Espector Studios — Early December, 2010
The first thing James saw when he stepped into the studio that morning was a balloon taped to his monitor. It was silver, shaped like a star, and wobbled gently as the air conditioning kicked in. On the balloon, written in red Sharpie, were the words: 1,000,000 DOWNLOADS!
Airi practically tackled him from the side with a loud, "WE HIT A MILLION!" before dancing in a circle with her arms flailing above her head.
James chuckled, rubbing his eyes. "Are we sure it's not a data glitch?"
Yuri stepped out from behind her monitor, holding up her tablet. "Google confirmed it on the dev console this morning. One million unique installs. And trending upward."
Sam leaned back on her office chair, arms behind her head. "We made it, bro. We're officially in the big leagues."
James let the moment sink in. A million. It wasn't just a number. It was validation. It was every all-nighter, every bug fix, every agonizing choice they'd made — all coming back as proof that they were doing something right.
"Okay," he said, clapping his hands once. "Celebration tonight. My treat."
"God bless you," Sam whispered dramatically.
"But before that," James continued, already pulling out his notebook, "we need to talk about the Christmas version."
"Already on it," Yuri said, sitting back down. She pulled up a Trello board labeled Furious Birds — Holiday Update.
"We've got four weeks," she said, scrolling down the list. "Here's the pitch: 15 new levels. Snowy forest setting. Candy cane obstacles. Festive hats for the birds. Raccoons in elf disguises. And instead of wooden crates… gift boxes."
Airi raised a hand. "Can I also redesign the loading screen? Maybe have the birds riding a sleigh being chased by a raccoon in a snowmobile?"
James grinned. "Approved. Sam?"
"I'll update the splash art for the Play Store. Something with a Santa hat on the red bird. People eat that cheesy holiday stuff up."
"Perfect. What's our delivery target?"
"December 20," Yuri said, double-checking her notes. "That gives us enough time to go through testing and push it before Christmas weekend."
"Make it December 18," James replied. "Give it a bit of time to breathe before the rush. We want to show up on the top charts during the spike."
Yuri nodded. "Got it. I'll adjust."
James walked to the small whiteboard beside his desk and scrawled in bold letters: CHRISTMAS OR BUST.
Later that afternoon, after hours of design meetings and asset reviews, the four of them, Airi, Yuri, and Samara, left the office and were now standing at the curbside where they waited for the taxi to pass.
James planned on taking them to a restaurant to celebrate the million milestone.
The first taxi that passed was already full, so they waited for a moment longer. The next taxi that passed slowed just enough for James to wave it down. It rolled to a stop with a gentle squeak, the paint slightly scuffed and the "AIRCON" sticker barely hanging on the windshield.
"SM North, sir," James said as they piled in.
He took the passenger seat again while the girls squeezed into the back—Yuri in the middle, sandwiched between a chatty Airi and a semi-sleepy Sam who had begun dozing off against the window the moment they hit EDSA.
"Why North Edsa, again?" Yuri asked as the taxi merged into the slow-moving stream of Manila traffic.
"Because," James said, tapping his phone to bring up a bookmarked page, "there's a rooftop café there with a great view and decent coffee. I figured we could chill after dinner. Plus, Airi's been nagging me about Uniqlo again."
"I need fleece," Airi defended herself. "It's like ten degrees in the studio!"
"Seventeen," Yuri corrected with a small smile.
"Still cold!" Airi huffed.
Traffic crawled past Cubao, the golden Christmas lights of Araneta Center blinking like oversized fireflies in the dusk. The taxi windows fogged slightly, blurring the colorful streamers and holiday sale signs hanging from every post.
"Does it ever get less surreal?" James asked softly, half to himself.
Yuri tilted her head. "The downloads?"
"The fact that we did this. That it's real. That something we built is now being played by people around the world—on trains, in classrooms, during bathroom breaks."
Yuri chuckled. "Maybe not less surreal. But more familiar."
Sam groaned from the corner. "If anyone's playing our game while taking a dump, I want royalties."
James laughed. "You'll get royalties when we have a payroll structure that doesn't involve 'hope' and 'shared trauma.'"
They arrived at SM North around 8:45 PM. The mall's holiday decorations had gone full blast—a giant LED tree blinking in patterns out front, choirs of kids in elf costumes singing near the main entrance, and speakers blasting Jose Mari Chan's Christmas In Our Hearts on loop.
"Why is it always him?" Airi muttered, plugging her ears dramatically as they walked past the singing elves.
"Because he's immortal," Sam said, perking up now that she was out of the taxi. "Like Mariah Carey, but with more nostalgia and less glitter."
James led them up to the Sky Garden level, where rows of restaurants and cafés lined the open-air rooftop, string lights overhead swaying in the cold breeze. The city's nightscape sparkled beyond the railings, Metro Manila's organized chaos rendered almost peaceful from this height.
They found the café James mentioned—Luna's Brew—a cozy spot with warm interiors, soft jazz, and seats near the edge of the deck. The smell of brewed beans and cinnamon hit them immediately.
They settled into a corner table, ordering lattes, hot chocolates, and one ridiculous-looking Christmas frappe overloaded with whipped cream and candy cane bits (courtesy of Airi, of course).
"Okay," James said after taking a sip. "Real talk. How are you guys holding up with the holiday update? No sugarcoating."
"Engine-wise, we're solid," Yuri replied. "Level design is halfway done. I'll be focusing on physics scripts for the snow mechanics this weekend."
"I already finished four loading screens," Airi added. "Sleigh chase is in full swing."
"I'm done with the Play Store promo materials," Sam said. "Also, I booked an interview with a mobile gaming blog for next week. We're getting featured."
James blinked. "Seriously?"
"Yup. They emailed after seeing our numbers climb. 'Breakout Mobile Game of the Year' contender."
James let out a slow breath, stunned. "Okay. That's huge."
"We're gonna need to start thinking like a bigger studio," Yuri added, voice calm but serious. "Once the Christmas update drops, we'll attract even more attention—investors, copycats, maybe even job hunters."
James nodded slowly. "I've been thinking about that. We might need a fifth dev. Someone junior, maybe. Help ease the load."
"I know someone from college," Yuri said. "Quiet, but brilliant. If we need extra hands, I can reach out."
"Do it," James said. "After the holidays. For now, let's focus on finishing strong."
They all clinked their mugs together.
"To finishing strong," Airi said.
"To fleece jackets," Sam added.
"To Furious Birds," James smiled.
"To the next million," Yuri finished.
From their rooftop spot, they could see the endless stream of tail lights winding down EDSA like veins of glowing red. Manila was loud, messy, imperfect—but up here, it felt distant, like they had carved out their own quiet little space in the storm.
James leaned back in his chair and watched his team. No—his friends. Each of them had poured something of themselves into this dream. And now that dream was flying farther than they ever thought it would.
And it was only just beginning.