Nebula Gas' break room.
During the lunch break, Rachel and Anna were relaxing on massage chairs. Nearby, Hector and a few others were locked in battle with the claw machine.
"The company's perks just keep getting better!" Anna said happily, sipping on a bubble tea.
"The company's got way more funding now, and there are so many new people—it's kinda hard to get used to. We're a pretty big team now, right?" Rachel said with so emotion.
Thinking back, it still didn't feel real to her.
This ti last year, she was still at ho drawing doujin.
"We're not really a big team yet—still more of a mid-sized one," Anna replied.
"By the way, Anna, I heard we're going to that gaplay Expo soon?" Rachel asked.
"Yeah, Lisa ntioned it. And didn't Boss Lucas already go check out the event site before?" Anna said.
"I've been before too, but only as a visitor. Now we actually get to be one of the exhibitors!" Rachel said, clearly excited.
Just then, Hector and the others, finally giving up on the claw machine, ca over to join them.
"We're going too, huh? Only about two months left. Wonder if Boss Lucas has a new project planned?" Hector said with a hopeful look.
A new project—sothing everyone at Nebula Gas was always excited about.
From a personal and emotional point of view, seeing players respond to your work is a huge reward.
And if the project does well...
...the bonuses are no joke!
Outlast before the new year, Overcooked after it—both tis, Lucas handed out big bonuses when the projects succeeded.
"Feels like two months might be a bit too tight though," one of the new employees said.
"Yeah, two months sounds rushed. But who knows—it's just an expo, not a full release," another one added.
"You guys are still new. Once we start the next project, you'll see why Boss Lucas is where he is today!" Hector said with a knowing smile.
"Totally right!" the older staff nearby said, full of anticipation.
Back-to-back hits like Outlast and Overcooked, plus their one-of-a-kind developnt style and super clean team managent—everything ran like a bug-free machine.
Most of the veteran staff had basically beco hardcore Lucas fans by now.
They were still chatting when Anna suddenly let out a surprised shout.
"Check the work group chat! There's a eting this afternoon about a new project!" She waved her phone in the air.
"Must be for the Expo, right?"
"Wonder what kind of project it'll be?"
"Maybe it's multiplayer? Didn't they say the company would be focusing more on that?"
"Who knows? We'll just follow Boss Lucas's lead. We'll find out this afternoon."
The whole team got excited the mont they saw the ssage Lucas had posted in the work chat.
Everyone started guessing what kind of project might be coming next.
.........
In the afternoon, employees started clocking in one after another.
Lucas showed up with his laptop and called everyone into the eting room.
"I'm sure most of you have already heard—we'll be taking part in the gaplay expo this May. And not just that—we'll be one of the main booths in Zone 6."
The booth was around 500 square ters. Not as big as the top companies,
but still solid compared to most mid-sized studios.
A lot of this was thanks to To the Moon being selected for an official showcase, and then the two hit gas they released right after.
Everyone nodded as Lucas spoke, with a bit of excitent showing on their faces.
Lucas smiled, and three folders popped up on the big screen.
Each one was labeled with a number: 1, 2, and 3.
"This ti, we'll be showing off sothing new to the players at the expo—but it's going to be a tight schedule." Lucas looked around the room. "We'll be developing two new gas at the sa ti, and on top of that, we need to produce a trailer for a real AAA project we'll be making later."
"Wait, what?!"
Anna, Rachel, and Hector—all the older staff at Nebula Gas—were stunned.
The newer employees, who had only joined after the new year, looked like they couldn't believe what they were hearing.
Two months, two gas, and on top of that, a trailer for a major title.
Even though everyone knew that making a trailer wasn't the sa as actual ga developnt — most of the ti you just set up a few simple scenes and hand it off to a CG animation company — still, two gas in two months?
Even a workhorse wouldn't survive that!
Even longti team mbers like Rachel, Anna, and Hector — who all knew how fast Lucas could work — were full of doubt.
If it was just a playable demo for a convention, maybe. That could be done.
But judging by Lucas's tone, it sounded like he wanted to finish the full gas.
Was that even possible?
Everyone sat there full of questions as they listened to Lucas explain the two new gas they'd be making.
"First is Legends of the Three Kingdoms, a strategy card battle ga. I've already finished the core gaplay and rules. You can take a quick look first."
As Lucas spoke, the rules of Legends of the Three Kingdoms appeared on the big screen through the projector.
So rough drafts of generals and cards were shown alongside.
"In the ga, there are four roles — Ruler, Rebel, Loyalist, and Spy. Players can freely choose famous generals from the Three Kingdoms, and each general has their own special skills."
"There are also three types of cards: Basic, Equipnt, and Strategy."
Lucas gave a quick overview of the core chanics of Legends of the Three Kingdoms to help everyone get a feel for it.
Ti was short, so he didn't go too deep into the details.
But no one there was a complete beginner.
Rachel, for example, had been part of several projects since last year and had done so upskilling during that ti, so with the design docs, she could more or less understand it.
Everyone quickly pieced together how the ga would probably play. They didn't know exactly how it would feel yet — but one thing was clear: this ga wasn't going to be that hard to make.
The real ti sink would be voiceovers and the art assets.
And those could be outsourced.
If one outsourcing studio couldn't handle it, they'd hire two.
Legends of the Three Kingdoms was almost no challenge to develop — the real focus would be the second ga, and that "major title" Lucas had ntioned.
Everyone stared at Lucas, waiting for him to reveal the next project.
Lucas looked at them with a smile. "The next ga will be super relaxing, and bring players a kind of joy that's hard to describe. It's going to be peaceful and full of good vibes."
If this were a manga, Rachel, Anna, and Hector would probably all have black question marks floating above their heads right now.
Why did that sound so familiar?
(End of The Chapter)
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