Chapter 54: Player feedback

As the latest release from Nebula Games, or rather, as the latest release of the infamous Chen Xu, there were many who were keeping tabs on it. 

And these people weren’t just gamers; numerous game designers, and gaming media outlets were included. 

After all, the name of Chen Xu is now a recognisable brand, a publicly acknowledged award winner. 

‘To the Moon’ touched the hearts of many and grew the fanbase by a wide margin, so the anticipation of his next release was sizable, to say the least. 

But perhaps the most enthusiastic group of people were the horror game fans. Speculation and discussion of ‘Outlast’ had made waves in their community. 

And now that the release had come, the forums were lit up with posts about the new game. 

[ Good lord! Today I stumbled across a newly launched horror game. Scared the pants off me! I thought I was just adding a cheap, typical game to my collection, but damn, this is the first time I took a break out of fear *sweat emoji* ]

[ I know, you’re talking about ‘Outlast’ right? I still can’t believe it’s made by the same guy who made ‘To the Moon’. This game is terrifying! The early jumpscares weren’t too impressive, but it was all a false sense of security! ]

[ Saaaaame, brother, same. It’s actually so scary. When I hid in the locker and prayed for the monsters to not find me, I knew I was playing a good game. ]

[ I could handle the jumpscares, I’m used to jumpscares, but the night vision mode parts really got to me. I’ve never been more creeped out in a game. ]

Those who had experienced the game were actively discussing various aspects of ‘Outlast’. Their conversations and threads attracted the attention of players who had no clue about the game. 

While mentioning ‘Undertale’ and ‘To the Moon’ will draw attention and interest for gamers who are in tune with the indie gaming landscape, the wider mainstream was still unfamiliar with Chen Xu and Nebula Games as a whole. 

This is why marketing budgets never seem to stop increasing for major gaming companies. 

Most gamers are pretty passive with the games they play. Unless something strikes a chord with them, they rarely bother with remembering the names of the studios and game designers. 

With numerous threads and posts popping up, ‘Outlast’ came to draw in many people who previously weren’t interested or aware of Chen Xu. 

[ A new horror game with such good reviews, huh? ]

[ Are you speaking facts or is this just hype? C’mon, it’s just a horror game.]

[ Lmao, fine, go try it yourself then. It’s available on the official platform, and if you get it on the Nebula platform, there’s a bit of a discount. ]

[ OJBK, i’ll fuckin do it! ]

( OJBK = slang for “fine, whatever” )

[ I’ll try it too, yall are just a bunch of cowards. ]

[ I look forward to your reactions. Don’t keep me waiting hehehe. ]

[ Yep, we’ll get back to you after beating this cheap game. ]

Those bold words were soon put to the test, and a follow up was posted within two hours. 

Their earlier bravado had vanished, their dismissive tones hushed. 

Their comments were drenched by their current state of mind. 

[ WTF I nearly died of fright! Who approved of this game? ]

[ I’m actually feeling dizzy. The basement part with the generators almost broke me down. It’s so dark, I’m out of batteries, there’s a guy chasing me… ]

[ Damn near wet myself, shouldn’t have had that much coffee before playing XD. ]

[ You know, now I’m curious. What did the game designer go through to make something like this? Scratch that, what did the company go through to make this? ]

[ This is already 100% the best horror game of the year, maybe even of the last few years. ]

[ + 1 ]

[ I recommended this game to my cousin who is staying over. He’s trying it tonight. I’ve ordered the popcorn. ]

[ Brothers! Good things are meant to be shared! ]

[ Great minds think alike, brother! I’ve made posts and recommendations in several other forums and threads. The good word must be spread. ]

[ Same here, we should help bump each others threads for more visibility. ]

[ Dang it, you went ahead of me! Not fair! ]

As the first wave of horror game fans were undergoing the ‘Outlast’ hazing experience, many who couldn’t bring themselves to continue the game gathered in the forums instead to spread the word.

Of course, they weren’t sharing out of the goodness of their hearts. Their thoughts were simple: I suffered, so others must suffer too. 

Muddled into the fray were agents of Chen Xu, planting the seeds and fanning the flames. 

They were the excited staff members of Nebula games, watching with glee as more hapless souls delivered themselves into the maw that was ‘Outlast’… Who knew watching people get genuinely scared would be so addictive. 

This is not to mention the promotional teams Chen Xu hired to stir up posts and discussions. Though employing such a method would require the product to actually deliver on the hype it was creating. 

And did ‘Outlast’ deliver on its promises? 

The answer spoke for itself. 

So it was that a wave of free marketing swept the gaming forums. The first batch of players began recommending ‘Outlast’ passionately to their friends, family, and even strangers. 

How could such a great game only be terrifying for themselves? They had to make sure other players felt the “love” of this game too!

[ Highly recommend a new horror game called ‘Outlast’. I gifted it to my school rival, and it worked wonders — he couldn’t sleep well after playing it and now his scores are below mine! ]

[ Bought it for my kids who won’t shut up, now the house is filled with peace and quiet. ]

[ Other games cost you money; this one also costs money, and your sanity! Buy now! ]

[ Bought in the morning, played at noon, dead by evening! 10/10 ]

[ If you’re a wuss, definitely stay away from this game, it’s strong stuff, too much for you, wuss. ]

[ Recruiting people to sit near me and hold my hand while I attempt to finish the game. I have snacks and drinks. ]

The posts in the forums were generally split into two categories: memes, and people trying to trick other people into playing the game. 

And the psychological effect was somewhat working.

Could this ‘Outlast’ really be that scary? Could it really cause such a strange turn of events? Is this some kind of multilevel marketing ploy? How curious, I might try it out too.

Chapter 51 : Shut Up! Shut Up! Shut Up!

Glancing at the brightly lit corridor, Sun Yixie let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding. 

Such a well lit place should be safe, right? A jumpscare couldn’t possibly be good here. Regardless, a bright setting was much more comforting than a dark one. 

With this in mind, Sun Yixie moved forward, and the protagonist began squeezing his way through a narrow gap of shelves that were moved into the corridor. 

Without warning, a low and gravelly voice whispered into his ears.

“Little pig.”

The screen shook violently as something grabbed the protagonist and dragged him backwards. Sun Yixie, tightly curled on his chair, let out a panicked scream, just like the character in the game. 

His hands instinctively reacted and covered his face again, while his eyes remained glued to the screen, peeking through the gaps between his fingers. 

A huge, grotesque figure stood towering behind the protagonist. His head was bald and seemed to have undergone horrific mutilation. 

The giant of a man grabbed the protagonist, and threw him down from the upper floors. 

As the protagonist smashed into the ground floor, his eyes grew blurry and his ears rang. He had to take a moment to steady himself and recover from the impact. 

But soon, an NPC in priestly garb appeared by his side. His approach went unnoticed as the protagonist was struggling to get his bearings. 

The priest held the camcorder in his hands, going through the footage captured thus far. And as he did, he seemed to come to a realization. 

