82: Chapter 82: The Meeting That Decides the Future of Spark Games!

At two o'clock in the afternoon, the long table in the conference room was filled with people on both sides.

Qin Gong, Su Meng, Chen Yu, Lin Zhengtao, Zhou Ming, as well as two core backbones from the Publishing Department, three core backbones from the Marketing Department, three newly recruited core backbones from the Platform Department, and the candidate for the head of the new engine team, Yan Yu, Xie Yunfan, and Jiang Xinyue were all present.

Including Jiang Yuan, there were a total of sixteen people. Although the number wasn't large, they could already be considered all the current core members of Spark Games.

Of course.

As Spark Games' scale continued to grow, more people would surely join, like Yan Yu and Xie Yunfan's group! There would also be people who would fall behind because their abilities couldn't keep up.

Even Jiang Yuan herself didn't know how many familiar faces she would still see the next time such a meeting was held.

Jiang Yuan sat at the head of the conference table, a stack of documents placed in front of her.

She had a tranquil expression, delicate features, and a clear, pure temperament. At first glance, she looked like a pure female college student who had wandered in by mistake.

But among those truly qualified to sit here, not a single person dared to treat the young girl as a fresh graduate.

Everyone's eyes were focused on her. Although their expressions varied, clear signs of respect and admiration could be seen on their faces.

Especially the three who had just joined the Spark Games engine department; after learning that Aurora Engine 1.0 was actually hand-coded by Jiang Yuan alone, the way they looked at her now was like looking at a magnificent, radiant deity!

Ignoring these gazes, Jiang Yuan waited until everyone had arrived before speaking in a crisp voice:

"I called everyone here today to discuss only one thing: should Minecraft continue with our previous approach and stay on Steam, or should we execute the company's latest strategy and make it exclusive to our own platform!"

As her voice fell, the conference room suddenly became so quiet that one could almost hear the sound of breathing.

In the long silence.

Even though they were prepared for this topic before coming, everyone couldn't help but show expressions of solemn contemplation.

Clearly.

This choice truly made everyone in the company feel a heavy weight in their hearts and increased pressure, making it difficult to make the right decision for a moment.

At this moment.

Qin Gong was the first to speak, breaking the silence with a steady tone:

"President Jiang, our Publishing Department's suggestion is... not to go on Steam. We should rely on Minecraft to help Spark Game Platform through its most difficult period!"

These words were undoubtedly beyond everyone's expectations.

Everyone turned their heads slightly to look at Qin Gong, clearly not expecting this man with such thick eyebrows and big eyes to be so bold!

Only Su Meng sat there with a calm expression, casually sketching a cute 2D anime version of the beautiful girl at the head of the table in her notebook. She had clearly anticipated what Jiang Yuan said and might have even discussed it with her privately many times.

Jiang Yuan gave a soft hum, her exquisite face as calm as still water:

"Mhm. What about the others? Tell me your thoughts as well."

Seeing that no one was speaking up, Jiang Yuan simply called them out by name:

"Let's start with the Programming Department and the Planning Department then."

Being called out directly by Jiang Yuan, Lin Zhengtao felt his scalp tingle and his heart began to throb. He thought to himself that this was the first time in his life participating in a strategic meeting of this level.

But he also knew that if he worked hard to keep up with the pace of Jiang Yuan and Spark Games at this time and showed his ability, then let alone the position of Lead Programmer, he could even hope for the position of Director of the Development Department in the future.

But if he couldn't keep up... then he might never have a second chance to come in and speak at a meeting like this again...

Thinking of this, Lin Zhengtao crossed his hands in front of him, trying his best to keep them from shaking, his expression much more serious than usual:

"From a development perspective, the difference in technical workload between going on Steam and our own platform isn't large. The Aurora Engine itself has perfect cross-platform support. Porting to Steam is just a matter of changing a few configuration parameters."

As he spoke, his mood relaxed, and his heartbeat seemed to gradually level out. Lin Zhengtao continued solemnly:

"But there is one issue."

"The update frequency for Minecraft will be very high! After the first version, our Programming and Planning Departments plan to release new content every month, such as new blocks, new creatures, and new biomes."

"If we go on Steam, every update has to go through Steam's review process. While it's not slow, it's definitely nowhere near as flexible as our own platform!"

"And then there's the Mod System."

"The Mod ecosystem of Minecraft is one of the things President Jiang has repeatedly emphasized and values most!"

"Steam's creative workshop is indeed useful, but that belongs to Steam, not us. If we have our own creative workshop, Mod authors and players will settle on our platform. That is the true moat!"

Jiang Yuan smiled and nodded. Although she didn't say anything specific, it made Lin Zhengtao feel relieved, and his mood instantly became light and pleasant.

It was only then.

Lin Zhengtao belatedly realized that his back and legs seemed to be soaked with sweat.

Lin Zhengtao thought silently, 'Is that sweat? Was I really that nervous just now...'

Jiang Yuan, who was quite satisfied with Lin Zhengtao's answer, turned her bright, clear eyes toward Su Meng and asked softly:

"What about your side in Art?"

