The team working on Counter-Strike was quickly sent to a shooting range to test the firearms, aiming to test every mainstream firearm and ensure the game felt realistic in terms of gunplay. The names could be fudged a bit, but the feel of the weapons had to be authentic, and that couldn't be compromised.
The developers had to truly experience the feel of real firearms and the sound of gunfire.
With Takayuki's permission, they quickly decided to purchase a set of high-end recording equipment, a setup that cost nearly a million dollars.
The gunshot sounds recorded with this equipment had virtually no loss in audio quality.
This was actually a suggestion from Takayuki himself.
While video games could simulate the sound of a firearm's bolt action and gunfire through digital audio, the only way to truly immerse the player was by using real sounds for recording.
Takayuki remembered how many games in his past world had used this as a selling point.
...
...
In his world, Takayuki had grown tired of these gimmicks, but in this world, they had yet to be experienced, and using such methods in promotion could enhance the game's professionalism and attract more players.
Once the subconscious connection was made, players would automatically associate Counter-Strike with professional shooting games, and every game would be compared to Counter-Strike. At that point, the game would be considered a success.
Aside from the shooting game, the development of Need for Speed and FIFA soccer games was proceeding similarly.
Need for Speed had access to professional data from famous car manufacturers, and its development was much smoother than that of FIFA and Counter-Strike.
However, when they saw how the Counter-Strike team used such professional equipment to record gunshot sounds, they also considered using this method to record the real sounds of car races.
Many of the developers were car enthusiasts, so they saw this as a great opportunity to have fun while working. Of course, they knew to keep the work on track.
As for FIFA, its development was the slowest. The player data was quite sensitive. Unlike cars and guns, which were inanimate objects, using real-world player data without authorization would easily raise suspicions of privacy violations, especially with Europeans being very sensitive about this. Takayuki wasn't about to cross that line, so he preferred to follow the local customs.
However, Matsuhashi had likely already taken care of the soccer licensing issue. From her tone, it seemed like things were going smoothly.
If time allowed, all these games could likely be completed within a year and a half to two years.
After organizing the work, Takayuki quickly returned to Las Vegas. The Millison Film Festival was about to start, and he had been invited, so he needed to show his face.
...
Alfonso had been having a rough time lately. His career in the film industry was going poorly, and he kept running into dead ends.
His works weren't bad, but they just weren't popular.
He had previously publicly opposed Takayuki's company and had made bold statements about never collaborating with them.
However, secretly, he had been using the affordable and convenient Unreal Engine to develop his films, which was discovered and mocked. Even Takayuki's PR department joined in, subtly ridiculing him.
But after struggling for many years, Alfonso wasn't easily discouraged.
The backlash from his public opposition to Takayuki's company had some serious consequences—many young people were angered by his stance and had actively called for a boycott of his works online.
These young people had a big influence on the internet, and Alfonso could do nothing but watch them flaunt their power online. In fact, Takayuki's company's "internet army" had played a part in amplifying the situation.
But even without Takayuki's involvement, his opposition still brought out a lot of disdain. However, this wasn't as intense as it could have been.
After his public opposition, Alfonso's films had been struggling. He had learned the hard way just how powerful the internet could be.
These young people had managed to shift public opinion through the internet, something he had never anticipated. Now, he couldn't help but feel that he, too, had become increasingly addicted to the internet, as if it had become inseparable from his life.
He had deleted his Facebook account several times, but it always found a way to resurface on his homepage, making him feel conflicted.
However, Alfonso didn't let it completely demoralize him. He believed this storm would pass and that he could eventually regain his footing.
He was right—one of the most notable characteristics of the internet was its short attention span. People could only remember something for a brief time, and before long, the latest news would replace it, pushing everything else into obscurity. Eventually, some even joked that modern internet users had a memory span of just three days, not much better than a fish's seven-second memory.
This year, Alfonso was still on the invite list for the Millison Film Festival. His position in the industry was still intact.
However, he was quite uncomfortable to find out that Takayuki's team was also on the list.
This stung him deeply.
The fact that Takayuki's team could attend the Millison Film Festival was a slap in the face.
It proved how poor his judgment had been. A top-tier film institution like the Millison Film Festival had recognized their work, while he had rejected it. Now, people would look back at Alfonso and use him as a laughingstock.
He had originally planned to wait for the whole controversy to die down and then promote his work, but now this situation had only added insult to injury.
There was nothing he could do about it.
However, things were about to get even worse.
He wasn't sure if the Millison Film Festival organizers had done this intentionally or not, but he had been assigned a seat very close to Takayuki's group. In fact, if Takayuki's team won and went up on stage, they would pass right by him.
It felt like a direct stab to his heart!
Alfonso was extremely displeased, but he didn't dare confront the organizers, so he swallowed his frustration.
However, despite his anger, he had to admit that Takayuki's company had indeed created a miracle. This was something he could only recognize after reflecting on it.
Whether it was the Unreal Engine or Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children, their impact was undeniable.
Still, thinking about it all made him even angrier!