Chapter 195: Super Cool Engine Features
When an unknown bug appears in the game and has a destructive impact on the game environment, any normal developer will think of fixing the bug first.
Huang Wenjun is no exception.
But when he tried to troubleshoot and fix the bug, he was shocked to find that the bug had little to do with the game itself, but was a feature of the engine itself.
This may be difficult to understand.
To put it in a more understandable way, let's take the Origin engine, which is a well-known feature of this engine: extra acceleration! When you rotate the view at a constant speed while moving and cooperate with A/D input, you will get an acceleration value based on the degree of view rotation...
This is also the origin of many games developed based on the Origin engine, which can realize various unique practical skills such as aerial acceleration, aerial change of direction, abstract body jumping, etc.
This is a feature of the engine itself, and has little to do with the game itself. So the same technique will most likely work even if you change the game, as long as it's the same engine.
Huang Wenjun is facing the same problem now! The bug reported by players has nothing to do with the game "Legend of Kuafu" he developed. It is completely a feature of the engine.
Although he didn't quite understand why the characteristics of the Tianba engine were so abstract, it was indeed a problem with the engine.
[A letter to all players of "Legend of Kuafu":]
【Since the game was released, sales have exceeded 300,000 copies. Thank you very much for your support! We would like to respond to the abnormal bugs reported by some players. 】
[After investigation, it was found that this bug is not a regular game bug, but is caused by the characteristics of the Tianba engine. The problem has now been reported to the Tianba Studio...]
Huang Wenjun is very honest.
He always speaks his mind and immediately issued an announcement saying that the problem had been resolved.
However, because the bug originated from the Tianba engine, he had no way to solve it. He is actively communicating with the Tianba Studio and hopes that players can wait patiently.
The players who were originally very excited and clamoring for a refund suddenly calmed down a lot after seeing the update announcement.
His attitude also became much gentler.
"See, I told you that this was Brother Ba's problem, but you refused to believe me. Do you believe me now?"
"Brother Ba? It's okay then!"
"If it was any other engine, I definitely wouldn't believe it, but if it's the Tianba engine, it seems pretty reasonable?"
"You were all PUA'd by Brother Ba?"
"It's not that I'm being PUA, but the sun chasing Kuafu is pretty cool! Anyway, I like it. I must kill the sun today..."
After the update announcement was issued, Huang Wenjun was unable to react for a while due to the players’ response attitude.
What happened? How come those people who were so angry and clamoring for a refund suddenly changed their attitude when they heard that the problem came from Tianba Engine? Did Brother Ba really have such great magic that he PUA so many people that they would willingly accept and recognize such a bug? "Is there a possibility that this is not a bug?"
After receiving Huang Wenjun's message, Chen Ba responded immediately: "This is a super cool engine feature. All next-generation AI game engines are like this. Isn't it surprising?"
Huang Wenjun: “…”
Glancing at the reply Chen Ba sent him personally, he realized for the first time that this was the nature of the game engine.
I've really learned a lot! The features of other game engines can only create some surprises for everyone, but Tianba Engine is not a surprise but a shock.
“I give in!”
Huang Wenjun replied with a thumbs-up emoji, and then silently complained in his heart: "If you guys use this broken engine again, I'll be a dog!"
What the hell is this?
In all his time in the industry, he had never seen such an abstract game engine. Bugs of this magnitude could not be called bugs, but engine features? Turtle!
Who dares to use this engine of yours?
…
Chen Ba, who was far away in Jiangning, had no idea that the game developer he had finally tricked into coming was almost scared away by the "magical features" of the Tianba engine.
However, he also knew that if he responded improperly to the "Legend of Kuafu" incident, it would probably scare away many developers.
No, don't go!
Tianba Engine is really useful, believe me! This is just a small accident, it's really not a big deal...
In order to appease the majority of developers and make them believe that Tianba Engine is a reliable game engine and that this was just an accident, Chen Ba quickly wrote a short essay.
The essay is very long.
What this means is that the 1.0 version of Tianba Engine is not stable enough and will continue to be updated and improved in the future.
This engine does have many exclusive features, but these features are like Easter eggs and cannot affect the power of this engine.
