webnovel

Chapter 29

**Pov Alexandre Lockhart**

...

Mom and Monica are amazing; they played for 15 hours straight. At first, I thought Mom would like the game because of its different fighting style, but I never imagined she would call Monica and play day and night non-stop.

The two of them tested all kinds of moves with the blades, with the spells, and even Artemis's blade. I was able to gather a lot of data, and now I can better balance the damage of each attack, as well as fix the small bugs that were left behind.

Everything is almost ready now. There's not much more work to do, actually. Journey has been ready for some time, and now God of War is practically finished, except for a few small details and the music, but with Albert taking care of the orchestra, I don't need to get involved.

Fiddling with my holographic bracelet, I felt a bit bored. In recent years, I always had something to do, but now I can say that I've finished everything I started. I did the best I could with these games, and now I can only wait for the competition results.

"What a bore, maybe I should start another project."

Looking at my holographic bracelet, I sighed a little. In the past, I always talked bad about mobile games; after all, they were all full of ads and practically impossible to play without spending money. Obviously, there were some that weren't like that.

But for the most part, these games were designed specifically to make players spend money. This practice worked so well that even big companies started implementing it in their games.

Whenever something like this happened, players would complain for a while but soon accept it and stop complaining. This happened with DLCs.

Initially, many players complained, saying companies were cutting games and selling them in pieces. One of the worst cases of this was with Asura's Wrath, where they basically cut the last chapter of the game and sold the ending.

But over time, players stopped complaining and just accepted it, so DLCs became something normal. The industry slowly adapted, making DLCs more acceptable. The Witcher even created Blood and Wine, which was considered one of the best DLCs ever made.

But as the old saying goes, 'Nothing is so good that it can't be ruined.' When the industry was stabilizing, a certain company decided it would be an amazing idea to add various elements from mobile games to AAA games.

What do you think about paying full price for a game and then paying for XP, skins, legendary weapons—great idea, I doubt anyone could find a flaw in this wonderful idea. After all, players love to spend, right?!

Whether as a designer or as a player, for me, this was the lowest point in gaming. I always had a bit of prejudice against mobile games, and it only got worse when the mercenary mechanics affected other games.

But over time, after retiring, my view changed a bit. Many times I was bored and had nothing to do, so I ended up playing on my phone. I found many really good games; I could easily spend hours playing without paying attention to anything—one of the few advantages of being old.

While I was thinking, Melissa ran into the room and jumped on me.

"Brother, take me to the amusement park!"

"Hey, watch out… um, I'm not doing anything anyway… okay, I'll call Jade; maybe she wants to come along."

"Yes! I'll tell Mom to get the car."

Just like she arrived, she left like a hurricane; I could only laugh—she has so much energy. I sat on the bed and looked at the table. A hologram of Luna was sitting in an armchair, a small table beside her with a teapot, and she was wearing reading glasses with several stacks of books around her.

After Mom and Monica played, I left Luna analyzing the data we gathered. It won't take long, but since Melissa wants to go out, I can wait to see the results when I get back.

I called Jade; if I'm not mistaken, she doesn't have choir practice today, so she should be free.

"Hey, Jade, are you free this afternoon?"

"I think so. Since I don't have practice, I'm just training a bit. Why?"

"Meli wants to go to the park. Want to come along? It'll be fun."

"… You… you're going out of the house to the park? You?..."

"What do you mean by that? I always go out; I visit Grandma Maria every week."

She goes silent; I can almost see the pitying expression she's making.

"… An amusement park, huh? It's been a while since I've been to one; sounds good."

"Tch… it's settled then. We'll come by to pick you up."

After hanging up, I stretched a little while thinking. I really have been working too much lately; very rarely do I have time to enjoy life. In a way, I'm doing the same thing I did in the past.

"I should enjoy life more."

Yes, I already have many things prepared for the future, and I have everything organized for the competition. I can afford to just have fun and do what I like without thinking too much about the future.

Right after lunch, Mom, Meli, and I went to pick up Jade. She came out of the house wearing black boots with metal details, tight black pants with a red stripe down the side, and a simple black T-shirt with musical notes printed on it.

