"WindyPeak Games…"
Before VP Zack Olson could finish, the IndieVibe conference room in Portland erupted in unison.
Everyone's on the same page.
No one matches WindyPeak's FPS track record!
Left 4 Dead 2 invented the "second-generation FPS mode," hyped by peers and copied like crazy!
Then, PUBG blew up the shooter market, dominating Asian Games sales and birthing "Battle Royale" gameplay!
In just one year!
Two games!
One flipped the FPS script! The other carved a new genre!
Nobody's saying it'll never happen again, but it's dang sure never happened before!
So, IndieVibe's execs all pointed to WindyPeak.
But here's the rub—
"Their size can't handle a blockbuster escort game's budget, right?" Simon Tate said.
"Big escort titles run $98M to $140M easy. WindyPeak…" He trailed off.
"Even with PUBG's cash haul," he continued, "they can't bankroll a $98M–$140M game before IndieVibe X2 drops."
Size problems.
Always dogging WindyPeak since day one.
Especially now.
"How about we invest?" Corey Quinn piped up, breaking the frown-fest.
"We cover WindyPeak's shortfall, then split profits by share."
Sounds good, right?
Except Corey, dev department boss, didn't crunch the numbers.
He's used to begging for cash, not dishing it out.
"Nope," VP Zack Olson, second-in-command, shot it down. "No dice."
"If WindyPeak takes on one of IndieVibe X2's three escort games, they'd need to start by next month's end, latest."
"By then, PUBG's revenue tops out at $28M, best case."
"That means we'd need to pump $84M–$112M into them for development."
"Too risky."
As an investor, fronting 80% of a project's cost?
That's not investing—that's gambling!
Hundreds of millions in USD ain't chump change, even for IndieVibe.
Plus, that kinda cash needs board approval.
Victor Lang knew the board well.
As a somatosensory cabin and platform company, they'd never greenlight IndieVibe playing venture capitalist, dumping millions into a small fry like WindyPeak.
Go rogue and siphon funds without the board? Failure means lawsuits for Victor and the whole crew.
Exec trust in WindyPeak ain't enough without the board's say-so.
"Ugh—" The room went quiet, execs stumped.
Seeing all eyes on him, Victor sighed. "Let's park WindyPeak as a backup. We'll hit up Zenith Studios for the FPS slot first."
Zenith Studios, a top-tier FPS developer, matches Radiant Studios (one of Nebula Games's big dogs) in scale. The two are bitter rivals, trading wins and losses.
Since Radiant's tight with Nebula Games, Zenith leans toward IndieVibe. They've collaborated before, got a solid vibe going.
Victor factored in WindyPeak's size and bumped them to the shortlist.
He wanted to team up with WindyPeak, hand them the FPS escort slot, directed by Gus Harper himself.
But you can't cook without rice.
No way WindyPeak could churn out a $28M game and call it a flagship masterpiece. That'd be a freaking joke.
Victor grabbed his phone to call Zenith Studios's boss, aiming to get a head start and gauge their interest.
But then—
Ding!
His phone lit up.
A Tate's Gaming Scoop push notification hit the screen:
Breaking News! Nebula Games Teams Up with Zenith Studios!
What the—?!
Victor froze, reading it three times, flipping his phone side to side like he was being pranked.
He'd just mentioned Zenith, and now they're with Nebula Games?
Am I being bugged or something?
Victor felt his scalp tingle. He opened the article:
…Nebula Games and Zenith Studios are partnering for the "Polar Bear 3" somatosensory cabin, set for release in early 2026. Zenith joins Nebula's ace FPS studios—Radiant Studios and StarWolf Interactive—to launch three FPS escort masterpieces. Polar Bear 3 will be the first cabin with three same-genre titles, showing Nebula Games' all-in push for the FPS market…
Holy crap!
Victor sucked in a breath, frowning.
He knew Nebula Games's Polar Bear 3 would drop in early 2026, same time as IndieVibe X2.
Less a coincidence, more a sniper shot.
Why? Simple.
By Q2 2025, IndieVibe X1's U.S. market share climbed from 17% to 20%, up 3 points. Polar Bear 2 dropped from 28% to 25%, down 3 points. The gap shrank from 11% to 5%.
Nebula Games wasn't sitting pretty. Keep this up, and IndieVibe could steal their somatosensory crown.
Victor expected a counterattack.
But not this!
Nebula roped in Zenith Studios, Radiant Studios, and StarWolf Interactive, launching three FPS blockbusters to hype Polar Bear 3.
They're gunning for the FPS market, no holds barred!
They even courted Zenith, despite bad blood, splashing cash to lock down the top FPS studios.
[No FPS scraps for you, IndieVibe!]
Nebula's message was loud and clear.
After a half-minute stupor, Victor chuckled, forwarding the news to the Slack exec group:
"Forget Zenith. Let's find another way…"
The execs grabbed their phones, jaws dropping.
What the heck?
Victor says Zenith, and they jump ship?
Not exactly "defecting." No eternal enemies, just eternal profits.
Zenith, an independent studio, never signed an exclusive with IndieVibe. Nebula's bigger offer and early move made sense.
But now what?
"So, what's the play?" VP Zack Olson scratched his head. "They're boxing us out!"
"Top three FPS studios in the U.S.? Nebula's got 'em all. StarWolf and Radiant were theirs; now Zenith's in their pocket."
"We're screwed…"
Zack's face was a mix of shock and absurdity.
Not mad, just floored.
Three FPS escort titles?