Quite the opposite!
It is precisely because of this unique engine feature that the Tianba engine can be called a powerful engine.
After a lot of talk, the developer was finally stabilized by the guarantee that subsequent updates and engine features would not affect the game itself.
certainly!
The reason why these developers can be retained and not run away collectively is mainly because Tianba Engine is so easy to use, convenient and trouble-free.
After using this engine to develop games, I always feel uncomfortable using other engines. Maybe this is what they call "it's easy to go from frugality to luxury, but it's hard to go from luxury to frugality"!
The same goes for Huang Wenjun.
Although he felt that the Tianba engine was very abstract and weird after experiencing it once, he had to admit that it was indeed the best game engine he had ever used.
Chen Ba may be full of lies, but he at least told one truth, that is, there is no substitute for Tianba Engine for many independent game developers! Independent game developers are usually a small team of one or a few people. They use other engines to develop a game, how can it be as convenient and fast as Tianba Engine?
That's why.
Although Huang Wenjun had a bad first experience, he was still willing to trust Brother Ba and believe in the future 2.0 version.
For this reason, he also recommended Tianba Engine to other friends he knew, all of whom were independent game developers...
"Don't worry, the sky won't fall!"
Chen Ba said that Huang Qing, Yang Dong and others were worrying all day long about whether no one would dare to use the Tianba engine, and they were worrying too much.
Everything has two sides.
We cannot just look at the bad side, nor can we just look at the good side. We need to combine them to make the most fair judgment.
Is the Tianba engine bad? Just looking at the game "Legend of Kuafu", it is indeed bad. After all, the game is not well made, and it also has such a weird and abstract engine feature. Who wouldn't be scared after seeing it?
But it would be too one-sided to conclude that the Tianba engine cannot be used or is not easy to use.
Again, for independent game developers like Huang Wenjun, once they have experienced the Tianba engine, it is difficult for them to give it up.
"Why?"
Xiao Lu scratched his head and asked, "Our engine has a feature, and this feature will cause all kinds of strange bugs in the game. Aren't they worried?"
“I’m worried!”
"But the worry is not going to affect their continued use of the Tianba engine."
Chen Ba explained: "Because the Tianba engine is so easy to use, it is enough for them to ignore this shortcoming or hidden danger."
A typical example of more advantages than disadvantages! In fact, Chen Ba himself has the same mentality. When he is developing a new game, isn't he worried about the bugs that may appear in the new game? Of course he is worried! But if he is worried about this situation and completely abandons the Tiehanhan system and develops a game independently, it is also unrealistic.
As long as the benefits outweigh the disadvantages, it is acceptable. The Iron-Han-Han system has caused a lot of trouble. As long as the benefits it brings outweigh the trouble, Chen Ba will not give up because of choking.
This is especially true for the Tianba engine.
The claim of a next-generation AI engine may be a bit exaggerated, but compared with other competitors' engines on the market, Tianba engine is extremely easy to use and saves trouble.
There is currently no better alternative to this advantage.
Therefore, many independent game developers, even though they know that Brother Ba has bad intentions and the engine he launched has major flaws, will still use it.
Besides, didn’t you hear what Brother Ba said? This is only the 1.0 version of Tianba Engine. There will be 2.0 and 3.0 versions in the future! Life will definitely get better and better...
There is no mistake in the poem, post, content, and read the book on 6, 9, and bar!
"That's true!"
Huang Qing analyzed carefully: "A game engine that is powerful enough and convenient is indeed very tempting."
It doesn't matter even if this engine has a ridiculous feature.
Being useful is the key!
As for using this game to develop games, will there be any problems, or does it seem acceptable to follow the old path of "The Legend of Kuafu"?
After all, no one is blind...
Before the bug appeared in "Legend of Kuafu", the popularity of the game was quite low, and the number of people discussing it and the sales of the game were not high.
But since "Kuafu chases the sun" became "The sun chases Kuafu", the popularity of the game has obviously increased a lot, and sales have almost doubled.
If the game bug is caused by this engine feature, then everyone can indeed accept it.
"Then here comes the question!"