“I… I see. Merciful God, you have sent me an apostle. Guard your life, son, you have a calling.”

And with that, consciousness finally slipped away, immersing the screen in a short moment of darkness before the protagonist woke up again. 

After struggling to stand, a new mission prompt appeared: 

[Escape the asylum. Access Security Control to unlock the main doors]

“Shit! Fuck these jumpscares, man! Holy shit!” Sun Yixie let out a string of curses as control of the character was once again granted to the player. 

Looking through his inventory, he noticed the camcorder had only a single bar of battery left. 

This, combined with the earlier happenings, left him with a growing sense of unease. He felt completely exposed. 

What if that big bastard of a monster comes for him again? 

But thankfully, now that the scary parts had truly begun, Sun Yixie was able to let go of some anxiety. 

In fact, he started to think that maybe meeting the fat monster wasn’t such a bad thing. Unlike the ghosts that most game designers used, the monster was human, albeit a scary looking one. 

As he explored the surroundings, he came across other human NPCs, but they were all just sitting around, staring blankly into space. 

“What’s up with these people? Are they turning into monsters?” Sun Yixie wondered. 

He cautiously moved the protagonist closer, but there was no reaction. The asylum patients simply sat unresponsive. 

As if they could not see him. 

Feeling slightly reassured, Sun Yixie scoured the room and found some batteries, all while speaking to his audience to ease his nerves. 

“Ok chat. Chat. Look, this style of horror game is usually all about setting the atmosphere. These guys aren’t enemies, they are just set pieces, there’s really nothing to be scared about here.”

As then, as if the game heard his comment and wanted to fuck with him, a patient npc sitting on a wheelchair lunged forth, tackling the player and filling the screen with a terrifying visage. 

Intense music and sounds filled the previous eerie silence, the protagonist let out a scream of shock as he wrestled against his ambusher.

Sun Yixie was jumpscared so hard, his mouse was flung off the table. 

He hastily paused the game and slumped into his chair, covering his face and letting out a string of curses that could barely be picked up on the microphone. 

Just as he was beginning to calm down, he heard a slow creaking noise behind him. 

“Oh Fuck!! Who’s here?!” He spun around and grabbed whatever was next to him, a tissue paper box in this case, and held it high above his head, eyes wild with fear. 

“What do you mean who? It’s me. What’s going on, Sun? Why is the room so cold? And you… what happened to you?” 

The once dark room was now lit up with the flick of a switch, and near the door stood a large, chubby man. 

His head was clean shaven, so much so that the lights on the ceiling reflected a sharp gleam. He had a short, thick neck and a sleek pair of black glasses framed his widened eyes as he took in the state of his friend. 

Sun Yixie, for lack of a better term, was somewhat in a state of shock. His face was pale, drained of color, and his form was cocooned in a thick, downy jacket. 

“Brother Lemon! You’re finally back!!!” He exclaimed in relief upon seeing that familiar face. 

Glancing at the active stream setup, Huang Donglai, otherwise known by his online moniker, Brother Lemon, came to understand what was happening. 

“Ah… you were playing a horror game? Looks like one finally got to you.” Brother lemon shook his head playfully. 

“Nevermind that! I’m just glad you’re back,” Sun Yixie said joyfully, feeling the refreshing sensation of gaining reinforcements. He picked up the thrown mouse and readjusted the stream camera. 

“Chat, we had a lil’ mishap’ just now, just a lil’ oppsie, no big deal. Now, let’s get back to it!” 

He sat down and put his headphones back on, handing Brother Lemon a separate pair. With his friend now beside him, Sun Yixie was surging with confidence. 

Inside the game, the protagonist was woefully equipped. Currently carrying nothing but his damaged camera. 

At this moment, Sun Yixie couldn’t help but miss the shitty horror games he was used to playing. At least those always gave him a weapon to fight back with. 

“I’m back.”

The voice of Brother Lemon could be heard faintly through his headphones, animatedly engaging with the chat to catch up with recent events and asking their thoughts on the game so far. 

The comforting presence gave him courage, and so he soldiered on, dodging the numerous asylum patients and reaching the security room without further incident. 

As soon as the storyline had progressed, Sun Yixie noticed that the chat activity had begun to speed up significantly. This was a bad premonition, so he pulled up his hoodie and braced himself. 

Brother Lemon was, understandably, confused. “Why are you doing that?” he asked. 

Sun Yixie pointed at the zooming chat, so many emotes were being spammed that it was obvious the viewers were excited that something was about to happen. 

“Eh?” Brother Lemon looked at the screen, where the protagonist was standing in a fully lit room. Then spin his head to look around the now brightly lit recording studio. 

“It’s so bright that it’s ruining the atmosphere! What are you even afraid of? Besides, horror games shouldn’t be all that intense anyway.” 

As he finished speaking, something happened in-game. The priest appeared on the monitor, looking to be inside a generator room of some sort. 

After a quick prayer, he reached out and pulled a lever, shutting down the power of the facility and plunging the environment into darkness. 

“Damn it!” Sun Yixie despaired. 

“Good lord, Sun, steady yourself! Nothing’s happening, there aren’t even any monsters on the screen! Why are you like this?” Brother Lemon’s visible confusion intensified.

This was simply not the normally confident Brother Sun he knew. Was he acting? Playing it up for the stream? But he’s never done this before, it was starting to concern him. 

Just as he was about to speak again, an ominous thud broke the silence of the game. 

For a moment, nothing happened. And then it came again, louder, and more forcefully. 

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

Something was slamming the door from the outside, something so strong that it shook the door from its hinges. 

Each slam sent a chill down Sun Yixie’s gut, and he grew frantic.

“Damn it! Shut up, Lemon!” he shrieked as he finally noticed the game’s pop up on the side of the screen. 

“A locker? Yes! I can hide in the locker!”

He fumbled the controls and shakily pressed the interaction button. 

CRACK!

As soon as he got inside, the door snapped and broke. The same large monster that terrified him earlier came lumbering into the room. 

In game, the surrounding sounds were slightly muted as the sound of the protagonist’s heartbeat echoed. 

Through the gaps of the locker, Sun Yixie saw the large monster’s horrific visage and pulled back, closing his eyes to take a break. 

A minute passed, followed by two more…

“Sun. Sun, why are we still hiding? The monster left a minute ago.” Brother Lemon, reading the chat and seeing Sun Yixie turtling up, asked curiously. 

“Alright. Just give me a sec. I got this…”

Taking a deep breath, he slowly emerged from the locker. 

“C’mon man. I’m telling you, that’s how horror games work. That was probably just a cutscene. Sure, it’s scary now, but you’ll get numb to it later on when It keeps repeating.” Brother Lemon stated with certainty. 

“Don’t lie to make me feel better, Lemon.” Sun Yixie replied without taking his eyes off the screen, feeling the paranoia take hold. 

“The fuck would I lie? They gave you a hiding mechanic so it’s probably going to just repeat and won’t be as scary eventually! C’mon, the chat is getting excited, let’s keep going!” 