Smiling, she got in the car and greeted everyone, but I couldn't help but notice her clothes—even admitting she looks beautiful, why does she only wear black?

"Hm, what's up? Why are you looking at me like that? Hehe, are you admiring my beauty?"

"Do you only have black clothes?"

"Huh?! I have others, but this is my favorite color. Why? Is there a problem? Don't I look beautiful like this?"

"Yes, yes, (sigh), I don't understand young people these days."

We started chatting, joking, and telling some jokes. We soon arrived at the amusement park. It was an island in the middle of the ocean; even from a distance, I could see several gigantic structures, from buildings to rides to small floating islands. I was thinking nothing could surprise me anymore.

As soon as we entered the park, we went on several rides, most of which I had never seen before. Everything was made with impressive technology; the haunted house almost gave me a heart attack, and the roller coaster went above the clouds.

But if I had to say what was the most fun, it would definitely be the gravity room. It was basically a huge room full of soft weapons, knives, daggers, staffs, swords, spears, axes, and much more. All you had to do was hit everyone who appeared in front of you and collect as many points as possible to win a prize.

I can't even describe how relaxing it is to hit those kids with these toys.

"Hahaha, that was fun."

"It's not fair; you attacked me from behind."

Melissa complained, glaring at me angrily.

"That's right, how can you be so cowardly? I was almost winning against that kid when you attacked me by surprise."

"Hm?! Do you smell that?"

"Smell? I don't smell anything."

"Yes, I know what it is; it's the stench of weakness, hahaha."

"...."

"...."

(╬ ಠ益ಠ)

"Hm?! Hey Jade, drop that rock, let's talk… Meli, where did you get that bat?"

"Hehe, it's alright, brother, you're so amazing that we won't be able to touch you, right?!"

(I had forgotten how competitive they are, but this is too much.)

Before I could say anything, a woman suddenly approached us.

"Hi, sorry to interrupt, but this bat is mine."

"Huh?! Oh, I'm sorry, I saw it on the bench and picked it up."

Melissa quickly apologized to the woman, and I approached, took the bat, and handed it back to her.

"Sorry, we were just playing around a bit."

"No, it's fine; actually, I just wanted to talk to you all."

I immediately furrowed my brows.

"Talk about what?"

"Suspicious, hehe, I think it's my fault. Let me introduce myself, Andressa Souza, I'm from a modeling agency. Here are my credentials."

Looking at her credentials, everything seemed right, but I still sent a message to Mom, who was in a duel chamber where you face ten enemies, and if you beat them all, you win a prize. Unfortunately, this is only for those over 60.

"My team and I are here for a photo shoot, and we're looking for new models. When I saw your sister, a perfect mix of cuteness and violence, I couldn't help but come over to talk to you."

We sat on a nearby bench while we talked. It didn't take long for Mom to arrive. She and Andressa talked for a long time, and in the end, Mom asked Meli if she wanted to do the photos.

After thinking for a bit, she agreed, saying she'd like to have some credits. They wouldn't pay much, just a symbolic amount.

I have to admit it was fun to see Meli wearing different clothes, holding a bat, and making an angry expression. But I can only say that genetics are amazing; even trying, she can't seem threatening, well, at least until she starts talking.

Sometimes I'm even surprised at how such a cute face hides a mind... not cute at all. Anyway, this was a pleasant day. It had been a long time since I'd had so much fun. As I headed home, my mind started to wander.

I'm not sure why, but after having fun today, my desire to make a new game is boiling.

**Pov 3rd Person**

....

After playing Detroit for a long time, Melina managed to get four different endings, and only in the last one were all the protagonists alive.

Taking a deep breath, she felt satisfied, even knowing there were more endings. This was enough to do a review, and without wasting much time, she started working on her video.

[HEY Vortex, I know, I know, I've been away for a few days, but today I'll bring you my full review of *Detroit: Become Human*.

"But Melina, aren't your videos about movies?"

Yes, they are about movies, but everyone who follows me knows about my love for good stories. The last video I posted was about this game, and I talked about why I was playing it.