"When we update our Tianba engine to version 1.1, do we need to eliminate this engine feature?"
"unnecessary!"
Chen Ba rolled his eyes.
Xiao Lu is really bold! He even eliminated the engine characteristics. If he could eliminate this characteristic, "Study Simulator" would not have become "Cowherding Simulator".
Don't even think about this kind of thing.
At least he doesn't have the ability, and apart from him, no one else in the studio can even understand the core code, which is even worse.
"By the way, Mr. Chen!"
Yang Dong seemed to have thought of something, raised his eyebrows and asked, "Does Global Evolution have a companion DLC?"
"Yes, what's wrong?"
Even "Need for Speed" had a companion DLC. It would be strange for "Global Evolution", a 3A game, to not have a companion DLC.
The DLC content is simple.
There is an additional map, which is equivalent to a different space. There will be many contents in this new map that are not included in the main body, such as new BOSS and new side plots, etc.
Chen Ba was very curious. Why did Yang Dong suddenly bring this up? Was there something wrong with this DLC?
"The DLC is fine, but the combination of the DLC and the main game is problematic!"
Yang Dong explained: "The environment of the game itself is already very bad. The number of players who evolve into BOSS is twice that of ordinary players."
The greatest pleasure for these players who evolve into BOSSes is to torture normal players.
How can normal players bear this?
But they either don't push the plot and don't go to the wild, or as soon as they push the plot and go to the wild, they can't escape the clutches.
It wasn't until someone discovered that the companion map DLC could actually become a shelter that normal players were able to find relief.
As long as you enter the new DLC map, these players who have evolved into story level bosses will not be able to enter and will not pose a threat to normal players.
Normal players can develop quietly and accumulate strength in this picture, then return to the normal world map to show those players who have evolved into level bosses what the horror of "numerical crushing" means.
BOSS players are very dissatisfied! What's the matter? Normal players bought the DLC, and BOSS players also bought it!
Everyone has bought the DLC, so why can humans enter new maps, but cannot enter when they evolve into level bosses? "But they are bosses!"
Chen Ba frowned and said, "It's okay for ordinary wilderness bosses, but how can a story level boss run around randomly? That would be a mess!"
After evolving into a story level boss, players will lose a certain degree of freedom.
Usually, I go wherever I want.
That is, when you are not interacting with other players, you can run around even if you are in boss form.
However, once other players are going through the story and the level BOSS needs to appear, the player who has evolved into the BOSS will be forcibly teleported back to the BOSS decisive battle scene.
This is also what BOSS players are dissatisfied with.
They think that this "fixed scene" mechanism is too rigid!
Why must the battle location be restricted to that particular scene? Can't we change the location? Can't we choose the battle location ourselves? "Our boss's life is also a life, and it needs to be protected! We can't be bound and imprisoned, we want freedom..."
The inability to enter the DLC map was just a fuse, and soon countless BOSS players launched a protest, demanding that Tianba Studio lift the restrictions on story level BOSSes.
From now on, it is not just the players who actively look for the BOSS when they need to pass the plot, but the BOSS can also take the initiative to look for the players. A two-way love is the real love!
"Running in both directions..."
After learning about the players' requests, Chen Ba's mouth twitched: "Are you sure this is a two-way rush, not a one-way chase?"
Leave some room for ordinary players to survive!
The game environment is already very bad, and every day is like walking on thin ice. If the plot boss can come to you, what's the point of playing? Just surrender!
But then again, because there are too many BOSS players and too few normal players, many BOSS players are indeed a bit bored, and they must be given something to do.
What if there are not enough players to kill? There are so many NPCs in the game! Anyway, they have evolved into fierce beast bosses, so it is reasonable for players to stand in the fierce beast camp and hunt NPCs, right? "In the future, the tasks of these BOSS players will not only prevent other players from passing the plot, but also face challenges from various NPCs."
Chen Ba explained: "In other words, if you can't defeat a boss or get through a plot, you can ask an NPC to help you."
In this way, BOSS players will not lack opponents, and normal players can also pass the plot. After all, if they can't beat them, they can still ask NPCs for help. Who is afraid of who? (End of this chapter)