"Zhong, I saw your recent post on social media. Did you find a job in Jiangning?"
On his way back, Zhong Shengwei received a message from Wu Di, a colleague from his previous company.
After pondering for a moment, he typed in the dialogue box: "Yes, I found one at a studio that makes single-player games. It’s decent in all aspects."
"Are there any famous single-player game studios in Jiangning? Why haven’t I heard of them..."
Wu Di seemed a bit puzzled.
It’s not surprising that he’s overthinking. The number of well-known domestic game studios is limited, and most are located in other cities. He racked his brains but couldn’t figure out which studio has taken root in Jiangning.
"It’s not an established studio, it’s a newly founded one called Tianba. They’ve only made two games so far," Zhong Shengwei quickly explained.
That makes sense.
Wu Di sent a "Hmm Hmm" emoji packet from the other end.
He seemed very intrigued by this studio, so he asked about the specifics, including the names of the studio’s games.
Before coming to Tianba Studio for an interview, Zhong Shengwei had already done his homework, so he was able to answer these inquiries.
"...The team is small, but quite capable. Combined, the sales of their two games have reached millions."
"If you search for ’Living Under Someone’s Roof Simulator’ on the Steam Platform, you’ll find it."
Living Under Someone’s Roof Simulator?
Upon receiving Zhong’s reply, Wu Di opened the Steam Platform and searched for this name.
Got it!
The game name matched, and the developer’s name did too. This must be the game Zhong mentioned.
"The official version for 25 bucks doesn’t look bad."
Just 25 bucks — for someone like Wu Di with a high income, it’s a piece of cake.
After purchasing and adding it to his library, he quickly installed the game on his computer and started experiencing the gameplay.
Meanwhile, elsewhere.
After telling his parents about his job, Zhong Shengwei returned to his room, planning to change clothes and get a haircut downstairs.
Tomorrow is the first day of work, and there are female colleagues at the studio, so it’s important to look neat and tidy.
But just as he was heading downstairs for a haircut, his phone rang again unexpectedly.
Upon checking, it was a message from Wu Di, featuring three inexplicable exclamation marks.
What does that mean?
After replying with three question marks, Wu Di quickly sent a voice message.
"Oh my God, Zhong! I just played some of your studio’s new game. Can you guess what I discovered?"
"What did you find?"
Zhong Shengwei was genuinely curious about what Wu Di had discovered that made him so excited.
Truth be told, he only knew the names and approximate sales figures of Tianba Studio’s two games.
As for the games themselves, since he hadn’t played them, he couldn’t guess what Wu Di had found in the game.
"I had a moment of occupational reflex and glanced at the game’s update logs, and found... there’s no record of bug fixes since the official release!"
"All the hotfixes are for adjusting housing prices. The latest major version update only added new properties and maps."
In the voice message, Wu Di sounded as if he’d seen a ghost.
And hearing this surprised Zhong Shengwei, too. He typed: "Really? No bug fixes after the official release?"
"Absolutely true!"
Worried Zhong wouldn’t believe him, Wu Di even started a video call, pointing the camera at his computer screen and scrolling with the mouse.
A dozen update announcements were clearly visible.
Don’t ask how a 27-inch computer screen can fit a dozen update announcements — the answer is the announcements are too short, some only a sentence long.
That’s impressive!
Now Zhong Shengwei was truly shocked!
As a game client development engineer, he was in a frontline position for game creation.
Yet he had never seen a game with tens of update announcements showing not a single sign of bugs.
That’s absolutely remarkable!
Game polish is typically a long-term process, especially in optimizing core code and reducing bugs.
Turns out there are games that get released officially with optimized perfection, cutting down on post-release polishing needs for one, or even two years!
It’s outstandingly patient.
Not only is there patience, but it also signifies this studio’s development strength is noteworthy, considering a four-person team polished the game to such a degree is truly impressive.
But speaking of which, what’s written in these update announcements?
A dozen update announcements all centered on adjusting housing prices, the major version update featuring new property pre-sale information.
"So... what was the game’s name again?" Zhong Shengwei felt a bit puzzled.
"Seems like it was Living Under Someone’s Roof Simulator. Wait, that’s not right!" Wu Di seemed to remember something and couldn’t help but retort, "Your studio’s game, and yet you’re asking me what it’s called?"
"I just can’t believe it!"
Looking at the computer screen on the other end of the video call, Zhong Shengwei couldn’t help but mumble: "Considering these update announcements, would you believe it?"
Wu Di remained silent.
He couldn’t believe it either!
He’s never seen such abstract update announcements before, and now they’re coming one after another, in tens.
"Zhong, looks like your new job will be quite interesting!"
"Perhaps."
Zhong Shengwei had an expression full of anticipation.
What kind of game studio is Tianba Studio? What kind of work experience will it offer?
A game that’s gone official without bug fixes, a game whose update announcements are all about "price adjustments"...
Thinking about it, Zhong Shengwei suddenly became highly interested in "Living Under Someone’s Roof Simulator."
After getting a neat haircut, he hastily returned home, opened his computer, and purchased and downloaded the game.
It’s time for a firsthand gameplay test.
Tomorrow is the official start of work, and as a "prospective" employee at Tianba Studio, he can’t just remain unaware of his studio’s games, right?
Since he had some spare time in the afternoon, he planned to play through both games the studio had released, not aiming for completion, but just wanting to understand what’s special about these two games.
However, after starting to play, he found himself completely unable to stop.
When his stomach growled with hunger, and he suddenly realized he hadn’t had dinner yet, it was already eleven thirty at night.
"This... what is this?"
Before playing, he thought it would be a rather conventional, plot-driven simulation RPG game.
But after browsing online guides and experiencing it firsthand, he was totally shocked.
Living Under Someone’s Roof?
What nonsense are you talking?
An acerbic uncle, a sarcastic cousin... these might be anger-inducing. But if I completely turn the tables and directly buy the house from my aunt’s family, how would you handle that, sir?
Plot-driven simulation?
I’ve been washing dishes in the restaurant for three years. Plot? What plot?
Oh! I almost forgot until you mentioned it — this game does have a plot. Turns out the restaurant isn’t my home!