Pewter City.
Night had already fallen.
In a dimly lit rental room on the edge of the city, a handsome black-haired young man stared rigidly at a folder on his computer screen labeled [Rainbow Eevee Match-3].
"This time it has to work…"
He took a deep breath, dragged the folder into the upload section of a website, and clicked Confirm.
But the next second, a huge red X popped up along with an error message, and the folder on the desktop vanished instantly.
[Unknown Error: 404. File corrupted.]
"Damn it! Again!?"
The young man cursed and slammed the table, rising to his feet.
His name was Ling Feng, and one week ago, he had transmigrated into this world.
Good news: this was a world he loved and knew well — the Pokémon world.
Bad news: the identity he transmigrated into was a broke, nameless orphan, renting a temporary room on the outskirts of Pewter City and scraping by on odd jobs every day.
Since arriving in this world, Ling Feng had no desire to become a Pokémon Trainer. As long as he could become partners with one or two Pokémon and live a peaceful life together, he would be completely satisfied.
But reality was even harsher than he expected. He was so poor he could barely feed himself; if he captured a Pokémon now, the two of them would probably end up begging on the streets.
—A bowl is placed in front. Ling Feng is responsible for crying; the Pokémon is responsible for shouting.
To change his situation, Ling Feng — who had been a top-tier game designer in his previous life — spent his very first day here investigating the entertainment industry of this world.
The results were far beyond his expectations. Although everyone had smartphones and computers, and the internet was extremely well-developed, the entertainment industry was basically a blank slate.
Movies, TV dramas, novels, and games — all were stuck in crude, primitive stages.
For example, the number-one game on the official League Game Rankings, priced at 99 yuan, was "Angry Rock."
It was literally a racing game where you play as a Geodude rolling down the road — and it was single-player only, not even online-enabled.
If you managed to get to the later stages, Geodude evolved into Golem… turning into a multi-ton runaway semi-truck of death rolling down the street, letting pedestrians experience what it truly means to "live vigorously."
This discovery instantly filled Ling Feng with joy.
With his skills, in such a barren gaming environment, even casually copying a few masterpieces from his previous life would ensure he never had to worry about food again.
But then the problem appeared.
—When Ling Feng spent two days making a simple game called [Pac-Man Starters] and tried to upload it, not only did the upload fail, but the entire game folder vanished.
He initially thought his computer had malfunctioned. But even after remaking the game and taking a USB drive to the internet café downstairs… the same thing happened again.
Unwilling to accept this, he made another new mini-game, [Lucario Gold Miner], but encountered the same fate.
Counting the one just now, this was the fifth game he had created that failed to upload and disappeared.
Ling Feng's head began to ache.
What now??
Rent was due next week.
And because he'd been making games nonstop, the money he had left wasn't even enough to buy a bottle of Moomoo Milk from the convenience store downstairs…
Just as his thoughts tangled in frustration—
A golden panel suddenly appeared before his eyes!
Then came an electronic voice:
[Seven-Day Buffer Period Complete! Blocking Function Operating Normally!]
[Ding! Congratulations, Host — "Strongest Pokémon Game-Creation System" has been activated!]
[This system can provide you with efficient game-development technology, helping you become the greatest Pokémon game creator!]
[Beginner Reward Modules Activated! Please check the panel!]
Ling Feng scanned the message instantly, and his gaze landed on the first line.
So all the errors these past seven days… were because of this system?
The electronic voice sounded again, full of smug pride:
[Ding! Please note that, because the Host is a transmigrator, to prevent temporal instability that may lead to your erasure, you are currently allowed to create only Pokémon-core games. Any other types have been automatically blocked. No need to thank the system.]
"…Thank your whole damn family."
Ling Feng silently recited every curse word he'd ever learned, then took a deep breath to整理 his thoughts.
In simple terms, this system could help him quickly create games.
And they had to be Pokémon-based?
His gaze shifted to the panel. Two blue-glowing cubes were floating there.
[Pixel Game Module (Low-Level) — Allows rapid creation of pixel-style content.]
[Basic Programming Module (Low-Level) — Allows rapid creation of small-scale, simple-program games.]
[Unlocking or upgrading modules requires Emotion Points. When others feel anger, shock, moved, admiration, etc. because of your games or you personally, you will gain Emotion Points.]
[Current Balance: 0]
Rapid content creation?
Ling Feng thought for a moment, opened his game-making software, and imagined a pixel image in his mind.
The next second, a yellow pixel Pikachu instantly appeared on the screen!
"Not bad at all."
Ling Feng's eyes lit up.
Even as a top game designer, creating a full game alone required enormous time and energy.
That was why he spent the whole week making only tiny games.
A large-scale game made solely by himself was impossible.
Not to mention, he was a game designer, not a programmer — the two roles were very different.
Normally, Ling Feng only proposed concepts and ideas; the programming was done by others at the company.
But with this system, that problem disappeared.
Not only that—if players experienced emotional reactions to his games, but he could also unlock more modules and create increasingly advanced Pokémon games!
At that thought, Ling Feng's mind quickly began forming ideas.
Pokémon-core only… low-level programming… pixel restrictions…
A certain game appeared in his mind:
Pokémon: FireRed / LeafGreen / Emerald Series
The pure classics. Childhood memories for countless Poké-fans. One of the most iconic handheld Pokémon titles ever.
Given the system's current capabilities, creating Emerald was just right!
But then — a new idea suddenly flashed in Ling Feng's mind.
To unlock more modules and make more advanced games, he needed Emotion Points.
And a purely faithful Emerald remake… didn't generate nearly enough emotion.
A slow smile spread across his face.
If there's one emotion gamers feel the most, it's tilt and mental breakdown.
And even Emerald… can absolutely achieve that.
Ling Feng clicked his mouse and tapped away at the keyboard. A new folder appeared on the desktop