When I write a bug it becomes the core gameplay.

Chapter 537: Using the Anti-Heaven Resource Library
Gu Fan began to introduce the basic ideas of this product.

“The so-called Fantasy Book can basically be seen as some kind of derivative product outside of the game.

“Even if players don’t buy the game, they can still experience the full game content. But if they buy it, they can experience more and feel more immersive.

“As for what its basic functions are targeting, it’s this.”

As Gu Fan spoke, he took out a small figurine from the drawer.

This figure looks quite cute, with a small, round base and a little Charizard in a cute pose on top.

“On the surface it looks like a figurine, but it actually has an NFC chip inside.

“When you use a controller or other specific peripherals to sense the chip, you can get some props related to the figurine in the game.

"For example, in this game, the first time you spawn, you will be given a small dragon egg, which you can then hatch. After that, you can spawn once a day, and although you will no longer be given dragon eggs, you will be given some feed such as fish, as well as special items for nurturing this little dragon.

“So, the idea of ​​'Fantasy Book' is also based on this basic function.”

Lilith took the figurine in her hand and played with it for a while. It was quite delicate, but it was obvious that if we simply measured it by the value of the figurine, it was obviously on the expensive side.

The greater significance of this gadget lies in the fact that it can have a certain degree of linkage with the game content, although this linkage may be relatively simple.

Gu Fan’s idea is to fully expand this simple linkage.

Let players mistakenly believe at the beginning that they have bought a derivative product that can greatly enhance the gaming experience, so as to better attract players to join the game.

Lilith thought for a moment and said, “Then what is our Fantasy Book mainly made of?

“If we want to ensure the best display effect, does it have to be made into a tablet?

"As the player progresses through the story, different screen contents can be displayed. And it can also have a variety of rich NFC functions, so players can get new things every time they scan."

Gu Fan obviously disagrees with this view: "Tablet computers are definitely not a good option, as the cost cannot be controlled.

“In theory, there is no difference between making it into a tablet and making it into a specific app.

“But if it’s made into an app, it’s hard to give players that special ‘check-in feeling’.

"So I still prefer to make peripheral products with relatively low costs, such as paper books."

This principle is actually not difficult to understand.

If you want to ensure the best display effect, a tablet is definitely the best choice.

However, it is impossible for Nitiantang to make a tablet computer by itself, so it can only find corresponding digital manufacturers to make co-branded tablets. Even if there is a co-branded tablet computer, the real function still depends on the corresponding APP.

So for players, there is almost no point in buying this co-branded tablet.

Moreover, even if players can realize many functions on the APP, it is ultimately virtual and there is no way to simulate the feeling of "punching in".

When tourists check in, they need a physical book and stamp it with a real stamp, which makes it feel more real.

What’s the point if you just take a photo with your mobile phone, locate it using positioning software, and sign in on a specific APP?
So although the tablet's display is good, it is totally unsuitable for the original plan.

"But does anyone really want paper books?" Lilith frowned slightly.

Obviously, if people don’t like the product itself, there is no way to trick them into buying it, let alone generating negative emotions.

Gu Fan explained: "In fact, there are just as many things that can be done with paper books.

“First, paper books can be made into three-dimensional books, that is, when each page is opened, the fold details will automatically unfold to form a three-dimensional scene.

“Secondly, paper books can also be used with a reading pen.

"The cost of the reading pen is actually very low, only two or three hundred yuan is enough, and its principle is also very simple: there are some very subtle symbols on the pages of paper books, and the reading pen can determine the corresponding content by scanning these symbols.

“Finally, paper books can also be equipped with NFC or a variety of other functions, and there is absolutely no problem in linking them with games.

"We can develop a special handle with built-in NFC function and pen scanning function to match this physical book and create more complex effects.

"It can be combined with the quest system in Endless Fantasy Tales 2 to bring players an 'impressive' gaming experience."

Lilith nodded suddenly: "I think I understand!
“The main function of this fantasy book is to deliberately create a sense of ‘checking in’.

“Use the three-dimensional landscapes in the physical book to correspond to various areas or plot chapters in the game, thus creating artificial check-in points.

“In order to achieve a perfect check-in and make this collection a testimony to their gaming experience, players will pursue details and perfection, and experience the game content carefully from beginning to end.

“And even if they encounter some setbacks along the way, they will grit their teeth and persevere after looking at the half-finished fantasy book.

“But we actually buried a lot of pitfalls in the game plot and experience.

