30: Chapter 30: Discussion of the new game, Plants vs. Zombies?

One week after the launch of Slay the Spire, the office finally began to look a little like a normal game company.

Zhou Ming and Chen Yu no longer logged into the Steam developer backend to refresh data every now and then, Lin Zhengtao didn't constantly push up his glasses either, Su Meng picked up her paintbrush again, starting to draw the subsequent version updates for the two games, and Wang Hao and Fang Qingqing finally dared to speak normally, and wouldn't act like quails at every turn.

The only one who hadn't changed was Jiang Yuan.

She arrived at the company after eight every morning, clattering away at the code on her computer, occasionally picking up a mug printed with a ragdoll to take a sip of coffee, her expression as calm as water, exactly the same as before the game launched, basically without any major changes.

Zhou Ming couldn't help but say to Chen Yu in private: "Do you think our boss simply didn't load an emotion module?"

Chen Yu thought for a moment and said thoughtfully: "She probably has one, it's just hidden deep."

At two in the afternoon, Jiang Yuan called everyone into the conference room.

Zhou Ming thought this meeting was to discuss the follow-up updates for the two games, so he brought his notebook in, only to find that there was nothing in front of Jiang Yuan at all.

"Everyone, sit down."

Seeing that everyone had arrived, she said in a crisp voice.

The few of them sat down, puzzled, not understanding what Jiang Yuan specifically wanted to talk about in this sudden meeting.

Jiang Yuan naturally didn't keep everyone confused for too long, and got straight to the point: "It's time to initiate the next new project."

The conference room suddenly became much quieter, and everyone was a bit shocked by this sudden news; although they knew this moment would definitely come, they really hadn't expected it to be so soon.

Chen Yu was the first to raise his hand and ask: "Boss, so soon?"

Jiang Yuan asked curiously: "Is it fast?"

Chen Yu calculated: "Slay the Spire has only been online for a week..."

Jiang Yuan said indifferently: "A week is enough. Apart from basic maintenance, these two games don't need any major updates for the time being."

Zhou Ming scratched his head and asked blankly: "Then what genre are we making?"

Jiang Yuan didn't answer, but instead asked back: "What good ideas do you all have in mind? Feel free to say them out today and let's see!"

The few of them looked at each other.

Lin Zhengtao clenched his fists in thought and said: "We just did a card game. It's pointless to do another one of the same type. Besides, there are so many copycats now that the market will soon become saturated and cool down for a while."

Su Meng nodded slightly upon hearing this: "Players will definitely have aesthetic fatigue. If we release another card game, it will inevitably be compared to Slay the Spire, and people will ask why we didn't release a sequel to Slay the Spire. It will only be thankless work."

Chen Yu's eyes lit up and he said: "How about we continue making something like Vampire Survivors? A satisfying harvest-style game?"

Before Jiang Yuan could reject it, Zhou Ming shook his head, not very keen on this idea: "We've already done it. Doing it again is just a reskin. It might not surpass Vampire Survivors, and there are already many 'Survivor-likes' following the trend. I heard that quite a few are about to launch. Why should we compete with ourselves in the red ocean we created?"

Wang Hao and Fang Qingqing were junior, and didn't have any good ideas in their minds, so they didn't speak, just frowned and pretended to be deep in thought.

After listening to them, Jiang Yuan neither affirmed anyone nor said anything dismissive. Instead, she stood up, walked to the whiteboard, picked up a pen, and wrote a few characters: Tower Defense!

Seeing these words, the office fell into an indescribable silence for the second time.

Zhou Ming looked at those two words, his expression a bit subtly strange.

"Tower Defense?"

He said with a weird expression: "Boss, tower defense isn't popular right now. How many years has it been since a hit appeared on the market? The ones still alive now are all outdated relics!"

Chen Yu nodded along: "Yeah, it feels like a genre that was popular ten years ago. Do players today really still go for this? I feel like the pacing might be too slow."

Lin Zhengtao pushed up his glasses and didn't speak, but his expression was also full of confusion.

Su Meng took a sip from her coffee cup and didn't speak, but looking at her expression, it seemed as if she was thinking about something.

Jiang Yuan rested her hands on the edge of the table, looking down at them, and said softly: "What do you think is the core of tower defense?"

Zhou Ming replied without hesitation: "Defense? Building towers? Blocking and killing enemies?"

Jiang Yuan nodded: "What else?"

Chen Yu took over the conversation and continued: "Strategy? Combinations of different towers? Terrain utilization?"

Jiang Yuan gave a hum, walked to the whiteboard, and drew a few lines under the words "Tower Defense".

"What you said is all correct, but not accurate enough. Tower defense has several characteristics that no other game genre can compare to."

She turned around, looked at everyone with a calm expression, and said: "First, the barrier to entry for tower defense is very low. Players only need to do one thing—click the mouse, and the tower is placed. The rest is left to the game. Any player, regardless of whether they have experience with similar games, can pick it up within thirty seconds."

Regardless of what expressions the others had, Jiang Yuan continued: "Second, the positive feedback is dense. Every time a tower is placed, every time an enemy is killed, there is immediate feedback. Players can clearly feel 'I am getting stronger' and 'I am making a difference.' This kind of dense positive feedback is hard for other games to compare to, and it is also the key to retention rates."

After hearing this, Chen Yu first fell into thought, and then nodded repeatedly like a chicken pecking at rice: "Right, right. The Vampire Survivors we just released also follows this path."

Jiang Yuan glanced at him and continued: "Third, strategic depth is hidden behind simplicity. What tower to place, where to place it, when to place it, how to allocate resources, the combinations between each tower—there are choices at every step. Novices can clear the game just by playing casually, while veteran players can study the optimal solution. This ensures the longevity of the game!"

"Fourth, and the last point."

Jiang Yuan paused and smiled: "The inclusiveness of this theme is very, very strong!"

She continued walking to the whiteboard and drew a circle next to the words "Tower Defense".

"Sci-fi works, fantasy works, history works, daily life works. Towers can be cannons, can be mages, can be soldiers, can be beautiful girls, and can also be..."

She looked at Su Meng.

"Plants."

Su Meng froze there.

"Plants?"

Zhou Ming was puzzled: "What do plants fight? Do they fight bugs?"

Jiang Yuan chuckled: "Zombies!"

As these two words fell, the office was terrifyingly quiet this time.