Chapter 50: The Horrors of Mt. Massive Asylum

• [ 23333333, what’s wrong brother Sun? Having some trouble breathing? ]
  
• [ Stop it everyone, please stop it he’s already dead XD ]
  
• [ “Horror games are as easy as breathing for me” ]
  
• [ Looks like he’ll need an oxygen machine, someone help ]
  
• [ HE NEED SOME MILK ]
  
• [ It’s ok bro, we can play something else if you’re struggling, just let us know, ok? ]
  
• [ Guys he’s obviously playing it up for the stream ]
  

Even though the stream was featuring a horror game, a relatively unpopular category, and even though the stream just started about 10 minutes ago, the chatroom was buzzing like it was prime-time on New Year’s Eve.

Seeing countless messages scrolling by, Sun Yixie felt a difficult mix of elation and embarrassment. This would do wonders for the channel, and all it took was the low, low cost of his dignity…

But this game! This game was completely different from anything he’s seen! It was turning everything he understood about horror games upside-down. 

The atmosphere, the graphics, the immersion, it was strong. So strong that it was almost overwhelming. Somehow it felt similar to playing a good VR game. He shuddered at the thought of this game being adapted for VR. 

Part of this is attributed to the nature of horror games. From a psychological perspective, players feel more immersed when they are focused on the game. Some games rely on storytelling, voice-acting, music, etc to pull players into a state of immersion. But horror games were a bit different. 

Players start these games up, knowing they will get scared, knowing that the objective of the game is to scare them. What they don’t know is when and where the attempts will come from. When coupled with music and atmosphere, this is enough to keep players focused on the game and immersed. 

That’s why players often feel drained or tired after playing for some time. The high levels of focus and concentration required can be mentally taxing. 

Looking at his screen, then glancing back at the chat, Sun Yixie paused for a bit and reached out to grab his keyboard and mouse, laying them out on a hard piece of cardboard he picked up from the floor, and placed the whole setup on his lap. 

He was attempting to relax himself by creating a bit of distance between him and the screen. 

He was also attempting to ignore the increasingly speedy chatroom as the viewers gave their opinions on his current actions. 

However, as he continued his exploration this way, Sun Yixie felt that this didn’t seem to help much. He instead began to experience a bit of paranoia, as if there were hidden things watching him from behind or around the room. 

As he controlled Miles to crawl through a gap in the walls, into an air duct, he kept glancing towards his chat screen, taking comfort in sharing this newfound torment with so many people. 

He looked around his room and raised his voice, trying to muster up the nonchalance he felt prior to booting up the game. 

“Damn it! Ain’t nothing to be afraid of, damn it!”

“What’s the use of being scared? We just have to move forward step by step! I am in control! I’m not scared at all!”

After crawling out the other side, Sun Yixie had to take a moment to get rid of the lump in his throat. The walls around him were stained with blood. 

He wanted to get out of this place as soon as he could, so he moved towards the half-opened door and pushed it open hastily. 

In the next moment, the music in-game became sharp and loud, and a corpse hanging from the ceiling swung towards the protagonist, filling up the screen space. 

Both Miles in the game and Sun Yixie outside the game let out an almost synchronized high-pitched scream. 

[ AHHHHHH ]

“AHHHHHH!”

The scare made Sun Yixie repeat his earlier actions, retreating into a defensive shell. His breaths were heavy and his heart was beating out of his chest. 

He lost face again, all because of that damn scare. 

“Dammit, dammit, dammit! I can scream, but why are you screaming!” Sun Yixie pointed at the screen as he noticed the protagonist’s heavy breathing in his headphones, trying to change the topic. 

It might be a bit hard to believe, but the main reason he got so scared wasn’t because of the hanging corpse appearing, but because of the protagonist’s own loud scream hitting him a few nanoseconds early. 

Being already rattled, the sound of another person screaming made him subconsciously scream as well. 

His legs, hidden from view under the table, were shaking and trembling slightly. And the back of his shirt was soaked in a cold sweat. This couldn’t be shown to the chat no matter what! His pride wouldn’t allow it!

Sun Yixie, patted his chest and took a few deep breaths, centering himself. 

Looking back at the game screen, he hesitated for a moment, then got up from his chair and started walking around the room. He lowered the temperature of his air conditioning, then retrieved something from a nearby cabinet.

It was a thick hoodie with a knockoff superhero brand. 

“Brothers, the room is getting too cold, I need some extra clothing.” Sun Yixie addressed the chat while putting it on, pulling up the hood and wearing his headphones over it. 

This was, of course, taken as the peak of cowardice. 

• [ ????????? ]
  
• [ Brother Sun is amazing. Brother Sun wears his hoodie because its cold, obviously ]
  
• [ Exactly, horror games are ez as breathing for Brother Sun, how could this level of game scare him? ]
  
• [ Don’t worry brother, we know you aren’t scared. Kappa ]

Seeing sarcastic comments flood the chat, Sun Yixie wanted to refute but couldn’t find the words to do so. 

So he moved on in a huff, swiftly reloading the camcorder batteries and carried on in his exploration. 

One of the doors was open so he moved into the room. It was littered with headless corpses. Blood painted the walls and floors, some even getting on the ceiling, and there wasn’t a piece of in-tact furniture to be found, everything was shattered. 

Human heads lined the shelves and cupboards in various states of decay, but judging by the blood trails leaking downwards and pooling on the ground, some were rather fresh. 

In the night-vision view of the camcorder, the horrid scene was amplified in the minds of everyone who laid eyes on it. 

Sun Yixie, as the player, was most heavily affected by the mental debuff. He didn’t dare take a closer look at the corpses and random body parts. 

“Go, go, go, go, go!”

Just as he reached the middle of the room, one of the “corpses” spoke up.

 

“Oh Shit! Fuck! Is this game actually trying to kill people?” 

He trembled a bit, but didn’t scream out this time. Instead, mumbling curses into the mic.

Turning towards the source of the voice, he saw a man impaled on a steel rod, like a human kebab. 

[ They killed us. They got out. The Variants ] 

[ You can’t fight them. You have to hide ]

[ …Can unlock the main doors from Security Control ]

The dying man coughed blood and sputtered out his final words. 

[ You have to get the fuck out of this terrible place… ]

Before going still. 

He was obviously just a messenger NPC, meant to deliver his hints to the player and then fade into the background. 

But at this moment, Sun Yixie no longer had any interest in the secrets of Mt. Massive Asylum. His mind was dominated by one thought:

Run!

The scenes and atmospheres were simply too oppressive, everything was uncomfortable and caused major unease. This quality of horror was unheard of in this world, it was borderline psychotic. 

Why is he exploring this asylum? Why is he playing this damn game?! But still, he felt compelled to continue. 

“Fuck this! Let me out… Let me OUT!!!”

With the help of the camcorder, he eventually made his way out of the dark room and into a more well-lit corridor. 

However, he didn’t notice a shadow flickering past another door beside him. 

Chapter 49: I’m a tough, manly man! I have nothing to fear!

