sovbooks Chapter 410 Internet Cafes Packed
Chapter 410 Internet Cafes Packed
Shen Yuege talked about the fireworks on the night before the Lunar New Year for several days.
"The purple one is the prettiest." She nestled on the sofa, peeling a pistachio in her hand. "When it bursts open, it looks like a big chrysanthemum. The petals change color as they fall, from purple to pink, and from pink to white."
"You remember it so clearly?" Lu Ran asked, flipping through his phone.
"Of course I know. I'm not like you, so everything looks the same to me."
Lu Ran was too lazy to argue with her. He was staring at the data on TUTU's backend; the data for Infinite Firepower had been online for a week and was ridiculously good.
The peak concurrent online users exceeded 3.2 million, which is almost a million higher than when the game was first launched.
The average playtime per player increased by 7 minutes, from 87 minutes last week to 94 minutes.
This is counterintuitive during the Chinese New Year period.
Normally, people are busy during the Chinese New Year, so their gaming time should decrease.
The number of players using the Infinite Firepower mode not only didn't decrease, but actually increased, indicating that the mode's appeal is strong enough to overcome the objective reality of "being too busy to play during the Chinese New Year".
Other game companies at the same time, while their data didn't drop, relied on benefits to retain their employees.
League of Legends simply launched an URF (Ultra Rapid Fire) mode and offered skins as a daily login reward; not only did their stats remain stable, they actually improved.
Old Wang sent a message in the work group: "President Lu, the servers for Infinite Firepower are about to break down. During the peak hours from 8 pm to 10 pm tonight, the CPU usage has been above 95%. If it keeps rising like this, we'll have to add more servers."
Lu Ran replied: "Add. Don't omit."
Old Wang sent a "received" emoji: "Okay, Mr. Lu, aren't you worried about adding so many servers?"
Zhou Mingzhe added, "I can attest to that. Only President Lu doesn't hesitate to add servers because players can continuously provide him with more funds."
Xiao Yang posted a panda head emoji with the caption: "Laughing to death."
Lu Ran ignored them and continued looking at the data.
He flipped to the user profile section and discovered an interesting trend—nearly 40% of the users of Infinite Firepower were veteran players of ranked mode.
Before the URF mode was released, these people played an average of five to six ranked games a day.
After the release of URF (Ultra Rapid Fire) mode, the number of ranked games I played dropped to two or three per day. I played seven or eight games of URF mode.
What does this mean? It means that URF (Ultra Rapid Fire) isn't stealing market share from other games, but rather from its own ranked mode.
It sounds like a bad thing, but it's not.
Ranked mode is the core of League of Legends, boasting the highest user loyalty and lowest churn rate.
They play URF (Ultra Rapid Fire) not because they don't like ranked matches anymore, but because URF is fresher, more exciting, and more stress-relieving.
Once the URF mode is turned off, they'll go back to playing ranked games.
But what if they go and play EA's Wildlands? Then they might not be able to come back.
Therefore, the strategic goal of Infinite Firepower is not to make money, but to retain players.
Keep players in the League of Legends ecosystem and prevent them from being poached by EA.
As long as the person is still alive, the money will come sooner or later.
Lu Ran shut down the data backend and sent a message to Lao Wang: "You handle the server issue. Add servers if necessary. There can't be any problems during the Spring Festival. Everyone else's server can crash, but ours can't."
Old Wang replied, "Understood. I've already arranged for colleagues in the technical department to take turns on duty, keeping an eye on things 24/7."
"Colleagues on duty receive ten times the salary, and the company reimburses their New Year's Eve dinner."
Old Wang sent another horrified emoji: "Mr. Lu, are you sure your account wasn't hacked?"
Lu Ran ignored him, tossed her phone onto the sofa, and popped a pistachio that Shen Yuege had peeled into her mouth.
"That's mine." Shen Yuege looked at him.
"You peel slowly, I eat quickly. If you can't peel as fast as I eat, it means you need to speed up."
Shen Yuege laughed at this logic, grabbed a handful of unpeeled pistachios and shoved them into his hand: "Peel them yourself."
Lu Ran smiled and lowered his head to begin peeling.
On the second day before the Lunar New Year, Lu Ran went to the company.
I'm not going to work, I'm going to pick something up.
Zhou Mingzhe said there was a bunch of New Year's goods in the company, one for each person, and asked him to take them home on his way.
When Lu Ran arrived at the company, he found the lobby piled high with red gift boxes, like a small mountain.
Xiao Yang was leading several colleagues in distributing the boxes. Each person received a box, signed and pressed their fingerprints, and the process was orderly.
"What's this?" Lu Ran picked up a box and looked at it. The packaging had the words "TuTu Technology New Year Gift Box" printed on it. The lettering was gold and the background was red, which looked quite festive.
"New Year's gifts," Xiao Yang said. "Ordered by General Manager Zhou, one for each person. Inside is a box of nuts, a box of chocolates, a box of tea, a pair of Spring Festival couplets, and a red envelope. There's no money in the red envelope, it's just an empty shell. The red envelopes will be deposited into their cards as bonuses later."
