C175: The Quality That a Conscientious Designer Should Have 

As days passed, the popularity of the game raising the hammer on the Internet began to wane. Unlike previous hits like Divide and Dark Souls, this simple game lacked depth.

The main focus of discussions wasn't about the content, but rather the frequent crashes players experienced during gameplay. The surrounding buzz is a fleeting gust of wind.

However, despite its short-lived life, it inspired countless indie designers to follow its step. After all, the interest it initially generated was extraordinary, and the cost is relatively low.

For Chen Xu, though, this trajectory was of little concern. At this moment, he was at the Galaxy Intelligent Technology Company.

"Has the AI technology research bore some result?" Chen Xu asked, as he listened to the researcher's report.

Without drawing attention, he looked at the system's UI interface. The countdown on the progress bar of the golden prop was still running. Could there already be results?

It felt akin to an incomplete version of a game midway through development.

"Yes, Mr. Chen," Zhong Yue replied,

"Based on big data analysis and its application in the field, we've made optimizations and improvements…"

Although many terms went over his head, Chen Xu grasped the gist of what Zhong Yue explained. The AI technology they developed for applications had reached a stage where patent copyrights were being secured globally. Significant breakthroughs had been made, but a gap still existed between the prototype and a flawless performance. More testing and optimization were required.

Nonetheless, the prototype was functional and ready for commercial take out.

"I'd like to take a look," Chen Xu said.

He followed Zhong Yue to the lab, where tests were conducted on a large screen. The test subject was an internal demo of Dark Souls: The Age of First Fire, still under development, primarily used for various value assessments.

Since it's a beta version, many monsters were randomly included. For instance, Ash Gouda was inserted into the ancient undead asylum.

After some adjustments by Zhong Yue and the staff, Chen Xu observed a live demonstration.

In an empty courtyard, Ash Gouda was summoned and placed at the center. Opposite him, a common living corpse with a short sword was spawned.

However, this wasn't the typical living corpse. New actions had been programmed into its behavior, such as rolling and running.

Ash Gouda still operated using the original AI logic, while the living corpse utilized the newly developed AI technology.

The official demonstration began. In the game, a living corpse appeared. With the addition of rolling and running, it's an uncanny undead warrior who had weathered countless battles.

The movements were precise—rolling to dodge, stabbing a knife in the back, and perfectly timing attacks during the gaps in the Ash Guda's assault. The result was a series of maneuvers, each executed flawlessly.

Ash Guda's health bar was chipped as if leaking tap. Unlike the fragile players who could withstand two hits, this living corpse could barely take one. However, Ash Guda never landed a single strike. Like a machine, the living corpse evaded every attack with precision.

It was clear that if equipped with a shield and additional actions, this AI could flawlessly block and counter Ash Guda without issue.

"Applying this AI to the game will make it nearly impossible for players to succeed," Chen Xu remarked.

The original Dark Souls was already notorious for its difficulty. Because of the bosses' attack patterns, which were traceable, It's still unforgiving. However, with this AI's intelligence, even though the monster stats remained unchanged, the challenge had significantly increased. Players would not only need to master the monsters' skill sets but also develop on-the-spot reactions to survive. Coupled with the ultra-high damage and minimal room for error inherent to Dark Souls, would anyone even be able to clear the game?

"Cough, this is just the advanced mode," Zhong Yue explained quickly. "Our optimization primarily focuses on enhancing the AI's performance. The difficulty can be adjusted as needed."

"Alright, debug it further," Chen Xu instructed. "Additionally, for this new AI technology, let's first test it out in some special game modes."

Incorporating this AI directly into the main game wasn't feasible for now. However, after completing the development of the Dark Souls prequel, it could be implemented in a new game mode.

Reflecting on the success of the random mode introduced in the previous installment, Chen Xu decided it would return in this new project. Yet, there was an opportunity to go further by introducing a completely new challenge: Death Mode.

In a previous era, Dark Souls had a version referred to as the Death Version. Though this iteration was mostly an annual update with added content and patches, the concept of this mode had resonated with players.

This time, Chen Xu aimed to give fans an even greater surprise. The Kings would no longer rest in his lair. He would emerge, summoning powerful skeleton mobs that would wreak havoc and test even the most skilled players.

Artorias was invaded by the abyss, and the once-reliable shield had rotted without use. How can this be acceptable?

The legendary Sun King Gwen once passed on the fire, leaving behind only a charred shell. Easy to block, Gwen was reduced to one of the weakest bosses, forgetting even the famous Spear. Is that really fitting for someone of his stature?

Many bosses, and even other players, fall far short of their peak combat effectiveness when they finally face challenges. How can this be justified? If these formidable enemies can't be fought in their heyday, wouldn't that be a huge disservice to the players?

Although players have started to form some affection for the game, as a conscientious designer who cares deeply about delivering the most perfect gaming experience, such regrets cannot be tolerated.

Of course, introducing this new mode will need to wait. It should only be released after the game's official launch, and perhaps after some time has passed.

Upon returning from Galaxy Technology Company, Chen Xu reviewed the development progress of Dark Soul: The Age of First Fire.

Thanks to the flawless combat system from the previous game, the other aspects of development weren't particularly challenging. Most of the scenes were nearly complete.

When Qin Yi, Ruan Ningxue, and Yang Xin examined the map, they were amazed by its vast, seamless design. Despite its size, the player's journey through the game was perfectly structured.

The different maps connected beautifully, requiring players to explore and uncover the intricate designs within.

Players would often exclaim, "Oh, I'm back here again!" only to realize they had taken a different route. Sometimes, it was another discovery: "Wait, how did I end up back here?"

The undead, of course, weren't skilled at climbing walls, sliding doors, or making leaps. But the map's elegance and, most notably, the clever monster placements left Qin Yi and the others uneasy.

"Mr. Chen, this fire-passing sacrificial ground leads directly to later stages of the game! Shouldn't we leave some warnings or lock it?" Qin Yi asked nervously while placing down monsters according to instructions.

Even the undead town outside the novice village was incredibly challenging, let alone the high-level areas around the sacrificial ground.

"No, leaving advice for players. How does that make sense?"

"The plot is designed this way. Locking it would mean hand-holding players, essentially teaching them how to play. That's robbing them of their freedom of choice!"

"As a designer committed to creating meaningful experiences, I would never do such a thing!" Chen Xu declared, sipping tea with absolute conviction.

Qin Yi glanced at the monitor, watching the development progress in silence. It was difficult to argue.

After all, it really did make sense.