Eventually, the car came to a stop before the entrance to the asylum. 

Sun Yixie stared blankly at the dark, looming buildings in the background, while the sound of cold, rustling winds swept ominously through his headphones…

He put his palms together and took a deep breath before addressing the chat. 

“Okay. Before I start, I need to ask you guys… If I were to, hypothetically speaking, decide to play another game right now, would that be okay with y’all?”

Thus, the revolution began.

“Alright, fine, fine I’ll play it.”

Thus, the revolution ended. 

“Lemme just turn on the lights real quick.” Sun Yixie said as he reached over the screen to hit the switch, causing the recording studio to light up brightly. 

Thus the flames of revolution were lit once more. 

• [ COWAAAAAAAAAAAARD ]
  
• [ Didn’t somebody say this was EZ? 😂 ]
  
• [ Wow, turning on the lights 5s in smh ]
  
• [ You scared? 🤣🤣🤣🤣 ]
  
• [ It’s okay if you’re scared lil bro, let’s wait for big brother Lemon to come home and take care of you~ ]
  
• [ If it’s as easy as breathing, why turn on the lights? ]
  
• [ TURN OFF THE LIGHTS 😡TURN OFF THE LIGHTS 😡TURN OFF THE LIGHTS 😡TURN OFF THE LIGHTS 😡TURN OFF THE LIGHTS 😡 ]
  
• [ removed by moderators ]

“No! Shut up! I’m keeping them on! Mods, time out anyone that spams light stuff!”

“Ahem. I’ll say it again for those in the back, horror games are like breathing for me, no pressure at all. But occasionally, I get startled, alright? I get startled. Just some minor tension is all.”

Sun Yixie joked around with the chat, trying to ease his nerves and buy time to calm his mind. 

After a while, he leaned back into his gaming chair and put his headphones back on, finally getting back into the game. 

Some minor tutorials were highlighted on the screen, and he became more aware of the gameplay features and setting. 

Generally, horror games in this parallel world will fall into one of two categories.

The first being games with combat systems, where players can collect weapons to kill monsters and deal with bosses. 

And the second being games with no combat system at all, where players avoid monsters and solve puzzles to progress. 

The vast majority of “popular” horror games involve the first category. And the second category, while existent, was only used in obscure titles or certain segments of a full game. 

So far, just by looking around, Sun Yixie is rather impressed by the production value being displayed. This ‘Outlast’ does not seem to be a half-hearted project like so many others before it. 

Just from the atmosphere alone, he could feel that this experience would be something special. 

Even if the graphics weren’t rendered up to the levels of the latest triple A titles, it had a certain level of gritty realism that lends well into immersion. And for a horror game, that was a big deal. 

“God dammit man, I am not scared! How could I be scared?! Hold on and let me check the controls first!”

Again, Sun Yixie was interacting with the chat to delay the inevitable. 

• [ Lmao, quit stalling ]
  
• [ Stalling ]
  
• [ Stalling LOL ]

And so his adventure began.

After searching around the car and the unmanned guard station, he collected several items: A camcorder, some batteries, and a blue folder. 

Following the instructions on screen, he loaded the batteries into the camcorder and turned it on. 

Somehow, the surroundings became even more eerie behind the green-tinted filter of the camcorder. 

Sun Yixie made a few conjectures as he looked around with the camcorder active. Being an experienced horror game streamer, he could make a few rough guesses at the gameplay. 

There would probably be some dark environments where he’d need to use it to find his way. 

In any other horror game, this wouldn’t be an issue for him. But as he continued to stall and look around the game world, he couldn’t help the nervousness creeping into his system. 

After a thorough sweep of the immediate surroundings, Sun Yixie finally pushed open the iron gates and stepped into the courtyard. 

The surroundings were cloaked in silence, and the flickering lights shining through some of the asylum windows were not reassuring in the slightest, It felt like countless eyes were watching.

While controlling the character and moving along the path, Sun Yixie suddenly halted. 

One of the rooms of the asylum lit up, and a dark figure could be seen standing still at the window. 

His eyes widened as he pushed the keys on his keyboard, having the character bring up the camcorder and zooming in to see. 

But the figure seemed to notice his movements, and quickly moved away and out of view. The room lights were turned off after a brief moment. 

Sun Yixie felt a chill move up from his feet to the top of his head. 

Although nothing really happened, and no monsters were shown, his anxiety rose and his heartbeat quickened. 

The dark asylum building now seemed more menacing in his eyes, like a beast with its mouth wide open, waiting for him to take a step inside. 

The feeling of dread in his heart was amplified as he took a few more looks at the surroundings, noticing the armored vehicles left parked around the compound. 

These were riot control vehicles… Why were they here at a mental hospital? Did a riot happen here? But the document said this place was abandoned years ago…

The main entrance turned out to be locked, so he wandered around, eventually finding a small hole in the iron fences and crawling his way inside. 

A few more gameplay prompts appeared to guide him at this point. 

Running, jumping, climbing and crouching. 

The game’s POV camera work was polished, and the slight vibrations in sync with the character movements were subtle but detailed. This was reaching a level of quality that Sun Yixie had never witnessed in horror games before. 

Through his headphones, the heavy breathing of the protagonist could be clearly heard as he exerted himself. 

Following the guidance prompts, he made his way to an open window, and as soon as he climbed inside, the lights in the room went out. 

The surroundings were plunged into sudden darkness. 

Sun Yixie, who was not expecting something like this, was visibly shaken. 

• [ LOL what did I just see ]
  
• [ yall see how wide his eyes went? ]
  
• [ lmao did he just shake for real? ]
  
• [ Sun, if you’re scared, just say it bro ]
  
• [ 😂 ]

Could chat still be chat if they didn’t notice something like this? 

The quality of the game and the reactions of the streamer was really pumping up the viewers. The chat was speeding by so fast that it was having slight buffering issues. 

Clearly, a large portion of viewers were spooked as well and were using the interaction to dampen their fears. But it was hard to look away. 

“Damn… Dammit! There’s nothing happening! Nothing to be scared of! It’s just a video game! Pixels! I’m not gonna let pixels scare me!” 

Sun Yixie let out a warcry and turned on the camcorder’s night vision mode. The green hue made the atmosphere even more intense. 

Letting out another, slightly smaller, warcry, Sun Yixie began to explore the area.

He pushed open a door that was slightly ajar and walked forward. 

Suddenly, a previously inactive television was turned on, emitting a sharp static noise. 

“AHHHHHHH!”

The noise broke down the frail mental barrier Sun Yixie had erected for himself and really shook him. 

In fear and surprise, he let out a shrill shriek that could be considered world-class, flailed his legs wildly, and covered his eyes. 

After a few seconds to calm down, and realizing that no other sounds were flooding his headphones, he parted his hands slightly to peep at the screen. 

In-game, the dark room was partially lit by the white static of the television, no other movements were seen and the protagonist was standing, safe and sound. 

