NOVEL NEXT Chapter 13
Conference Room, 6th Floor, Enson GT Main Office, Mobile Game Development Team.
This place, which had always been peaceful, was now filled with a tense atmosphere.
The reason for this tension was the arrival of the Closed Beta Test period.
Commonly referred to as CBT, it involves selected consumers conducting a private beta test. It’s the stage where developers really start to get evaluated by consumers, inevitably making this a sensitive time for the development team.
This was no exception for our team.
“Brother Myunghoon, QA adjustments and inspections are all done, right? You’ve checked the server status and the client file status, haven’t you?”
“Yes, I said it’s done. We’ve run QA checks three times, all bugs are fixed, AWS has been confirmed, and there’s no issue with the client files, so calm down.”
“Ah, I’m sorry. I’m a bit on edge. Anyway, thanks for the effort. Oh, and Yumi?”
“Yes?”
“Have the press materials for the Closed Beta been distributed and have the winners of the beta test been contacted?”
“Yes, yes! All notices were sent out to the winners yesterday, and the press release was broadcasted two hours ago.”
“Good job. Once the Closed Beta starts, you’ll monitor the SNS and community, and if anything unusual comes up, let me know immediately. Got it?”
“Got it!”
“There’s not much time left until the official release, so everyone, please endure just a little longer. Yumi, can you stay behind for a moment?”
With those words, everyone left, leaving only Yumi and me in the conference room.
“Yumi.”
“Yes.”
“What’s the update on the monetization model discussed by the business team?”
At my question, Yumi looked a bit troubled as she replied.
“Well, there’s been a slight division of opinion within the business team…”
“Division?”
“Yes… Opinions have split pretty evenly between those who trust the director’s plan to go ahead with the monetization described in the proposal and those who think it’s too radical.”
“And what’s the department head’s opinion?”
“The department head is for trusting the director. Other executives are more skeptical.”
“I see….”
Yumi’s words gave me a massive headache.
The gacha system—a mechanic relying on random rewards—was a new direction and caused some tension as expected.
“Anyway, CBT is more urgent, so after the CBT, I’ll have a word with the president.”
“Got it… Oh, and SFLAG contacted us. They want to talk to the director about the official goods.”
“Hmm? Tell them we’ll get in touch this afternoon, and then you can go back to work.”
“Oh, yes. And Director…”
“Hmm?”
“Try to not stress yourself too much. Sisters Yerin and Chae-young are also worried about you.”
As Yumi left the conference room, she handed me a box of energy drinks.
“It looks like I’ve been more tired than I realized…”
Sitting alone in the now quiet conference room, I let out a sigh.
While going through the beta test period is nerve-wracking daily, it’s never something you get used to, no matter how many times you experience it. Getting judged can be painful, but it’s an unavoidable truth.
“What I hope is that this CBT period goes by without any major issues…”
***
Meanwhile, while Ho-jin sighed in solitude within the conference room, another group was seething with anger—users of South Korea’s subculture communities.
No matter how impressive the promotional videos and illustrations may be, a game cannot be enjoyed without it being launched. Enson GT’s decision to open the Japanese server first was met with backlash by community members.
Among those bitterly lamenting in front of their monitors was Kim Jae-hyun.
[Nickname: Anonymous]
[Title: Why does Japan server get to open first?]
No matter how barren the subculture scene might be here, how do they justify opening only the Japanese server? lol.
And even assuming the Japan server opening is fine, isn’t it obvious that a South Korean game company should have given a separate quota to South Korean beta testers?
Discrimination, indeed.
[Comment Section][View Count Order]
– lol, totally agree.
– I used four different phone numbers to apply for the beta test and all failed.
– They said they picked 300 people, how many applied? lol.
– Despite the frustration, the PV and illustrations still managed to calm me down a bit.
– Do they think they’re a Japanese company or something, lol?
“Exactly. Why does a South Korean game company launch its game in Japan first?”
Had it been a Japanese company with such an approach, he wouldn’t have felt as wronged because it was default behavior for them.
