ONE PIECE IS REAL!

While talking, John thought of the man with the beard growing out of his nostrils, his voice deep and rough, with two execution blades strapped to the back of his neck.

"Do you want my treasure? If you want it, I can give it to you. Go find it! I put everything there!"

That's right. John's next game to be developed is One Piece!

As one of the three most popular manga in John's previous life, One Piece had countless fans, and John was one of them. The fact that it was loved by so many people was proof that One Piece had done an incredible job with its storyline. But… it was way too drawn-out!

"Damn it, I've time-traveled and it's still not finished!" John grumbled to himself.

This game was different from his first three. John didn't have much to draw from—most of the One Piece games in his previous life were pirated and of questionable quality. All John could do was recreate a complete pirate world through the eyes of the players in this world, which made it difficult to pin down a specific category for the game. It could be called role-playing, with anime at its core. It could be considered an adventure and treasure-hunting game, with elements of survival due to the high level of danger. If one wanted to, it could even be played as a romance game…

"Adventure? Treasure hunting?" Michael looked puzzled. Being in a high-ranking position, he wasn't familiar with such things, so he turned to Adam for clarification.

Adam thought for a moment and said, "Adventure games have always been popular in the market, but most of them are about completing levels. There aren't many focused on treasure hunting."

As the head of the virtual game department, Adam had a clear understanding of the market.

"Especially now that virtual reality technology has matured, many players love seeking excitement in adventure games."

"Well, it's a popular category, but my game will be different. It's not just a simple adventure game. There will be no mandatory tasks; everything will be explored by the players," John explained.

Everyone present was a bit confused. They were still used to the idea that adventure games meant fighting monsters and leveling up.

"No need to rush; it's still in the design phase. I haven't even finalized the world-building yet," John said, his lips curling into a small smirk. "But once it's done, they'll know what a real adventure game is."

What were the current adventure games on the market? Jumping over holes? Climbing slopes? That was more like an obstacle course than an adventure.

Thinking of the stereotypical monster designs in those games, John felt a deep resentment. Honestly, if they just scaled up insects, they'd have ready-made monsters!

"Take your time, no rush," Grace said with a smile. "You don't have any pressing deadlines."

"Yeah," John nodded.

"Brother, did you really call sarah and her team tools? Send me a red envelope, or I'll tell on you!"

"Go ahead and tell. A tool should be aware of its role," John said, giving Lily an annoyed look. "Besides, since when are you so close to her?"

"Hehe, she's my senior, okay?"

"Senior?"

John was taken aback. What a coincidence.

"Yeah, Sarah said I could join Edge Horizon's team once I graduate next year," Lily said, her eyes crinkling with happiness.

Lily was studying game design, focusing on numerical balance and design. Her future job would likely be in this field, which was also her passion.

Both John and Lily had grown up during the rise of virtual games, and by the time they went to college, game-related majors were extremely popular.

"So what? You'll still be under my command when the time comes," John teased. "If you make me mad, I'll dock your pay for three days."

"Hehe, I'll tell Mom if you do that!" Lily stuck out her tongue.

"Alright, you two, eat properly," Grace chided gently.

After dinner, Michael and Adam returned to their busy schedules, while John headed next door to assign Sarah some tasks and check on the "Minecraft" mod competition.

…

"Seriously, do you have to keep teasing me?"

John's expression was awkward as he stood in a room filled with beautiful members of the Edge Horizon team, all dressed rather… casually.

"Hehe, boss, do you dare?" Bella teased, standing confidently without a care for John's gaze.

"…Careful, if I turn into a beast one day, none of you will escape."

"Boss, are you really that strong?" Emily asked innocently.

"Want to find out?" John quipped, rubbing his forehead in frustration. Bella had clearly been leading the others astray.

At first, they had shyly avoided him, but after spending more time together, they'd become far too comfortable, constantly throwing playful remarks his way.

"Alright, enough teasing. How's the mod competition going?" John asked, ignoring Bella's casual touches as he moved toward the computer they were working on.

"It's going great!"

"Boss, you're a genius!"

"The players are super enthusiastic about making mods. If we had to hire people to make all these, it would've cost hundreds of millions," Jessica said, her voice filled with excitement.

When it came to work, the girls were all professional and serious.

Olivia pulled up the creative workshop page and looked at John with admiration. "Boss, there are already nearly 10,000 mods. Though most are simple, they've greatly enriched the game's content."

"And there are still more than ten days left, so players are still creating," added Sophie.

"Yeah, that's normal," John said with a smile. "Players love the feeling of contributing to their favorite games."

"Which one's your favorite?"

John browsed through the mods in the creative workshop, nodding in approval.

As expected, when people's imaginations weren't limited, they could be incredibly creative.

For example, just like in his previous life, people had created resource packs, light and shadow effects, and even brought elements of the current tech era into the game, like thermal weapons, vehicles, and household appliances—all made using the Crafting Table with custom recipes.

A/N: Thanks for reading and donate some power stones. If we reach top 50, I'll release an extra chapter.

Also check out my patreon for extra chapters: patreon.com/AncestorX

Enjoy✌️.

Also suggest me a good name for John's company.