Confirming that there was no immediate danger, Sun Yixie let his hands drop from his face onto his chest as he let out a sigh of relief. 

Chapter 48: Horror games are as simple to me as breathing

In the blink of an eye, mid November came around, ‘Outlast’ was currently 70% complete. 

The remaining 30% consisted mainly of voice acting, cutscene production and polishing up the finer details. 

For Chen Xu, the most significant gain from this entire experience was actually a deeper understanding of the game engine editor. 

At the same time, with his current designer qualifications, the resource quota provided by the government platform was completely sufficient for a game like ‘Outlast’. Since there was no need for complex systems such as combat and character customization to be involved. 

Besides game development, Nebula Games also silently launched their own gaming platform, with Chen Xu giving it a quick shoutout on his socials. 

But this didn’t cause too much of a stir. 

No industry giants paid heed to it, and the media wasn’t as interested in it as they were about the upcoming horror game. This piece of info was simply tucked away in the sub-columns and smaller segments of a few smaller gaming news outlets. 

In fact, most players wouldn’t even notice it if they weren’t specifically looking for it. 

On the Nebula Games platform, there were only 2 entries, ‘To the Moon’ and ‘Undertale’. And the two had a combined sales of 172 copies, with the cumulative playtime of all purchases being only around 50 hours. 

Obviously, the people who bothered to make a purchase on this platform were fans who wanted to show their support for Chen Xu by buying an extra copy. The two games had already been out for a while on numerous other, larger gaming platforms. 

So Chen Xu was not discouraged, after all, the user base of a gaming platform is not built overnight. It is something to be earned with good service and attractive features, all of which he had plans for. 

Time passed swiftly and soon it was early December. 

The development of ‘Outlast’ had come to an end. And the marketing for the game had begun. 

An update was soon posted on Chen Xu’s socials and official developer blog. Just a simple paragraph and a poster for the game. 

[ Only by outlasting, can one save themselves from Hell ]

[ December 15th, Outlast begins ]

The poster depicted a hospital room in disrepair. Rusty, stained medical equipment was scattered all over, and dark stains covered the walls and hospital bed.

On the wall was the title of the game written in a dark, viscous fluid: Outlast.

The scene was viewed through what seemed to be the night-vision mode of a video camera, making everything reminiscent of bloodstains and amplifying the dreadful imagery. 

Under the hospital bed, was a person with a gaunt and frightened face, hiding there with his index finger placed on his lips, as if signaling the viewer to stay quiet.

Following this upload, numerous major media outlets began their report on the news, contacting Nebula Games in hopes of arranging an interview before the launch. 

‘Outlast’ also appeared on the large official platform in pre-order mode. 

The price was 65 yuan, an extremely good price when compared to many other games. After all, it wasn’t a large game with a huge amount of content. 

At the same time, the lulling discussions about ‘Outlast’ were stirred up once more in various forums and gaming communities. 

Some of which was paid marketing, as Chen Xu’s current renown was still insufficient to cause too much of a buzz, with only two famous titles to his name. 

…………

December 15th came and went, ‘Outlast’ was finally launched. 

In the gaming section of Shark TV, there was a channel named “Old Boy Commentary”

“Brother Lemon had to make a trip to the hospital today, he hasn’t had a physical examination in a while. He’ll probably be back later, but I’m not sure when exactly, you know how slow hospital trips can be.”

“Thank you for the subscription, and stop hyping up horror games man. Let me tell you, I’ve played so many of these garbage games man, I’m numb. Horror games are completely stress free for me now, playing them is like breathing, they’re really nothing special.”

“Ya’ll just want me to play a horror game cause you think I’ll freak out and then you get to farm clips of me. But there’s something in the way of that plan. I am a wall, physically and emotionally. I’m not gonna crack.”

“Alright let’s do this, I did this before and I’ll do it again. Everyone knows I eat these shitty horror games for breakfast dude. And if it gets boring, we’ll just play something else until brother lemon comes back.”

“Ok ok ok, turning on the camera now. Don’t be disappointed when I get all stone faced, kay?” 

“I am a very calm and reasonable person, I’m cool. Mods please timeout anyone that keeps spamming that emote, you know the one. I’m a chill person, unshakable mental fortitude. Horror games? Easy work, easy as breathing.”

Sun Yixie, who was the streamer in question, stared into the camera with an exaggerated deadpan look. The chatroom responded by spamming walls of cheeky emotes. 

He repeatedly assured the chat that he was above being scared of shitty little horror games, and he wasn’t completely wrong in this aspect. 

After all, making fun of bad horror games with his partner was how they built their channel, it was their main content so they were undoubtedly experienced with the overused tropes in the genre.

So much so that they even had compilation videos of them predicting when jump-scares would occur accurately. 

After having some technical difficulties with the official gaming platform, Sun Yixie ignored the chat spamming [ Big brother can’t even open the game by himself ] he finally hit the play button in peace. 

A brief fry of static flashed, then the game interface appeared. 

The entire screen was tinged in a gloomy shade of greenish blue, the color tone reminiscent of those used in horror and thriller movies from the late 90’s and early 00’s.

There seemed to be a hospital room in the background, but it was sparsely lit. Thick, ominous clouds swirled and obscured the visibility of the background, while eerie music played. 

“Ok that made me feel stuff, but only a lil bit, a lil tiny bit. But still, as I’ve said before, playing horror games is like breathing to me, let’s go.” Sun Yixie exclaimed as he read the chat, still feeling quite confident. 

“Difficulty selection. Let’s go with normal for now, I think it’s best for the first run through.”

The screen faded into darkness, and a male voice began to narrate as white text filled the screen in accordance with the narration, giving the player a brief introduction of the setting. 

“My name is Miles Upshur, an investigative journalist. 

I received a tip from an anonymous source, containing disturbing implications regarding a long-abandoned medical institute deep in the heart of Colorado — Mt. Massive Asylum.”

So far, Sun Yixie had zero psychological fluctuations about this. He appeared as calm as he had before. 

Most horror games and movies were like this, it was going as expected. 

After the narration ended, the screen began to clear up, showing a first-person POV of the protagonist driving a car. 

However… There was something about the presentation that was unsettling. The atmosphere was oozing with an unpleasant feeling that prickled the skin, the darkness beyond the car lights was suffocating, and the howling winds that could be mistaken for wolves did not help lighten the mood. 

Sun Yixie felt his heartbeat speed up just a tad. 

I return from crabby hell. I make zero promises. I apologize. I am shame.

• Crab man

Chapter 47 : Discussions in the gaming sphere

In the early hours of October 31st, followers of Chen Xu received a notification that there was a new upload. 

The post contained a short video clip and a message : “Wanna guess what the new game is?”

Even though it was posted on such an ungodly hour, there were still a large number of night owls who followed Chen Xu’s socials. 

So it didn’t take long for the likes, comments and reblogs to come flooding in. 

