Investor That Can See The Future

Chapter 457

At the closing ceremony of the Asian Economic Forum, the participating countries will issue a joint statement emphasizing cooperation for the prosperity and development of Asia.

We returned to Korea the day before the closing ceremony.

Ellie had to go to work, so as soon as she got off the plane, she headed straight for the Golden Gate. Taek-gyu, who was playing in the OTK building, also came over.

Hyunjoo noona looked at me and said it was a headache.

“I went and did it again. I’m not even mad about it now. North Korea theme week is riding a roller coaster.”

As the North Korean negotiating team was kicked out of their seats by my remarks, the theme of North Korea plummeted, but then surged again after I spoke at the Far Eastern Federal University.

Taek-gyu also said something.

“Politicians are also noisy.”

Whether it’s liberals or conservatives, when it comes to North Korea, we have a lot to say to each other. Right now in the National Assembly, it seems that lawmakers from the opposition and the opposition are fighting each other on this issue.

I asked Hyunjoo noona.

“What do you think, sister? Does North Korea really want to do it?”

“No one knows what they think. Even with the same Communist Party, North Korea is different from China and Vietnam. If those countries are a one-party dictatorship, North Korea is a one-man dictatorship. If anyone wants to threaten their position, it is a purge.”

In fact, there are not one or two people who have lost their necks while promoting economic cooperation. From the point of view of a country or a company, it is just absurd that the person in charge who was talking about until yesterday was shot to death in one day.

“Due to the Rajin-Hasan project, the infrastructure in Hamgyeong Province, where the railroad is connected, is not even maintained, and the infrastructure is so bad. Until the end of the 1990s, it was maintained at least, but now everything has to be rebuilt.”

Except for Pyongyang and its surrounding areas, the situation is not as good as in the past.

This is the reality of self-reliance that the leader comrades so desperately called out. It is surprising that such a country exists in the 21st century.

Hyunjoo noona said calmly.

“In order for the business to proceed properly, China will have to provide a guarantee. North Korea doesn’t look at the US, but it looks at China.”

China’s influence in North Korea is absolute.

North Korea is virtually dependent on China for food and energy. If China cuts off supply right away, the death toll and death from starvation will appear one after another.

That’s why the US also pushes China to do better whenever North Korea provokes.

However, it is difficult for China to directly invest in this project. In the first place, it is a project that is being pursued in partnership with Russia to contain Chinese capital.

It is a complex of interests intertwined in many ways.

How would you like to untie a twisted knot?

Hyunjoo’s older sister said.

“After the closing ceremony, President Huh Chang-min will meet with President Vysotsky and President Zhang Ping-hua to hold a trilateral summit, so we have to wait and see.”

* * *

When I returned to work, I received a call from OTK Games President Shigeru Ichikawa.

[It seems that the Chinese side will resume the version for online games.]

“That’s fortunate.”

With a population of 1.5 billion, China is the world’s largest gaming market. Moreover, its size is growing by more than 10 percent annually.

The reason games are so popular in emerging markets is that they can be played for a long time at a low price.

If you have a lot of money, you can enjoy various leisure activities. Camping, travel, surfing, sports, drive and so on. Without money, the things you can do are limited. Among them, the most comfortable and enjoyable leisure and hobby is games.

Online games are available for about $30 a month, and there are plenty of free games.

It’s cheap and fun, so it’s a problem to get addicted. If your hobby is golf or surfing, the number of times is limited because of money, time, and physical strength, but there are no games like that.

Anyway, the landscape of the game industry has changed rapidly in the last 10 years.

With the advent of smartphones, mobile games created a smash hit, and PC games were transformed into higher-spec games.

As communication networks developed further, even cloud-based games appeared. If you run a game in the cloud, you can play the game even if you don’t have a high-end device, but only a display and an input device.

It is still mainly casual games with simple graphics and controls due to technical problems, but it will be expanded to online RPGs soon.

Cloud is also closely related to VRMMORPG.

It is virtually impossible to store and process the huge amount of data required to implement virtual reality on a personal computer.

Therefore, a significant part of the game operation has to be processed in the cloud. That’s why Ichikawa said we needed our own data center.

Arkit is almost done with the design. It is the world’s largest single data center. To attract this, the United States, Ireland, Sweden, Finland and Norway announced various support measures and jumped into the bid.

I am struggling to select a data center area, and Taek-gyu told me.

“I am going to LA this weekend.”

“Huh? Why are you there?”

“You said it before. I’m going to see Stormcon.”

“Oh right.”

Founded in the early 1990s, Icestorm has grown into the largest game company in the United States by making many famous games a box office hit and creating the first e-sports genre.

The company hosts the annual Icestorm Convention… … The event is called StormCon for short.

At this event, new games and patches to be announced next year will be unveiled along with e-sports competitions using their games.

It is an event for fans and at the same time a kind of management announcement. It is the world’s largest event among individual game companies, not game shows.

You need to buy a ticket to attend here. Tickets cost a whopping $199, but sold out.

Taek-gyu crossed his arms and said.

“There were only two things I wanted to do when I made a lot of money. One was to meet Ichikawa Shigeru Ong, and the other was to go to StormCon.”

This is similar to what I wanted to go to the Berkshire Cashier Shareholders’ Meeting in Edens, right?

Icestorm once reigned as the strongest MMORPG, but that is now a thing of the past. It is currently losing popularity even in North America.

There are many reasons, but the main reason is the emergence of a strong competitor. Lost Fantasy Online, created by OTK Games, was the biggest box office hit in North America ever.