Japanese companies often operate a region lock to prevent other countries from using their content, a classic Galápagos-style operation.
But Enson GT was a Korean company. It felt like offering a fine banquet from one’s home but giving it all to a neighbor.
“F*cking Enson GT.”
He, in fact, was a fairly renowned illustrator in the subculture world. His plan was to create a commemorative piece of artwork for the Closed Beta, but he abandoned it mid-process due to feelings of betrayal.
“Still, what I’ve done so far is a pity, so I might as well finish it…”
Kim Jae-hyun wasn’t alone in finishing his work with a bittersweet sense of purpose. This day saw an unprecedented number of fanarts made for “Girls’ Memorial” as many illustrators finished their pieces with tears in their eyes.
***
8 hours into CBT.
It was normally the time to go home, take a shower, and enjoy some leisure, but today was different. It was the right time to see users’ reactions to the content of the game.
I planned to monitor the reactions alone, after letting the team go home. But…
“…Why did you guys come back after I told you to go home?”
To my question, both of them glanced at each other awkwardly, and Senior Chae-young spoke up first.
“Well… ‘Cause you seemed lonely working late…”
“You came back worrying about me? Even you, Senior Chae-young?”
At my skeptical look, Chae-young protested.
“Of course I can worry about you! What kind of image do you have of me in your mind….”
“Hand on your heart and think.”
Shrugging off Chae-young’s complaints, I turned to Seol-i.
“Seol-i, did you just get dragged along by Senior Chae-young?”
“No, not at all… I was really worried about the director being lonely while monitoring the CBT alone….”
Facing Seol-i’s serious expression, I had nothing more to say.
It seemed they both returned to help me, even giving up their plans for the day.
“Well… thanks. By the way, have either of you had dinner?”
“Yes, I had dinner with Senior Chae-young.”
“I had dinner with Seol-i.”
With a nod, I set up the laptops at each of their workstations.
“Okay, I’ll monitor the community side. Senior, you take care of the portals and Seol-i, I’ll leave the SNS monitoring to you.”
“Yes!”
“Just monitoring?”
“While monitoring, check and collect any reviews that are gaining high views or receiving lots of likes. We’ll also need negative feedback, so collect those for potential future adjustments.”
“Got it.”
We began our monitoring.
Surprisingly, the community tone was not as harsh as I expected. While some negative opinions existed, positive predictions were the majority of the responses.
[General] Limited? Breakthrough? Looks weird.
[General] Is the character drawing based on a gacha mechanic? Does it mean it’s not free?
[Strategy] Pre-learning strategy for “Girls’ Memorial” Part 1: Analyzing the party’s position and attribute effects.
[General] I was a bit disappointed to see SD graphics, but the movement is actually satisfying.
[General] Not the whole school area has been unveiled in the story.
[General] The OST is so addictive, it’s stuck in my head.
My assumptions were off—there was an overwhelming positive response, which allowed me to finally breathe a sigh of relief.
“Phew, we’re in safe waters…”
I turned to check the reactions of the two people beside me. By their expressions, it seemed they were reading similar responses.
“How are things going for you guys?”
“Oh… the reactions seem really positive…”
“Any negative reactions?”
“Well, they’re not nonexistent… Most of them are disappointed that the game uses SD graphics and that the only method to get characters is gacha….”
“If that’s all, that’s good enough. Still, please collect the negative reviews for feedback adjustment.”
“Yes, understood!”
“And how about you, Senior Chae-young?”
“Portals haven’t mentioned much. The only place showing some discussion is a subculture café, but none of it is too concerning.”
“In that case, it’s a bit disappointing that the portals—high-traffic sites—are silent.”
“But with the level of interest and positive evaluations during the CBT, I’d say we’ve done quite well, wouldn’t you agree?”
“It’s not that we’ve done well. It’s a hit.”
Chae-young stretched, clearly satisfied.
“Hmm… It’s nearly 11 pm. How about we order some late-night snacks? What do you say Ho-jin and Seol-i?”
“I’m all for it.”
“I’m ok with that too!”
And the night continued as a mix of monitoring and camaraderie.