Villain’s Programming - Chapter 278



Only Noblemtl

Episode 278 Liaowei

Dojun was shocked when he saw a promotional video for Baeksent’s new game on YouTube.

‘What is this, isn’t this the Prince Youngyo?’

It was certain. The name of the game that came out after the promotional video was written as ‘Wang Zi Ying Yo (王者荣耀)’.

“What… What’s going on? Why is this game already out?”

Prince Rongyao (王者荣耀) was a mobile version of LOL (Legend of League) released by Baeksent in 2015 in its previous life.

Although LOL is not well known in Korea because it is so popular, it gained explosive popularity in Chinese-speaking countries including China and Southeast Asia.

It was even more popular than LOL in China.

‘It was so popular that the soldiers of the People’s Liberation Army played the game so often that they judged game addiction to be the cause of their decreased combat effectiveness.’

Sales were also huge, matching its popularity. In 2016, monthly sales were $150 million (about 165 billion won), and in 2020, they reached $230 million (about 253 billion won).

‘Ha, this is ridiculous. How did Baeksent develop this game? No, what kind of guts did these guys have to release this game?’

Dojun continued to watch the YouTube video with a dumbfounded expression. It was the same. He copied the PC version of LoL as is.

‘In my previous life, the owner of RIOT was Baek Cent, so it wasn’t a problem to copy it, but not anymore. I am the owner of RIOT.’

Gamers who watched the video also seemed to agree with Dojun’s thoughts, as the comments were full of curses.

– What am I looking at? Isn’t this LOL?

– No. That’s wrong. Look at the characters. They’re all historical figures from China. There are also figures from Chinese legends. They’re two different games.

– Is the guy who commented above a Joseonjok? Or a Chinese?

– Are you guys in your right mind, Baeksent? Is this a case of a lawsuit?

– You will never be sued. Baeksent is a Chinese company, and in China, when there is a copyright dispute, the Chinese company wins.

Dojun read the comment and made a serious expression.

‘This is the problem. You can’t have copyright disputes in China.’

It may be argued, but it was absolutely in favor of Chinese companies.

Even if it was clearly plagiarized, the dispute was effectively meaningless as it dragged on for 5 or 10 years until a ruling was made.

“Ha. That really hit the nail on the head.”

Dojun no longer cared about ‘Baeksent’ since Ma Hwa-teng was gone. However, he did not know that he would attack like this.

‘Who could it be? No, did Baeksent really develop this?’

Since Baeksent had developed ‘Prince Youngyo’ in his previous life, it wouldn’t be strange for him to develop it this time too.

‘The question is timing. Why is a game coming out in 2012 when it should be coming out in 2015?’

Moreover, the previous life and game name were the same, and even the character designs were the same. I didn’t think this was a coincidence.

‘It’s weird. If we were developing this game internally, Minmay would have noticed, but she didn’t seem to notice.’

It takes a long time to develop a single game. It takes at least one to two years, and no matter how thoroughly you hide the game development, you can’t silence all the developers.

‘The fact that Baeksent made this game in a very short period of time… That’s impossible. So did they bring in a game made somewhere else? No, there is no company that can make a mobile game of this level right now. Then, could it be… A chain letter, that one?’

It was also strange that they said that they had sent a letter of good luck. In games, the ‘program source’ was important, but the ‘art resource’ was equally important.

Even if the program source code was compressed to a few tens of megabytes, the art resources were in the ‘gigabyte’ range.

‘The characters in the video are exactly the same as the ones I saw in my past life. So, that means they sent this too, but that doesn’t make sense.’

Dojun thought about it more, but couldn’t come to a conclusion.

‘Ha. I can’t find an answer.’

But he couldn’t just sit back and do nothing. If Prince Youngyo was as popular as he was in his previous life, Baeksent would definitely regain the glory of his previous life.

‘That won’t work.’

If Baeksent succeeded on his own, Dojun was willing to applaud him wholeheartedly.

However, ‘Wang Ziyongyo’ was a game that copied LoL. As the owner of RIOT, I couldn’t just sit still.

‘What should I do with Prince Yeong-yo?’

When he couldn’t think of a way to respond, Dojun started reading the comments again.

– No matter how much you struggle here, in 10 years, no, in 5 years, Chinese games will dominate Korea. Historically, Korea has never been able to beat China.

There were numerous rebuttals to the article written by someone who appeared to be Chinese.

Dojun’s eyes sparkled as he read the text.

‘Wait a minute, Korea can’t beat China?’

Dojun could have come up with a hundred historical facts to refute this, but he didn’t bother to do so. The comments gave him a good idea.

‘Yes, it’s hard to beat a Chinese game with a Korean game in China. But an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. What if you fight a Chinese game with a Chinese game?’