*Sigh*

It had been a long time since I felt this way, the feeling of being immersed in the story, the sensation of living in that world with the characters, going through the same problems as them. That's what a well-told story can do to you.

When I started criticizing writers and directors, many people told me I was being too harsh, but after getting to know Batata Productions, many people started to understand the reason for my criticisms.

And *Detroit* is the most immersive experience I've ever had the pleasure of experiencing, unlike movies and other games. In *Detroit*, you can decide the direction the story will take.

The whole story takes place in a fictional city. You might think this removes the historical weight of the game, but on the contrary, being a fictional story only gave much more freedom to the designer's creativity, allowing them to work much better on various aspects of our history.

*Detroit* touches on several sensitive topics: domestic violence, prejudice, drugs, the lack of sensitivity of modern society, and much, much more.

While playing, I often encountered moral choices. Playing as Kara, you need to feed Alice, but as an android, you don't have money, and no one will help you, so what do you do?

Will you steal? But by doing that, not only are you committing a crime, but you're also sending a bad message to the child with you.

Will you beg for help? But by doing that, you might be recognized as a kidnapper and get arrested and destroyed, while Alice will return to her drug-addicted father.

Will you let the girl go hungry and cold? She might get sick and complicate things for you in the future.

The game is full of these kinds of choices, but the most interesting thing is that you don't have to follow any of these paths. If you want, you can even abandon Alice with her drug-addicted and aggressive father and flee alone. Everything depends on you; everything depends on your choices.

When you start the game, there will be an android who will talk to you. Every time you exit and return to the game, she will make various jokes and ask questions, and as you advance in the story, her behavior changes.

Her change can be good or bad depending on your choices because everything you do in the game will slowly change that world. At a certain point, she will ask you if you believe an android can feel love.

You can answer whatever you want. If you say yes, she will be confused but happy. If you say no, she will just become a bit colder, like a machine. But none of this will change your game; it's just a small moral choice.

Sure, here's the translation with paragraph separation:

---

It's exactly these little things that make you believe that those characters exist, that the city exists. While playing, I didn't even realize how much I cared about the characters until I made a wrong choice and one of them died. Without noticing, I started to cry watching their death.

I could spend hours here talking about this game, but I don't want to spoil your experience, so just play the game. It's part of the game designer competition and is free. Just try it—you won't regret it.

For those who want to know the whole story, I will make a separate video telling the entire story in the finest detail. I'll finish this video here, love you all, and… bye.

.....

Note: This chapter should have come out yesterday, but I spent the weekend without internet, so I'm only posting it now.

I'm not sure if the amusement park part came out strange or abrupt, but I think I'm a bit late in developing the protagonist's sister. I want her to enter the film industry; she would be like Tom Cruise, doing her own stunts, but let's start as a model, hahaha.

**My Experience in Killing the Promised Consort**

After losing several times, I can only look ahead with empty eyes. How is it possible for him to be so strong? Perhaps it's impossible for me to kill a God and a Lord together? Maybe I should abandon my title of Uninhibited Potato and put on armor?

Maybe I should abandon my beloved Nagakiba and Meteoric Ore Blade katanas. It's in this moment of doubt that a seductive voice whispers in my ear.

"Put on armor, why should you fight naked? Just summon the mimic; he will help you!!! The mimic is your friend, hehehe."

Even reluctantly, I put the mimic in the shortcut to be summoned. Slowly walking towards the mist that separates me from my greatest enemy, the seductive voice speaks once more.

"Do you think that's enough? You're facing a God and a Lord united as one; to win, you must use M.A.G.I.C."

I froze. Magic? I… I should use magic?

"I… no, no, NOOOOOOO, I AM POTATO THE UNINHIBITED AND I WILL NEVER USE ARMOR OR MAGIC."

Completely naked, holding only two katanas, after 78 attempts, I, Potato the Uninhibited, killed a God and a Lord, and thus I became the strongest in the Lands Between.

Seriously, sometimes I feel like writing a story about Elden Ring.

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