Brother, Am I Cute? [EN]: Chapter 265

-GCP Office.

It seems factions form wherever people gather, regardless of whether they were created with good intentions or not.

In this support project, each office is assigned to a team, and we often run into each other when going to the break room or the restroom.

We don’t really become close, but a strange atmosphere develops, and we exchange nods instead of greetings.

“Are the mentors close to each other?”

I looked at Ahn Hyun-tae.

He nodded slightly.

“We are close. Although we are all competitors, we have many common topics.”

“Hmm.”

“But there’s something subtle.”

“What is it?”

“That subtle atmosphere that Si-hyuk is feeling.”

“Each company is a competitor, but are there factions?”

“There are no factions, but there is a competitive spirit regarding the teams they are in charge of.”

“Ah, I see.”

“This is quite important.”

“Is it?”

I tilted my head as if I didn’t understand.

Ahn Hyun-tae put the paper cup in his hand to his mouth.

“The mentees I’m in charge of are generating more sales. Something like that.”

“Those people did well, so how can you say the mentor did well?”

“Hahaha. That’s true. But people don’t think that way. Ah, this mentor is going above and beyond, and the results are better. The sales are quite high. What do you think they’ll think?”

“They’ll be envious.”

“Will they just be envious? Ah, I wish I had been mentored by that person. Something like that scratches at their nerves.”

“Wow.”

Thinking about it, I would be annoyed if I heard those words.

However, if we achieve meaningful results to some extent, the former words will definitely not be heard.

“And you never know, they might offer you a job at our company.”

“Hmm. The company’s image is also at stake.”

“On the contrary, there might be people who would prefer to join the company.”

“That’s true.”

“Shall we go in? We need to show results quickly now.”

“Yes.”

I hope everyone does well without worrying about this and that.

Of course, I can’t stop the feelings of comparing myself to others and being envious.

But I wonder if it would be nice to have a supportive attitude as someone working in the same industry.

“Ah, I’m nervous.”

As we went inside, Ahn Kyung-ho was pacing back and forth, stroking his chest.

Seeing that, Shin Kyung-hwan chided him.

“Ah, just stay still. You’re making me nervous.”

“Is this the time to stay still? The results from now on depend on all of this!”

“It’s either a jackpot or a bust.”

“Isn’t that too extreme? There’s also a mid-tier. A bust would be too heartbreaking.”

Park Kyung-joon agreed with Ahn Kyung-ho.

“Me too. I think I’m really gonna cry if it’s a bust.”

“Even Kyung-joon…….”

I came behind Ahn Kyung-ho and looked at the monitor.

Currently, we are participating in Estoom Games’ Star Tester.

We uploaded a demo version, not the official version.

At this time, when people play it and star ratings and word-of-mouth are important, there are things to see.

One. All companies have access.

Two. The number of games participating is enormous.

“Isn’t this buried?”

“Good games are always discovered!”

“Hmm. The most popular games are the most exposed right now.”

A banner showing the rankings from 1st to 100th place was created separately.

The ranking is determined by creating an index of the number of downloads + reviews + star ratings.

Those who receive good reviews here are recognized for official release.

“There are a lot of indie games in the rankings. [Zombie Island]? Is it fun?”

“I don’t know because I haven’t played it yet.”

“Why? Won’t you try it?”

“I can’t even give you one download!”

I looked at Ahn Kyung-ho as if I was dumbfounded.

It seems that the people in this room also have a competitive spirit.

“It’s just one.”

“Just one! Are you ignoring a precious vote in a democratic society right now!”

“Okay, I get it. I should try it once.”

“Wow…. Hey. You’re a traitor!”

“Ah, it won’t even show.”

I remembered Siha drawing a zombie character before, and it just came to mind.

Of course, it was dropped, but it went to another app game.

Was that officially released well?

I haven’t looked it up separately since then.

“Let’s see.”

When I downloaded the game from my seat, the number of downloads increased by 1.

Ahn Kyung-ho glared from behind and whispered, “Traitor.”

