Chapter 1 Evening

Qiao Liang exited *BeQuiet* and stretched.

The internet had been buzzing about this game for the past few days, but Qiao Liang hadn't participated in the discussions. He was just quietly playing the game.

Because he knew very well that joining such debates was pointless.

Emotionally, Qiao Liang was of course on President Pei's side.

Not just because Qiao Liang was President Pei's friend, but also because he was a hardcore gamer himself.

For these hardcore players, they pursued more complex and extreme gaming experiences. Whether it was the initial puzzle-solving activities or the eyeball-tracking game that activated the purchase permission later on, it was all very much to Qiao Liang's liking.

It all depended on how you looked at it.

If you saw it as a threshold, a way to discourage players, then it was indeed quite uncomfortable. But what if you treated it as a pre-installed free game?

*Lonely Desert Road*, *Game Producer*, and the eyeball-tracking game were all free now, which Qiao Liang thought was generous enough.

Qiao Liang knew very well that as a cultural product, games could never be liked by everyone.

If some players thought that manufacturers who made games they liked were conscientious, and they would blindly criticize games with gameplay that didn't suit their tastes, then that was definitely unreasonable.

Similarly, this time, *BeQuiet* required players to complete the pre-installed activities in order to obtain purchase permission. Although this objectively had the effect of discouraging players, it was justifiable in itself.

Because Tenda had never promised that "players can freely purchase our games under any circumstances," nor was there any need to promise this.

The relationship between game manufacturers and players was originally a two-way selection. Players could completely choose not to play a certain manufacturer's games, and manufacturers could also choose to give up the money in the hands of some players. As long as the transaction itself was voluntary and not forced, the status of both parties was equal, and neither could morally condemn the other.

What's more, President Pei, as such an unconventional designer, was not one to kowtow to players.

Therefore, emotionally, Qiao Liang supported President Pei's behavior.

As a manufacturer, he provided players with high-quality games, priced them very favorably, and even made the previous two games free. And yet, just because he set pre-requisites for purchasing the game, he was being criticized?

Obviously, that didn't make sense.

However, having said that, Qiao Liang still felt that there were some incomprehensible aspects to this matter.

Although setting this pre-requisite was entirely the manufacturer's freedom, was it necessary?

What benefits could this bring to the manufacturer?

This was the question that puzzled Qiao Liang.

At this time, his brow was furrowed as he tried to answer this riddle using his own understanding of President Pei.

"The feeling I get is that President Pei's behavior doesn't seem to be 'take it or leave it', but rather 'if you can't even solve this simple little problem, then you definitely won't be able to have fun in the game, so you might as well not buy it'."

"This feeling… is familiar."

"Where have I seen it before?"

"…"

"I know! It's in *Is There No Turning Back*!"

Qiao Liang suddenly realized that *Is There No Turning Back* was also like this!

It was just that one discouraged you after entering the game, and the other discouraged you before entering the game. One refunded your money after you were abused, and the other simply prevented you from paying after you were abused.

President Pei's behavior this time was actually moving the discouragement stage of *Is There No Turning Back* to before the game purchase!

Qiao Liang suddenly understood.

"That's right, with this in mind, everything makes sense!"

"President Pei's actions are actually the same in essence as the *Is There No Turning Back* operation, just in a different form."

"A game is an interactive art. Simply put, the designer is the one who creates the puzzle, and the player is the one who solves it."

"And the essence of hardcore games is that you have to give to get."

"Only by giving up those superficial, shallow spiritual pursuits can you obtain profound, deep spiritual pursuits!"

"Just like *Is There No Turning Back*, first you have to be abused, you have to endure the frustration of dying like a dog, you have to give up the pleasure of mindless slaughter in the game, and calm down to seriously hone your skills."

"After that, you can grow in the game and obtain a kind of joy that is completely different from other games."

"This is giving to get, delayed gratification. Without the high difficulty of the game, players cannot obtain the joy after growth."

"*BeQuiet* is also like this. It is also a game where you have to give to get. First, you have to give up some time, suppress your desire to play the game, and seriously think about solving these puzzles, and then you can truly experience the fun of this game."

"As for why the specific methods of the two games are different…"

"This is obvious. Because *Is There No Turning Back* is a single-player game and will not affect the gaming experience of others. *BeQuiet* is an online game."

"If a player who is completely unsuited to this game mode enters this game, it will inevitably interfere with the gaming experience of others."

"And in order to ensure that everyone's gaming attitude and gaming IQ are roughly on the same level, and to ensure that the vast majority of people can enjoy the fun of the game, and not have their gaming experience ruined by teammates who are not adapted to the gameplay, it is necessary to conduct a simple 'training' for all players…"

Qiao Liang became more and more certain that he had understood President Pei's true intentions!

That was the logic of it, but to convince everyone, he still needed to find some material in the game.

Moreover, it seemed a little too early to reveal all of this now.

On the one hand, he had not yet fully figured out the complex game mechanism of *BeQuiet*, and there was not enough video material and the copywriting would be relatively dry. On the other hand, the controversy over this game had not yet reached its peak.

