The Regressed Game Director Is Too Competent

The coffee shop located on the first floor of the Enson GT Main Office.

Myunghoon sat across the table, looking utterly bewildered.

“Uh, Ho-jin, I’m not hearing things, right?”

“I’m afraid you heard it correctly.”

“You want me to take over your director’s position?”

“Yes.”

“Why? Is something wrong?”

“A new project to develop the next game is starting soon, and I need to shift focus towards that.”

Shock rippled through Myunghoon’s expression as he echoed the unexpected bombshell.

“Seriously?”

“Why would I lie about such an important matter to you?”

“It’s surprising to hear we’re already producing a sequel. After all, we’ve only released *Girls’ Memorial* for a year.”

“By our one-year mark, it’s about time we started planning for the next one. Mobile games have short lifespans, making now the perfect opportunity.”

“True, but… why me? Aren’t there other people for this role?”

“Well, who else would I trust but you? Lee Yerin? Yerin is a critical art resource who will naturally move on to the next project.”

“She’s a key person for arts… that’s correct.”

“Then how about Yumi? She has double the workload already lined up for the new project, which automatically rules her out.”

“Understood…”

“Last, Seol-i? Chae-young? Seol-i is too introverted for the pressure, and Chae-young is… well…”

At that, Myunghoon seemed to recall both Seol’s reserved demeanor and Chae-young’s frequent late nights spent drinking beer, and gave a nod with a slight grimace.

“You’re right. But, Ho-jin. You know me. I’m not suited to broadcasting or being a face representative like you.”

“Ah, no need to worry about that.”

“Why not?”

“I’ll take care of the external face-representing duties. All I need from you is to handle the rest of the directorial responsibilities.”

“You should’ve mentioned that earlier!”

After hearing that, Myunghoon relaxed visibly.

“So, as soon as the organizational restructuring plan is made official, I’ll let you know once it’s posted on the intranet.”

“All right, thanks.”

*

It was one week since Su-yeon had approved my proposal.

The restructuring plan for the Mobile Game Development Team had been passed in the Executive meeting and was now up on the Intranet notice board.

Frankly, I expected it to take at least two weeks before the restructure plan would be approved, but this was way too fast.

“Did the President exert some influence here?”

Even if the executives are favorable towards me, cutting down on the schedule itself would be almost impossible, making me feel a bit suspicious.

But the problem was that I didn’t anticipate this level of rapid approval, so I hadn’t managed to inform the team members beforehand.

As a result, my smartphone hadn’t stopped buzzing since.

This is bad…

I entered the team office feeling a headache coming on, as everyone’s eyes were fixed on me.

There were those who looked surprised upon seeing the organizational restructuring announcement,

those who seemed shocked by the abrupt announcement,

and others who were completely lost and were quietly asking their colleagues what was happening.

What they shared in common was that they were all standard team members, hesitant to easily approach me.

They all looked unsure of whether to directly ask what was going on with me, and just kept trying to gauge my mood instead. However, this uneasy atmosphere was quickly lifted by Yerin and Yumi.

“Ah, Senpai! Did you see the Intranet post?”

“Director…what’s this about organizational changes?!”

They approached me asking for an explanation, but I paused their queries for a moment to look around.

If these two were this startled, surely the others must be in the same state, right?

The only person I informed about the restructuring beforehand was Myunghoon.

Sure enough, at the planning team entrance, I spotted Seol’s head partially peeking around the corner, curiously observing.

I gestured for her to come over, and upon realizing she was caught, she let out an ‘EEK’ and walked over hesitantly.

“Is anyone here who knows where Chae-young is today?”

Yumi raised her hand and responded.

“I saw her this morning with half-closed eyes heading towards the restroom.”

Just as I suspected.

She hadn’t had a chance to check the Intranet due to late-night work. I gave her autonomy over her work hours to avoid such late nights, but…I still can’t understand her after all these years.

Anyway, about five minutes passed since Yumi left to fetch Chae-young when an exhausted-looking Chae-young, wearing a sleeping mask on her forehead, was led into the office by Yumi.

“What’s going on… Can it wait a little…?”

