She is my childhood sweetheart, how could I not understand her?

Chapter 393 Chen Shen: I feel like I've been scolded
"That's it"

Hearing Lao Ju's thoughtful voice, Chen Shen was taken aback, and a guess began to spread in his mind.

"Wait a minute, you're not thinking of making games too, are you?"

This remark caused Wang Laoju, who was never embarrassed in front of the camera, to show a slightly awkward smile for the first time. He nodded and replied, "I do have that idea."

Upon hearing Lao Ju's truthful answer, Chen Shen couldn't help but look at Mianmian beside him. Seeing that Mianmian was also nodding, he helplessly rubbed his forehead.

"You're doing pretty well as a content creator now, so why did you jump into this deep pit when you were at the peak of your popularity?"

"Old Chen, why is your studio called 'Original Intention'?"

"I'll remind myself to stay true to my original aspirations: to make fun and interesting games, not to have no bottom line for money."

"So making games is your dream, right?"

Chen Shen nodded, glancing at Xu Suiyou beside him with a smile.

Thinking about it carefully, I realized that this dream of mine was actually something that Sui Sui helped me find.

If it weren't for Sui Sui's inquiry during his senior year of high school, he probably still wouldn't know what he wanted to do in the future.

"My dream is also to make games."

Chen Shen couldn't refute Lao Ju's words. If it were him a year ago, he would definitely have supported Lao Ju. There was nothing wrong with pursuing one's dreams, and besides, Lao Ju was capable of it.

But for him, who has now been in the gaming industry for two years, no one knows better than him how lucky he was to have succeeded.

Before entering this industry, Chen Shen thought that domestic capital did not have a good view of the domestic game market, which was why no one in China was making single-player games.

After immersing himself in the industry and gaining a thorough understanding of its inner workings, he realized that it wasn't that no Chinese people were willing to develop single-player or indie games, but rather that 99.99% of domestic game developers couldn't persevere.

First of all, most developers are college graduates who start working. Unlike college graduates, real working professionals face survival pressures.

Rent, utilities, and various other living costs make it difficult for game developers with dreams to ignore the pressure and rush into development.

Without developers, there are no games to test the market, which makes larger-scale capital even less willing to take risks.
In this vicious cycle, most of those who genuinely wanted to develop games failed in the first year.

He and Liu Yujie are exceptions among exceptions. They started tinkering with games in their freshman year of college, and they had such an excellent idea. Plus, Lao Ju, a large-scale content creator, promoted it at just the right time.

A combination of factors led to the game's explosive popularity.

Fortunately, they are now popular, and the domestic game market has been thoroughly tested by capital because of the popularity of their games. As a result, since last year, Chen Shen knows that no less than 10 new games are in preparation.

Well, what's a bit abstract is that eight out of these ten new works are just reskins of their "Vampire Survivor".

After the release of Slay the Spire, some similar card-based roguelike games naturally began to be developed.

When Chen Shen heard this news, his lips twitched so badly they almost cramped up, but there was nothing he could do about it.

The game industry is inherently about copying each other; even their games like "Vampire Survivor" and "Slay the Spire" cannot be considered completely original.

At least in terms of some prop combinations, Chen Shen was also deeply influenced by The Binding of Isaac.

Now is indeed a good time for game development. The explosive popularity of their games has restored Chinese players' confidence in domestically produced games, and investors have also seen the booming domestic market in them.
But this only applies to ordinary game developers. Don't forget, besides wanting to be a game developer, Lao Ju is also a popular content creator with millions of followers on Bilibili. Chen Shen has a close relationship with Bilibili and naturally knows how well Bilibili has developed in the past two years and how extravagant the income of top content creators is.

Given Lao Ju's size, his annual signing fee for live streaming alone would probably be no less than a six-figure sum starting with 8, or even a seven-figure sum.

However, if they were to invest in game development, not to mention the initial investment, if they were to become the boss, their live streaming business on Bilibili would definitely be affected.

Abandoning a thriving career to pursue a dream.
Whether as a friend or a colleague, Chen Shen would not support Lao Ju.

Upon entering the room, the group sat down on the sofa. After a moment of preparation, Chen Shen spoke softly.

"There may be opportunities to make games in the future, but given your current scale, it's best not to act on a whim."

“I’ve actually thought about it. I can do live streaming and development at the same time. I don’t plan to be the developer myself; I’ll definitely have to hire someone.”

So what direction are you planning to take?

"Simulation management games, I'm more interested in that type of game."

"You really have a good eye for picky things; you managed to choose such an obscure type."

It's undeniable that Lao Ju is very entertaining when broadcasting simulation management games, but that doesn't mean there are many players of this genre.

Take them as an example. Kill the Spire is pretty amazing, right? It sold 150 million copies in its first month, which is top-tier among indie games.

But Chen Shen knew that there were only so many card roguelike players, and their game's sales had basically reached their peak. After that, it would only grow slowly. Even if they released the full version, the subsequent growth rate would not be as exaggerated as when it was first released.

However, Stardew Valley, released at the beginning of this year, has maintained its terrifying popularity to this day thanks to its more interesting and popular genre.

Of course, Stardew Valley is also a simulation game, but Chen Shen can be certain that the simulation game that Lao Ju is thinking of is definitely different from the Harvest Moon-like simulation game Stardew Valley is.

"It's not a popular choice, I think it's alright."

"Anyway, I definitely don't recommend it, what do you think, sister-in-law?" Chen Shen knew that once people got carried away, it was hard to persuade them to change their minds, so he simply looked directly at Mianmian.

Having watched so many of Lao Ju's videos, he knew that Mianmian was a very rational person and would definitely not go along with Lao Ju's reckless behavior.

But clearly, he underestimated the feelings between the two.

I support everything!

Upon hearing this, Chen Shen immediately covered his face.

Xu Suiyou, standing to the side, nudged Chen Shen's shoulder with her elbow, saying irritably, "What's with that expression?"

"Hey! It's a deep mess inside. Lao Ju's live stream is doing so well now, I'm afraid it will affect his live stream."

"Don't worry, I just have this idea. I will definitely save up enough money first before I start developing games. I will not do it on a whim, that would be too stupid."

Chen Shen remained silent, feeling as if he had been scolded.

(End of this chapter)