Chapter 213
On the eve of the Future One launch, a game was released with much fanfare.
Isabella, though not particularly concerned about the game’s content, spared no effort in marketing.
When Leo split from his family, he had received eighty million, most of which was already spent.
However, Penelope had saved some money over the years.
Before her coma, she had handed over her hard–earned millions to Leo.
Part of this money was used for Leo’s personal expenses and the rest was invested in the company.
Now, there wasn’t much left.
Isabella, in a bold move, invested all the remaining funds in marketing.
At first, Leo was hesitant, “Isabella, we’re investing so much. If the game fails, we’ll be left with nothing.”
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“Fail? How could we possibly lose?” Isabella said with confidence, “Don’t worry, our game is not only beautifully made, but we also have the latest intelligent Al technology. We’re going to make a fortune this time.”
Seeing Isabella so confident, Leo felt somewhat reassured.
He hadn’t been involved in the business for a while and asked, “Have we really succeeded in developing our intelligent Al technology? How does it compare to Storm Group’s?”
Isabella felt a twinge of guilt, but to boost Leo’s confidence, she firmly nodded, “With King on our side, we’re definitely better than them.”
Leo brightened up at this,, “If our product can outshine Storm Group, then we’ve truly made it!”
“We will make it,” Isabella said through gritted teeth, her expression determined as if making a vow.
She had given her all.
This time, she wouldn’t allow herself to lose..
She would never lose.
Thanks to a massive investment in marketing, their romance game swept through Twitter overnight.
[World’s first love simulation game with intelligent NPCs a must–have experience!]
[Travel to the future and embark on heart–fluttering romances with various handsome men!]
[Shocking! A simple love game surpasses Storm Group’s latest Al technology in intelligence!]
Almost simultaneously, numerous marketing accounts began promoting this love simulation game.
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Chapter 213
[Shocking! A simple love game surpasses Storm Group’s latest Al technology in intelligence!]
Almost simultaneously, numerous marketing accounts began promoting this love simulation game..
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Given the high praise from these accounts, those interested in love simulation games downloaded it immediately. Even those initially uninterested were tempted by the barrage of information and decided to give the game a try.
As the game launched, Leo and Isabella sat nervously in front of their computer, refreshing the download stats.
“One hour in, and we have 100,000 downloads!”
Isabella said excitedly. “That’s a great start.”
Leo nodded in agreement.
Another hour passed, and the download count increased by another 100,000.
After 24 hours, the game had reached 3 million downloads.
However, the rate of increase began to slow down.
The initial downloads were largely due to the marketing.
The game’s reputation would determine its long–term success.
Given the stakes for their company, Leo, who usually loved to go out, stayed at home with Isabella, scrolling through various gaming forums to gauge the game’s reception.
Upon seeing the feedback, their faces darkened.
[The character models for these four male leads are just too ugly! I can’t handle this, I’m going back to playing my Love Producer instead.]
Love Producer was another popular love simulation game recently.
Isabella bit her lip in frustration, “This must be a smear campaign by hired trolls from that other game. They’re deliberately bad–mouthing us.”
Despite their tight budget preventing her from hiring top artists for character modeling, she thought the male leads looked quite handsome. They weren’t as bad as the comment suggested.
Leo nodded in agreement, “Definitely.”
Convinced, they continued reading.
[I came for the intelligent NPCs. After playing for five minutes, all I can say is… what kind of intelligence is this? Just a few more branching options? How is this different from the original game mode? Scam! Poor game!]
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(Poor graphics, poor storyline, poor playability. I was going to give it five stars, but after thinking about it, I’ll give it one star each time and give you five stars over five times.]
[Terrible game. Shameless marketing, feeding us garbage.]
Comment after comment, all negative, not a single positive review.
Even Leo, who was usually oblivious, had to admit the reality.
The game… probably wasn’t very good.
He looked at Isabella with a dark expression, “What’s going on? Didn’t you say our game was high quality? That our NPC’s intelligence surpassed Storm Group’s? Why is everyone saying it’s no different from older games?”
Isabella, now panicking
targeted.”
panicking, looked pitifully at Leo, “Leo, our game is definitely not the problem. I think we’re being
“Who would target us?” Leo frowned.
“Who else?” Isabella quickly responded, “It has to be Ben and Susan. That couple has always been ruthless. They’re afraid we’ll get ahead, so they’ve hired trolls to maliciously smear us! This move of theirs is just too vicious.”
Leo, who already harbored deep resentment towards Ben, was easily swayed by Isabella’s words.
“Ben.” Leo gritted his teeth. “He’s determined to undermine me.”
“Don’t worry, Leo. We still have some marketing funds left. If they hire trolls to post negative reviews, we’ll hire some to post positive ones!” Isabella quickly suggested.
Spend more money?
Leo was reluctant but saw no better option and nodded in agreement.
Isabella hurried to contact the paid reviewers.
With this, they spent their last bit of money.
The effect of hiring these reviewers was immediate.
A flood of paid positive reviews surged in, artificially boosting the game’s ratings.
[Ah! All four male leads are so handsome. Even as a lifelong single, I’m blushing and excited.]
[The art style is so exquisite! Clearly, a lot of effort was put into this,]
[This level of Al is groundbreaking! Totally in love with it.]