“It’s a quick discussion, please bear with us for just a moment.”

“Ugh…”

Ignoring Chae-young’s groaning complaints, I surveyed the room once more.

The same piercing glances remained focused on me.

Aware of their stares, I began speaking.

“I imagine everyone is rather confused about the sudden organizational restructuring. Am I right?”

“Yes!!”

As answers came from all around, I nodded and continued.

“First, I sincerely apologize for not sharing the news regarding the organizational changes earlier.”

“I didn’t expect the restructure plan to pass through so quickly, so I missed the opportunity to inform you all. Again, I apologize for that.”

With those words, I bowed, followed by bursts of applause from all around.

“There are two key points about this reorganization. First, the Mobile Game Development Team will be dissolved and restructured into studios.”

“Second, with the new studio system, *Girls’ Memorial* will be moved to the GM Studio, and the new project will move to a new studio.”

Immediately, murmurs spread through the office.

After settling them down, I continued my explanation.

“But the change to GM Studio doesn’t alter much. Most of the current team will remain in the GM Studio, with only a few senior-level members moving to the new studio to work on the next project.”

“Details regarding the next project haven’t been finalized, so I’ll inform you all when there’s more information.”

With that, I turned around and returned to my office without taking further questions.

As I entered the private office, several team members followed.

Without needing an introduction, they were the other directors of our team, excluding Myunghoon.

“Senior, could you explain more to us?”

Yerin, seemingly a bit miffed, asked, with the team members around her nodding in agreement.

“Well, there won’t be much change for your position. If anything, the team name will switch to ‘Studio,’ and a central hub overseeing all studios will be established.”

“Then, will each studio have a separate office?”

“Possibly.”

Yerin nodded after my answer and continued.

“What about the next project?”

“This is all part of the recently approved planning proposal. A studio will soon be established for the new project, and that’s all you need to know for now.”

“How long have you prepared for this next project?”

“It hasn’t been long, just around 2 to 3 months.”

“Two to three months to prepare a proposal… even while handling so many projects at work?”

“I received substantial help from Seol-i during the story conceptualization.”

Upon hearing this, everyone’s gaze shifted to Seol-i, who appeared somewhat guilt-ridden for not divulging this earlier.

Since the team seemed to be misunderstanding, I clarified.

“To clear up any misunderstandings, Seol-i kept quiet at my request.”

“Why would you try to hide such important news from us?”

“I thought if news of the next project spread, it would negatively affect the office atmosphere, especially nearing the first anniversary.”

“Ah…”

“I’m sorry for not informing you all earlier. The reorganization plan was released too quickly, leaving me without the right timing.”

“It’s alright. You didn’t intentionally hide it from us, since there was a reason.”

At Yerin’s words, looking around at the team members, their expressions did seem to relax.

Obviously, they had felt let down since I hadn’t informed them until just now…

I’ll need to be more careful moving forward.

“Okay… Any other questions?”

A hand shot up from behind Yerin.

Seeing who it was, it turned out to be the now slightly more awake Chae-young.

“If we move, who will replace us? Should we look for replacements?”

“Well, it would be nice if you do, but not necessarily required. Word is that we may post job openings if there’s no one available from the current pool.”

“So, when do we start the new project?”

“Not yet, we’re still searching for a senior-level developer to act as the Technical Director. Once that hire is settled, we’ll move forward.”

“Got it…”

Reassured that they wouldn’t be moving right away, Chae-young yawned and slumped into the sofa.

“If you’re going to sleep, please go to the nap room.”

“I’m not sleeping; don’t worry.”

“All done, now get up. Myunghoon will soon be coming in for the handover.”

*

After the team dispersed like the ebbing tide, it wasn’t long before Myunghoon walked into the office.

“You’re here?”

“Yeah, what should we do first?”

“Take a seat on the sofa for a bit, and I’ll bring the handover materials.”

After saying this, I grabbed the handover materials while Myunghoon made his way to the sofa.

The materials weighed more than I anticipated when I picked them up.

It almost seemed symbolic of the tough transition process we were about to undergo.

“Well, let’s get started.”