Pokémon, but cultural invasion.

The rumors will only become more and more outlandish.

Quanshu recalled that most of the information he had heard over the past ten days or so had been distorted in its transmission.

If he had known a month ago that a trainer with Pikachu was challenging the Pewter City Gym, he probably would have been very interested.

But now...

Upon arriving in Kanto, Izumi understood the true meaning of the saying, "There are so many Pikachus, it's like there are stray dogs on the roadside."

They can be seen everywhere in the wild, almost as many as Magikarp in the water, so there are plenty of trainers with Pikachu.

He stopped paying attention to the beginners' flawed intelligence network and sent a message using a tablet-like communication device.

"Thoughts are flowing freely: Plants vs. Ghosts is scheduled to be released tomorrow at 6 PM. I'll send you the game later. Don't forget to go live, or you'll miss it."

"The Electric-Belly Frog of Niangguang City: So fast!? I thought it would take a year and a half."

In fact, Digital Alloy completed the game's code on the fifteenth day.

The reason it took nearly a month was that Quanshu needed to piece together the results of each project team, and the debugging after the initial completion of the game also took a lot of time.

Ultimately, the game itself isn't very large, and coupled with the Digital Alloy team's high efficiency, it seems to have been completed exceptionally quickly.

Qishu sent a Pikachu surprised emoji, expressing both doubt and curiosity.

"Electric Belly Frog of Brewing City: Why haven't I heard anything about the game's release online?"

"Thoughts flowed like a spring: because I haven't posted it yet, wait a minute... I've posted it now."

Qi Shu picked up his phone, and sure enough, there was a new video titled "See you tomorrow night at 6 PM" under Pikachu's official "Zhiyou" account.

"Is it only being released now?"

She was speechless. This just didn't make sense.

The marketing and promotion for a game launch should be prepared at least a month in advance, right?

"What if delayed information dissemination affects sales and tomorrow's live stream viewership..."

Qi Shu clutched his head in distress, wondering what to do and starting to feel anxious.

On the contrary, the game developers seemed quite relaxed, calmly announcing the game's release only the day before it was scheduled for release.

"Thoughts are flowing freely: You might not be able to contact me when the game is released tomorrow. Please handle any unexpected situations yourself."

"Electric Belly Frog of Nijigasaki City: May I ask, what's more important than your meticulously crafted game?"

"Thoughts flowing like a spring: Realistic combat training."

"I can't exactly tell her I have a midterm exam tomorrow, can I?"

Quanshu scratched his head. Six o'clock in the evening in Deep Gray City is exactly ten o'clock in the morning on Blue Star.

He will participate in the mid-term practical assessment of the combat class tomorrow to test the results of his training over the past month.

Although he might be seen as a hands-off manager, Izumi doesn't think he, as a creator, can do anything after the game is released.

The potential impact... in my past life memories, it seems to have mostly been backstabbing the player community, followed by negative news like the bombshell.

"The Electric Belly in Nimbus City: For practical training, you can go to the Kanto region's friendly Gym Leaders, who will offer advice after the battle."

"The electric belly frog of Niangguang City: It is not recommended to go too far into the wild for actual combat, especially in forests with complex terrain."

Quanshu was speechless. The curator seemed very worried that he was overestimating his abilities and recklessly venturing into the wilderness, where he would lose his life.

The Pokémon world has excellent environmental protection; some cities even have pristine forests untouched by humans.

No matter how experienced a trainer is, venturing into the unknown alone is always a risky endeavor.

Therefore, trainers always travel in groups.

"Thoughts flowed like a spring: I understand."

Qishu breathed a sigh of relief; every year there are quite a few cases of inexperienced beginner trainers getting lost.

She certainly didn't want to finish her live stream and then be in the news for the "game creator's mysterious disappearance."

"But is it really feasible to release it without saying a word?"

While worrying, Qishu checked the equipment he would be using for tomorrow's live broadcast.

What she didn't know was that as the game's release date spread online, more and more people were reminded of the vivid memories of a month ago.

Chapter 18 I was here first

After being silent for half a month, Plants vs. Ghosts is gradually fading from public view until the game's release date is confirmed.

See you tomorrow night at 6 PM!

The number of views for the trailer video has not increased much, but related news has spread on various game forums and chat groups.

"Have you heard? That crowdfunded game is going to be released on the Gear platform tomorrow."

"Wow, that's fast! I thought I'd have to wait until next year."

"Although I participated in the crowdfunding and am eager to play it as soon as possible, isn't this a bit too fast?"

"It's too fast. To be honest, I'm worried about the quality of the game."

People's perception of time is often vague; what happened a month ago may not seem much different from what happened a week ago.

In an environment where game development time is often measured in years, the speed of Plants vs. Ghosts certainly seems out of place.

The ensuing concern is: Did the production team cut corners during development?

If it would affect the quality of the game, players would rather the game development take a year or two to complete.

After all, they haven't experienced the tragic situation of a game being repeatedly delayed and ultimately delivered in a huge mess.

The vast majority of ordinary players are still full of anticipation for the upcoming second day.

