After a leisurely dinner out and a casual stroll, Ichin and Utaha returned ho.
When Ichin stepped into the bedroom after taking a shower, he noticed Utaha sitting on the carpet, tablet in hand. He raised an eyebrow. "Why haven't you dried your hair yet?"
Utaha looked up at him with a mischievous smile. "I was waiting for you to help , Ichin~~."
With a resigned shrug, Ichin picked up the hairdryer from the table, plugged it in, and sat on the bed behind her to dry her hair.
Utaha's freshly washed hair carried a faint, pleasant scent of shampoo, which was further dispersed by the warm air from the hairdryer. Relaxing as Ichin dried her hair, she set the tablet aside and closed her eyes in contentnt.
"Ichin, it's the end of June now. There's only a month left until sumr vacation. With the increased workload at the studio, don't forget about your final exams," she reminded him gently.
"Don't worry, I won't," Ichin replied confidently, moving the hairdryer back and forth. "You already know my grades—this is no big deal for ."
"Still, I'm just giving you a heads-up. I know you'll be spending most of your ti at the studio soon," Utaha said, turning to face him and montarily stopping the hairdryer. "And let be clear—I'll be keeping an eye on you. No late nights! I don't want you burning out, Ichin."
"Got it, got it. No all-nighters," Ichin chuckled, gently pinching her cheek. "Most of the work will be distributed among the team. It's just a demo, nothing too difficult. I'll only be responsible for a part of it. My main focus will be on creating the promotional PV for Hollow Knight. That's the task that will take the most effort."
While Ichin had experience making videos, his previous ones were simple showcases of Slay the Spire. Crafting an official promotional PV for a ga was a much more complex challenge, one he knew he'd need to put significant effort into.
Utaha, now lying on her back with her head resting on Ichin's lap, continued to let him dry her hair.
"Sumr vacation is almost here, Ichin. You won't need to attend the Gascom event in person, right?"
"No, we won't. Our involvent will be limited to the PV for the showcase and the demo for the on-site gaplay. Nintendo's staff will handle the rest, so there's no need for us developers to go. But in a couple of years, when we create a major, fully polished title, we might have to attend these events ourselves," Ichin explained.
The world's major gaming expos, such as Germany's Gascom, Arica's E3, and Japan's Tokyo Ga Show, were renowned within the industry.
Of course, so might bring up ChinaJoy (CJ) in China. Frankly, Ichin wasn't sure if it could truly be counted among the world's premier events. Having attended before, he found it to be a mixed bag, with the quality becoming more inconsistent each year.
With CJ's upcoming event looming, Ichin felt no inclination to participate. He'd rather focus on preparing for Gascom.
After drying Utaha's hair, Ichin quickly dried his own.
Finally, he settled down at the desk in their bedroom, ready to start brainstorming ideas for the Hollow Knight promotional PV.
The promotional PV for Hollow Knight didn't require flashy or extravagant cinematic cutscenes. Instead, it needed to focus on showcasing the ga itself while reflecting its overall aesthetic—both in narrative and gaplay style.
Ichin opened a docunt and began typing as he contemplated the structure.
"First, the screen is pitch black, accompanied by slow, haunting music. Gradually, a faint light reveals the twisted, eerie architecture in the background. Then, the light bursts, creating a montary blur that transitions into the character reveal. Next, the protagonist appears, walking along a dark path. Close-ups follow, highlighting the protagonist's face, weapon, and cloak.
The scene cuts to the protagonist standing at the edge of a cliff, gazing at the distant destination before drawing their weapon and leaping down. The music intensifies, leading to an action montage: the protagonist fighting minor enemies, then elite creatures, and finally a few early-ga bosses.
For the final shot, the ultimate boss appears—its form intentionally blurred—while the small protagonist stands face-to-face with the massive foe. The screen fades to black, and the ga's title is revealed.
Yeah, this should work," Ichin concluded.
Utaha, who had been quietly standing behind him, watched as he wrote. Once he finished, she wrapped her arms around him from behind, resting her chin on his shoulder. "Did they give you any restrictions on the PV's length?"
"Not really," Ichin replied, shaking his head. "They just said not to make it too long. Besides, I don't plan to make it overly lengthy. It just needs to give players a sense of the ga's style and chanics. Hollow Knight isn't a massive ga, so there's no point in creating an overly elaborate PV that reveals too much. Still, we'll need custom music for the PV, so I'll need to contact the outsourced composers. I forgot to tell Hazuki earlier, but Monday will be fine."
While Slay the Spire relied heavily on free resources for its music, with a small portion purchased, Ichin wanted Hollow Knight to have higher-quality sound design. He had already asked Hazuki to connect him with a music company for outsourcing so in-ga tracks, especially for key boss battles, ensuring the audio stood out.
Making a note about the music on his phone, Ichin sighed in relief. "Thankfully, the success of Slay the Spire has given the studio enough funds to afford this outsourcing. Otherwise, I wouldn't dare splurge, even if it's just a few tracks."
"Is it that expensive?" Utaha asked.
"Not too bad," Ichin said with a smile, rubbing his cheek against hers. "Since I'm only outsourcing part of the soundtrack and using so suitable free material, the cost is manageable. But if this were a 3D ga, outsourcing tasks like 3D modeling would be far pricier, especially if you hire top-tier companies. Anyway, the PV content is mostly planned. Next, I can start working on the necessary assets."
After closing the docunt, Ichin spun his chair around and pulled Utaha into his arms.
"It's 9 p.m. now. Ready to call it a day?"
"Yeah, I'm a bit tired," Utaha admitted with a smile.
Ichin chuckled, holding her close as he carried her to the bed.
---
With the end of final exams, the students of Toyogasaki finally welcod their long-awaited sumr break.
As he stepped out of the school gates, Ichin exhaled deeply, a grin spreading across his face. "Finally, sumr vacation. Let's go ho, Utaha."
Just two steps later, his phone buzzed.
It was a ssage from Hazuki:
Ichin-kun, can you bring everyone so bubble tea on your way back?
Peeking at the ssage, Utaha giggled. "What do you think, Ichin? Should we get it?"
"Yeah, let's. I want so too," Ichin replied.
As the two headed toward the bubble tea shop, far away in China, soone in Ichin's family was busy packing their luggage.
...
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