Hearing Jiang Yuan's familiar voice, Su Meng finally looked up from the nearly finished 2D anime girl on the paper. She thought for a moment and said in a gentle voice:

"I think exclusivity is quite good! Not because of sales or platform strategy, but because the temperament of Minecraft doesn't quite fit with the vast and chaotic atmosphere of Steam."

"Personally, I feel it should be in a purer place where players can keep playing quietly without being affected!"

This perspective was a bit emotional, but hearing it, Jiang Yuan couldn't help but curl her pink lips, though it was unclear why.

After listening to the opinions of everyone in the conference room, Jiang Yuan found that half supported exclusivity on their own platform, while half felt they shouldn't leave Steam for the time being.

She didn't waste any more time. Instead, she gave a light cough to instantly quiet the surroundings and said in a clear voice:

"If subsequent games are exclusive and debut on the Spark Game Platform without going on Steam."

"Sales expectations are hard to say. The peak sales period might only see a few hundred thousand copies, or it could be several million. It depends on the platform's user acceptance and the effect of our early promotion."

"But the benefits of exclusivity are also obvious."

"First, one hundred percent of sales revenue belongs to us, with no platform cut. Second, having all players launch our games through the Spark Platform is a promotional method that no amount of money spent on advertising can buy. Third, it sets a benchmark for all subsequent Spark Games products. In the future, players will form the concept that Spark's PC games can only be played on the Spark Platform."

"So my view is: from a short-term perspective, going on Steam is a guaranteed win! From a long-term perspective, exclusivity is a gamble on a bright future! If we win the bet, the Spark Platform will have a foundation. If we lose..."

Jiang Yuan paused for a few seconds and said with a calm expression:

"Sales of Minecraft will be at least halved, the platform strategy will be delayed by one to two years, and we, Spark Games, will definitely become the laughingstock of the industry!"

The conference room was silent.

Everyone listened to Jiang Yuan's words with heavy expressions. In almost everyone's mind, a corresponding image seemed to emerge, and they were startled by that miserable future.

Looking around, Jiang Yuan knew the democratic phase was over. Now was the time for one person to make the final decision!

She stood up and slammed her slender, snow-white palm, as beautiful as mutton-fat jade, heavily onto the solid wood table. Not bothering to look at her instantly reddened palm, she said in a deep voice:

"The core of all arguments is actually just two words: 'Time'!"

"Short-term interests versus long-term interests—this is a choice every platform creator must face! Steam faced it back then too. Gabe chose the long term, so he won."

"And our situation is actually much better than Steam's was back then."

"We have the Aurora Engine, we have Minecraft, we have Resident Evil, and there will be a continuous stream of high-quality games produced later. Perhaps you think I'm confident or even arrogant saying this now, but time will prove everything! I believe we have enough chips to bet on this future!"

After saying this, Jiang Yuan didn't care how colorful the expressions on the others' faces were. She spoke calmly but firmly:

"So my decision is: the first version of Minecraft will be exclusive to the Spark Game Platform and will not go on Steam!"

The conference room was quiet for a few breaths.

Then Su Meng was the first to stand up and applaud.

Only then did the others snap out of it, standing up one by one quickly, so that the applause soon merged into one, making the entire room seem to tremble.

When the applause gradually died down, Jiang Yuan raised her hand and pressed down, signaling everyone to be quiet, then said calmly:

"However, exclusivity doesn't mean forcing it! We definitely need to make full preparations! Ensure this platform strategy is foolproof!"

"Next, I will make the following deployments:"

"First, before the platform goes live, complete a stress test of at least one hundred thousand people to ensure the stability of downloads, launches, and updates."

"Second, one month before Minecraft's release, start a full-platform promotion with a maximum budget, highlighting the information that it is exclusive to the Spark Game Platform so that players are fully prepared mentally."

"Third, during the platform's debut, launch promotional activities with limited-time discounts on a bundle of Spark's first three games to increase the platform's initial user base."

After saying all this, Jiang Yuan looked at everyone and said with a serious expression:

"The Publishing Department is responsible for the implementation of the first three points. The Programming Department will cooperate with the Platform Department to be responsible for the platform's stability and stress testing. Lin Zhengtao, Zhou Ming, you two are responsible for leading the team to check the development progress of the Mod System. The first version doesn't have to be perfect, but it must at least be usable."

Everyone nodded with solemn gazes at the same time, their hearts filled with surging fighting spirit.

At this time, Qin Gong suddenly asked:

"President Jiang, what about the cooperation with Steam?"

"Our three games are still selling on there; we can't let the relationship turn sour."

Jiang Yuan said indifferently:

"Cooperate as usual. Spark's games will not all be exclusive, but core games that can support a platform must be exclusive. Everyone will gradually get a feel for this balance."

The meeting continued for nearly another hour.

They went through the platform's launch schedule, promotion rhythm, and technical guarantee plan. Only then did this major event that decided the future fate of Spark Games end amidst everyone's thrilling emotional fluctuations!