Chapter 804 - 804: The 3D Zone Can't Live Without Tifa, Just Like the West Can't Live Without Jerusalem

Listening to Anna, Hector, Marcus, and the others felt like their hearts were being squeezed.

What did she mean all the secrets were hidden in Azeroth?

You're not some big pirate!

But everyone knew that if Lucas said it, he wasn't bragging.

He was actually hiding an Easter egg for a new game in World of Warcraft, because when World of Warcraft was being developed, Lucas had specifically added many such Easter egg characters, which nobody understood at the time.

It wasn't until the new project was released that many people were surprised to discover that arrangements had already been made back then.

So, after learning about this part, Anna, Rachel, and the others quietly started exploring Azeroth on their own, hoping to find some clues.

Even though Lucas would definitely hold meetings when the new project started.

But that would take away some of the excitement.

While Hector and the others were searching for hints about the new project, players online were also discussing it.

Of course, ordinary players weren't getting any real news; it had become a habit.

It could be said that almost every month, both domestically and internationally, there were a large number of so-called 'insiders.'

Today, they'd say Nebula Games was preparing a sequel to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, and tomorrow, they'd say a sequel to The Witcher: Wild Hunt was in development.

The day after, someone would say a sequel to Red Dead Redemption: Redemption was coming.

In short, no well-known IP under Nebula Games was spared, and the rumors often sounded credible.

As for being wrong?

If they were wrong, so be it. It didn't cost them anything. But if they were right, it would be amazing!

......

"Ah! This new project boss, Lucas, isn't revealing any information at all!"

In the break room, Anna let out a groan.

For the past period, after work every day, they would head into Azeroth to search for these so-called Easter egg content, trying to figure out what the new project was.

But they had no idea what type of game it was or its theme. Searching for it was like looking for a needle in a haystack.

If they were ordinary players, they would have given up and forgotten about it.

But they all knew that Boss Lucas was working on something new, which made it unbearable.

"Just ask Boss Lucas directly," Hector said, smacking his lips.

"Yeah, just ask Boss Lucas directly," Rachel agreed.

"Sigh, Boss Lucas brushed me off like he was talking to a child before. When I asked, he just changed the subject and was super dismissive," Anna sighed.

"Anna! You already asked Boss Lucas!?"

At first, they didn't react, but as soon as they heard Anna's words, Hector and the others' eyes widened.

"Ahem… curious, you know?" Anna coughed lightly.

"Anna! That's betrayal!" Rachel, who had followed along, 'scolded' her.

After all, they had all been busy trying to find the Easter egg clues Lucas had mentioned in Azeroth these past few days!

"Alright, alright, I'll take the lead again this time," Seeing that she had angered everyone, Anna shrugged and reluctantly stood up from her chair.

As Anna got up, Rachel and the others exchanged a V sign.

.........

In the Nebula Games office, the computer screen in front of Lucas was displaying a unique female model.

Willow brows, almond eyes, cherry lips, along with a standard oval face and a high nose bridge, and long, flowing black hair gathered all the beautiful features of an East Asian woman, perfectly embodying what it meant to have an angelic face and a devilish figure.

Anna, Rachel, and the others, who knocked and received permission to enter the office, immediately saw this brand-new character model.

"So beautiful!"

"Boss Lucas, is this a character from the new game?"

Upon seeing the female model on the screen, everyone's eyes lit up, and they suddenly realized something.

"You could say that, but it's not for a new game yet. It's one of the protagonists for our new CG animated movie," Lucas nodded, then shook his head.

"What!?"

Hector and the others looked bewildered.

Did they… did they misunderstand?

What did Boss Lucas just say? A CG animated movie?

Aren't they a game company!

"Don't look so surprised. It's mainly to promote Nebula Games' influence. Relying solely on games isn't enough for our influence, including the Nebula Games theme park. Film and television are a very important direction," Lucas said, seeing their astonished expressions.

