Writing Web Novels In America-Chapter 73: Game Exhibition

Wang Jian continued to work hard on adapting "Extreme Heavenly Demon" while urging Dorsey to redesign the website.

Then, the Electronic Entertainment Expo arrived unexpectedly.

Since the launch of "Diablo," it had achieved tremendous success,

Even drawing a large number of game enthusiasts away from the then-mainstream arcade and console games toward PC gaming.

Thus, this expo was dubbed the "Diablo-themed Game Expo," with most participants being fervent fans of the game.

Seeing this trend, the gaming giants decided to follow suit and produce their own RPG games.

Among these, EA’s "Arcane Throne," as the first PC game adapted from a bestseller, attracted a lot of attention.

And as the author of the book, Wang Jian had an obligation to work with EA to promote the game.

On the day before the expo opened, he took a flight to Los Angeles.

After EA’s staff had escorted Wang Jian to his hotel, the marketing manager for "Arcane Throne" came to his room.

"Wang, our schedule is arranged like this."

"After ’Diablo’s’ new trailer is released, we will also unveil the ’Arcane Throne’ trailer."

"Afterward, you only need to answer some questions from the journalists."

"With ’Diablo’s’ popularity so high, following it with ’Arcane Throne’ won’t pose any problems?"

Wang Jian asked quietly, looking out of the hotel window at the various gamers dressed in "Diablo" attire in the lobby.

"Don’t worry, there’s absolutely no problem," the marketing manager chuckled. "You have no idea how much effort the company has put into this CG short."

"The money spent on it even surpasses the total of all other promotional methods."

"I dare say the quality of this trailer is absolutely at the top of the world."

Up to now, EA’s game licensing fee had been the quickest way for Wang Jian to make money from bestsellers, so naturally, he hoped the "Arcane Throne" game would be a huge success.

But being so inexperienced in the industry, it was challenging for him to actually help much.

He watched the marketing manager leave the room, then picked up a stack of documents left on the table.

Upon close inspection, it turned out to contain the questions and answers for tomorrow’s press inquiries.

Wang Jian shrugged his shoulders.

Heh,

No surprise there.

The night flew by quickly.

Early the next morning, accompanied by EA staff, Wang Jian arrived at the expo.

In the hall, in addition to the various companies’ staff, there were masses of players dressed in various game costumes.

Barbarians wearing nothing but fur, Holy Knights in armor, witches with long beards, and more—it was a veritable dance of demons.

Just when Wang Jian was relieved that they all at least looked human,

A Unicorn’s front half galloped past right in front of his eyes,

Followed by its back half, shouting, "Let go of me and see how you manage to excrete!"

Wang Jian shook his head, unable to help but lament: The crazier they are, the happier they seem to be.

Dodging these lunatics, he made his way to the front of EA’s booth.

There, every staff member was busily preparing for the final tweaks.

After they situated Wang Jian in the central seat in front of the booth, they hurried off.

About ten minutes later, a throng of people rushed toward one of the booths, shouting as they went, "Diablo’s latest trailer is starting, everyone hurry over."

Wang Jian hesitated, then noticing that nobody around him was paying attention, stood on a chair to get a better view in that direction.

The big screen at that booth first lit up.

Then, a decrepit village appeared.

A crow was there, pecking at the rotting flesh on a corpse, and on a large tree hung the bodies of villagers.

A demon made entirely of bones slowly emerged from a sea of blood, and a knight clad in full plate armor, brandishing a longsword, fought against it.

Then, the scene shifted, revealing a twisted and contorted word.

Upon closer examination, it was indeed "Diablo".

Although it was too distant to make out every detail clearly,

Wang Jian had to admit that, short as the clip was, its graphics were incredibly refined.

Clearly more shocking than the CG of major Hollywood productions.

At that moment, an excited staff member beside him said, "As expected, the new promotional clip for ’Diablo’ is just a push for its multi-platform release, without much innovation."

Another staff member scolded, "Ignore them, we’re about to start."

With the arrival of heavyweights from EA, including the Vice President, various staff members began to report their preparations in an orderly fashion.

About ten minutes later, an announcement was broadcasted.

"At the EA booth, ’Arcane Throne’ promotional clip will play in five minutes."

Then, Wang Jian saw all kinds of demons and monsters surging towards him.

That feeling...

Makes Hell look weak, doesn’t it?

More and more people gathered in front of the booth, and a mix of noisy voices kept coming through.

"What do you think about ’Arcane Throne’ compared to ’Diablo’?"

"Psh, just a copycat. Could you really expect a knockoff to surpass the original?"

This comment sparked a wave of agreement, with a few shouting, " ’Diablo’ is unbeatable!"

In Wang Jian’s earpiece, the countdown from the staff started.

"3, 2, 1, begin."

The large screen at EA’s booth first darkened, then Beethoven’s "Pathétique" piano sonata began to play.

The babble of the crowd abruptly hushed.

On the big screen, a delicate young man opened his eyes and looked into the mirror with a lost expression.

The off-screen voice asked, "Who am I, where am I?"

Next, the scene unfolded from a first-person perspective.

The ignorance of the people, the arrogance of the gangs - "Pathétique" intensified amid the agonizing screams of a witch being burned at the stake.

Then, a handsome vampire spread its wings, a terrifying evil dragon roared, and a demon engulfed in flames slowly approached.

After that, the protagonist swallowed a vial of medicine.

And as the music shifted to "Moonlight",

a valiant female knight approached, dancing with the protagonist.

Gloomy members of the Church watched from the sidelines.

Then, the protagonist began to write his thesis, and a brilliant light surrounded him.

Next, the protagonist and the female knight battled various monsters, the clanging of swords and the howling of magic filling the air as "Fate" knocked.

And with the rising of the Holy Light, the demon revealed its ferocious true face, and the vampire joined the main characters.

As the three forces drew closer, with a large-scale battle about to break out, the scene abruptly ended.

Accompanied by the strains of "Fate", a few words appeared on the screen: "Arcane Throne".

ps: I’m not dwelling on it, I’ve tried to minimize the part about the corporate battles.

But, it’s not entirely avoidable either.

Stay true to the original aspiration, strive to quit smoking, writing is but a way of recording.

To those deceived by the book title and ending up unhappy, I can only offer my apologies...

Th𝓮 most uptodate nov𝑒ls are publish𝒆d on freew(e)bnove(l).𝓬𝓸𝓶