Lu Zixin went directly to Liu Tong's office and asked him to find the company's relevant performance data for the past few quarters and check it.
Liu Tong, Zhu An, and Yue Hui, a vice president promoted by Liu Tong, all stayed in the office, explaining the company's operations to Lu Zixin.
"I took a quick look and it seems that the company's business has been declining since August last year. What is the reason for this?" Lu Zixin asked.
Liu Tong is much whiter and a little fatter than before, but he still speaks very calmly. He explained, "Our company's early business was mainly the "Wild God of War" mobile game, plus subsequent online games. When we were doing it, it was the hot market period for chicken-games, so our performance increased quickly."
"After more than half a year, the situation is different."
"At that time, Hongxin was developing cloud hosts and smartphones. We mainly made online game accelerators and Hongxin game platforms."
"During that period, the business developed rapidly. We launched some games and stabilized some users."
"By June last year, our revenue from games was significantly less than the channel revenue from game platforms. The game market share was also compressed by NetOne, Penguin and others, and gradually decreased."
Lu Zixin also read the reports they submitted. The popularity of chicken-eating games has been declining, and as NetOne and Penguin continue to optimize the chicken-eating games, many users have been diverted away. Therefore, in this area, it is normal for Hongxin Games’ turnover to decline.
"Why hasn't Hongxin made a new hit game during this period?" Lu Zixin asked.
Liu Tong and others looked at each other with confusion on their faces. Zhu An said awkwardly: "Our company is pretty good in terms of game production technology, but it is indeed a bit weak in terms of market control and creative trends, and it cannot compare with those established game companies."
Yue Hui added: "In fact, the market response to two games we launched last year was pretty good, one is the mobile game "Haoyue Order", and the other is the new open map gun battle online game "Future Soldiers"."
"Well, then why haven't these two games been launched? What's the problem with the operation?" Lu Zixin's question made Yue Hui a little nervous.
After all, this is the boss of Hongxin Group, the boss’s boss!
He said: "Mr. Lu, maybe it's because we didn't invest enough in operations and there was pressure from competitors, so neither of these two games were launched."
At this point, Zhu An said with some dissatisfaction: "Mr. Lu, look at this information!"
"Less than half a month after we launched the mobile game "Haoyue Order", Penguin Games launched the same type of mobile game "Ancient Legend"; two months after launching the online game "Future Soldiers", Penguin Games launched another online game of the same type! "
"They already have a large number of user resources, and with promotions and discounts, they have attracted more than half of our users in one fell swoop! This... is really difficult to do!"
"Is this the reason?" Lu Zixin looked at Liu Tong, who also nodded and sighed helplessly: "If a game company has several times as many user resources as yours and can shamelessly follow your work, then what? There really aren’t many people who can compete with them!”
Liu Tong is mainly talking about Penguin Games. Although other game companies also have problems of following suit or copying, they are not as big as Penguin Games.
"Of course we also have problems." Zhu An reflected, "Last year, NetOne Games made two popular mobile games. Penguin Games made five more and acquired four popular small games at home and abroad. The studio, coupled with their own game accumulation, is indeed a lot ahead of us!”
When Lu Zixin heard their explanation, he nodded in agreement and said, "If that's the reason, it's understandable."
The opponent is the world-class game overlord Penguin, so it is normal for Red Letter Games to be surpassed. After all, every game has a lifeline. The original "Wild God of War" was already half of its popularity, and Penguin Games made a comeback and occupied an absolute market advantage.
"Have you ever thought of any countermeasures that can change this situation?" Lu Zixin asked.
"I've thought about it." The three nodded, and Liu Tong said: "According to the current market situation, what the game needs is novel models or creativity."
"Many users today prefer games that are simple and easy to operate. This requires game producers to observe the market and their own creativity. We cannot guarantee this and can only do our best."
"But in another direction, as players understand the game and hardware equipment improves, the realism and experience requirements of the game are also increasing. For example, current VR games are a good direction."
"I talked with Mr. Xie, who is in charge of Hongxin smart glasses. HX and GLASS can fully carry advanced VR games. Coupled with the soon-to-be-completed 6G network rollout, VR games will become easy for everyone to experience and play at any time. Gaming is definitely a thing!”
"Since we can't compete with Penguin Games in the traditional game market, we might as well transform our main direction into virtual reality games. Maybe it will work wonders!"
Zhu An also nodded and said: "Mr. Lu, as early as a few months ago, we were ready to start developing VR games. After the successful trial of the SkyNet plan, our confidence will be even greater!"
"Faster network speeds and ubiquitous coverage allow players to operate VR games anywhere. This eliminates the need for traditional bulky equipment and network restrictions, and the immersive experience of VR games is unmatched by other games! "
Lu Zixin thought for a while and said: "The direction you mentioned is indeed correct. Hongxin's Sky Network will be spread all over the world within three years, and users around the world will be able to enjoy ultra-high-speed network services."
"Hongxin is also improving its hardware configuration, including chips, sensors and intelligent systems."
"I support this. Has it produced any results?"
"A bit, but not very mature." Liu Tong said, "We tried to develop two traditional VR VR games, but we felt that the market was not competitive enough, so we did not launch them."
"Let me see." Lu Zixin was also curious about what the VR game they developed looked like.
"You have to go to the experience room to experience this."
Lu Zixin came to the experience room, where some equipment was placed. For example, a 360-degree omnidirectional walking machine dedicated to VR games, auxiliary experiential seats, etc.
These equipments are all bought by Hongxin Games from abroad at a large price or specially customized.
Lu Zixin first sat on the auxiliary experience seat. In front of the seat, there were auxiliary devices such as a steering wheel, accelerator, and brake. The first game was a traditional racing game, but from a VR perspective.