C21: Reviews

Chen Xu POV~

The next day, I arrived at the studio office at 7:30 in the morning thinking, if I was still a white-collar worker, would have I arrived before 9:00 AM~ Lost in my thoughts but to my surprise, Yang Xin and Ruan Ningxue were already standing in the hallway waiting, even earlier than me. I think they are waiting for me to open the door.

This is Mr. President's treatment~ ha. Let me do the honors.

As soon as I pushed the door open and walked in, the two of them rushed in, their faces full of excitement and palpable Joy.

"It exploded, it exploded! You exploded!" Yang Xin said excitedly, clutching the laptop in her hands.

(╬ಠิ益ಠิ) WTF... this was all written on my face. My forehead is as black as a pot bottom. But I move my eyes toward the culprit... The Screen.

On the screen, I saw the official app store's rating of our game.

10 points, an incredible score.

But that wasn't the only surprise. Two media outlets had already published reviews of "Undertale," and this was just the second day after its launch.

What shocked me the most was that both media outlets had given the game a perfect score of 10 out of 10! While depressingly pointing out that they can't rate it more than that.

One evaluation website was practically singing praises to the heavens.

In their review, they didn't spoil the content but described the whole experience in a cryptic, riddle-like way, as though they wanted to reel in players with curiosity alone~ indeed they are hanging up the bait waiting for these salted fish.

The review was filled with exaggerated praise.

For instance, the editor wrote that after finishing "Undertale," they sat in silence for a long time.

This is a game that breaks the traditional constraints of RPGs, they said.

It subverts one's understanding of RPG games. Who knew a game could be this impactful?

Even though it's a low-budget indie game, it delivers an experience far more powerful than many AAA titles.

The same kind of awe appeared in the comments section of "Undertale."

There were dozens of comments, some are truly mind-blowing:

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"Incredible RPG game, my spine is still tingling!" 

"Crushed your mercy... and mine! Hua was right!" 

"It fills me with determination!"

(☛´∀｀*)☛ "How is Zhong Preparing?" ~ This Is a comment

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"The sales are not bad, but we have to let it ferment for a while," I said, taking over the computer and looking at the sales in the background. A smile spread across my face.

2,049 copies sold—not a high figure, but nothing to be discouraged about either.

Although there had been some hype due to the clash with Hepai studio before, It served its purpose by making more players aware of the game, Undertale.

For many players, Neon Games and I are still unfamiliar names. The only thing we've released so far is a gentleman's game.

I had set the price per piece of Undertale at 36 yuan, the same as in my previous life. As an indie game, it wasn't expensive, and the Entertainment economy in this parallel world is much stronger than that of my previous life. Otherwise, the game industry wouldn't be thriving like this.

From 15:00 to 22:00 is prime time for sales. The buzz around the game, the reviews, and the discussions players had during this period helped boost interest.

Before 15:00, the sales of Undertale were increasing by about 200 copies per hour, but after 15:00, that number more than doubled to around 410. By the end of the night, total sales had surpassed 6,000 copies.

The game's reviews were also steadily increasing. Keep in mind, that it's only been a day and a half since Undertale was officially launched on the game platform.

In the private room of the same hot pot restaurant in the capital City, where we had dinner before, Yang Xin, who was celebrating with a can of bear in her hand with us, was even more excited when she heard the numbers again.

While Magic Mirror sold astonishingly well, she hadn't been involved with that project—just an observer of its event. But this time, she'd been a crucial part of Undertale's production and had tasted the fruit of her labour finally.

Even though the process felt like everything was simple and easy. She had contributed a lot to the game's plot, which gave her a real sense of accomplishment.

"I wonder how many sales we'll reach in the end!" Ruan Ningxue said, sipping on her juice with excitement all over her face.

"It feels like it might hit a million!" Yang Xin exclaimed.

"Judging by the current trend of reviews, a million is sure for this time," I chimed in, smiling and nodding in agreement.

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Unlike Chen Xu, who is having a good time, Zhong Dabao, along with many other players who have been following "Undertale," as well as some designers in the industry, have gone crazy after seeing the evaluation of the game.

What's really going on here?

Could Neon Games be throwing money around on the Fuk Yu Navy too? How much would this possibly cost?

I've bought good reviews and media coverage before, but this? This "Undertale" situation seems way over the top!

That was my first thought, and it was probably the same for everyone else who saw the reviews of "Undertale."

No one, including me, can believe that the true quality of "Undertale" deserves such stellar reviews. After all, it's a low-budget indie game by a relatively new studio.

And yet, this score feels like something reserved for a standard AAA masterpiece that comes out every few years' interval.

These ratings and reviews are not some Chinese cabbage. Which can be bought anywhere.

Is a game like "Undertale" really worth it?

At the same time, though, I couldn't help but get curious as a gamer and a professional developer, just like many other players. What kind of game is "Undertale" really?

Once that curiosity took hold, I ended up playing the rival game. Which shut me up further.

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Chen Xu has been glued to the game data on the platform which is in constant refresh mode, watching it refresh every hour with bigger and bigger spikes like those towers in Shanghai.

The most remarkable part is the game's reviews.

It's been almost all praise, and despite the rising sales, the game's rating has remained an astounding 9.5, refusing to drop.

Typically, a game's rating decreases as more players get involved.

A score of 8.0 usually signifies an excellent game.

Reaching an 8.6? That's already a sign of something special. As for a score above 9.2, you're talking about a masterpiece.

And yet, despite the surging sales of "Undertale," the player reviews have remained shockingly steady.

Although I'm sure the rating will drop a bit as more people play it, the current stability is mind-blowing. The following percentage of 10 rated is truly astounding. It is making a ratio of 8:2 with all other ratings.

Underneath the store page, the reviews show just how much players are reacting to the game.

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"I thought it was just an ordinary RPG with monster-slaying battles, but the appearance of Little Hua, and the comprehensive ending blew my mind!"

"I was initially curious about Neon Games and Chen Xu because of The Magic Mirror, but 'Undertale' has shown me, what a game can really be and what he can really do as a game developer! It shattered my expectations for an RPG!"

"It's nothing short of incredible!"

"Whatever you do, don't hurt those cute monsters in the game, or you'll regret it! Trust me or Trust my sword!"

"The wind is howling, and standing before you is a true hero, Niu Hua!"

"There's the energy in this game that feels explosive! I have a strong feeling that 'Undertale' is going to be a huge hit! This Art will explode.

(˃ᆺ˂)

"

"The birds are chirping,

The flowers are blooming,

The sheep mother is waiting,

Kids like you should be burning!

╭∩╮(⋋‿⋌ )ᕗ

"

"It fills you with determination!"

"Innovative and mind-blowing game design!"

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The flood of positive reviews for "Undertale" has been overwhelming, and though there are some negative ones too, they barely make a dent as they are drowned in the sea of praises.

While the rating has dropped by 0.2, compared to the sheer volume of positive reviews, the negative ones are like a drop in the ocean. Eventually forgotten.