After considering it, Qiao Liang decided to continue playing this game these few days and collect material.

Next week, he would update a video on *Masterpiece* to talk about *BeQuiet*, this unconventional online horror game, and what kind of profound meaning President Pei's Arg game designed for promotion had!

He believed that by then, many players' confusion about this game and their misunderstanding of President Pei would be solved!

…

…

March 14th, Monday.

Chang You paced back and forth in the office, very anxious.

On Otto Technologies' official website, the button on the phone's details page had changed from "Pre-order" to "Buy."

Not having to rush to buy the phone seemed like a good thing, but it wasn't for Chang You.

Because it also meant that the phones weren't selling very well!

The money received from selling the phones had all been used to restock, and Otto Technologies could be described as being utterly broke.

If it were another company, they definitely couldn't do this.

Chang You knew very well that Otto Technologies was able to rely on a strong backer, with President Pei backing them up, to dare to restock like this.

But precisely because of this, Chang You felt even more indebted to President Pei.

How was he going to sell these ten thousand phones!

President Pei had also specifically instructed Chang You to manage the restocking and not to worry about anything else, neither actively consider marketing nor lower the price of the phones.

As a result, Chang You could only sit in his seat and worry.

He didn't even dare to go online to look at the comments. He, who had always been known as "Big Mouth Chang," originally had excellent mental fortitude, but now, because he was bearing President Pei's trust, he found it difficult to bear the sarcasm and ridicule.

Chang You was pacing anxiously in the room when his phone rang.

He picked it up and saw that it was Hu Xianbin calling.

Chang You's eyes lit up instantly, and he quickly answered it.

"President Chang, the mobile version of GoG is scheduled to officially launch tomorrow. Didn't we agree to cooperate before? I'm reminding you," Hu Xianbin's voice came from the phone.

Chang You was overjoyed: "Okay, no problem! I'll immediately tell them to do it according to the prepared plan!"

Hu Xianbin then said: "I also spoke with Director Lin of Shang Yang Games just now. They've been busy with the development of *BeQuiet* and haven't had much time. They should have prepared promotional activities in *Hot-Blooded Battle Song* as well. You can call and ask, and coordinate to update them together tomorrow."

Chang You hurriedly said: "Okay, okay, I'll go ask right away!"

After hanging up the phone, Chang You directly dialed Lin Wan's phone and received a positive response. Shang Yang Games had already prepared promotional activities for Otto phones in the game *Hot-Blooded Battle Song*.

Chang You felt a lot more at ease and a faint feeling of gratitude welled up in his heart.

Tenda was such a warm family!

What was Tenda's core competitiveness? In the final analysis, it was still games!

The game business was Tenda's foundation for survival and the basis for all other businesses.

Chang You knew very well that for President Pei, Slow Movement Cafes, Upwind Logistics, Otto Phones… these businesses could all lose money, but only games could not lose money!

And this time, being able to secure the development of an exclusive high frame rate mode for their own phones from Tenda Games' new game *Glory of Gods* (GoG) was like taking a reassuring pill for Chang You.

Chang You immediately informed his subordinates to replace all the previously prepared promotional materials!

For example, add a large section to the product details page of the Otto E1 phone: Tenda's new game *Glory of Gods* GoG designated phone, exclusive deep optimization and ultra-high frame rate mode, bringing you an unprecedented and smooth gaming experience!

These promotional materials had been prepared long ago, but they couldn't be taken out before.

Because GoG had not yet been developed and these details couldn't be leaked.

But now, they could finally be used!

In fact, the PC version of GoG was still under development and testing, but Li Yada had already decided before going on vacation that the mobile version of GoG would be released first.

Currently, the mobile version and the PC version's features were not fully synchronized. The mobile version had slightly less content and could be launched a week earlier.

At the same time, releasing the mobile version first could also avoid IoI's current strong position in the PC gaming market.

Chang You had originally hoped that Lin Wan could also make *BeQuiet* into a mobile game, but Lin Wan said that there wasn't enough research and development time, and it was too difficult to change *BeQuiet*'s operating mode into a mobile game, so they could only give up for now.

Chang You even hoped to move successful games such as *Fortress at Sea* to the mobile platform, but they also gave up because Tenda Games and Shang Yang Games couldn't spare any manpower.

However, Chang You wasn't worried. Anyway, they were all Tenda's games, whether they were changed earlier or later, he would benefit.

Although only *Hot-Blooded Battle Song* and GoG could provide exclusive optimization and high frame rate mode now, it was already enough.

Because of some historical legacy issues, there were still a large number of hidden tyrants in *Hot-Blooded Battle Song*, and their usual purchasing power was extremely suppressed, because it was difficult to spend money in this game even if you had it.

If they placed an advertisement for Otto phones in the game, some people would definitely be interested!

After arranging everything, Chang You was no longer flustered.

He seemed to understand a little why President Pei had been emphasizing that he shouldn't do his own marketing, nor should he lower the price, but instead, he should seize the time to frantically restock.

Because soon, Otto Phones would usher in a period of explosive sales!