Competition

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[-Continuation-]

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[Hachiman Hikigaya's POV]

After spending a week recovering at home following my discharge from the hospital, I made a decisive choice to focus on a few key aspects of my life, including the differences I mentioned, and work towards financial success, or at the very least find a way.

Yeah, I know I am thinking waaaaaaaaaay too far ahead. But I gotta start as early as I can if I want to achieve the peaceful life I want in my later years.

…though my past goal of settling in as a 'full-time house husband' doesn't sound bad, I would prefer to keep it as a backup plan.

Nevertheless, I was not willing to trade my happiness for a paycheck by pursuing something that didn't bring me joy.

I still hate the idea of being a salaryman.

…however, let's be real. In my present situation, even if I want to gain -financial success- I don't exactly have a single marketable skill that can rake in the cash in the first place.

But after some days of wracking my brain, I realized that there were two activities I truly enjoyed and found exciting - Gaming and Writing.

Playing games and reading books have always been my go-to activities, irrespective of my mood, sometimes even uplifting me.

Interestingly, it seemed fitting that these passions were somehow tied to my past memories as well.

With this realization, it was evident that honing my skills in either or both of these areas could lead to a fulfilling career path.

And if I worked diligently enough, perhaps I could even excel in both.

From then on, during the time I stayed at home, I had three main focuses:

-Improving my mental state and overcoming traumatic memories.

-Preparing for Year-End Examinations.

-Developing my skills in gaming and writing.

At the end of it all, I finally found my grand scheme. A way to create a steady income stream for the rest of my high school years and even a few years beyond my graduation, using the resources I had at my disposal.

Luckily, as you might have guessed, I have succeeded in it, albeit after facing a couple of ups and downs.

It all started when I stumbled upon an online competition held by a random organisation…

The competition is about inviting talented aspiring developers to participate and present their own game concepts. If you manage to win, you will get prize money and a chance to see your game come to life.

Sure as hell, it looked like a total scam.

But a scam it might be, or not, it definitely piqued my interest without a doubt… 

So I went on a hunt, a hunt for any and every post related to the various and all game contexts. Initially, I didn't care about the size or credibility of the company that was holding the event.

I went ahead and applied for almost all the free events that are being hosted. 

But that happened to be a mistake on my part, as after a few days, I realized that these free sign-up events were just a waste of resources- in my case - Time.

Nonetheless, learning from that mistake, I went on searching for more official, recognized and trustworthy ones, even if I had to pay the entry fee.

After a bit of digging around on the internet, I found a few interesting things.

It turns out, these types of competitions are not that uncommon.

And many Companies and Corporations have a unique strategy for these kinds of online events.

Their primary goal was not necessarily to create successful games from someone else's ideas. 

Instead, their aim is to promote their company by conducting these online competitions and producing basic versions of winning concepts in a short period of time. 

It is a fact that the success rate for these games is low, with the focus being more on marketing their company value than the potential for commercial success of the game itself.

Moreover, the games developed by these companies after winning the competitions wouldn't be the full version. Instead, they would be simplified versions of the original concept, with a focus on quick development and deployment.

However, even with these kinds of regulations, there is no one who would oppose them. That is, if they were willing to see the bigger picture rather than being hung up on instantaneous success.

In the first place, a genuine, aspiring game developer would not enter these competitions in the hopes of becoming an overnight millionaire. They mainly participate to build connections and reputation in the gaming industry.

The company also makes it clear that there will be no marketing efforts on their end. In fact, it was said that many times there wouldn't be a winner in these competitions if they hadn't liked any of the game concepts.

Sometimes this will also lead to situations where the designated individual responsible for conducting these competitions may not always take them seriously, leading to potential rejections.

All in all, if you were smart, you would just think of winning it to get an opportunity to see their ideas come to life with the expertise and resources of prominent gaming companies at our disposal.

….and if you are lucky, you may potentially earn significant financial rewards, which is my actual goal.

So, I needed to make my choice based on all these factors and go for the one that best suited me.

After a lengthy search and analysis, I finally settled on three game events hosted by three different bodies of organizations.

These three companies had many similarities in the theme they wanted the contestant to prepare for their presentation.

So that made things easy for me, as I could send the same pitch to all three and hope at least one of them would be interested enough to make me some cash.

What they demanded was simplicity, easy gameplay, interest garbing, and high longevity.

Of course, meeting any of these requirements wasn't as simple as they made it out to be. If not, there wouldn't have been so many people who failed to become game developers, considering the number of competitions being held every year.