* * *

“CEO, congratulations again on your inauguration as CEO.”

Liao Weisheng nodded at Secretary Baekseon’s words.

“Thank you. Please take care of me in the future. I should know something.”

“No. I know that you have achieved great results since you were the former head of the game headquarters. That is why you were appointed as the representative. You are also trusted by the party.”

“Haha. I appreciate your words.”

Liao Weisheng smiled and patted the secretary’s shoulder.

‘If that’s a skill, then it’s a skill.’

Liao Weisheng met a man in the United States some time ago.

A man who identified himself as Bruce gave Liao Weisheng a USB file and a “word” to convey to Communist Party official Zhong Weijun.

‘I was really possessed. I became the CEO of Baeksent with just one file and a few words.’

Of course, it wasn’t free.

‘There was a price to pay for doing one thing, but it was the thing I wanted most in the world.’

The chief secretary said as Liao Weisheng stroked the nameplate with his name on it.

“Then, sir, I will tell you about the afternoon schedule.”

“Ah. Keep your afternoon schedule clear.”

“Yes? Do you have other plans?”

“I should go see former CEO Ma Huateng.”

The chief secretary said with an expression of admiration.

“Ah! As expected, you are the CEO. Okay. Then I will take you to the hospital.”

Liao Weisheng shook his head.

“No. I want to go alone.”

“Okay, I’ll have the car on standby.”

When the car was ready, Liao Weicheng went to the VIP room of the hospital where Ma Huateng was hospitalized. The doctor tried to come in, but Liao Weicheng said he wanted to be alone with Ma Huateng.

Liao Weicheng slowly approached Ma Huateng, who was lying down. Ma Huateng was lying on the hospital bed, with an oxygen respirator attached and a cast on his entire body.

“Representative Ma, did you know that? Today, I was inaugurated as the representative of Baeksent.”

Liao Weisheng spoke, but Ma Huateng had no reaction.

“But I’m not happy. I used to really like this place.”

Liao Weisheng looked out the window of his hospital room. Perhaps because it was the best VIP room in the best hospital in Shenzhen, he could see Shenzhen at a glance.

“Representative Ma, do you remember that I went to prison in your place? Instead, you promised to give my family a lot of money and give me a good job when I got out of prison?”

Despite Liao Weisheng’s words, Ma Huateng did not move at all.

“You kept your promise. As expected, you were a man of integrity. But you know what? Because of that integrity, everything was ruined for me. No, to be exact, it was my greed and ignorance that ruined me.”

Liao Weicheng bit his lips tightly.

“Until then, I didn’t know what it was like to go to prison. I didn’t know how hard prison life would be, and I didn’t know what would happen to my family if I were gone.”

Liao Weicheng continued speaking, his body trembling slightly as he recalled that time.

“Prison was hell. I was beaten by the other inmates every day. And that wasn’t all. By perverts… … .”

Liao Weicheng bit his lips, unable to continue speaking.

“But I could bear it. I had a bright future guaranteed to me. Besides, this was the path I had chosen. But then an unexpected problem arose. My family. I thought that if I had enough money, my family would be fine. But… that wasn’t the case.”

Liao Weisheng sighed deeply.

“With the money you gave me, my family lived in material abundance. However, I wasn’t there. At first, my wife came to visit me often, but she gradually became less frequent, and then one day, she stopped coming to visit me. I found out that she had a boyfriend after my friend came to visit me.”

Liao Weicheng stood up from his chair and looked at the VIP room table. There was a photo of Ma Huateng’s family there.

Liao Weisheng said while looking at the photo.

“But there was a bigger problem. Do you know what it is? You have a child, right? I have one too. My precious one. Like all parents, I went to prison for my son. But my son was beaten by kids at school. Do you know why? It was because there was a rumor that his father was a criminal. In the end, my son stopped going to school and was expelled. My wife was obsessed with a man and didn’t even know about it. Hehe.”

Liao Weicheng said, clutching Ma Huateng’s family photo tightly.

“I only found out about my son after I got out of prison. I can’t tell you how much I cried then. I really wanted to die. I felt so stupid for making that choice in the past. But I had to live. I wanted to show my son the proud father he was, not the criminal. I swore then. I would take everything away. I would make up for what I had broken.”

Liao Weicheng put Ma Huateng’s family photo back on the table. There was a crack in the glass of the family photo on the frame.

Liao Weisheng turned around and said.

“So, watch from there. How I make a hundred cents.”

– Boom!

The door closed loudly. Ma Huateng was now alone in the hospital room. The hospital room was filled with silence. At that moment, Ma Huateng’s eyebrows shook slightly.