The game's release sparked heated discussions on various forums, including not only gamers but also netizens who don't usually play games.

They weren't interested in the game itself; their focus was more on the new "crowdfunding" model that emerged because of it.

Nobody is a fool. After the concept of crowdfunding was proposed, many people keenly realized that this model has a very wide range of applications.

What's a game everyone wants to play today could be a practical bicycle, a useful camping kit, or a social media program that many people are interested in tomorrow.

For them, Plants vs. Ghosts was undoubtedly the best testing ground.

The attention from countless people both inside and outside the industry has propelled the game's popularity to an entirely unexpected level.

...

"Microphone is working properly, camera is fine, network security is stable..."

Inside the room, Qishu was conducting final checks before the broadcast.

She had gone through similar check-up procedures countless times that afternoon, partly because the opportunity was rare and she couldn't afford to miss it, and partly to relieve her tension.

The game's producer, Izumi, has given up, but she can't.

Even if this game doesn't perform well, Izumi can still make a second or third game, but she can't.

Just by looking at the comments section below the video, the forums he browsed last night, and the various game chat groups buzzing with notifications this morning, Qi Shu knew how rare this opportunity was.

With so much attention focused on it, she realized she had completely underestimated the game's popularity.

With the path to becoming a super popular live streamer right in front of her, Qi Shu must consider whether this might be her only chance in this lifetime.

The immense pressure that descended from the sky... landed heavily on her chest.

At noon, the name of DianDian's live stream room on the Giant Shark live streaming platform was changed to:

[Play a hands-on demo of Plants vs. Ghosts half an hour early.]

Since it is a single-player game, Izumi no longer offers a pre-download option on the Gear platform.

The list of internal production staff is clean; there was no internal testing, so there was no possibility of an insider leaking information.

Although many bloggers have analyzed the details of the scenes in the promotional PV, the game's content remains largely a mystery.

The live stream, which aired half an hour before the game's release, immediately attracted a group of anxious players.

For various reasons, some players were unable to be in front of their computers to wait for the game's release immediately.

Watching live streams has become a good meal replacement option.

Qi Shu glanced at the list and found that there were quite a few streamers like her who were trying to ride the wave of popularity, and they even occupied half of the gaming section.

But she has an advantage that no one else can match.

The advantage of arriving half an hour early was too great. After the title was changed, the number of viewers in other similar live streams dropped at a visible rate.

The screen showed a completely black background, yet the popularity of the unreleased DianDian live stream was climbing at a rate that defied comprehension.

"Starting the broadcast half an hour early, really?"

"On another note, it seems there isn't an official game livestream channel; this might be something an insider did."

"Look closely at the streamer's name, he's a gym leader from the Padilla region, how could he be an insider?"

"They're not insiders, yet they got to stream ahead of time... Is the league pulling out some big stuff?"

The live stream room was completely empty and dark, yet the number of comments on the screen was astonishing.

As the number of comments increased, a sense of absurdity arose in Qishu's heart.

How come the number of viewers when the live stream is not open is higher than when I start streaming?

Her popularity soared, and within ten minutes of the title being modified, she surpassed the level of her original third-rate live streamer.

On the popularity rankings of the Giant Shark platform, DianDian's live stream room is rising at an unparalleled pace.

At 3 PM, the live stream reached the threshold of a top-tier live streamer.

It doesn't sound like a high number, but the problem is she hasn't even started broadcasting yet.

Many viewers came and went, while new viewers kept pouring in, turning the black screen of the live stream into a temporary chat room.

Qi Shu stared at the dense barrage of comments, repeatedly checking his equipment to relieve his anxiety and tension.

She swore she had never been this nervous, not even when facing the Padiya League's top match.

It was 5 p.m., close to the start of the broadcast.

"It's finally about to begin."

"Watching a live stream while waiting to get off work is so relaxing."

"It's lunchtime, and watching others play games while eating is the most enjoyable thing."

Kishu took a deep breath and flashed the sweet smile she had practiced hundreds of times at the connected camera.

?

Yuhong Martial Arts Hall.

Lijia stared intently at the live stream, then sighed.

"This isn't right, is it?"

Although the amount wasn't large, she had at least invested in the game.

Why was this gym leader in Padiya able to play the game she had been wanting to play for so long half an hour earlier than her?

The game developer's IP is clearly located in Kanto...

After a moment, Rika understood why. She was really silly, really.

As a major investor and gym leader, she could easily contact the creator to ask if she could have a private visit beforehand.

It's foolish to invest and then ignore everything else, waiting for the seeds to blossom and bear fruit.

It's not that I'm angry at Qishu or the creators, it's just that having to watch others play for half an hour first is such a terrible experience.

“I was here first,” Rika sighed again.

She reached out and turned off the live stream; some games are better experienced firsthand.

At the same time, Quanshu opened his live stream.

He found an empty toilet at school to go online, and disappearing for a few minutes during his break wouldn't arouse anyone's suspicion.

It wasn't that Izumi felt any responsibility towards the works she was reposting; she simply wanted to have some fun.