• [ Whoa, what’s happening? Look what I found! Does Chen Xu have a new game for us? ]
  

• [ What time is it? What gaming company posts promos at this hour??? ]
  

• [ Chen Xu: I’ll post whenever I feel like it. *Gigachad png* ]
  

• [ Yo, what’s this video about? Is it a horror game? ]
  

• [ I’ve never felt more uncomfortable watching a video camera recording lol ]
  

• [ Is this real? Is Chen Xu making a horror game? ]
  

• [ Shame, I’m not into horror, but the timing is so perfect ] 
  

• [ Is this an actual live recording or is this part of the game? Is it video camera related? ]
  

Many were left puzzled. After all, Chen Xu’s intentions were obvious. This intensely eerie video posted at this timing indicates that his upcoming project would be horror related. 

But what caused more discussion was the timing of this message. 

The very next day, Chen Xu’s post kicked up quite a stir among the gaming media outlets. 

After all, he had gained some measure of fame in the recent competition with his hit piece, ‘To the Moon’, making him good clickbait material for their articles. 

And also, November was fast approaching. There would be little to no major releases worth mentioning during this time period because everyone would be waiting for the holiday season of December. 

Meanwhile, the most heated discussions were conducted by the niche community of horror enthusiasts, sequestered away in their hidden places and dusty forums. 

After all, even horror games have subgenres. 

• [ Alright, so here’s what we know. There’s a video recorder and it seems to be shot in a modern office. Looks like a contemporary setting ]
  

• [ The person seems to be trying to film something with the camera, but the entire video is silent. And look at how messed up the room is, I’m speculating ghosts. Like, maybe we can only see ghosts with the camera? ]
  

• [ Prime jumpscare material, I can see it already. You walk through dark corridors and rooms with the video cam, then BOOM! A ghostly face appears in the camera footage, pulling the cameraman into the darkness ]
  

• [ Damn, I think you’re all overthinking it. There’s literally nothing in the video, stop throwing out random nonsense in broad daylight, you’re scaring me ]
  

• [ It is a fantastically eerie setting, I stumbled upon the post late last night, and even if it didn’t reveal much, I kept feeling like there was something under my bed, kept me away for half the night ]
  

• [ Lmao here’s a link for adult diapers, you big baby 😛 ] 
  

Discussions such as these were happening fervently in popular gaming forums and boards, but it was mostly wild analysis and ideas being thrown around. After all, Chen Xu’s video only hinted at the genre of game he was cooking up, without offering up many other details. 

And It wasn’t just the players who were buzzing with curiosity either, there were many among the gaming media and game designers who were trying to get a feel for what was to come. 

• [ Have you heard? Chen Xu’s upcoming project is actually a horror game! ]
  

• [ That’s unexpected, really didn’t think he would choose to go down the horror route ]
  

• [ But it’s not a bad choice, for smaller teams and indies, horror games have always been a very good entry point ]
  

• [ Smaller teams? Chen Xu’s team isn’t exactly small. Haven’t you heard they were recruiting a lot of people recently? I bet they’ve expanded quite a bit ]
  

• [ Now that’s something I expected. ‘Undertale’ and ‘To the Moon’ both sold very well ]
  

• [ But horror games are so niche tho… And not just here in China, there aren’t really any noteworthy horror titles abroad either ] 
  

• [ VR tech should pair really well with horror games, but it so gosh darn expensive, I wouldn’t go for it, too risky ]
  

• [ What if it’s a bait and switch? ]
  

• [ ? ]
  

• [ Look, Chen Xu’s a good storyteller. You know it, I know it, everybody knows it. So what if this “horror” game is just a front for a heartwarming storyline experience? ]
  

• [ Huh, if you put it that way, I guess it makes sense. He told everyone he’s a warrior of love right? ]
  

• [ You might be onto something dude ]
  

While members of the game designer community were having logical, level-headed conversations about Chen Xu, things were a bit more chaotic on the media side. 

《 CREEPY VIDEO RELEASED AT MIDNIGHT!! WHAT IS CHEN XU’S MASTER PLAN??!! 》

《 FROM HEARTWARMING TO HORROR? DESIGNER CHEN XU’S NEXT MOVE 》

《 CHEN XU ABANDONS HIS LOYAL FANS! PURSUES NEW FIELD! CONFIDENT OR BLIND? 》

………..

Soon various articles flooded gaming news websites and forums. Most larger outlets tended to favor a more neutral approach, trying to maintain amicable relations with the designers featured in their articles. 

But the same couldn’t be said for the smaller marketing accounts and lower tiered outlets, where creating a buzz was the business. 

This was mainly due to the specific genre chosen by Chen Xu.

After all, it has been several years since the gaming industry was introduced to an excellent horror game. And even back then, its quality was still rather poor when compared to excellent games of the more popular genres like Action or Adventure games. 

It wouldn’t be accurate to say that the horror scene is stagnant in this world. 

There is a diverse range of horror games focusing on many types of antagonists. From zombies and ghost themed games popularized in China to serial killer and demon themed games popularized abroad. 

There are also horror games that take a more grounded, realistic approach and horror titles that lean towards the supernatural and myth. 

So there’s a lot to pick and choose from, but the scene isn’t exactly bustling either, almost none of them have sold well. 

In the current market, the horror games that do make sales are usually from older IPs and are part of a series. But even those are facing lower and lower sales with each gaming season. 

And one of the reasons is that none of these games have tried breaking out of their traditional restrictions. 

They’re still relying on small, one-shot plotlines. Still using jumpscares as their main tool. Still relying on rudimentary FPS combat systems and designs. 

Granted, none of these are bad per se, but it’s difficult to make things more exciting and take major risks when funding is limited and the investors are king. 

For Chen Xu and the rest of Nebula Games, these discussions online have had very little impact. 

Because the development progress of the game was ramping up significantly and many of the staff were now “in the zone” of their creative process. 

While the game was not yet completed, many parts of the game could already be experienced. 

And after experiencing those segments, Yang Xin, Ruan Ningxue, and many of the other team members came to a unanimous conclusion. 

Don’t play this game at night. 

It’s really scary, please send help. 

Even though they had peered behind the curtain, participated in the creation of the game from scratch, and had access to the backend systems of the game…

The playable parts of ‘Outlast’ were still delivering a level of terror that was previously unseen in the horror gaming genre. 

Yang Xin was closely monitoring the online buzz after Chen Xu’s post, and she made a silent prayer for the poor souls who would be the first to experience the monster they were about to unleash.

Chapter 46 : Being realistic and going straight to hell are two very different things, Mr Chen. 

An agreement was drawn up between Nebula Games and the motion capture studio to produce an extensive library of material. 

And Chen Xu led the charge in the development of ‘Outlast’. 

It wasn’t cheap to make a game like this, but it wasn’t as expensive as one might think either. 

After running through everything, the finance department drew up a budget report. The total cost of this game, including the creation and subsequent marketing expenses, is estimated to be around 6 million RMB. 

There might be additional fees to consider, but the upper limit will not exceed 8 million RMB. 

For a game in the horror genre, this is a pretty hefty figure. Not a lot of companies would be willing to invest so much in something like this. 

