Qing continued. “Where does the battlefield of ‘Drawing Sword’ take place? It’s the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression! This is the best war theme. We can completely create a war online game focused on shooting.”
“I already have an idea. We can use several classic battles from ‘Drawing Sword’ as maps, such as the Battle of Cangyun Ridge, the Battle of Li Family Slope, the Battle of Ping An County, etc. In the future, we can also add classic battles from other wars of resistance against Japan. The maps can be divided into PVP and PVE gameplay.”
“In the PVE gameplay, players will play as soldiers of the Independent Regiment to defend their country and defeat the Japanese devils!”
“For the PVP gameplay, to avoid some social discussions, players can become modern soldiers and return to these maps to fight, similar to the combat mode in Counter-Strike…”
Zeng Qing spoke eloquently, and Huang He’s eyes widened as he listened. This sounded exactly like CrossFire. Could this Zeng Qing be a genius?
Finally, Zeng Qing left contentedly. Regarding his request to purchase ‘Drawing Sword’ to create a game, Huang He agreed as long as he was willing to pay the licensing fee.
However, it was a one-time payment of 100 million RMB for the copyright, which would only cover two years. After that, an annual licensing fee of 30 million RMB would be required.
This made Zeng Qing gasp in amazement. However, considering the immense influence of ‘Drawing Sword’ in China at the time, this copyright wasn’t too expensive. After all, “Legend” earned 1 billion a year, and “Fantasy Westward Journey” was earning 100 million a year. As long as ‘Drawing Sword’ could reach the popularity of “Fantasy Westward Journey,” the business wouldn’t lose money.
Of course, Zeng Qing couldn’t make a decision on the spot; he had to report it to the board of directors.
However, just two days later, as Huang He was preparing to board his flight, Zeng Qing excitedly came to sign the contract with Tangren Film and Television to adapt ‘Drawing Sword’ into an online game.
However, during the signing, Huang He specifically stated that because ‘Drawing Sword’ was an IP of Jiangnan Group, to ensure that Tengda’s adaptation would not affect the positive reputation of the ‘Drawing Sword’ IP, Jiangnan Group had the right to be fully involved in the development of ‘Drawing Sword’ and to make various demands regarding its development.
Of course, if Tengda found Jiangnan’s requirements excessive and bothersome, they could abandon the development at any time. Jiangnan Group would be willing to refund the entire copyright transfer fee, but they would never compromise on the quality standards of ‘Drawing Sword.’
A few days later, Tengda tentatively released the news that ‘Drawing Sword’ was about to be adapted into a game.
The idea of a TV series about the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression being adapted into a game was shocking news in 2003… no, even in 2021, so it immediately sparked a huge wave of discussion.
As a result, the media had mixed reviews, with over 70% being negative. However, Zeng Qing didn’t care. It’s often said that it’s better to be criticized than not to be talked about at all.
The more people criticized today, the more people would play the game in the future. He wouldn’t lose out!
***
While the Chinese were still discussing the adaptation of ‘Drawing Sword’ into a game, Huang He had arrived at Paris Airport. Unexpectedly, Qu Wei did not come to pick him up but only sent an assistant.
Huang He was a little displeased. Qu Wei was too inconsiderate.
However, he soon learned from Qu Wei’s assistant that Qu Wei had encountered significant trouble and was currently arguing with someone.
Indeed, when Huang He arrived at Qu Wei’s workplace, he heard Qu Wei’s explosive roar, “I’ve already paid you 300,000, and you promised to get the invitations! Why have you gone back on your word now? You f***ing…”
Hearing Qu Wei’s classic curse, Huang He grinned slightly. Fortunately, the person Qu Wei was speaking to was a foreigner who didn’t understand Chinese. He simply looked at Qu Wei with a formulaic smile, as if Qu Wei’s curses had no bearing on him.
“Has the invitation still not been sorted out?” Huang He asked the assistant beside him.
“Yes!” The assistant nodded, biting her lip. “When we arrived, we spent 300,000 to entrust a local agency to help us obtain fashion week invitations. This price was already considered high locally. Normally, 200,000 would be enough.”
“We thought we would get them in a few days, but now it’s been a week, and there are only two days left before the final deadline, yet we still haven’t received the invitations. President Qu is going crazy!”