Chapter 458
If George's grandfather is a senior stock investor, this reason makes sense.
It makes sense to make a lot of money in the end after a lifetime of stock trading, right?
This is the real American dream. You can't say that you have to lose money when entering the stock market and don't let others make money. Casinos are not so overbearing.
As for why they make money, of course the old man has rich experience and accurate judgment.
What? You said it was Grandpa George’s first time trading stocks?
Then maybe they are lucky.
Regardless of whether the old stock god is really powerful or just lucky, in short, people have made money.
George said very happily: "My grandpa just gave me a luxury sports car as a birthday gift."
Qin Shaoyan sighed, "The relationship between your families is really good."
"Of course." George said with a smile, "I grew up on my grandfather's farm when I was a child. He had a large farm in Texas. When I went to college, he raised half of my tuition."
< br>
"That's a lot of money." Qin Shaoyan also exclaimed.
"Indeed." George nodded with emotion, "If it weren't for my grandpa's help, I wouldn't be able to go to Harvard University."
Qin Shaoyan remembered that classics such as "Reader" and "Yilin" often promoted some social customs and life in the United States. For example, American society does not rely on relationships and favors, but relies entirely on rules.
For example, foreign families advocate independence. When children reach the age of eighteen, they can live on their own, work to earn money to pay for school fees, etc.
But later everyone knew that these rumors were all nonsense.
The higher the class, the more important relationships and favors are. These are necessary conditions for being in a circle.
As for advocating independence and letting children earn their own money to pay for tuition, that is purely because the tuition fees for American universities are too high.
Most families simply cannot afford this, so of course they have to rely on their children to find a solution.
The proportion of undergraduate students in the United States who take loans to go to school is as high as 94%. According to the 2015 U.S. Department of Education data analysis, more than 70% of American college students are burdened with student loans when they graduate, with the average debt per person exceeding US$35,000.
Moreover, student loans are compounded with interest, so the bank’s kindness is not over yet, and it may not be able to be repaid until retirement.
It's different for rich people. They don't have to worry about tuition fees, or even how to get into college. They can just donate a building.
However, George, a descendant of an old redneck, still had some financial strength, and he was able to pay half of the tuition.
Therefore, the old man's ability to become a stock god depends on his own strength. After all, the income generated by entering the stock market is different between one dollar and one million dollars.
George could rely on his grandfather to make some extra money in the stock market. As for how other partners relied on to avoid the attention of the SEC (U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission), it is not convenient to elaborate.
Qin Shaoyan doesn't care about the details and doesn't intend to get involved. There are things that others can do, but that doesn't mean you can do it too.
He had better do some legitimate business honestly and through legal channels. "How are you doing Gabe recently?"
"Overall, it's not bad. Steam is becoming more and more successful now." George said happily. "Now that you are willing to take over the online game of Counter-Strike, he is even happier. He said that you are a very good game producer. Counter-Strike is yours." Hands can get better.”
"That's not necessarily the case, George." Qin Shaoyan sighed, "I am a businessman now. The first goal of a businessman is to make money, not to make the game more fun."
"What's the difference?" George looked confused and puzzled. "Wouldn't the game become more fun and more profitable?"
"Of course it's different. Fun games may not necessarily make money." Qin Shaoyan explained, "Games that make money may not necessarily be fun."
"Well, anyway, we believe in you." George smiled, "No matter how bad Counter-Strike is, how bad can it be?"
After all, "Counter-Strike" is globally famous and can be called a truly world-class national shooting game. With this huge fan base, the online version of "Counter-Strike" will never lose money.
So this cooperation is a win-win situation for both parties.
"If I make an online version, I will moderately optimize it based on the original version." Qin Shaoyan said seriously, "After all, the online version is different from the stand-alone version."
"Oh, it's okay, I can understand." George nodded. In fact, he didn't quite understand the difference between the online version and the stand-alone version.
However, Qin Shaoyan has experience in making online games, so he must know the market and players better.
