Liu Liang had no doubt that if some real big shots were to handle this feature, they could definitely make it shine.
But he wasn't one of them.
So he was only able to play childhood classics like "Two Tigers," "Ode to Joy," and "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star," and he would often play them wrong.
As for the live chat, it once again reached a climax.
"Streamer! It's me, don't shoot!"
"Where did that mooing come from!"
"Not a bit of skill, all emotion!"
"So, after all the effort, is the game really just about playing the piano here? Or is it playing to the cows?"
"Is the core gameplay hidden too deep?"
"Yeah, you have to stare at that painting first, then turn that tree, and finally play the piano... I think if the game was made as a direct piano simulator, it might actually make a little money, but now..."
"Who said playing piano is the core gameplay? I think you guys are too naive, there could still be a next stage!"
"Right, there must be a next stage!"
"Streamer, I've received reliable information from inside the game company, the next phase is triggered by playing 'Flight of the Bumblebee,' please!"
"Flight of the Bumblebee +1"
"Flight of the Bumblebee +10086"
Liu Liang nearly passed out, was this not wicked or what!
I can't even play "Two Tigers" smoothly, and now "Flight of the Bumblebee"? I don't know about the bumblebee, but I am pretty useless.
At this stage in the game, Liu Liang had no idea how many traitors were among his viewers.
He highly suspected that the fan who recommended the game in the first place, the viewer who suggested he look at the painting, and the one who paid for the comment that made him turn the tree were actually the same person.
But he had no evidence.
And now, it was completely impossible for Liu Liang to single out the mole, because the entire chat had been assimilated; this mysterious person had spent just five yuan to set the pace, and then, like dust, they were gone without a trace.
"There are villains in the chat room!"
Liu Liang was on the verge of tears, but there was nothing he could do—the viewers had developed a strong interest in this crappy game, and he could only search the internet for some sheet music he could comprehend and then return to the game to try to play it.
"From today on I'll go to the bathroom on my own, mom and dad don't underestimate me..."
"What do you call your dad's dad, your dad's dad is called grandpa..."
The audience in the live stream couldn't hold it in any longer, bursting into laughter and hammering their tables, and Liu Liang's livestream heat soared!
...
"Alright, dear viewers, the streamer really has exhausted his skills, these are all the pieces I can play. As for 'Flight of the Bumblebee' and the like, I really can't do it!"
By now, Liu Liang had been staring at the mountain for nearly half an hour, feeling as though the whole world was spinning.
However, the viewers still hadn't shown any signs of letting him off the hook, insisting that he continue to explore the mountain or try to play various tunes to see if there was a fourth chapter to the game.
Liu Liang felt helpless and had to explain earnestly to his audience: "Based on my many years of gaming experience and rational analysis, the game should really stop here.
"From the 'Prison Simulator' to the 'Big Tree Simulator,' and then to the 'Big Mountain Simulator,' especially after the last bit with the piano simulator, I feel like even if the game developer's thought process is special, their creativity must be exhausted.
"It's nice for the game to end right here. If you really like playing it, you can continue to play the piano here. For players like me, it's time to exit after the experience..."
After much persuasion, the viewers in the chat finally began to change their minds and agreed to Liu Liang's request to switch games.
However, just as Liu Liang was about to press alt+F4 to quit the game, the game screen changed again!
Playing music in the mountain scene for a while actually did trigger the fourth chapter of the game!
This transition was different from the previous ones.
Liu Liang's view gradually zoomed in, but this time it wasn't focused on the tree. Instead, it moved to the top of the mountain, where there was a sharp-edged boulder.
This boulder somehow rolled down from the mountaintop, thudding towards the base of the mountain.
Then, the weather abruptly changed as if time sped up, and seemed to stretch out longer.
At the foot of the mountain, many tiny figures were bustling around the boulder, climbing and hammering at it like ants, moving to and fro.
However, Liu Liang's perspective was still on the mountain, so he could only vaguely see these ant-like figures moving around, unable to make out the specifics.
After that, lights began to shine in the distance, smoke from cooking fires rising up.
The screen gradually went dark, and when it lit up again, he was astonished to find that he had become a stone bridge!
An ordinary bridge, one that looked quite old and historical.
On sunny days, sightseers admired the nearby scenery from the bridge while children played; on rainy days, pedestrians crossed over it under their umbrellas.