Oh, come on. It’s just one game download.

“I’ll try it.”

30 minutes passed while playing the zombie game.

“Umm.”

When I took my hands off the keyboard and mouse, Ahn Kyung-ho rushed over.

“How is it? Is it fun?”

“Are you more concerned than I am?”

“No. I’m asking how it is.”

“It’s not fun. Why is this on the list?”

“Huh? Really?”

“Yeah. Really. This is suspicious. Isn’t it rigged?”

“헐?” [Korean slang expressing disbelief or shock, similar to ‘What the heck?’]

I tapped the desk with my fingers and looked at the supported languages.

English, Korean, Japanese.

First, I typed [Zombie Island] in Korean.

Nothing special came up except for movies.

“Hmm. Then.”

I started typing [Zombie Island] in Japanese.

After searching here and there, something caught my eye.

“Haha. This is crazy.”

“Why? Why?”

“Look here.”

“Huh? What does it say?”

“Crowdfunding system. They’re asking for downloads on this site, saying they’re getting attention as a popular game.”

“Does this work?”

“Yeah. It works. They have a lot of scammer tendencies.”

I captured it, wrote a separate translation, and attached it.

Ahn Kyung-ho asked.

“What are you going to do?”

“I have to report it. Manipulation of downloads and star ratings. If they release it like this, Estoom will suffer a lot of damage.”

“Are you going that far?”

“Of course. Think about it. A game made it to the rankings through illegal means. I thought it was higher than me because it had fun that I didn’t know about, but it was a scam. Are you angry? Or not?”

“I am. You’re a bad guy. Someone isn’t getting exposure because of this bastard.”

“That’s right. This is a mockery of people who work hard to make games.”

I wrote it in English, attached the file, and then changed my mind a little.

“Hmm…….”

“Why?”

“No. Just a moment.”

I fell into a slight dilemma.

“Should I make this bigger?”

“Huh?”

Ahn Kyung-ho tilted his head.

***

There are cases where games are buried without gaining popularity even if they are registered.

People’s time is limited.

They can’t play all the games that come out, and even if there are 100 rankings, they don’t play them all.

Of course, people with a lot of time will do it.

However, there are cases where very good games are buried, so this is not a perfect system either.

“This is what I thought. We’re filing a complaint to make a splash. We express our injustice. How about it?”

The kids blinked their eyes at my explanation.

As if they couldn’t have imagined taking the lead and making a splash in that way.

Ahn Hyun-tae, who was behind me, was also watching with interest. There was no separate advice.

“But do we have to go this far?”

Shin Kyung-hwan said with an ambiguous expression.

It was a valid question. Really? Like this? Is there a need to gather attention to promote our game?

“There is. No matter what method you use, people are risking their lives for exposure. Now, there are YouTubers here, right? They’re introducing the game. They didn’t get paid. They’re just introducing it because they want to help friends who are having a hard time. But it doesn’t seem that fun. It’s ordinary.”

“That’s a very honest assessment.”

“Yeah. There are many people who desperately want to be exposed even like this.”

In fact, it’s the same when you watch TV shows.

There are restaurants that don’t do well.

Taste, atmosphere, hygiene, etc.

There are many factors, but there were definitely restaurants where everything was perfect but they didn’t sell well.

That store is on TV and flying high.

That’s how important exposure is.

You can only get meaningful indicators if a lot of people evaluate it, but who will evaluate it if it’s buried in that tunnel?

What if there is no one to dig the ground? It’s just a treasure buried forever.”

Everyone’s expression fell into contemplation at my words.

“Kyung-ho makes the decision. I’m just suggesting what to do if we do this.”

“Hmm.”

In fact, it is up to Ahn Kyung-ho, who leads here, to decide.

Because there will always be a moment of choice.

“What do you guys think?”

Ahn Kyung-ho looked at Shin Kyung-hwan and Park Kyung-joon.

Shin Kyung-hwan scratched his head.

“Sigh. I’m a little uneasy.”

Park Kyung-joon was in favor.