Lu Ran has always valued company benefits highly; he believes that if you want to retain employees, you can't be stingy in this regard.
Today is also the last day of work. Basically, everyone except the staff on duty is planning to go home.
Lu Ran opened the package and took a look. The contents were not bad. The nuts were from Liangpin Shop, the chocolate was from Dove, and the tea was West Lake Longjing. Although it wasn't the top-grade kind, it wasn't bad either.
"How much is one serving?"
"Mr. Zhou didn't say. But he did tell you not to ask."
Lu Ran closed the box and stopped asking.
Anyway, I've already bought it, no matter how much.
Although Lu Ran usually appears stingy, deep down he is the most generous to his employees.
He walked around the company and found that there were still a few people in the technology department working overtime.
Old Wang isn't here; he went back to his hometown for the Chinese New Year.
Zhao Yiming was there, sitting at his workstation staring at three monitors, the screens filled with code.
"Why didn't you go back?" Lu Ran walked over.
Zhao Yiming turned his head, his eyes showing dark circles, looking like he hadn't slept for days: "I went back. I went back yesterday, and came back today. It's so boring back home, no internet, no computer, and nobody to talk to. I think I'll just come back to writing code."
Lu Ran was both amused and exasperated by his reasoning: "Then where are you having your New Year's Eve dinner?"
"The company cafeteria. General Manager Zhou said that the cafeteria will remain open during the Spring Festival, and two people will be on duty to cook for those of us who are not going home."
Lu Ran nodded and didn't say anything more.
However, in his heart, he acknowledged the merit of these employees who voluntarily stayed at their posts.
These people can be promoted in the future.
While some people are attracted by the tenfold salary, most are genuinely motivated by passion.
Many employees, in particular, grew up watching the game "League of Legends" and have developed an emotional attachment to it.
He patted Zhao Yiming on the shoulder, said "Take care of yourself," and then went to Lao Wang's office.
Old Wang's office was at the very back of the technical department. The door was open, but he wasn't there. On the desk was a potted green ivy that was almost dead, with most of its leaves turning yellow.
Lu Ran took the potted green ivy to the tea room, watered it, and then put it back.
Whether it survives or not depends on fate; it did its best.
After leaving the company, Lu Ran passed by an internet cafe near the company.
A huge poster was pasted on the entrance of the internet cafe, depicting two heroes from League of Legends—Garen, the Might of Demacia, and Katarina.
Garen wore silver armor, gripped a greatsword in both hands, and had a determined look in his eyes.
Katarina was dressed in a purple assassin outfit, holding a dagger in each hand, her long red hair fluttering in the wind, and a wicked smile on her lips.
The two stand back to back, Garen facing left and Katarina facing right, with the words "Demacia" prominently displayed in the middle. A smaller line in the bottom right corner reads: "League of Legends' URF mode is available for a limited time, closing after the New Year. Enjoy it while you can!"
Lu Ran stood at the entrance of the internet cafe for a while, and a smile appeared on his lips.
The glass door of the internet cafe was transparent, and he could see that it was full of people, each with a screen displaying the Summoner's Rift.
A young man with dyed blond hair sat near the door, a cigarette dangling from his mouth, his eyes fixed on the screen, his fingers flying across the keyboard.
He was playing Garen, activating his E skill and spinning around in the enemy team, causing chaos and confusion.
The guy next to the blond guy was playing Katarina. When he used his ultimate, his daggers rained down on the opponent's head like a storm.
His fingers rolled across the keyboard again and again, making a clattering sound, like he was playing a very fast-paced piano piece.
Lu Ran pushed open the door and entered, the noise from the internet cafe immediately drowning him out.
The sounds of keyboards, mice, cursing, laughter, and shouting mingled together like a pot of boiling porridge.
"Do you even know how to jungle? The enemy Master Yi is completely overpowered and you're just farming your six raptors!"
"What do you mean I can't play? You're feeding like crazy in the bot lane, am I supposed to go in and take on five of you?"
"Stop arguing, stop arguing! The enemy is pushing the high ground, come back and defend it!"
"Defend my ass, we can't hold on. Next game, next game."
"Another game of URF? I got Zed, I'm going to crush the enemy team this time."
"Do you even understand how to rob a place before you slaughter everyone?"
"You have to play even if you don't understand it. If you don't understand it, you need to practice. Once you understand it, you'll be able to dominate!"
Lu Ran walked around the internet cafe and found that out of more than 100 machines, at least 80 were playing League of Legends, and more than 60 of them were playing URF (Ultra Rapid Fire).
The remaining twenty computers were playing other games. Some were playing EA's "Wildlands Era", some were playing Sakura Games' "Samurai Warriors", and others were playing all sorts of random little games.
He walked to the front desk, where the owner, a fat man in his forties, was looking down at his phone, the screen displaying rows of data.
Lu Ran glanced at it; it was the backend data for "League of Legends," the kind used by internet cafe owners, showing how many people in the internet cafe were playing "League of Legends," what mode they were playing, and how long they had been playing.