It is rare for an MMORPG made by a Japanese game company to be successful in the Western world. Icestorm’s share price has fallen nearly 20 percent since Lost Fantasy Online went into service in North America.

Still, even if the rich go bankrupt, three generations go on, Ice Storm has succeeded in several games so far, and the genres are also diverse, including action, strategy simulation, RPG, FPS, and CCG.

As it has a lot of IP, there is a lot of possibility that it will be revived as a new game.

“Aren’t you always the best in Lost Fantasy?”

At my words, Taek-gyu wiggled his fingers.

“Even so, how do people live on only rice? Sometimes I have to eat side dishes too. Isn’t diversity important to anything?”

That’s right.

That’s why a lot of games are still pouring in.

“And you know, my second favorite game after Lost Fantasy is Mephisto. We played Mephisto 2 together when we were in middle school.”

I nodded.

“That was fun.”

It was a time when we studied and played games all night long. It was a time when there was no shutdown system, so both of them didn’t sleep for a few days and just focused on games.

Oh Taek-gyu’s bus was safe and comfortable. Thanks to this, I was able to level up easily and pick up items.

“Suddenly it reminds me of the past.”

“A good game is a beautiful memory of childhood.”

We laughed as we recalled the past together, but Taek-gyu suddenly shouted in an angry voice.

“By the way, Mephisto 4 that came out last year was a complete rip off!”

“I haven’t tried it, but I’ve heard a lot about it.”

The graphics were messy, the controls were complicated, the campaign was bad, there was not enough entertainment other than combat, and the balance between races was messed up. Although some users used the macro program, the management didn’t impose any sanctions.

Above all, the point where Taek-gyu was most angry was the destruction of settings.

Mephisto 4 completely destroyed the worldview that had been steadily built up in the three series. Most fans treated the 4 as non-existent.

It was truly a total mess.

I wonder if Icestorm also felt the problem Awakened, but after that, it was continuously patched and fixed… … It was after all the users had already left.

Still, thanks to the name Icestorm, it looks like it’s done a good job, but if it had been made by another developer, it would have been ruined.

“There is talk of announcing a 5 at this StormCon. I completely overhauled it and rebooted. Because of that, Mephisto fans are cheering and rioting now. Hopefully, a masterpiece following the second may be born.”

Expectations were oozing from the conversation. Actually, unlike me, who worked 20,000 hard, Taek-gyu did all the Mephisto series. I even did the 4th called the stumbling block.

Taek-gyu put his hand on my shoulder and said.

“Let’s go together.”

I want to, but now that I’m back in Korea, I have a lot of work to do.

“If both are absent, who will protect the company?”

Taek-gyu said it was a pity.

“Then I’ll take you, Team Leader Jeong Ki-hong. This time, we should focus on the education of the game a little more.”

“Do that.”

“Ah! Anneke and Hana-san decided to go together. They must both be very interested in Stormcon.”

“… … .”

Maybe he’s more interested in you?

However, one of the harem members (?) was missing the name.

“You don’t care about Min Ha-young?”

“I don’t want to go. Because he played Mephisto too.”

“Then why don’t you take me?”

Taek-gyu said it was natural.

“You don’t know? have to finish I cried and cried and hung up to take her, but I refused like a knife. A promise to the reader comes first. Where does an artist who hasn’t finished the deadline go to play?”(Read more @ wuxiax.com)

“… … .”

No, can’t we play with something?

* * *

Taek-gyu headed to Los Angeles in a private plane with team leader Jeong Ki-hong and Hana Yang and Anneke.

Anneke said happily.

“I’m going to Stormcon this year too.”

A Norwegian princess and ambassador for Norwegian games, she was invited to attend various game shows. She says that she’s never attended Storm Kern either twice.

Taek-gyu looked at Yang Hana and asked.

“You look tired, are you okay?”

The two answered with a strong voice.

“Ah yes. Does not matter.”

She pretended to be okay, but in reality she was on the verge of collapse.

‘I barely finished Lost Fantasy, but this time Mephistorani!’

I spent several nights studying how complex the worldview was. No matter how many times I looked at it, there were a couple of things I couldn’t understand.

After thinking about the problem alone for several days, she carefully asked Taek-gyu.

“According to the setting, only the Soul Stone can seal Mephisto, right?”

“right.”

“By the way, in 4, it is said that you have to gather and strengthen the scattered Soul Stones to make Phillysophus Stones. So, were there multiple Soul Stones from the beginning? And I said that Soul Stones were made in the Demon Realm. So, is it a lie to deceive users when Lactium said that Soul Stones made in Heaven were corrupted and flowed into the Demon Realm?”

Taek-gyu answered the question simply.

“It’s just a set-up.”

“… … .”

Thousands of people gathered at the event site where StormCon was held.

Despite the expensive entrance fee, they did not discriminate between men and women, and some of them cosplayed characters from the game.

Elves with outstretched legs and belly exposed and bows in their hands, paladins with shields and swords in chain armor that would have been used in medieval times, wizards in robes, dwarves with beard-covered faces and Battle Xs, all muscular oak and so on.

Since he is a Westerner, he really looked like he had just popped out of a fantasy game.

Team leader Jeong Ki-hong could not keep his mouth shut due to the tremendous heat.

“It’s amazing. I thought this kind of thing only existed in Japan.”

Taehyung said with a smirk.

“Huh, the greatest virtue among virtues is virtue.”