novellk Chapter 66 Annual Meeting
Chapter 66 Annual Meeting
WG stands for "World Game Awards".
It differs from the Golden Trigger Awards, which rely on the fervent competition of fans; it differs from the Steam Awards, which are endorsed by platforms; and it is completely different from the Game of the Year awards that are sought after by major media outlets.
Its status stems from its irreplaceable, blood-soaked birth history.
In those years known as the "wild west" of the gaming industry, the now-glamorous "game designers" were nothing more than low-level code laborers on an assembly line. They had no soul, and even less right to create independently.
Want to survive? It's simple: memorize the thousands of "game-making guidelines" from game developers. Just conform to those cold, hard rules, cobble together a bunch of lifeless industrial garbage, and you can comfortably collect your salary and immerse yourself in a false sense of prosperity. As for whether the game is actually fun or not? That's not a cog in the machine's problem.
But there is a group of "outliers" with an indomitable spirit, who dream of tearing a crack in this iron cage monopolized by capital, and want to create their own game.
However, in an era when even the internet was still in its infancy, the price of breaking free from its shackles was fatal. Let alone the concept of online game stores, which existed only in science fiction, even the game stores we see everywhere today didn't actually exist.
At that time, physical distribution channels were tightly controlled by major game manufacturers, and supermarket shelves were always piled high with mass-produced products from these companies.
What about this group of independent developers with unknown origins and tattered clothes?
The supermarket manager would simply kick them out the door, floppy disks and all.
Who knows what kind of garbage is inside these broken plastic sheets!
This is only the beginning of despair.
They had too few orders, no factories were willing to accept them, they had no marketing channels, no logistics chain, and not even a warehouse to store their goods.
Oh, by the way, they have so few games that they don't need a storage system.
Even more absurdly, these twenty-six passionate "rebels" couldn't even muster a single personal computer for writing code.
You have to understand that in those days, computers were an incredibly expensive luxury item.
For even the slightest glimmer of hope, they sold everything they owned:
Some people sold their beloved cars, some took on three part-time jobs, and some even chose to sell their blood.
Finally, with the generous help of a well-off friend, they managed to cobble together three working secondhand computers.
The game was finally put onto a cheap floppy disk, but how could it be sold?
They could only humbly buy scraps of newspaper from the margins.
The words conveyed both bitterness and earnestness:
"Hey friend, we've made some really fun video games. If you're interested, please send a small amount of money to this address, leave your request and address, and we'll personally deliver the game to your home."
To modern people, this clumsy sales pitch, which sounds like "I am Qin Shi Huang, send me money," is the only lifeline they can grasp.
When they were at their poorest, these hungry geniuses would even send floppy disks containing their latest masterpieces to their few regular customers free of charge, along with a heart-wrenching letter:
"Sorry to bother you, we're really struggling to survive. This is a new game we've worked on for several sleepless nights to create, and we're giving it to you for free. If it brings you even a little bit of joy, please send even a few dollars to this account. Please help us and these games. We would be extremely grateful."
The "WG" that is now revered was originally just a form of self-consolation for these poor people in that leaky garage, finding joy amidst their misery.
Whenever a game receives a brief, positive review, these disheveled men would excitedly embrace each other and weep, fervently hailing the game as a "world-class game" over a few cans of cheap beer.
It was through this almost insane self-redemption that they managed to survive the darkest winter.
That unprecedented industry collapse destroyed the old order, and those arrogant bosses finally woke up from the ruins:
Path dependence and industrial waste are not sustainable.
That blow was painful enough that the survivors still feel lingering fear to this day, and whenever they release a sequel to an old game, they have to add some brand new gameplay elements that were not in the original.
Those pioneers who begged in garages back then have become industry giants. They carried forward the "WG" movement, which symbolized resistance and purity, and established almost obsessive ironclad rules.
It is never awarded every year just to fill a quota; it belongs only to the miracle that truly deserves it.
Over the past decade, only three games have been eligible to compete for this trophy. Because its entry requirements are prohibitively high:
First rule: Sales threshold, 1750 million units.
This number is dynamically adjusted based on the number of players worldwide, and at its peak, it was even required to exceed 20 million!
*Second rule: Scoring deadline.
The score must be higher than 98 (98 out of 100, 9.8 out of 10, or 4.9 out of 5).
Since the day WG left the garage, no matter how the evaluation agencies have changed, this score has never dropped by even 0.01 points.
Article 3: Endorsement by industry leaders. The game must receive endorsements from more than 20 of the top 27 game producers of our time.
Please note that these 27 judges are not selected based on seniority, but rather entirely by votes from global players and media. Many veterans with over 30 years of experience in the industry are not eligible for selection, and some promising young talents are even removed from the judging panel the following year.
That's why, in the hearts of players all over the world, WG is no longer just an award, but a sacred and inviolable belief.
But what about the current situation in China?
Thanks to their large player base, domestic manufacturers have managed to snag a few nominations at the Golden Trigger and Steam Awards, but they can't even get a chance to be nominated for the media's Game of the Year awards, which truly value quality.
Now, Tangren Games is shamelessly claiming that it will directly take down WG?
Leaving aside those three hellish standards, just looking at Tangren Games' seemingly brilliant record of "six consecutive blockbuster hits," only three of their games barely qualify for inclusion on the authoritative rating platform designated by WG:
Plants vs. Zombies, 88 points.
Pokémon, 87 points.
Kirby, 82 points.
The highest score didn't even reach the threshold of 90, let alone the unattainable 98.
Therefore, neither the audience at the press conference nor the dense barrage of comments in the live stream made any personal attacks against Ren Wei.
Because everyone felt that this was just another ridiculous pie in the sky.
However, Hao Zheng, who was backstage looking at the script, didn't think so.
"DLC, Tears of the Kingdom... Tangren Games, what exactly are you trying to do?!"
Hao Zheng looked at Tang She's rough answer on the script and felt like he was going crazy.
They actually want to use this game to challenge WG!