Needless to say, the team at Nebula was very excited. 

This was, after all, their first major project. And if it took off like Chen Xu’s previous titles, they would essentially be making a breakthrough in the horror gaming genre. 

………….

The days passed quickly. 

Artwork, animations and various other parts of the game were produced quickly and efficiently under the guidance of Chen Xu and the team leaders. 

The script for dialogue was also completed, with voice-overs being booked for later. 

At the current stage of development, the team was busy giving the playable character a trial run, working out the kinks in the movements and actions. 

“Man… I’m actually kinda creeped out already. Can you imagine how terrifying the final product will be?”

In her new office, Ruan Ningxue was giving the design concepts another once over with the other team leads. 

These were environmental designs of the setting. So they included the dilapidated hospital building, the blood and corpses strewn about the area, the escaped crazies hiding under beds and in dark corners. 

There was also a second set of the same scenes, but made from the perspective of video camera footage. And a third set for the camera’s night vision mode. 

These images, rendered with the technology of the parallel world, were doing a fantastic job of showcasing the eerie atmosphere of ‘Outlast’, just looking at them was enough to send shivers down the spine. 

As the development phase continued, Ruan Ningxue was gradually growing more haggard, her eyes were slowly growing more bloodshot as the days passed, and dark rings began appearing beneath her eyelids. 

Why? 

Because she was too scared to sleep! 

She actually did as Chen Xu instructed, and tried using the night vision video camera at 3am. Her house became an eerie place with a creepy atmosphere she just couldn’t shake off. And it made her extremely uncomfortable. 

After all, scaring yourself with your own imagination is the greatest of all scares. 

However, it turned out to be a curse and a blessing. Because now that she had tasted this fear personally, she was able to fully realize Chen Xu’s vision and bring the atmosphere he desired to life. 

“Yeah! And there’s no way to fight back in the game too, they can only run away and hide…” Yang Xin, who made herself at home in Ningxue’s office to steal her snacks, let out a sigh as well. 

Chen Xu had a satisfied smile on his face, “Isn’t that more exciting? If you have a gun, it will become something more akin to an FPS. The fear hits harder due to being unable to defend yourself.” 

In this parallel world, almost every horror game includes some sort of melee weapon or firearm. But why is that so?

Two reasons mainly. Having a combat system can add more depth to a game depending on the gear customization and ammo scarcity. And it can also be considered an emotional outlet for the tension being built up. 

This approach isn’t bad. In fact, the ‘Resident Evil’ series makes good use of this formula. 

However, the main flaw is that once the player accumulates a significant amount of firepower, a horror game will then turn into an FPS. 

After all, the feeling of horror arises from being unable to defend yourself against whatever is coming for you. But with enough firepower, fear will be suppressed. 

‘Resident Evil’ also gradually deviated from its original vision and went down this path, becoming more of an action game with horror elements. 

Starting from the 4th installment in particular, it began leaning towards the action shooting style until the remake reigned it back to have a balance between horror and action. The series also saw a resurgence into its horror roots with the 7th and 8th installments. 

But of course, for a lot of players, the highlights of the recent games are Lady Dimitrescu and her three daughters. For obvious reasons. 

“By the way, Mr Chen, when should the pre-release marketing for ‘Outlast’ begin? Our socials are getting flooded by players asking for news and updates.” Yang Xin asked. 

Due to the influx of new people in the office, Yang Xin and Ruan Ningxue had taken to using more formal language when speaking with Chen Xu about work related matters. It was important for company image but how long that would last is up to fate. 

“Yes, development on the game is progressing quickly. I wouldn’t be surprised if we finished by December,” Ruan Ningxue said absentmindedly, her blank gaze still transfixed on the disturbing works of art on her monitor. 

‘Outlast’ was not a very large-scale project, and most of the effort was concentrated on producing the various animations and art assets. 

And in terms of gameplay, it’s fast-paced and progression is made rapidly, barely containing any time consuming content. 

There were also very few numbers to crunch as it was not a complex RPG, so development had been smooth sailing from the very start. 

Chen Xu smiled and replied,

“No need to rush, and no need for excess spending. Have it begin around mid-to-late November. 

I’ve also gathered up quite a following on my personal socials at this point, might as well make use of it.

Besides, you two seem to be forgetting something. Don’t you remember what day tomorrow is?”

Huh? What’s the date?

Yang Xin and Ruan Ningxue stared blankly at Chen Xu before scanning the bottom corner of the monitor. 

October 30th?!

“ That’s right, it’s Halloween! I’ve been preparing for this day, and got some promotional material ready to go.

After all, our dear players have been eagerly awaiting something, I think it’s pretty fitting and realistic if we announce the new release on Halloween, right?”

Chen Xu’s smile seemed to grow eerie and malicious in the eyes of the two girls. He ignored their expressions and pulled up a video on his screen. 

It was a short video, only 10 seconds long. 

The screen was pitch black at first, then suddenly the sound of electronics booting up was heard. An image appeared, but it wasn’t normal. 

It’s the POV of a night-vision video camera, with a battery indicator on the top right corner and a red blinking dot on the top left corner, implying that the footage was being recorded. 

The girls recognized the background image being used, it was Chen Xu’s office. 

But it was a mess. His chair was knocked over and there were numerous files scattered on the desk. 

The video was completely silent. 

The atmosphere of the video was incredibly unsettling. 

In the final second of the footage, the screen shook, as if the person holding the camera was being attacked and was struggling fiercely. 

But still, there was not a single sound, the unsettling atmosphere was now suffocating, and then the video ended abruptly, plunging the screen back into darkness. 

There was silence in the office as Chen Xu turned around with an expectant smile, his eyes sparkling with mirth. He knew damn well that the level of horror in this world wasn’t very high, and the ‘Outlast’ project was leagues above in terms of quality and fear factor. Even this little video oozed an atmosphere that put the majority of horror movies to shame. 

Yang Xin and Ruan Ningxue stared back at him for a long time without speaking. 

“Mr Chen, I think being realistic and sending people straight to hell are two very different things.” Ruan Ningxue was unable to hold it in any longer and let it out. 

Obviously, this video blatantly informs the public that their next release was going to be a horror game. 

But the main point is, what is this terrifying thing? Was this really “fitting and realistic”?

I’m afraid some very unfortunate people are getting sent straight to hell this Halloween. 

Ruan Ningxue mumbled a silent prayer for those unfortunate souls, for she knew what awaited them. 

She looked back at her boss, who was giddy with excitement. To come alone into the office in the middle of the night and shoot a night-vision video, he was clearly enjoying this way too much. 

Yang Xin couldn’t help but toss one last life buoy towards Chen Xu before he sank further into the swamp of depravity. “Mr Chen, didn’t you publicly say you were a warrior of love? ‘Outlast’ has nothing to do with love, why don’t we have a more upbeat announcement?”

“Of course it’s related to love! Haven’t you done your research on the genre? For the longest time, horror enthusiasts have been saying that there were simply no good horror games. Why do you think I’m developing ‘Outlast’? It’s to express my love for these poor, forgotten souls! I AM a warrior of love!”