But I had the perfect game concept that could make the cutout for sure.

It was a game from my past life, one that had yet to be created or discovered by anyone else in the vast world of the internet.

The game was called - [Candy Crush]

The game was a whirlwind of vibrant colors, with players swapping candies in an attempt to form rows or columns of three or more identical treats. Each successful match cleared the candies from the grid and earned points for the player. It was a deceptively simple concept, yet it offered endless possibilities within its limited number of moves. 

I could already see the vivid candies bursting on the screen, creating a satisfying cascade of sugary bliss.

But it wasn't just about the colorful candies and satisfying combos. The beauty of this game was its accessibility.

Anyone could pick it up and enjoy it. Its casual nature would make it appealing to all ages.

And more than that, it got IMMENSE replay value and could even be called evergreen games.

I knew that [Candy Crash] had the potential to become a 'SMASH' hit.

I might sound a bit greedy, and I might actually be, but why would I want to share my potential source of income with others if I could have it all for myself?

As a great man once said, it is not inherently sinful to harbor greed, but rather in the inability to bear the repercussions of their desires.

Simply put, don't bite off more than you can chew.

So yeah, as a high school student, I knew that I couldn't bring this vision to life on my own. Maybe if I didn't set a deadline for myself... but even considering that I lacked the necessary skills and resources to develop such a complex game.

Setting aside these thoughts, I focused on preparing for the contest.

For a month, I prepared a detailed proposal, outlining the gameplay mechanics, target audience, budget & financials, and potential for monetization.

And then, I submitted my work to the three companies, as mentioned before…

But my three submissions were rejected on my first try.

Just to be clear, I had to pay to participate in these events.

So, of course, I wasn't going to leave it at that without getting a proper review and explanation for the rejection.

I wrote a letter to the company management, seeking an explanation, and of course I received no response.

Then, I decided to enter the next event with the same concept for all three companies again… Maybe I tweaked my project a little bit.

And yes, I had to pay the participation fee again, which left a bitter taste in my mouth.

Yet, I was again faced with rejection… All three submissions were rejected.

Maybe I was just being too arrogant because of these recent memories.

Anyway, I went through the same process of seeking an explanation from the management, but once again received none.

At that point, I thought about giving up. I didn't even have the money to pay for the participation fee.

But after a week, I received an interesting email from one of the three companies with which I took part in the event.

From there, it was quite a journey, and maybe I will tell you about it another time. But to sum it up simply, here's what happened...

This gaming company, Orgo, which hosted the contest I participated in, was interested in my game concept and was willing to invest(:buy) it.

....but that made me wonder - how could I possibly have been rejected in my first two submissions?

I could have saved some money if they had just done that. Idiots - was my first thought.

Anyway, all I could sense from the behavior of the person who introduced himself as the man in charge of the contest I participated in was that he messed up big time. At least, that's how his face looked and the way he spoke.

Interestingly, the initial competition I participated in was rejected by this guy. Yeah, I didn't bother remembering his name.

Maybe it was also because of that he wasn't the one who is 'now' in charge of my game, which I am ever thankful for.

It was this other guy, the current overseer, who was more friendly and accommodating toward me. And I think he is an interesting dude to work with.

After going through all the necessary processes... I would need to sign a contract outlining the terms of our 'partnership'.

The contract, reviewed with me by my parents beside me, stipulated that Orgo Corporation would own the majority of the game's rights, including the Intellectual Property(:IP). 

I would receive an initial payment of ¥500,000(:approximately $5,000) upon signing the agreement.

Once the game was launched, I would receive an additional ¥300,000(:approximately $3,000).

And if the game proved to be successful and I made a certain amount in net profits, I could potentially earn up to 1% of those profits. However, this was ultimately at the discretion of Orgo Corporation.

So it can be said that my future earnings will heavily depend on how well the game performs. If it became a hit, I could potentially receive a small percentage of the revenue generated.

That is more of the reason why [Candy Crush] was the best choice.

Anyway, as of now, I had received the initial payment, and my game was still in the early stages of development.

It would have been all great and done if I had won the other two online competitions I entered before this.

With my mind wandering on different topics, I also managed to complete preparing the snacks, which I had been working on for ten minutes. I had everything set, including the dining table.

–BANG!!

Just then, a shout echoed through the house, accompanied by the bang of a door opening.

"Big brother, I am home!!" A familiar voice called out, breaking through the peaceful atmosphere.

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[To be continued….]

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