Who does that?!
Picking three same-genre games for a cabin launch? That's like breeding a deathmatch!
Liam Carter, market ops lead, shook his head. "This ain't just a deathmatch. Nebula's trying to wipe us out in FPS…"
Victor raised an eyebrow. "Break it down."
Liam nodded. "Nebula ain't dumb. Everyone knows no cabin company stacks all escort games in one genre."
"But I'm guessing their plan is 'divide and conquer, then unite to crush.'"
Liam, sharp as ever, sniffed out Nebula's game plan.
"StarWolf, Radiant, Zenith," he counted off. "They look like FPS shops, but they're different beasts."
"StarWolf's old-school, competitive FPS. Started with first-gen shooters, built CrossFire's core."
"Radiant's all about somatosensory blockbusters, second-gen FPS, nailing market trends."
"Zenith? Single-player FPS, killer storytelling, top-notch visuals, big market cred."
Gasps filled the room.
Liam's point was crystal—
StarWolf holds the traditional FPS fort.
Radiant pushes second-gen FPS and battle royale, splitting the market.
Zenith chases single-player fans, cutting off stragglers.
Three axes, each aimed at IndieVibe's throat, set to dominate FPS!
Even Victor, a rival, had to tip his hat to Nebula's brutal play.
Money? They got it. Talent? Loaded.
Three axes, simple but crushing. IndieVibe can't block that swing!
Hardball's a losing game.
After a pause, VP Zack spoke. "Victor, maybe we duck the spotlight for now."
Victor got it.
Nebula's axes are too heavy to parry.
So don't.
Cabins aren't just FPS!
If Nebula's all-in on shooters, IndieVibe can pivot to sports and racing for IndieVibe X2's escort titles.
Play to strengths, dodge weaknesses—three legs beat one.
Lose some FPS market? Fine. Crush it in racing and sports, maybe overtake.
Why not?
"You're saying ditch FPS?" Victor mulled.
"But IndieVibe X2's full sensory tech screams FPS…"
"Not ditch," Zack grinned. "We've got a backup, right?"
WindyPeak Games!
Zack laid it out: "We can't ignore FPS, or the sensory tech's wasted."
"But clashing with Nebula's three axes? We'd bleed."
"Let WindyPeak take the hit."
"Tian Ji's horse race—use a cheap horse to face Nebula's axes."
"Then we double down on racing and sports, sneak past 'em."
"Besides…" Zack hesitated, a bit sheepish. "WindyPeak's used to fighting outnumbered."
"They're the budget horse, but with Gus Harper's track record…"
"Uh…"
"Well…"
"They'll… probably be fine, right?"
Even Zack didn't buy it.
WindyPeak's budget? $14M? $28M?
Nebula's trio? $420M? $560M?
Any one of 'em could crush WindyPeak!
One-on-one, it's a 10x cost gap. One-on-three? 30–40x!
What game could flip that script?
Zack had no clue. It's like chasing tan90°—it doesn't exist!
This was throwing WindyPeak to the wolves!
Three titans vs. the underdog? WindyPeak's no titan.
More like three titans stomping a scrappy rookie.
Zack half-expected to build WindyPeak a cenotaph later.
Victor wavered.
Zack's plan was dirty—pitting a kid against three Tysons in a cage.
But it was the best shot.
Tough call.
Finally, Victor decided. "In two days, PUBG's first-week sales drop."
"Looks like they'll clear the $50M budget, maybe more."
"While Zoey's riding high, I'll head to Tech Tower, Seattle."
"Congratulate her, then pitch our IndieVibe X2 plan."
"She might bite…"
Meanwhile, at WindyPeak Games's office in Tech Tower, Seattle…
I can't take this!
I freaking can't!
Arghhh!
Zoey Parker gripped the gilded Asian Games certificate, teeth clenched, eyes bloodshot, nearly snapping it in half.
On her desk, the faxed PUBG first-week sales from the Asian Games Association, timestamped 8 PM last night.
No other game gets this treatment!
Why?
As of last night, PUBG smashed the Asian Games single-week sales record!
566,894 copies! $7,777,785 USD revenue!
After a 10% cut, it cleared the $50M budget with $50 to spare!
The certificate in Zoey's hands, sent by the Global Digital Entertainment Association for the Asian Games, screamed history.
Dang it…
Zoey was losing it.
Making money's fine, but that $10M was hers!
Her super-rare 100x rebate card, earned through blood, sweat, and achievements!
One of a kind!
She slogged half a year on Left 4 Dead 2, lost $100K, scored $10M.
Before she could savor it, it got sunk into WindyPeak's funds, thinking it'd loop—eggs to chickens, chickens to eggs.
Perfect plan.
But half a year later?
The egg hatched a chicken, and the chicken bolted!
Zoey's heart ached.
Phantom pain kicked in.
Plop.
Zoey slumped onto her desk, a tear of frustration sliding down.
Defeated.
Just brutal.
Especially hearing employees outside cheering, "Gus Harper's a genius!"
The injustice stung.
Where's the fairness?
Where's the law?
This is bullying an honest gal!
I—
Take a breath, stay calm. Step back, get madder!
Bang!
Zoey shot up, raising the certificate like she'd smash it over her knee.
But then—
Knock knock—click.
Chloe Quinn poked her head in. "Zoey, you…? What's that pose?"
Zoey froze, certificate raised high, like an old ape hoisting Simba.
"I…"
Zoey stammered:
"Ah—Zikenya—Mummy Chihuahua—"