……

　　“Let me check the configuration requirements for this resource site client and editor…”

　　“Hmm, not bad, my laptop can barely handle it. But the hardware limitations are still there, so I can’t make any large-scale games.”

　　“That’s fine, I wasn’t planning on making a big game anyway.”

　　Eric Bennett’s laptop was bought not long after starting university, so it’s only been a few months, and it can still run the resource site client and the ESRO editor.

　　But since the laptop Eric Bennett bought is only mid-to-low end, the specs aren’t that great. It’s fine for making regular games, but not for large ones.

　　That’s not a big deal, since Eric Bennett never intended to make a large game—he doesn’t have enough manpower or funds, and he’s not even planning to make money.

　　It’s just him alone, so making an indie game that barely passes review would already be good enough.

　　Eric Bennett first opened the editor and carefully studied the editor tutorial.

　　An hour later, Eric Bennett was drowsy.

　　“They said you could learn it without any programming background? Nonsense!”

　　Eric Bennett was speechless.

　　Although the learning curve for this editor is much lower compared to programming languages or some traditional game editors, for someone like Eric Bennett with absolutely no programming background, it’s still really hard!

　　However, he did manage to learn some of the simpler operations, like using existing game templates and modifying art assets.

　　“Better browse the resource site first and analyze the games on the market.”

　　Eric Bennett entered the resource site to check out some of the available resources.

　　There’s quite a variety—various game genres like driving simulators, fighting, shooting, RPGs, etc., all have some general templates.

　　These templates are pretty basic, and the prices aren’t high.

　　For example, with a shooting game template, you can just plug it into the editor and get all the basic functions like walking, shooting, reloading, etc. Some guns even have default ballistics.

　　Buy some art assets to go with it, and you’ve got a very simple, single-mechanic shooting game.

　　If you want to make it more complex, you’ll have to learn some advanced editor techniques.

　　Some especially difficult features even require hiring specialists from the resource site.

Chapter 3 “Lonely Desert Highway”

　　As for the current state of the gaming industry, it’s basically similar to how things were in 2009 in Eric Bennett’s previous life.

　　For example, the most popular online games have changed from World of Warcraft to “Fantasy World,” CS to “Counter-Terrorism Project,” and DOTA to “Divine Awakening.” The packaging is a bit different, but the gameplay is more or less the same.

　　Mobile games, on the other hand, have seen clear improvements, probably because hardware development is faster than in his previous life.

　　For instance, in Eric Bennett’s previous life, card-based mobile games benefited from the smartphone boom and only appeared in 2012, but in this parallel world, since smartphones appeared earlier, similar games were already around by 2008, and now it’s a very mature genre.

　　“In that case, things are pretty clear.”

　　“I just need to spend money on the resource site to buy templates and art assets, blow through all fifty thousand yuan, and then make a game that no one plays and doesn’t sell. Two weeks later, it’ll basically be a total loss.”

　　“Perfect!”

　　With that decided, Eric Bennett started searching for the templates he wanted on the resource site.

　　“Basic driving simulator template, 20,000, comes with a set of interior and exterior vehicle textures.”

　　“Scene template, desert highway template, 15,000. If you want dynamic environmental changes, add another 8,000, for a total of 23,000.”

　　“A bit pricey, but that’s exactly what I want!”

　　“There’s still a bit of money left.”

　　“Radio music, pick 30 songs out of 100, or have the system randomly play from the library, 6,000.”

　　“Still 1,000 yuan left… Hmm, I’ll buy a simple leaderboard function. Can’t afford anything else.”

　　After a bit of thought, Eric Bennett went on a shopping spree on the resource site and quickly spent all fifty thousand yuan.

　　To be honest, these resources aren’t expensive.

　　For example, with this basic driving simulator template, you can just plug it into the game editor and get all the basic functions of a driving simulator.

　　Gas, brakes, turning, collisions, etc.—all included.

　　And the desert highway scene supports freely adjusting the road length in the editor, and the desert environment will have some random changes.

　　With the environmental simulation feature added, there will be changes like sunrise and sunset, sandstorms, and so on.

　　Since these are general templates, a lot of indie game developers buy and use them, so running into similar-looking games is 100% going to happen.

　　Some developers, to avoid this, will commission custom art assets to replace them, but of course, that means more investment.

　　But Eric Bennett doesn’t care about that.

　　Same-looking games? So what! I’m trying to lose money anyway. If players avoid my game because it looks the same as others, that’s exactly what I want!

　　Eric Bennett started making the game.

　　Even though the goal is to lose money, the game at least has to pass ESRO’s review and successfully get listed.

　　If it’s a half-finished product with major missing features, it won’t pass ESRO’s review, and the system might even judge Eric Bennett as violating the rules.

　　So, no matter how bad the game is, the basic functions have to be complete.