“I think it’s okay. In fact, even if players gather this and that topic, if the star rating is not good, the release is useless. Isn’t that right? There will be a lot of reviews. The evaluation may not be good.”

“That’s true.”

“That’s right. So, if there is a difference whether it becomes a topic or not, it’s whether there are many evaluations or not, and I don’t think our game will be evaluated poorly at all. Right? Si-hyuk?”

I smiled and nodded.

I remembered that he once said, “What if you don’t have the confidence to sell well?”

Ahn Kyung-ho said.

“Hmm. That’s right. Well. Anyway, the public’s evaluation is cold. Of course, you shouldn’t be fooled if there are a lot of bad reviews.”

In fact, there were games where the evaluations were extremely divided, but the sales were considerable.

It just means that there are many people who silently enjoy it without saying anything.

The number of downloads represents such an indicator.

“Okay. Let’s do that. It’ll be fine.”

I nodded.

“There won’t be anything to be criticized for. After all, that game will take all the criticism. The topic is actually…….”

I looked at the trio in front.

“If the game isn’t fun, it won’t be taken advantage of. But I don’t think your game will be like that. And.”

One last word.

“Anyway, this is just a difference between getting the results quickly or not. It’s not an official release and it’s not directly related to sales.”

That’s right. It’s just a game that’s being evaluated for free anyway.

Whether it will be officially released in the near future or not.

***

I am writing on my laptop at home.

I will post it on various community sites, and I plan to be at the forefront under the name of Kyung Trio.

[Title: The more sophisticated the manipulation of Estoom’s Star Tester system is, the more recent it is!]

[Content: Hello! I’m ‘Kyung Trio’, a small game development company!

As a developer who is uploading games these days, I am so angry that I have no time to vent my anger.

So I’m posting it here.

I think we should compete in games with honest evaluations, and we shouldn’t release games that are ranked by fabrication.

First, let me tell you why I’m saying this.

There is a game called ‘Zombie Island’.

It was on the high side of the rankings, so I downloaded it to try it out.

But it wasn’t fun.

Ah, there must have been fun that we didn’t know about! When I was realizing that, I suddenly had this thought.

Isn’t it rigged?

So I happened to look it up, and this.

(Site link)

(Capture)

I’m also uploading the Korean translation.

Currently, the star rating and number of downloads have been inflated; it was a manipulation through crowdfunding, and it is a deception against all developers.

As soon as I learned this fact, I became so angry as a developer.

So I ask you.

Please don’t be fooled by fake games and discover fun games that are being developed fairly.

Please support us.

And may those who try to profit even by fabricating be punished.

This is the development team, Kyung Trio.]

I finished writing and posted it on various community sites.

‘Hmm. One more thing.’

I raised my hand to prepare something else.

I plan to supplement the data to be reported to Estoom and write other additional items.

In English, without having to translate it there.

“Hyung.”

“Yeah?”

“What are you doing?”

“I’m beating up zombies. It’s the process of becoming a hero.”

“!!!”

Siha’s eyes widened.

“Hyung. Are you hitting zombies?”

“Huh? Um. That’s right.”

“Hyung. Hero. You’re a hero.”

“Haha. That’s right.”

“Siha wants to catch zombies too. Hyung. Together with Siha.”

“Do you want to?”

“Ah ah. Hyung. Where are the zombies?”

“It’s here?”

I opened my eyes wide.

Kuaaaa.

I opened my mouth and looked at Siha scarily.

If I do this, Siha will be scared and run away, right?

“Hyung Zombie!”

Siha took a step back as if surprised.

“Kuaaaa.”

“Siha will be a zombie too. Siha is a zombie. Kkuang!”

What? That’s not the reaction I wanted?

This is where hide-and-seek should start.

Siha put up her cute little hands as if scratching.

“Kkuang. Siha is a zombie. Zombie. Kkuang! Together with Hyung. Together. Kkuang.”

What is it? I want to be bitten by Siha zombie.

How can I beat this? I can’t catch it.