“And upbeat? Don’t you think this video fits perfectly with the game? Because it’s so different from normal marketing trailers, this will gain even more traction, I guarantee it! We have to be prepared to ride the wave of hype this creates!” Chen Xu explained with an earnest expression that blinded his two compatriots. 

Chapter 45 : Have some humanity, Mr Chen

On the 8th of October, just after the National Day vacation, the core members of the development team, including Yang Xin and Ruan Ningxue, were called into Chen Xu’s office. 

“Morning everyone, I trust you had a restful holiday. If you recall, I mentioned we will be busy when we get back, so I’m going to lay out the plans for our next project.”

“It will have action elements. Qin Yi, please make arrangements with the motion capture studio in our contacts list as soon as possible. We’re going to take the chance to establish a library of rig motions.” 

Chen Xu gave instructions to a young man in his twenties who looked to be developing a bald spot, how unfortunate. 

“Noted, Mr Chen.” Qin Yi nodded. 

The concept and usage of motion capture is similar to that of his previous life, it was not considered a high-end expenditure. 

It is simply a convenient method to save time and money compared to animating manually. The movements will come out more naturally as well. 

And here, with the saturated establishment of motion capture studios, the problem of high initial investment is eliminated. 

Chen Xu plans to form good relations with a mature studio. After all, such materials will likely be used frequently in his future projects. 

“Alright, have a look at what’s in store this time.” 

Chen Xu had his workstation connected to the projector, and with a tap of a button, the draft design concepts of ‘Outlast’, was displayed on the wall. 

This was something he had been working on with the aid of a memory capsule for the past few days. 

“It’s… a horror game?” Yang Xin looked at Chen Xu in surprise. 

The people gathered in the room sat in stunned silence, unsure of how to respond. This kind of game was definitely not something they expected. 

They came in expecting story-focused, plot driven experiences like ‘To the Moon’ and ‘Undertale’, games that were fundamentally RPGs. 

But to venture into the horror genre, and it wasn’t even in an RPG style… It’s really unexpected. 

And there’s a very important point: didn’t you say earlier, Mr Chen, that you’re a warrior of love?

What has that got to do with horror games!?

Looking at the expressions on everyone’s faces, Chen Xu could more or less guess what they were thinking.

Because this kind of game is really difficult to make.

You could say that horror games are a type of game that really puts your production capabilities to the test.

If a horror game can’t make the player feel scared, it’ll be downgraded to a funny game instead. 

Plus, the market for horror games is perpetually overlooked by large companies, with only small and medium sized companies bothering to produce anything. 

With the difference in funding, most designers who try their hand at the horror genre will make liberal use of the most common, cheap technique in horror media, the Jump Scare. 

Put simply, a Jump Scare is when an image or scene changes abruptly and without warning, often accompanied by loud noises. 

For example, when you are trying to take a picture of a tall girl, and when you’re about to press the button, she turns into a monster and gets in your face, that’s a standard jump scare. 

Although many consider it cliché, it cannot be denied that it is a classic and effective technique to bring fear to the players.

But jump scares are also a double-edged sword, when used well, it’s a satisfying experience that will be remembered fondly. 

Used poorly, it’s trash. 

Excellent horror games often make use of jump scares, but this gives the wrong impression to less experienced designers, so they tend to make games filled purely with jump scares and wonder why the ratings are low. 

A genuinely good horror game wants to keep players in prolonged states of oppression with short lulls in between. 

Because the most stressful part of a horror game is not the scare itself, but the anticipation and uncertainty about when the scare will happen. 

Having jump scares is fine for a horror game, but it’s bad when overused. The core of horror is to have the audience scare themselves with their imagination, which is the most difficult aspect. 

Inside his office, Chen Xu was busy explaining these concepts to everyone and emphasizing key points to pay attention to in ‘Outlast’. 

“To be honest, for personal reasons, the development time for this project will be tight. Otherwise, I would have liked to take everyone on a field trip to soak in realistic atmospheres. Like abandoned hospitals, schools or villages to gain a deeper understanding.” Chen Xu said with a remorseful look on his face. 

Yang Xin and Ruan Ningxue stared at him in wide-eyed disbelief. While Qin Yi and the others all lowered their heads or looked away. 

“It’s alright, I can feel how disheartened you are by the loss of this opportunity. But no worries, when we develop more horror games in the future, I’ll definitely take every one of you there,” Chen Xu said with a smile. 

The silence continued. 

Who would regret such a thing!?

“Also, Zhang Yida, regarding the marketing of the new game, we need to pay special attention to video sharing and live streaming platforms. You’ll need to come up with a good proposition for that, and get me a list of suitable influencers.” 

Chen Xu turned to regard the young man, who nodded and gave a curt reply, “Understood”. 

With their current available funding, Nebula Games had no reason to skimp on marketing. 

Moreover, horror games have inherently good synergy with live streaming. So leveraging streaming and video platforms will quickly spread hype and awareness, and if the game turns out to be worthwhile, word-of-mouth will quickly outpace any paid marketing campaigns.

There’s also a difference between playing a horror game and watching someone else do it.  

After all, many players don’t have the courage to play a horror game by themselves, but enjoy watching other people play it to see their reactions, living vicariously while being carried. 

Some may even grow bolder after watching, and decide to try it out themselves. But they might still stop progressing after a particularly stressful scare. 

While this might be a problem for some types of games, it is not so for a horror game. Instead, this will likely contribute to growing the popularity and prestige of the game. 

In his past life, the ‘Outlast’ series managed to achieve sales of over 15 million copies, largely thanks to the rise in popularity of the video content and live streaming industry. 

Chen Xu continued his explanations. Narrowing down the core concepts of ‘Outlast’ to his awaiting team. 

First, the outline. Players take on the role of a non-combatant thrust into a threatening environment. And just like the name of the title, the only way to move forward is to “Outlast” the situation. 

Second, the key feature, the camera. Unlike most other horror games in the market with their nuclear-powered flashlights that never run out of power, the player will be dependent on the night-vision mode of their equipped video camera for navigation. 

The camera will use up battery power and the player will have to go out of their way to find more, so this becomes another driving point in the game. 

Third, the plot and pacing. Chen Xu spent extra time going through this part, because the feel of the game would greatly hinge on this. 

“…and Ruan Ningxue, regarding the video camera and atmosphere of the scenes, you’ll need to pay special attention to this part. The players have to be as immersed as possible. 

When you get back home, wait until around 3am and turn off all the lights at home, I want you to really experience it and bring it to life.”

“This is the type of video camera the in-game version will be based on. Please take this home and experience it in the dark as well. We have to get this right.”

While speaking, Chen Xu reached under his desk to retrieve a handheld video camera and placed it in front of Ruan Ningxue. 

Ruan Ningxue: ??????

Staring at the camera in front of her, it felt more and more difficult to maintain her smile. 

Boss, please have some humanity.