Chapter 26: Alpha 0.2 Version
[Wasteland Online testing server alpha 0.2 version update announcement.]
[Major update]
[1. The number of closed alpha players has increased to 30.]
[2. The "Winter is Coming" expansion is online: The game will enter winter within 30 days, and the temperature will drop to minus 10 degrees within 60 days. If able to successfully resist the severe cold, all players who meet the average online time of 4 hours or more daily during the closed alpha phase will be awarded the limited title of "Warrior of Winter". If the challenge fails, the game server will be suspended within a time limit, and the test will be relaunched after the difficulty setting is adjusted.]
[Optimization]
[1. A more realistic physical system.]
[2. More mutant creatures.]
[3. An enhanced degree of freedom.]
[4. Fixed a few bugs…]
[The player manual has been updated to version 2.0; closed alpha players, please review it soon.]
[Current Number of applications: 113]
My goodness.
After refreshing the page, there were two more applications.
Chu Guang was sitting in the main lobby as he stared at the backend of the official website.
Where the hell did all these people come from?!
There weren’t that many active users in the Bull and Horse Club… Are these alt accounts? That’s not possible…
No one could open an alt account for Wasteland Online’s official website. It was useless to think of changing their IP address. They would probably need to change their skull if they wanted to get another account. Access permission to the website was the same as the helmet; it was bound to each individual, not a computer.
Chu Guang opened the forum and took a look. There were many familiar IDs, but there were also some that he was seeing for the first time.
Quit_smoking: Why are there suddenly so many people here? Where did you all come from?!
Kakarot_from_the_future: From the Honor of Kings premade player group? I saw the link someone else had sent.
Irene: I’m not! I’m from (͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) group
Good_names_are_taken_by_dogs: Brother, check your PM.
That_touch_of_longing: (Eat_popcorn.jpg)
Teng_teng: What kind of game is this? Is it real?
The_great_demon_king_tian_tian: +1
Quit_smoking: It’s not real! It’s all fake! All those people above are shills. Please, don't apply! It’s fake, fake, fake, fake! (Frustration)
Teng_teng: ≡ω≡
The_great_demon_king_tian_tian: Okay then, goodbye.
Chu Guang: ...
What the fuck is wrong with him?!
The official website forum was finally gaining popularity, but he was trying to make people leave? Chu Guang was speechless for a while, but he didn't take it too seriously. He wasn’t a petty person after all.
After lurking around in the forum, Chu Guang could see why there was suddenly a surge of new users. It turned out that a few group members took screenshots of the Bull and Horse Club chat and the game’s official website, and forwarded them to other gaming groups.
Wasteland Online, which only had an official website, some settings, and empty promises, had suddenly become inexplicably popular among gamers.
Many of the new users came from other game groups, and most of them were asking weird questions like, "What kind of game is this?", "When will the game be in open beta?", and "Can I take off my pants in the game?" alongside, "Would a mosaic show up in the game?"
Not many people were taking the content seriously. Chu Guang couldn't help but wonder whether he should appoint some moderators to help manage the forum.
He switched to the desktop and logged into Penguin Chat. Chu Guang opened Bull and Horse Club, and it was already very lively. The alpha qualification seemed to have been talked about earlier, but now, the group was completely focused on the alpha 0.2 update and the Winter is Coming expansion.
An expansion pack was released for a game that was still in the closed alpha stage? This was too ridiculous!
Garbage_pickup_level_99: Are you serious? Won’t those who aren’t qualified for the alpha test miss it?
No_one_understands_love: This is outrageous!
Quit_smoking: Can someone @ the stupid game designer? Give us access! I can pay!!!
Garbage_pickup_level_99: @Light, someone called you stupid.
Quit_smoking: Shit!
- Quit_smoking recalled a message
"..."
Why is it this asshole again?!
Just when Chu Guang wondered if he should say something, he saw that Ample Time had sent him a private message.
- Brother Light, are you there? (Smiling)
Curious about what he wanted to say, Chu Guang replied.
- Just done with work. What's up?
Ample Time: There’s something I’ve been confused about, and I wanted to ask you. About the Administrator NPC… Is it an employee of your company or is it an AI?
Worried that it would be a problem for Chu Guang to answer the question, he immediately followed up with another statement.
- I’m just curious. If it involves corporate secrets or something, you don’t have to tell me.
Light: It's okay, this isn’t a secret. Besides, if it really was a secret, it’s not something a small game designer like me would have access to.
Ample Time was thrilled and hurriedly continued.
- Mhm mhm! Then please tell me!
Chu Guang thought for a while, then shamelessly responded.
- In short, the fact he exists is a special phenomenon in itself.
Special! Good heavens. As I expected, this is no ordinary NPC.
Ample Time felt excited after noticing the important keyword, his thumbs flying quickly across his phone’s screen.
- Can you be more specific?
Light: He’s the first generation of a full artificial intelligence developed by our company.
- Full artificial intelligence??
Ample Time was dumbfounded. This was beyond his scope of knowledge, but it seemed incredible!
Sitting in front of his computer, Ample Time's eyes glistened, wishing the "insider" to tell him more. His ‘Brother Light’ didn’t disappoint him, and continued to type.
Light: Yes, it’s an artificial intelligence that is incredibly close to becoming a human!
- He has his own personality, memory, thinking mode, as well as value orientation and behavior motivation, so we give him the power to restrain players and the responsibility to guide players into the game.
Sure enough, I was right!
Ample Time was so excited that he almost dropped his phone. His trembling thumbs continued to type,
Ample Time: I get it! No wonder his decisions can affect our test progress! I can tell that the content of the game itself is really well developed, and with how immersive this game is, it almost feels like the real world! I’m not exaggerating when I say that even someone as picky as me can't find any obvious bugs!
- If there are any flaws, it’s that there are too few NPCs! I was thinking that maybe what you're testing isn’t the game, but the game’s AI. Even the Winter is Coming expansion, also serves this purpose... Am I right?
Ample Time figured he had hit the nail on the head! Following all kinds of clues, he felt that he had completely seen through the game developer's intentions.
The group of friends was still discussing why Wasteland Online would release the Winter is Coming expansion during closed alpha. The scattered conclusions and speculations they had drawn were all superficial, in his opinion, they had barely scratched the surface, while some couldn't even see it. Only he understood the true intentions of the developers.
To the outside world, the mysterious company that developed Wasteland Online was testing a game, when it was, in fact, testing their AI within the game’s framework!
The expansion was exactly what the mysterious company needed to test this first generation AI
The silence lasted for a while.
Seeing that Light wasn’t speaking, Ample Time thought of something, and the corners of his mouth rose subconsciously.
I really am a genius!
Light: You’re very smart.
- It’s just like you said, the Winter is Coming expansion is really to test the performance of the first generation of full artificial intelligence, and it’s also a necessary procedure in order to start the next round of testing.
While typing, Chu Guang silently deleted the information he had just written in the official document, because he felt this brother's nonsense sounded much, much more convincing. That guy was indeed a genius. A genius within his own imagination, that is...
Ample Time: I think I understand what you mean now. So the progress of the testing is really affected by the progress of the game’s plot, right?
Light: Yes.
Ample Time: And at this stage, only the administrator of Shelter 404 is able to advance the plot, right?
Light: Yes.
Ample Time: Thank you! I understand, now! I must have caused you trouble by getting you to reveal so much insider information to me. Rest assured, I can keep a secret! (Smile)
Light: Actually, this isn’t insider information. It doesn't matter if you don't keep it a secret.
Ample Time: No, no, I’ll keep it secret, you can rest assured! Anyone who knows me knows that I’m super reliable! (Smile) (Smile)
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