Anna and Rachel looked completely confused.
"You're not making a sequel to Undertale, and you're not making another TA ga either?" Anna just couldn't wrap her head around it.
Rachel felt the sa way.
Right now, the dia is still filled with reviews and articles about Undertale.
On ga dev forums, where many industry professionals hang out, there's a ton of discussion analyzing the design and structure of Undertale.
This new kind of elent really seed like it could beco a trend.
Even so studios and designers had already publicly announced that they were starting projects inspired by TA concepts.
And now Lucas was saying he wasn't going to do that anymore?
If word got out, it would shock a lot of people.
Before Undertale, no one really cared about TA in gas.
Normally, with a hit like this, the smart move would be to strike while the iron's hot—like how Mirror got DLC soon after.
At the very least, launch a brand-new TA-style ga.
In fact, Rachel and Anna had already talked about it in private.
They thought their next project might be a prequel to Undertale.
After all, the stories of the little goat and Chara in the ga were only briefly touched on, never fully explored.
And now Lucas was telling them there would be no sequel to Undertale, not even another TA ga?
"It's not the right fit," Lucas explained, "and TA as a concept is very limited. Undertale hit hard because players didn't see it coming. They weren't ntally ready, and most of them had no idea what TA even was."
"If we release another TA ga now, it definitely won't have the sa impact as Undertale. In fact, because of those first impressions, players might think the quality is going downhill."
Lucas explained this clearly to the two of them.
Others might not get it, but Lucas understood TA gas very well.
In his original tiline, TA gas were nothing new anymore.
ICEY, The Stanley Parable, Pony Island, and the one Lucas chose to develop—Undertale.
These were all standouts.
But the top sellers were Undertale and ICEY.
The Stanley Parable, which was actually the one that introduced TA to many players, didn't sell as well as those two later titles.
And Pony Island? A lot of players had never even heard of it.
The main reason is simple: TA doesn't work well as the main selling point.
If you look closely, you'll see that ICEY mixed in a lot of action gaplay.
Undertale, though it turned RPGs on their head, was really a mix of RPG chanics and bullet hell gaplay.
Both Undertale and ICEY used TA elents to support the main ga.
But Pony Island and The Stanley Parable relied heavily on TA, with very little else backing it up.
TA can absolutely blow players away when used right.
But it's better as a supporting elent—sothing that adds flavor and creates chemistry with the rest of the ga.
Even in his previous life, many big titles followed this idea.
Like the tal Gear series, with bosses like Psycho Mantis who could read the player's inputs.
Like the final ending in NieR: Automata, where the player's save file is used to help others—that's another example of a TA elent.
These kinds of things are TA in nature, but they're more like supporting features than the core of the ga.
The reason Undertale beca such a success wasn't just because of its TA stuff.
After Lucas finished explaining, Rachel and Anna still looked a little lost.
They understood… but not completely.
Still, there was one thing they did get.
Making another TA ga probably wouldn't make much money, and might not even be well received.
If more and more ga studios start adding TA elents, players might just get sick of it.
"So what kind of ga should we make next?" Anna asked Lucas.
"We'll go for sothing small for now—kind of like a transition project. And we'll need to grow the team too," Lucas replied.
"As for the type… check this out."
He opened the laptop next to him and went to a website—the official Ga Division hopage.
Rachel and Anna looked on, still a bit confused, as Lucas opened up a public notice.
"Science is the driving force behind human progress; with its rapid developnt, our lives are changing in huge ways. This ti, the Ga Division is holding a sci-fi ga competition under the the: 'Technology Changes Life.'"
1. Who can enter: All ga designers in the country.
2. Requirents: Any platform is fine. The the should be positive and aningful.
3. Organizer: Hosted by the national Ga Division, with both expert judging and player voting to ensure fairness.
4. Awards: Based on the total number of entries, there will be one first prize, three second prizes, six third prizes, and several honorable ntions.
Winning entries will be featured and promoted on the official platform hopage.
Winners will also be recognized as "Outstanding Ga Designers" as a form of encouragent.
(Registration is open from September 1st to 5th. The event ends at the end of September.)
"Are we really joining this?" Anna asked, clearly surprised.
She had heard of the event before.
Even though it's open to all ga designers, most of the participants are indie developers or small studios.
Of course, there are real benefits—after all, it's hosted by the Ga Division, which handles ga approval, designer titles, engine developnt, and ga policy. They're basically in charge of everything.
Getting visibility from them can only be a good thing.
And being promoted on the hopage of the official platform? That's a huge win.
That platform is one of the biggest in the country.
As for why big studios don't join—well, for them, this kind of contest is a waste of ti.
Their high-budget projects already get more than enough attention.
And those big-budget gas are mainly made for profit.
Profit-focused gas often rely on things that get attention.
Even if you don't count violence or fanservice, stuff like multiple love interests and harem setups… that kind of content wouldn't look good in a governnt-sponsored event.
So naturally, big-budget gas don't enter.
Most of the entries co from indie devs and small studios—though so studios owned by major companies also take part.
(End of Chapter)
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