"Also, it's a way to advertise for future new releases."

In fact, major game manufacturers in their previous lives were already diversifying.

Classic masterpieces like Uncharted, The Last of Us, The Witcher, and Halo had all attempted film and television adaptations.

Including in parallel worlds, many game companies did the same, for instance, Atari was a specialist, although more often it was games adapted from movies.

And now, this was considered some kind of attempt. Of course, the more important thing was that Nebula Games had no shortage of money.

Compared to Lucas's nonchalance, after hearing his words, Anna and the others couldn't help but grumble inwardly.

Is this how you advertise?

Other people make promotional videos, and now they're making movies directly!?

Of course, while they grumbled internally, everyone was very curious about this new project.

"So, Boss Lucas, is this a project for a female character?" Hector asked tentatively.

"Not exactly. The new project will eventually be an ensemble RPG, similar to the traditional RPG model of Xenoblade, but with a more beautiful and realistic style," Lucas shook his head.

Listening to Lucas's words and looking at the model on the screen, the few of them instinctively nodded.

"As for the theme of the new project, it will blend multiple elements such as magic, weaponry, steampunk, and summoned beasts, much like a fantasy. And its name will be Final Fantasy."

Lucas briefly introduced some of the background to them.

And the character on the screen was the female protagonist from the seventh installment: Tifa.

She was one of the most popular female characters in history.

Even after more than a decade, despite the emergence of newcomers like Marie Rose, DVA, and 2B, Tifa still held her own in the 3D zone. She even caused a sudden assassination incident in the Italian Senate, leading countless players to lament: The 3D zone can't live without Tifa, just like the West can't live without Jerusalem.

Similarly, Final Fantasy, with its long history, had produced many classics.

And the reason for choosing this installment of Final Fantasy, with Tifa as the focus, was certainly not because of Tifa's status in the 3D zone.

After all, while Tifa was incredibly popular, Lightning, who later endorsed LV, wasn't to be underestimated.

The main reason for choosing this installment was its derivative movie.

In their previous life, the Final Fantasy series had released three CG feature films.

Spirits Within, Advent Children, and Kingsglaive.

Among them, Spirits Within had a budget of $160 million and nearly bankrupted Square Enix.

Then they learned from their mistakes and adapted their ace, FF7, again.

And Advent Children was no longer a money-loser like Spirits Within. It made Square Enix a lot of money and was even invited to the Venice Film Festival for two consecutive years.

But after achieving success, Square Enix got overconfident and went for an even larger-scale Kingsglaive, which naturally resulted in them losing all their assets.

Similarly, FF7 had immense popularity worldwide. Besides the quality of the game itself, the influence of Advent Children also played a role.

In fact, many players learned about Cloud, Tifa, Aerith, and Sephiroth not through the PS era games but through the CG movie Advent Children.

Therefore, Lucas decided to use this installment to lead the charge, combining games and film to expand the IP and Nebula Games' popularity.

In fact, even though the Kingsglaive movie in their previous life received overwhelmingly negative reviews and almost bankrupted Square Enix again.

However, the sales of the later Final Fantasy XV game showed the influence of its movie's dissemination.

Despite receiving rave reviews at release, its sales still ranked fourth among the main installments.

Later, the cancellation of DLC content and the completion of the plot through a novel also left players with countless regrets.

Of course, for Lucas, what he wanted was not simply to boost the game through CG movies.

He wanted to leverage both games and CG movies to drive the IP and Nebula Games' influence.

Furthermore, judging by the surrounding content, Final Fantasy was very suitable.

Handsome and beautiful characters like Cloud, Sephiroth, Tifa, and Aerith; cute mascots like Moogle and Chocobo; for those with a darker taste, there was Dr. Hojo and Professor Gast; and if one wasn't interested in humans, Red XIII could satisfy that too. It was truly an all-inclusive package!

(End of this chapter)