Chapter 11: Who Could Empathize With Someone Like This?
A residential complex.
"Jane, are you really not thinking about making games with me?" Lisa sat on the sofa, legs crossed on the coffee table in front of her, and said to Jane, who was coloring a manuscript beside her:
"Lisa, your little boat has a leak and is about to sink." Putting down her brush, Jane rolled her eyes.
"Ahem, it's just a temporary problem, and I still have three employees! Look at your studio, Jane. How can you call it a studio? Have you ever seen a studio run by a single person?" Lisa immediately retorted.
"Well, at least I can make a profit! And Lisa, didn't you have eight employees there three months ago?" Jane said, suddenly realizing something.
"Everyone has their own aspirations. I can't let my employees just chase their dreams. By the way, Jane, how's your partner's game doing?" Lisa asked, somewhat embarrassed, changing the subject.
"I hadn't noticed. Perhaps the results aren't very good." Hearing Lisa's words, Jane shook her head slightly.
"So your studio will be split into two soon?" Lisa asked curiously, as an idea swirled in her head, aware of the agreement between them.
"That's probably how it is, but I guess Alex is in a bad mood right now," Jane sighed.
She hadn't contacted Alex during that period. After all, she had consulted with Lisa after the project ended, but he wasn't optimistic at all. Although she and her sister had almost lost all their money after developing three games, she was still a professional in the video game industry. And after developing three games, she had already accumulated some experience with failure, right? During the previous month working with Alex on the game, Jane had clearly felt his passion. She had also experienced the unique joy of playing, especially being able to personally control it and advance the content little by little. It was a truly wonderful feeling, and at that moment she understood why Alex had said he wanted to develop games. So, during that time, she hadn't asked about the game's performance, mainly because the other party had promised to pay her for her work as soon as the game secured funding. Although she didn't care, she couldn't just let it go for Alex's sake. After all, it wasn't about the money, nor was it her business. Besides, she was busy with her own comics, so she hadn't paid much attention to the game. She planned to use this time for Alex to calm down and adjust, and then talk to him about it.
'I was so worried about this young man!'
Lisa sighed. "It can't be helped. Many beginners think that 18+ games are easy, but that's because the risk is low. In reality, developing games isn't that simple. By the way, Jane, what's your partner's game called? I'd like to take a look," Lisa asked with a sigh, speaking with the tone of someone who has lived through it. This reminded her of her three previous failures. Although she had never met Jane's partner, Lisa had the strange feeling of understanding his feelings at that moment. Especially since Jane had said that the other party was going to take a risk, investing all his money. This further confirmed to her that the other person was a video game enthusiast, just like her. Remembering the frustration she felt the first time she created a game and it failed after its launch, Lisa felt a wave of compassion for Alex. If it weren't for the shortage of funds in her company, Lisa would have immediately wanted Jane to introduce her.
'Someone with such a passion for video games was just the kind of employee I was looking for!'
"Don't worry, Jane, I'll be a negative example for your partner. I'll be your way of comforting him from a distance," Lisa said, patting Jane on the shoulder.
As a fellow adventurer, she understood the pain of failure.
"Thanks, Lisa. By the way, the game is called Mirror, but it seems to be available on an international platform," Jane told Lisa.
Although she hadn't asked Alex about the launch, she had been secretly keeping an eye on it. However, when she checked, the ratings hadn't been released yet, so she had no idea about its performance.
"'Mirror', why does this game sound familiar?" "I think I've heard of it before?" "Wait... this game!"
Lisa mumbled as she got the game's name from Jane, opening the official game platform and searching. For some reason, this game sounded familiar to her. She opened the international platform, searched and searched.
Then Lisa fell silent, turning to stare at Jane.
"Shit, Jane, this is the guy you were talking about, the one with the bad grades! Is he the rookie who has no idea how to create games for the first time?" "Really?" she asked. "Why does it sound familiar to me?"
She had seen someone mention this game before while browsing video game forums. Then she looked at the product page. Rating: 9.6, Number of reviews: 1724.
Lisa lost her composure. Sympathy, empathy? Who the hell could empathize with someone like that? Who the hell could sympathize with someone like that?
'A rating of 9.6 and so many reviewers! More than 1700 reviews in just a few days! She had never felt like this!'
"So Alex's game was a success?" Jane asked Lisa.
"More than a success, it's a resounding success! Remember, it's an 18+ game! And it's only been a few days, with such high ratings and so many reviews, I'm sure its sales will surpass the highest-grossing game of my previous three!" Lisa told Jane with envy.
Seeing the number of reviews below the game's store page, she felt bad. Especially thinking about what she had just told Jane, putting herself as a negative example to comfort her.
'My God, now she really had become a negative example!'
But the awkwardness quickly dissipated. Lisa stood up and grabbed Jane's arm. "Jane, please! Introduce me to this great man!"
"Let me learn from him!"
As the saying goes, "who is near the water gets the moon first." Yes, it's a bit strange, but it's right. When you can't become a great partner and you find someone who could be, why not embrace it?
- - - - -
Read 80+ chapters in advance on my Patreon
https://www.patreon.com/iLikeeMikee