I Just Want Players to Save Money, They Insist on Giving Me!
Chapter 193 - 87: The gaming community’s ’Ice Bucket Challenge’ that sparked a heated online debate! A poker-faced interview with Huabao!_2

Chapter 193: Chapter 87: The gaming community’s ’Ice Bucket Challenge’ that sparked a heated online debate! A poker-faced interview with Huabao!_2

Despite the surge in traffic, the amount of money that actually flowed into the hands of Number One Player Company wasn’t that much.

Apart from the explosive sales driven by a relay of players, more internet users merely tried out the game, only to be discouraged by its high level of difficulty.

Then there were the online nitpickers who never tire of drama and constantly hope for a turnaround.

They began to delve into just how much profit Number One Player Company had made off of "Hollow Knight."

And after the fervor of the internet’s hot debate had died down a bit,

some even started to suggest that the whole affair was a self-directed stunt by Number One Player Company, designed to attract sympathy and eyeballs.

Then someone dug up that "Hollow Knight," in just a month since its release, had made a staggering profit of close to 1.2 billion yuan.

Quickly, a slew of negative fake news stories started to float around.

’Enjoying your blood-soaked buns, huh?’ ’As people with ALS lie in bed half-dead, these capitalists count their money in secret,’ ’For all we know, this Mr. Miracle might be completely made up’

All kinds of sarcastic comments perfectly illustrated what’s meant by ’traffic is a double-edged sword.’

But what took everyone by surprise was,

the president of Number One Player Company.

It took just one move.

And he completely shut up those who loved the drama but envied others’ profits.

The president didn’t do much.

He simply made a Weibo post.

And then announced that he would donate all the profits from "Hollow Knight" to charity.

Of course, the money would not go to places like so-called Red Cross or ALS research centers,

but instead, he would set up a "Number One Player Love Help Association."

No need for these noisy netizens’ paltry donations; my company refuses to accept any outside donations, rejects any commercial advertising, and equally declines any collaboration under the guise of charity from competitors.

And these funds would only be used to help players in need.

The president had a rather willful reason.

I’m not a savior, I can’t alleviate all the suffering in the world, but since the company’s name is Number One Player, we, therefore, only help players!

In the end, the president also posted a donation receipt, "Number One Player Love Association Member NO.01," Mr. Miracle, with a donation of exactly one million yuan, also committing to cover all subsequent expenses until his departure.

This rapid counterattack, like a slap filled with force against the wind, struck the sarcastic netizens hard across their faces.

Leaving them collectively speechless and amnesiac.

Such a substantial charitable fund led to widespread shock among the regular internet users, inciting them to urgently call on the three major gaming giants to take a leaf out of this company’s book.

One could say that recently, Number One Player Company had almost unmatched presence online, enjoying widespread praise.

Even when Ke Jin went home, he could hear his father refreshing the news while muttering about this game company.

Luckily, Dad was not very interested in gaming and didn’t delve too deeply into who was behind the company.

He merely skimmed through the hot topics, aware that such a company existed.

Then he used it as an example, urging his son and daughter to learn from the company owner’s spirit of being self-reliant when poor and generous in helping the world when rich.

This prompted the siblings to exchange guilty looks and then, with great caution, nod in agreement, pledging they would do their best in the future.

Ke Jin, who thought the issue had finally blown over and was ready to take a breather,

was suddenly informed that the China Broadcasting Bureau media wanted to come for an interview.

Ke Jin was instantly overwhelmed.

I mean, what’s there left to interview...

Please, just let this spotlight pass...

Otherwise, I won’t be able to work on the next game.

If I make games in this kind of spotlight, won’t I just get aggressively scrutinized by the players?

But helpless as he was, he still had to grant face to China Broadcasting Bureau, and after all, they were not coming with the intention to harm.

However, from Ke Jin’s perspective, it was practically tantamount to persecution.

After setting the time,

soon, the reporter from the newspaper, along with a cameraman, arrived.

She was a young woman with short, neat hair and an attractive demeanor.

The interview took place in the general manager’s office at Number One Player Company.

Meanwhile, many employees were eavesdropping at the door, trying to sneak a listen to something.

"OMG! Our Mr. Ke is being interviewed by China Broadcasting Bureau, guys, I feel so honored!"

"Did you hear it? Did you catch any noise?"

"Damn it, it’s the first time I hate that Mr. Ke’s office door is so soundproof..."

"Guys, do you think this news could directly elevate our company to an S-level ranking?"

"Nah, don’t dream about it. Interviews with China Broadcasting Bureau are all about prestige; they don’t have much real effect. If it were someone from China Broadcasting Bureau, that would be something! Then all the other factories would have to bow down to us!"

"Moreover, it’s mainly due to "Hollow Knight" being free-to-play, which means that despite the overwhelming traffic, so far, it’s only generated about a masterpiece’s worth of sales... To reach S-level, we’ll need another similarly explosive hit..."

"What? Is the bar set that high? With "Hollow Knight’s" popularity being so explosive, coming up with another game that makes hundreds of millions in sales... Even for Mr. Ke, that seems hardly possible..."

"Motherfucker, whenever I think about those damn factories making a killing with just a gacha simulator, easily breaking into S-level, while our company busts our asses to make quality games and still can’t get there, I’m so disgusted!"