Chapter 89: Prize Competitions

After over a month of development, "Thunder Poker" officially launched on the official app store and Generation Gaming Platform!

On the homepage of the Generation Gaming Platform, at the top of the "Monthly Highlight," there was a banner for "Thunder Poker," featuring the game's name, icon, and a tagline.

"Who will be the Poker King? Weekly tournaments give away virtual gaming cabins!"

With millions of active users and peak concurrent users exceeding two million, the promotional effect of this slot on the Generation Gaming Platform's homepage for a month was indisputable.

In addition to this promotion, Alex also utilized his own X account and the Thunder Gaming Platform for synchronized advertising, leveraging all available promotional channels.

Many players who had been following this matter knew Alex was about to launch a new game, but they never expected he would spend over a month developing a poker game?

What a waste of this promotional slot!

The players buzzed with discussions.

"Incredible, Alex didn't make another cash-grabbing game? That's unscientific! Has he regained his integrity?"

"Damn, why make a poker game? Poker has no future! You might as well make another cash-grabbing game!"

"Such a waste of a great promotional slot! This slot was previously used to promote large VR games, and now Alex uses it for poker! Unbelievable!"

"Made in just over a month, can it even be good?"

"Off the beaten track! Why not just develop a sequel to 'Plants vs. Zombies'?"

"Poker has been overdone! Generation's poker has been running for so long already. Isn't it too late to start now?"

"Weekly gaming cabins as prizes? That's generous, but it feels like you're going to lose everything..."

"Three gaming cabins a week? Each game has its own!"

"Alright, I'll check it out. I could use a gaming cabin."

"To the commenter above, don't you know Thunder Games' style? Don't expect such things as a non-lucky player!"

"But... it's a competition!"

Opinions were varied.

However, most were attracted by the "weekly gaming cabin" gimmick.

Alex also posted the competition rules on his X account.

"Thunder Poker," "Landlord," and "Mahjong" each featured tournament modes.

From Monday to Saturday, competitions were held every two hours from 10 AM to 10 PM, with each game having a fixed number of tables (depending on the number of players), with 50-60 players per table. Players who hadn't participated in any tournament that day had priority.

The 10 AM, 12 PM, 2 PM, and 4 PM slots were free, with pre-registration. The 6 PM and 8 PM slots were paid, with late registration allowed up to 30 minutes in, requiring a bid of Happy Beans for entry.

All tournaments awarded prizes to the top three players: 60% for first place, 30% for second, and 10% for third.

Free slots awarded large amounts of Happy Beans and a small amount of points. Paid slots awarded large amounts of points.

On Sundays, based on the weekly points, the top 50 players entered the final table. The final table determined the top three who received physical prizes.

First place: a VR gaming cabin worth around 80,000 units.

Second place: a high-end desktop computer worth around 10,000 units.

Third place: a high-end smartphone worth around 7,000 units.

Each of the three poker games had its own tournaments, meaning Alex gave away nearly 300,000 units worth of prizes weekly.

Unlike lotteries, competitions couldn't be rigged. The first place was genuinely the first place, and truly skilled players would definitely win, with no chance of being cheated.

In this world, VR gaming cabins ranged from 50,000 to 200,000 units. Alex chose those worth around 80,000, which were mid-range but sufficient. Plus, there were high-end computers and phones.

When this news spread, it quickly circulated among poker players and, through X and forums, more and more players learned about it, even many non-core poker players were eager to try.

After all, this wasn't a lottery; it was a competition, and a poker competition at that.

Most players believed that games like Landlord heavily depended on luck, and with good fortune, they could keep winning. Moreover, Alex's poker game was completely free, and the tournament was absolutely fair, so everyone wanted to try their luck.

Even if they couldn't win the gaming cabin, a computer or phone would still be great!

On the launch day, "Thunder Poker" downloads surged to 280,000 and continued to rise!

Free poker games, small installation packages, comprehensive new player guides, promotion on the Generation Gaming Platform, and the lure of tournament prizes... all these factors combined led to an explosive increase in "Thunder Poker" downloads.

Of course, around 80-90% of players joined just for the excitement, each hoping to be the lucky one to win the gaming cabin.

"Dizzying amount of new player guides? Oh, luckily you can skip them. Even these simple poker rules have guides?"

"Very newbie-friendly. I was always unclear about the rules, but now I finally understand them..."

"There really are tournament modes, continuously eliminating players until there's one left? This seems more interesting than the standard tables."

"'Thunder Poker'? A new game type?"

"It feels like the competition in Landlord and Mahjong is too fierce. Is this new poker also giving away gaming cabins? I'll give it a try."

These players realized they needed to enter the Sunday final table to have a chance at the top three and win prizes. To enter the final table, they needed to accumulate as many points as possible from Monday to Saturday.

Evening tournament slots offered more points but required Happy Beans to enter, so players had to play normal games or spend money to buy Happy Beans.

Many players also saw "Thunder Poker" as a good opportunity.

Landlord and Mahjong had many players, making competition fierce. But "Thunder Poker" was new, everyone was starting fresh, and the competition would be less intense.

As a result, a significant number of players flocked to "Thunder Poker," aiming to specialize in this new poker game to win prizes.

The influx of players on the first day led to packed tables in "Thunder Poker's" main rooms and tournaments, further boosting the game's popularity.

On various game rankings and trending topics, "Thunder Poker" maintained high visibility. It was foreseeable that in the coming month, the user base of "Thunder Poker" would continue to grow explosively!