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Chapter 50 GS1 Chip
The February holiday season made Pirates of the Caribbean a global topic of conversation. The first version of the Pirates of the Caribbean game's world view was now perfected, attracting a wave of new players to the world Matthias Engel had built.
Sales on the Steam platform rose accordingly. Currently, 25 million copies have been sold globally, with 30 million within reach. Another significant source of income was skin sales. Players were intensely interested in skins. There was a small chance of getting skins from treasure chests found during voyages or by defeating rare monsters. This in-game skin drop mechanism was uncommon and was praised by players as a "conscientious game."
Of course, this also tapped into a unique psychological aspect. Some players didn't want to wear the same skins as those who got them as drops, so they were willing to spend money to buy exclusive skins and different color schemes to express their individuality. So far, the prize pool from global skin sales has reached ten million US dollars, and it's estimated to reach thirty million by the time the Pirates of the Caribbean S1 Global Tournament begins.
The exact amount of the prize pool was displayed in real-time within the Game Producer System interface. Seeing these figures, players were eager, leading to the formation of numerous teams worldwide preparing to challenge the tournament. The specific content of the Global Tournament had not yet been announced, but players were already speculating. Some guessed fleet battles between alliances; others guessed character duels. In any case, until Matthias finalized the content through the system, these were all just conjectures.
After the Pirates of the Caribbean movie became a global hit, Director Kevin reappeared in the public eye. Some people dug up his previous film, Waterworld, and praised it after watching.
"It's strange, this film was clearly very well made, but it failed at the box office that year."
"Nothing strange about it, it just didn't suit the audience's taste back then."
"It was too avant-garde."
At the same time, major film companies extended olive branches to Kevin, hoping he could direct their projects. However, Kevin rejected them all. His reason was simple: Pirates of the Caribbean still had sequels to film. Not only Kevin, but also the various actors who appeared in the movie received constant invitations.
For example, Laura Schmidt—she was popular now, and various variety shows were inviting her to participate. Under Maria Schmidt's screening, she had been busy participating in filming, and the two sisters hadn't been seen at the apartment for several days.
Matthias, meanwhile, went to GAME STAR to check on the progress of the game console. Katja Weber stood in the office and began to report.
"General Manager Engel, the peripheral matters have been settled. They have started manufacturing co-branded peripherals according to our design drawings, and the first batch is expected next Monday."
"The game console itself has completed assembly, and Hans Müller's team is currently conducting drop tests."
Matthias and Katja went to the adjacent AdlerTech factory (formerly Long Teng). Hans's team was conducting tests. Seeing Matthias arrive, they immediately stopped. Matthias waved his hand: "You continue."
"Understood, Herr Engel."
They tested the game console from a height of 30 centimeters, and the results showed no problems. Then they increased the height: 50 centimeters, one meter, and finally two meters. All were safe. Any higher was unnecessary.
The game console's shape was similar to a PS4, but much smaller. It had a sleek black and white color scheme, resembling a small designer bag, and was very light and portable. There were several external ports on the back for connecting controllers, keyboards, mice, and monitors. The only drawback was that it could only run Pirates of the Caribbean.
"Herr Engel, the drop test passed. Our console is inherently lightweight, with very few components inside," Hans said with a chuckle.
The Liquid Droplet Chip integrated several components, which greatly reduced the weight. Matthias picked up the unit; it felt like picking up a router. It was hard to imagine that this router-sized device could smoothly play Pirates of the Caribbean at cinematic settings.
"How long will the regulatory filing take?" Matthias asked.
"It's estimated to take three months, if we go through the standard channels."
"Spend the money, go through the green channel," Matthias requested.
"Understood, General Manager Engel," Katja immediately noted.
"By the way, since the GS1 Chip has been released, we need to promote it. Hans, you and the others should film an introductory video for the GS1 and post it on our official site and social media."
The next day, a video about the GS1 Chip appeared online. Hans and the others introduced its functions and future applications. The tags included Pirates of the Caribbean, so the platform gave it some traffic. However, some players who saw it only gave it a cursory glance.
"Liquid Droplet Chip? Just another gimmick."
"No need to watch, it's a scam."
"This is too outrageous, integrating CPU, GPU, and RAM into one drop."
"AdlerTech is just trying to attract investment with a deceptive trick."
The video didn't make a huge splash; instead, it received quite a bit of criticism. Matthias didn't expect a viral hit. He just wanted to inform the world that the GS1 had arrived. The main event was the console itself; only the hardware could showcase the charm of the chip. Now he was just waiting for the regulatory review.
Hans Richter, as a rival game producer, also saw the news. That day, he was chatting with the CEO of a German computer manufacturer, and the topic of the GS1 came up.
"Did you see the GS1 video? What do you think?" Richter asked.
The CEO looked disdainful: "Just a gimmick. I don't believe any investor would be blind enough to choose such a company. They'll promote anything to attract capital."
"AdlerTech is an old firm. Their technology has always been behind the times. I heard the previous owner sold it to a young man. This must be his doing."
"Young people are still too naive." They laughed heartily, not taking Matthias's work seriously at all.
Matthias returned home from the company, carrying the assembled game console. As soon as he entered, he saw Laura collapsed weakly on the sofa, looking exhausted.
"What's wrong?" Matthias asked.
"Recent movie promotions... so tiring. Running around all day, my feet are worn out. But I'm very happy, I met so many fans! Oh, what's that in your hand? Is it a router?"
"A game console."
"Wow, such a small game console," Laura teased. "Is it for playing Tetris?"