3/5
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Chapter 213
The paid reviews managed to pull the ratings up, and unsuspecting people thought the game was genuinely good, leading to a new wave of downloads.
But as these new players tried the game, they quickly realized it was not as advertised, resulting in a flood of negative reviews.
As more regular players joined, the negative reviews piled up, overwhelming the paid positive ones.
Frustrated, Isabella made an angry phone call, “You promised to get us to four stars. Why are we only at two now? Do you even want to stay in business?”
The head of the paid reviewers was exasperated, “Miss, it’s not that we aren’t trying, but your game… isn’t it a bit too poor in quality? Aside from us, there’s not a single person willing to leave a positive review. How are we supposed to inflate your ratings?”
Isabella’s face darkened with anger and humiliation, “I don’t care, that’s your problem. I want a refund, give me my money back now!”
The reviewer leader snorted coldly and hung up the phone.
Furious, Isabella threw her phone to the ground.
“The rating has changed,” Leo said suddenly, his voice tinged with gloom.
“Changed?” Isabella perked up. “Did it go up?”
“No, it dropped to one star.”
Isabella was speechless.
The couple exchanged glances, a mix of disbelief and concern on their faces.
After a moment, Isabella steadied herself and said through gritted teeth, “Ben is really going all out to suppress us.”
Leo, with a somber expression, remained silent.
Whether or not it was Ben’s doing, it was clear they wouldn’t make any money at this rate.
Was he facing a total loss?
“Don’t worry, Leo. I have a backup plan,” Isabella suddenly declared.
“What kind of backup plan?” Leo asked.
Isabella tried to compose herself, then narrowed her eyes, “Future One is about to be officially released. Soon, you’ll see what my plan is.”
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[Poor graphics, poor storyline, poor playability. I was going to give it five stars, but after thinking about it, I’ll give it one star each time and give you five stars over five times.]
[Terrible game. Shameless marketing, feeding us garbage.]
Comment after comment, all negative, not a single positive review.
Even Leo, who was usually oblivious, had to admit the reality.
The game… probably wasn’t very good.
He looked at Isabella with a dark expression, “What’s going on? Didn’t you say our game was high quality? That our NPC’s intelligence surpassed Storm Group’s? Why is everyone saying it’s no different from older games?”
Isabella, now panicking, looked pitifully at Leo, “Leo, our game is definitely not the problem. I think we’re being targeted.”
“Who would target us?” Leo frowned.
“Who else?” Isabella quickly responded, “It has to be Ben and Susan. That couple has always been ruthless. They’re afraid we’ll get ahead, so they’ve hired trolls to maliciously smear us! This move of theirs is just too vicious.”
Leo, who already harbored deep resentment towards Ben, was easily swayed by Isabella’s words.
“Ben.” Leo gritted his teeth. “He’s determined to undermine me.”
“Don’t worry, Leo. We still have some marketing funds left. If they hire trolls to post negative reviews, we’ll hire some to post positive ones!” Isabella quickly suggested.
Spend more money?
Leo was reluctant but saw no better option and nodded in agreement.
Isabella hurried to contact the paid reviewers.
With this, they spent their last bit of money.
The effect of hiring these reviewers was immediate.
A flood of paid positive reviews surged in, artificially boosting the game’s ratings.
[Ah! All four male leads are so handsome. Even as a lifelong single, I’m blushing and excited.]
[The art style is so exquisite! Clearly, a lot of effort was put into this,]
[This level of Al is groundbreaking! Totally in love with it.]
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The paid reviews managed to pull the ratings up, and unsuspecting people thought the game was genuinely good, leading to a new wave of downloads.
But as these new players tried the game, they quickly realized it was not as advertised, resulting in a flood of negative reviews.
As more regular players joined, the negative reviews piled up, overwhelming the paid positive ones.
Frustrated, Isabella made an angry phone call, “You promised to get us to four stars. Why are we only at two now? Do you even want to stay in business?”
The head of the paid reviewers was exasperated, “Miss, it’s not that we aren’t trying, but your game… isn’t it a bit too poor in quality? Aside from us, there’s not a single person willing to leave a positive review. How are we supposed to inflate your ratings?”
Isabella’s face darkened with anger and humiliation, “I don’t care, that’s your problem. I want a refund, give me my money back now!”
The reviewer leader snorted coldly and hung up the phone.
Furious, Isabella threw her phone to the ground.
“The rating has changed,” Leo said suddenly, his voice tinged with gloom.
“Changed?” Isabella perked up. “Did it go up?”
“No, it dropped to one star.”
Isabella was speechless.
The couple exchanged glances, a mix of disbelief and concern on their faces.
After a moment, Isabella steadied herself and said through gritted teeth, “Ben is really going all out to suppress us.”
Leo, with a somber expression, remained silent.
Whether or not it was Ben’s doing, it was clear they wouldn’t make any money at this rate.
Was he facing a total loss?
“Don’t worry, Leo. I have a backup plan,” Isabella suddenly declared.
“What kind of backup plan?” Leo asked.
Isabella tried to compose herself, then narrowed her eyes, “Future One is about to be officially released. Soon, you’ll see what my plan is.”
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