"If there were no fantasy book, players might deliberately skip certain quests based on online reviews to improve their gaming experience." But with the fantasy book, players have to hold their noses and complete the game!
"Hey, wait, if the purpose is just to make players play, then can't we just design all the tasks to be required?"

Gu Fan shook his head: "No, no, no, President Li, there is a psychological change issue here.

“If we don’t make fantasy books, but simply and crudely design all tasks as required content, or very rigidly lock the player’s entire game process, this can certainly create negative emotions, but players can also directly choose not to play.

“If the players don’t play, then all the work is for nothing.

“But fantasy books are different.

“It’s a standalone product that can also be viewed as a setting collection, and it’s beautifully crafted in its own right.

“Players buy fantasy books not out of compulsion but out of their natural desire.

“Since it is a decision made by ourselves, even if the players feel unhappy, they will most likely stick to it.”

Lilith thought about it and nodded: "Well, it does make sense!
“If you make a lot of mistakes yourself, you will tend to stick to it; but if the mistakes are made by others, you will definitely try to shirk responsibility immediately.

"Not bad, Gu Fan. You really understand the psychology of players!"

Gu Fan coughed twice and said, "No, no, this is all thanks to your good teaching, Boss Li."

Lilith stood up with great confidence and took a few steps: "Okay, let's do it!
"You will be responsible for the production of the Fantasy Book, including the design and specific functions of the book. You must think carefully...

“Oh, right? We also need to make a controller that can scan the contents of the book, right? We can also think carefully about how to make this co-branded controller.”

Gu Fan nodded: "Don't worry, President Li, I will do my best!"

He paused for a moment, then said, "By the way, President Li, there is one more thing that you need to make a decision on in advance."

Lilith was in a good mood at the moment, and nodded and said, "Well, go ahead."

Gu Fan opened a table on his computer, which showed the preliminary estimate of the resource volume of Endless Fantasy Legend 2.

“To put it simply…Boss Li, the scale you are currently planning is a bit beyond the limits of our company’s development capabilities.

"And it's not 30% or 50% more, it's five times more."

Lilith was stunned for a moment: "Huh? What do you mean? Are you saying that this game may not be made within the time I expected?

"Haven't we already done so much preparation before?

"Zhou Yang, Wei Chengjie, and Su Tong have all been sent out to run a large studio each. Together with our original R&D team, we are now actually using four times the manpower of other large companies.

“It takes other companies four years to make a game, but we can make it in one year. Isn’t that too much?
"Besides, we can reuse the resources of Endless Fantasy Legend. Plus, with the editor upgrade, I think it's reasonable to set the development time at about a year."

Gu Fan coughed twice and said, "If we estimate it based on the workload of other game companies which takes about three years, it is not much different for us to complete the development in one year. We can definitely complete it if we work hard.

"But the problem is that the amount of work that Endless Fantasy Tales 2 is doing now is actually about eight years of work for other game companies."

Lilith was stunned for a moment: "Eight years? Gu Fan, don't talk nonsense, how can it be eight years?
"I thought the sequel wasn't that much bigger than Tales of Endless Fantasy, right?"

Gu Fan shook his head: "Boss Li, you just think it's about the same. In fact, if you count the resources, you will find that the size of Endless Fantasy Legend 2 is almost several times that of the previous one.

“Although we cut out some of the more complex mechanism changes, we still have too many game characters to design!
“One hundred characters, with different appearances, models, and skills, even if some actions can be universal, the workload is quite outrageous.

“Moreover, we have to design many different game areas. Even if there are only seven or eight large maps, each large map should actually be at least a quarter or even a third the size of Endless Fantasy Legend.

“If other companies in the industry were to produce the game, they would basically only develop one large map with a dozen characters a year.

“But they can continue to develop, for example, release it in the first year, and then release a major version every year, and eventually complete the development in about seven or eight years.

“We can’t do that because we can’t modify it later, so we have to develop all of this content at the beginning.

"Of course, if you, President Li, can accept a development cycle of at least two and a half years, all employees can work together to overcome it."

Lilith frowned immediately: "No, absolutely not!"

Two and a half years was too long for her. Even if this game could really generate a lot of negative emotions, it was still too long.

In the same amount of time, if we produce one game every six months, that would be enough to make five games.

The more games you play, the higher the success rate of collecting negative emotions, so Lilith pays great attention to timeliness.

Gu Fan was silent for a moment: "Then, President Li, there is one last way.

"We are making use of the previous game resource library of Against the Heaven and integrating the content of previous games as much as possible, which may further speed up the development of the game."

(End of this chapter)