But this time, neither mouse nor keyboard worked, he couldn't rotate or move, only watching passersby crossing the bridge back and forth from a fixed viewpoint.
Often there weren't even any passersby, only the running water beneath the bridge washing the bridge piers, making a constant rushing sound.
Liu Liang was utterly shocked.
"I never thought that a game like this would really be divided into four chapters!"
After the shock, he felt an indescribable calmness inside.
Yes, I've become a bridge; yes, I can't even move the view.
But so what?
My heart had become incredibly peaceful, just like the water flowing under the bridge, no longer having any ripples...
Finally, after looking at the stone bridge for a long time, a small prompt button appeared on the screen, signaling that players could press the ESC key now.
Liu Liang didn't even notice it at first, it was the bullet comments that reminded him.
He pressed ESC, and what popped up wasn't the game's main menu or the settings interface, but a simple selection bar with four different scenes that had appeared in the game.
Prison, tree, mountain, bridge.
Each scene also came with a picture, making it clear at a glance for the players.
Clicking on any of the options would naturally switch to that scene.
Then, there was nothing else...
After actively switching, there was no longer a time limit, nor were there specific trigger conditions to switch scenes like there were at the beginning; as long as the player wished, they could stay in a specific scene indefinitely.
It was then that Liu Liang roughly confirmed that the game seemed, perhaps, probably, to have indeed been cleared.
Isn't this a bit too arbitrary!
No ending screen is one thing, but I've wasted so much time, and the game's creator didn't even leave a sarcastic remark?
Ah, my perspective is too narrow again.
How could such a Zen-infused game mock me?
Liu Liang calmly exited the game, then went to the store's detail page and decisively left a "particularly positive review."
What did that fan in the group say again?
"This game is philosophical, the puzzle content is also very rich, and after playing, you can easily make a video with a million views!"
After clearing Big Mountain Simulator, Liu Liang reflected on those words and suddenly felt that person hadn't deceived him at all.
Is it philosophical? Does playing it make one contemplate life?
Is the puzzle content very rich? Does each scene have different puzzle-solving methods?
Can you really make a video with a million views?
Absolutely flawless!
But when it came time to write the game review, Liu Liang found himself at a loss for words.
What review should I write?
Honestly, there's a lot that can be said about this game, but right then, words failed him as if he was completely filled with Zen thoughts, losing all desire to express himself.
After much deliberation, Liu Liang wrote four big characters in the review column.
"I am an idiot!"
The audience in the live broadcast room nearly died laughing; they hadn't seen such an entertaining and frustrating game in a long time.
How did they come up with this?
Is the game developer's brain even normal?
Seeing Liu Liang exit the game and leave a particularly positive review, many viewers were relentless.
"Don't exit, Old Ox, how can you be sure the game is really over? What if that interface is the designer tricking you?"
"Yeah, think about the previous scene transitions, there has to be another scene behind it!"
"I guess it's very possible that if you experience the four scenes again in a certain order, you could activate the fifth scene!"
"Suddenly I'm reminded of a saying: 'I wish to turn into a stone bridge, endure five hundred years of wind, five hundred years of sun, and five hundred years of rain, only asking for her to cross the bridge.'
"Oh! Does that mean, if we watch this stone bridge for five hundred years, a beautiful girl will cross?"
"Makes sense!"
"Maybe after this girl walks across, you can enter the next scene? Hey, what do you think, could there be some not-safe-for-work content?"
"Given the nature of this game, I think it's very likely! After all, you never know what the next scene will be."
"Such an amazing game can't be underestimated by me alone; I'm going to recommend it to other streamers right away!"
"Right, I'm going to order it now, definitely a particularly positive review!"
Watching these silly bullet comments in the live broadcast room, Liu Liang was somewhat amused yet frustrated—what a bunch of characters they were!
My fans are all so mischievous, not following my lead at all!
However, after leaving the review, Liu Liang didn't immediately go to play another game; instead, he opened the game's detail page to check the author's information.
"Stranger? This is also his first game, pretty impressive.
"Huh, located in Jinghai City.
"Jinghai gets big points deducted!"
Liu Liang didn't pay too much attention, though, as there wasn't much more to see in the author profile apart from the default location, so he just remembered the name "Stranger."
At that moment, he was filled with the urge to share.
He was even eager to instantly make a highly viewed video with his rants!
Of course, before making the rant video, he still had to experience the VR version of the game.
Then he could go all out on the game!