* * *

Dojun immediately contacted Minmay and asked her to look into some things.

– Why are you curious about the current smartphone penetration rate and smartphone specifications in China?

“First, investigate and let me know. I’ll give you the answer later. Anyway, you have to do this. Isn’t it time for JM-SOFT to make its own game?”

Minmay was delighted by Dojun’s words.

– Really? As expected, it’s a fight! I wanted to make a new game anyway!

Minmay participated in the development of ‘Cross Warrior’ and then founded JM-SOFT in China and devoted herself to publishing.

Although she wasn’t dissatisfied with her current job, Minmay was originally a game developer. She had always been thirsty for game development.

“By the way, when you do your research, please research Chinese gaming trends as well.”

– yes!

Minmay answered more cheerfully than ever. It was three days later that Minmay was contacted again. She sent Dojun the documents he had requested by email and called him.

– Fight! Did you see the email I sent?

“I’m watching it now.”

Dojun smiled brightly while looking at the data.

‘It’s just as I thought. The smartphone penetration rate is low.’

In 2011, China’s smartphone penetration rate was approximately 12%.

‘This is probably a higher figure than my previous life. In this life, smartphones started to spread faster because of me. And yet, it’s only 12%.’

Of course, Dojun knew that the penetration rate of mid-level smartphones was rapidly increasing.

‘It will be over 90% by 2015. In fact, by then, the smartphone penetration rate will be that high worldwide, except for a few countries.’

However, the penetration rate of smartphones is still low.

‘Baekcent, this is your first mistake.’

Even if Prince Yeongyo was released, there weren’t many people who would enjoy the game.

‘Of course, even if it’s only 12%… it’s in the hundreds of millions. China really has a gangster population.’

Dojun shook his head and looked at the report further.

“The smartphone specs are also… low?”

– Yes. It’s just starting to spread in China. Most smartphones are either Osung phones, LGS, or iPhones, and frankly, they’re too expensive. This time, a company called Xiaomi released a smartphone called MI1, and many people are buying it because it’s cheap. However, the specs aren’t that great.

Dojun asked in surprise.

“Xiaomi… is it out already?”

– Yeah? Hey, do you know Xiaomi?

“Ah. No. I thought I heard it somewhere.”

– Oh, really? You don’t have to worry about it. As the name ‘Xiaomi’ suggests, it’s a small company.

Dojun shook his head.

‘That little grain of rice… later on, it would grow to be a huge deal. Of course, there were many problems due to patents, but because they were so cheap, people all over the world bought Xiaomi products directly. I did the same.’

Dojun said to Minmay.

“By any chance, find out if JM-SOFT can invest in Xiaomi.”

– Xiaomi? Hmm. I wonder why, but I get it.

“What are the gaming trends?”

– The games that are popular in China right now are WOH (World Of Hero Craft) and Pluto Online. They are followed by Dungeon & Warrior and Cross Warrior. And martial arts games made by Chinese developers are gaining popularity.

Dojun raised the corners of his mouth.

‘It’s just as I thought.’

– Sabu, now tell me. The reason you asked me to investigate this is because it has to do with the game I’m making, right?

“that’s right.”

– What is that?

“Minmay, from now on, you will create a game that can beat Prince Yeongyao.”

Minmay asked back in surprise.

– Yes? How is it?

“Minmay, did you see the Prince Youngyo video? How was it?”

– The graphics looked good for a mobile game. It also looked pretty fun.

“Yeah, it’s pretty good. It’s cartoonish, but it moves pretty smoothly. But, you know, can these graphics run on mobile? In China.”

Minmay sighed, “Ah!”

– It will work on the latest smartphones, but not on Xiaomi or low-cost smartphones.

“That’s right. Didn’t you say earlier that the smartphone market share was 12%? In reality, the number of smartphones that can run the Prince’s Youngyo is probably only about 5%.”

– I see. Then why did you ask about the game genre? Even if it’s just the smartphone specs, you don’t have to worry about Prince Youngyo.

“Because it’s a game with that much potential.”

Minmay was surprised. This was the first time she had heard Dojun praise another game like this.

– Is Prince Youngyo really that great of a game?

“I think so. So we need a game that will crush Prince Charming and dominate the Chinese mobile market until the real LoL mobile version comes out.”

Minmay asked in a slightly trembling voice at Dojun’s words.

– No way… is the game I’m making something like that?

“Yes. It’s a mobile game that runs on a smartphone with low specs and doesn’t stray too far from the current gaming trends.”

– Ah! Fight. If you’re going to say that, do you have a game in mind?

Dojun smiled brightly.

“Of course. I’ve even thought of a name.”

– What is it?

“Dotap Electric.”

.