"I will be moderately commercialized." Qin Shaoyan continued, "In order to increase the revenue of the game, I will add some powerful firearms and props appropriately, what do you think?"
George was a little dumbfounded, "Wouldn't that destroy the balance of the game?"
"Of course." Qin Shaoyan replied confidently, "You can't think about balance and making money at the same time. Players just want to spend money to become stronger. What's wrong with them?"
"But..." George was a little confused, "I think this is wrong. Fairness in competitive games is the most important thing."
"It will ruin the game if you do that."
Qin Shaoyan looked at the other party and suddenly smiled, "I was just joking, you wouldn't take it seriously."
"John." George frowned, "This is not funny. You have to promise me not to ruin it."
"Don't worry, I will work hard to preserve the fairness of the competition." Qin Shaoyan said sincerely, "I will find ways to improve its commercial value in other aspects."
"I have been studying shooting games recently. The gameplay of Counter-Strike is too monotonous. What do you think about adding a little bit of Resident Evil elements?"
"Wow!" George's eyes lit up, "Really? That's great, John, we have been studying this aspect recently."
"What is it?" Qin Shaoyan also became interested, "What new thing have you come up with?"
"We are developing an online shooting game, the background is the end of the world where zombies are rampant." George said excitedly, "We have designed a four-player online mode and added many novel elements..."
At this time, Qin Shaoyan understood that the other party was talking about the "Left 4 Survival" series. This is also a classic stand-alone game. Twenty years later, "Left 4 Survival 2" still has a large number of loyal players.
Well, there is no third part in this series. It is a classic operation of V Club.
Qin Shaoyan has also played this game, so he is naturally very familiar with the game's settings, and the two naturally started chatting quickly.
George found that Qin Shaoyan's ideas were very consistent with his own. He excitedly picked up a pen and paper and recorded the contents while discussing, and then added these things to the game later.
As he wrote, George felt regretful.
Why does such a good person go to the Internet?
It's a pity that Qin Shaoyan is now a wealthy man, and it is impossible for him to give up his career and go back to playing games with him.
"John, you are a game design genius." George said sincerely, "Don't waste your talent. That is a loss for the game industry and players."
"Well, I will make good use of my talent." Qin Shaoyan nodded in agreement.
I will definitely make good use of it, after all, games can make money quickly. "When do you plan to release the new game?" Qin Shaoyan asked.
"Normally, it will take about two years." George made a rough estimate and gave the time.
"What about the sequel?" Qin Shaoyan continued to ask.
"If it sells well, there will definitely be a sequel." George replied in the affirmative.
"Will it be a trilogy?"
"..." George was silent for a moment, "Well, it should be a trilogy."
Haha, you feel guilty when you say this.
"George, I think if V Club keeps making shooting games, it's a bit too limited." Qin Shaoyan suggested, "Has Gabe ever thought about developing other types of games?"
"Well, he has indeed considered this, but we have experience in FPS and are not familiar with other types." George thought for a while, "Do you have any suggestions?"
During this period, Valve was still very enterprising, but later it just settled down and relied on Steam to be a middleman.
"Have you ever played DOTA?" Qin Shaoyan asked.
Please...you...collect 6...9...books...!
"That DOTA in "Warcraft"?" George was a little confused, "Why are you mentioning this?"
"I think this type is very fun. It will be welcomed by players all over the world. It is very competitive." Qin Shaoyan said enthusiastically, "Don't you think this is a very good reference?"
"You mean we made something similar to DOTA?" George asked doubtfully.
"No." Qin Shaoyan replied, "It's not an imitation. We can just make a direct copy of DOTA."
George shook his head and refused, "But DOTA belongs to Blizzard..."
"No, it does not belong to Blizzard." Qin Shaoyan replied, "It is just a custom RPG map based on "Warcraft". Its creators are Eul, Steve Guinsoo, and IceFrog. It is not the property of Blizzard, but It’s the player’s.”
