Chapter 18: Gaming Experience
Following Alex's announcement about the existence of Undertale, ordinary players didn't notice anything, simply feeling that the situation had escalated. It wasn't a simple verbal exchange, but a direct confrontation!
But for the video game media experts, it was a complete disaster. At first, they thought it was a youthful, impulsive outburst. It was a premeditated exaggeration! But knowing the truth was important, and the traffic generated by this big news couldn't be overlooked. With various media reports, the popularity of Undertale and Blooming rapidly soared. Within Hype Games' media, David Cannon was a little furious.
The two games were now practically linked. The rapid increase in popularity was due not only to the official blog dispute between him and Alex, but also to his significant investment in promoting the game. And now? Everything was going to benefit Undertale.
On July 15th, Undertale officially launched on the official game platform store. Compared to David Cannon's Blooming, Undertale launched three days earlier, giving it an advantage. Many game designers and players were closely watching Undertale's performance. After all, this game was not the more casual Mirror. While Mirror performed impressively, it was still an 18+ game. Now, everyone wanted to see the quality of Alex's game, Undertale.
In the editorial department of a media outlet called Game Space, Ryan, who had just taken over, was sitting in front of his computer, preparing to review Undertale. Although it was a modest indie game, it had gained considerable popularity recently. The only thing that worried Ryan was that today was Sunday, which meant he had to work overtime.
"Never mind, be patient. At least there's overtime pay," Ryan sighed as he watched the hour approach. He remembered what his chief editor had told him: "The company's overtime pay is quite high, so be patient."
After tidying his workspace, Ryan opened the game Undertale. It began with a simple logo icon, a black starry sky background, and the words "Nebula Games" in large letters, with a line in English below. After a brief black moment, a faded image appeared: a girl with a blurred face holding a long, furry hand. There was also a standing animal, also faceless. Observing the faded image, Ryan reflected.
As in a comic, the opening animation began turning pages.
'Is it because they couldn't afford computer animation, so they're using a comic-style opening story? Not bad,' Ryan speculated.
This opening alone gave Ryan a positive impression of Undertale. At least, there was a good chance that today's overtime wouldn't be torture. As the image turned pages, background music began to play, a simple but charming melody.
"Long, long ago, Earth was ruled by two races: humans and monsters." "One day, war broke out between the two races. After a long war, humanity finally triumphed, sealing the monsters underground."
"And now, many years have passed..."
"Mount Ebott, 201X. Legend says that those who climbed the mountain never returned."
A simple introduction, nothing remarkable. After naming the game's protagonist, they were seen waking up in a meadow covered with yellow petals. Following the game's control instructions, Ryan controlled his character and moved forward. They reached a door that looked like a castle entrance, crossed it, and a small sunflower appeared.
"Howdy!"
"I'm Flowey!"
"Hehehe!"
"You must be new to the underground world, right?"
"Oh my, you must be very confused."
"Looks like I have to teach you the rules of the game."
"Flowey has no choice but to teach you in person. Ready? Let's begin!"
'What a weird character!' Ryan thought, looking at Flowey, who looked like a sunflower, in front of him.
"Leveling up makes you stronger, shouldn't it be levels? What the heck is love?"
Seeing Flowey's words, Ryan was a little confused. 'What mystery? And what are these friendship particles?'. 'I have a feeling Flowey is up to no good.'... Ryan thought, and the next game screen confirmed his thoughts.
With a sinister laugh, the seemingly friendly Flowey, after telling him that the level increases by touching friendship particles, revealed a fierce expression. Upon touching the white particle, his health instantly dropped to 1.
"Idiot! In this world, you either kill or be killed!"
Who would miss such a golden opportunity? "Die!"
As expected, someone would come to save the day. A typical RPG death with a plot. Observing the heart-shaped icon surrounded by countless white particles, Ryan remained calm. He had a fairly clear idea of the game's combat, which resembled the bullet-dodging mechanics of music games. Only the plot was a bit cliché; it was simply a traditional RPG. Indeed, just as the bullet impact circle was about to reach him, his health, which had been reduced to 1 point, suddenly filled up and the attacking bullets disappeared.
Flowey, the game character, also had a bewildered expression, and after a flurry of facial expressions, he was launched by a fireball. A woman with goat horns appeared and rescued the protagonist.
"What a cruel person! How dare you torture such a weak and defenseless child?" "Don't be afraid, child. My name is Toriel, the guardian of the ruins. I come here every day to see if anyone has fallen. It's been a long time since a human came here before you. Come, let me guide you through these catacombs. This way."
After a brief conversation, the goat-like Toriel guided Ryan along the path. She explained how to solve puzzles and use traps. She also explained that, when encountering enemies, he didn't have to fight; he could persuade NPCs. It was a very simple puzzle: pushing rocks and not stepping on leaves on the board.
'Although it's not a tortuous journey, it's too boring. It's even less interesting than Mirror's match-3 games.'
Ryan sighed, looking at the monster he stumbled upon. Instead of talking or hugging, he went straight into battle. So far, the only interesting things were the little flower's facial expressions at the beginning and the battle sequence. Although the game is dodgeball-style, each monster shows different combat styles. For example, the frog fights by jumping inside a box. It perfectly matches the monster's image.
"I hope this game isn't so long and boring, so I can get off work early." Ryan sighed and shook his head.
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