"Boss, business is good," Lu Ran said.
The chubby owner looked up, glanced at him, and didn't recognize him: "Not bad. There are a lot of people these days during the Chinese New Year holiday, all coming to play Infinite Firepower. Usually, the internet cafe is only 60-70% full, but these days it's packed every day, with queues stretching all the way to the door."
"Is Infinite Power Mode really that popular?"
"It's hot. Incredibly hot." The chubby boss put down his phone, his expression brightening. "You wouldn't believe it, ever since this mode came out, all those guys in the internet cafes who used to curse and swear during ranked matches are now all smiles. They don't curse when they lose anymore, they just say 'Next game, next game.' Isn't that amazing?"
Lu Ran laughed: "The fact that you don't curse when you lose means it's really fun."
"Of course." The chubby boss pulled a poster from under the counter—the one pasted on the door. "Look at this poster, it was delivered by Tencent, they told us to put it on the door. Every internet cafe on this street has one. The one across the street is even more outrageous, they pasted it on the outer wall, three meters high and two meters wide, you can see it from across the street. Garen's big sword looks like he's about to chop someone up."
Lu Ran looked in the direction the boss pointed, and there was indeed a huge poster on the outer wall of the internet cafe across the street, several times larger than the one in front of his company. Garen's sword reflected the light under the streetlights, and Katarina's red hair looked like a ball of fire.
"Is the owner of this internet cafe a Garen fan?" Lu Ran asked.
"No. He said Katarina was prettier, so he specifically had someone turn Katarina's side outwards. Garen was stuck inside; you can only see him when you come in."
Lu Ran couldn't help but laugh. This boss has a good eye for aesthetics.
It was almost dark when I came out of the internet cafe.
Lu Ran stood by the roadside waiting for a taxi, pondering something in his mind.
The popularity of "Unlimited Firepower" mode, the high occupancy rate in internet cafes, and the ubiquitous posters all demonstrate that "League of Legends" has achieved a high penetration rate among players.
But high doesn't equal stable; stability requires sustained popularity and continuous discussion.
How to sustain it?
game.
Organizing competitions allows players to upgrade from "playing" to "competing," and from "having fun on their own" to "comparing with others to see who has more fun."
The competition itself is not important; what matters is the buzz and attention it generates.
Players will discuss who won, who lost, whose skills were amazing, and whose skills were terrible.
The discussion went on and on, and the buzz grew. Once the buzz grew, users stayed.
With this in mind, Lu Ran already had a rough framework in mind.
But he didn't rush to think further, because a taxi arrived.
When she got home, Shen Yuege was sitting on the sofa watching TV.
The TV was showing trailers for the Spring Festival Gala, with various celebrities taking turns appearing and saying auspicious phrases like "Happy New Year" and "Wishing you prosperity."
Priscilla Chan was frying meatballs in the kitchen. The range hood was whirring, and the aroma wafted out of the kitchen, filling the whole house.
"Where did you go? Why did it take you so long?" Shen Yuege asked as she saw him enter.
"I went to the company to pick up the New Year's goods. I stopped by an internet cafe on the way."
"Internet cafe? What are you going to an internet cafe for?"
"Look how popular Infinite Power is."
Shen Yuege glanced at him: "And then? How popular was it?"
"It got so popular that the internet cafe owner told me, 'Even when you lose, you don't swear anymore.'"
Shen Yuege paused for a moment, then laughed: "What kind of description is that? Losing and not swearing means you're angry?"
"You don't understand. In the gaming world, a good mode is one where players don't curse when they lose. Because if a player doesn't curse you when they lose, it means they accept the defeat willingly or gracefully. If they don't curse when they lose and will queue up again for the next game, that's true love. If they curse your whole family when they lose and won't play the next game, that's true hatred."
Shen Yuege was stunned by his theory and shook her head: "You game developers have studied the players too thoroughly."
"Of course. How can you make a good game if you don't understand players' psychology?"
Priscilla Chan came out of the kitchen carrying a plate of fried meatballs and placed it on the coffee table: "You two, stop talking and eat these meatballs. They're fresh out of the fryer, eat them while they're hot."
Shen Yuege took one, took a bite, and gasped because it was so hot, but she didn't spit it out. She chewed it and swallowed it.
"Is it delicious?" Priscilla Chan looked at her expectantly.
"Delicious. Much better than the meatballs sold outside."
Priscilla Chan smiled with satisfaction, then turned and went back to the kitchen to continue frying.
Lu Ran also took one and took a bite.
Crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, the meat filling is perfectly seasoned, with a moderate level of saltiness and a subtle hint of scallion and ginger flavor.
"Mom, these meatballs are really good!" he called out to the kitchen.
Priscilla Chan's voice came from the kitchen, accompanied by the noise of the range hood: "Eat more if you like it. I fried several pounds of it, enough for you to eat until the seventh day of the new year."
Lu Ran glanced at the plate of meatballs, then at the second batch being fried in the kitchen, and thought to himself that they would probably be eating them until the Lantern Festival.
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