Eul produced the first DOTA map, and Steve Guinsoo and IceFrog continued to improve it to create DOTA.
Among them, IceFrog takes the greatest credit. When he was developing DOTA2, he also kept updating and making DOTA maps for free, just for the sake of love.
"Dota has endless potential. "Warcraft" gave birth to it, but it is also limiting its growth." Qin Shaoyan said righteously, "For the benefit of the majority of players, we should help it break away from the shackles of "Warcraft" , let it grow with a larger and freer space.”
"So, we should move it out and make a new DOTA."
"Is this... going to be troublesome?" George hesitated. He was also a senior DOTA enthusiast and was very moved by Qin Shaoyan's proposal, but he also had concerns about the ownership of DOTA.
"Now DOTA is updated and maintained by IceFrog, we can just hire him to be responsible for the development of DOTA." Qin Shaoyan directly instigated, "As for legal issues, I have consulted a lawyer, and we have not infringed. , if there is a lawsuit, it will be a settlement at most, and Blizzard will not win.”
"Really?" George's eyes lit up.
"Of course, I can guarantee that." Qin Shaoyan said confidently, "Have you forgotten how YouTube won the infringement lawsuit?"
"Oh, in this case..." George was very moved, "I want to go back and have a good talk with Gabe."
"Give me an answer as soon as possible." Qin Shaoyan urged, "I have already asked someone to contact IceFrog."
"Okay, I will convince Gabe as soon as possible." George rubbed his hands excitedly, "We are going to do something big together again."
"That's right." Qin Shaoyan gave a positive reply, "This is indeed a big undertaking."
……
Los Angeles, California.
In a newly founded game company, Brandon Baker and Marco Merrill were busy nervously.
They tidied up the office, placed some green plants to make the company look more formal, and put on suits.
The reason why it takes so much trouble is because an investor will be here today.
This is the first institution interested in investing, which is very important to the two of them.
Although this fledgling company was not short of money in a short period of time, it also severely restricted the company's development.
For these two extremely ambitious people, they will never let go of any opportunity they can.
At ten o'clock in the morning, a luxurious Mercedes-Benz sedan stopped downstairs. The accompanying assistant opened the door. After getting out of the car, Edward took a look at the unfamiliar environment and put on his sunglasses.
Brandon Baker and Marco Merrill greeted him early, "Hello, sir."
Edward was very indifferent to the hands extended by the two people, and shook them perfunctorily, "Is this your company?"
"Yes."
"What's it called?" Edward took off his sunglasses and glanced at the company's LOGO, "Riot Game? What kind of game do you make? Violent Motorcycle?"
The literal translation of RiotGames is Riot Games, but it is generally translated as Riot Games in China.
The two founders didn't take the investors' ridicule seriously. They chose this name just for people to see. There's nothing to be ashamed of.
Brandon Baker explained with a smile, "We used this name because we want our company to be stronger and more aggressive."
"Offensive?" Edward nodded, "I like this statement very much. I hope your company will be so aggressive in its future development."
After entering the reception room, Edward threw the information handed to him by his assistant on the table without even looking at it. "To put it simply, I'm not very interested in your company's information. I only care about what projects you can come up with that can impress me?" ”
The two founders looked at each other, and Brandon Baker said cautiously: "Do you play games?"
"No, I don't play." Edward said calmly, "But I still know something about games, otherwise why would I invest in a game company."
"Then you have heard of DOTA, right?" Brandon Baker continued to ask.
"I know." Edward replied directly, "I heard that this game is good and there are many players."
The two founders cheered up, as long as the investors knew the business, otherwise they would have to work hard to explain how popular the game was and how promising it was.
Brandon Baker explained excitedly, "Our company is developing DOTA-type games. To be precise, we are planning to transplant the DOTA model from stand-alone games to online games."
"We have a great idea..."
"Okay." Edward interrupted him unceremoniously, "I just want to know that there is already a DOTA, why do players come to play your game?"
(End of chapter)