The Visage's Plot Twist

The following meeting went very smoothly.

After accepting the core concept, the team no longer raised objections to the subsequent settings, only asking for explanations on a few points.

For example, the main setting of Visage was a large mansion.

Players had to explore the house alone, uncovering the families who once lived there and learning what they had endured.

In response, Infinite Network Entertainment asked why the game was confined to an indoor space—wouldn't an outdoor setting allow for better exploration and attract more players?

Facing this question, Meng Shu simply smiled.

These people had too little experience with horror; they had no idea that indoor terror was far more intense and thrilling than outdoor horror.

An open environment, to some extent, diluted the horror atmosphere.

But in a space surrounded by walls, the sense of dread was exponentially amplified.

This was also why Outlast 2 wasn't as terrifying as Outlast 1.

Because most of Outlast 2 took place in outdoor wilderness, with only a few indoor school sections carrying that long-lost horror flavor.

So he gave a brief explanation, and once it convinced them, he moved on to the next topic.

Soon, Infinite Network Entertainment raised another curious question about the gameplay.

They asked why the game required players to investigate the past residents of the house. Even if there were overlapping clues, the narrative felt fragmented and unclear.

They hoped Meng Shu would take inspiration from shooting games—simple, straightforward plots that were easy for players to understand.

But Meng Shu explained that this was precisely the charm of exploration and puzzle-solving games.

Letting players discover things step by step, piece together clues, and finally uncover the truth gave them a sense of satisfaction and accomplishment that made their efforts feel worthwhile.

It also made players feel like they were truly enjoying the game.

Not like shooting games, where you just blast through everything, catch your breath when injured, blast through more, switch maps, keep blasting, and finally clear the game before deleting it—a mission-based experience.

Hearing this explanation, Infinite Network Entertainment dropped the subject and instead grew curious about the game's detailed storyline.

[President Meng, we're very curious about what you mean by exploration and puzzle-solving. Could you tell us the story behind this game?]

"Of course. I was planning to save this for later, but I can show you in advance. First—"

Meng Shu scrolled his mouse, quickly flipping through the PPT slides until he stopped at a later section.

On the projection screen, a series of thumbnail sketches appeared.

They were clearly some kind of concept design drafts.

Meng Shu enlarged one of the sketches. It depicted an indoor environment.

But in it, three people were tied up.

Even as a rough sketch, the meeting attendees could vaguely make out an adult woman, a little boy, and a little girl.

Staring at the image, they waited for an explanation.

Meng Shu didn't keep them in suspense and began speaking slowly.

But his first sentence stunned everyone.

"At the very start of the game, the protagonist dies."

WTF!?

The protagonist dies right at the beginning?

Before they could even ask, Meng Shu continued.

"The protagonist first shoots his family to death, then kills himself. That's the game's opening."

As he spoke, he pointed his mouse at the three bound figures in the sketch, the implication clear.

These three were the protagonist's family.

Deputy Director Li from Infinite Network Entertainment couldn't stay calm and spoke up, his tone filled with intense curiosity.

[President Meng, if the protagonist dies right at the start, then who does the player control?]

"The protagonist."

Deputy Director Li: ...

[President Meng, I'm a bit confused, so I won't interrupt you. I'm sure you have your reasons for designing it this way.]

Meng Shu curled his lips and shook his head.

"Don't worry. The protagonist's suicide at the start is necessary for the plot. Later, the player still controls the protagonist—but it's the protagonist after death, having lost his memories."

"One of the player's goals is to find out why the protagonist killed himself."

Meng Shu scrolled the mouse again, this time switching to another sketch.

It showed a well, with several large pipes connected to it.

On the ground was a vast pool of water, with corpses floating on its surface.

Everyone stared at the sketch, waiting for an explanation.

Meng Shu picked up his water glass, took a small sip to moisten his throat, and began his explanation.

"This image shows the Sewage Treatment Plant that will appear during the game's progression, and our Protagonist works at this plant."

"The plot is set up like this: above this treatment plant, there's also a Pharmaceutical Factory secretly conducting a type of psychiatric experiment. The Anti-Stress Pills that restore sanity in the game come from there. So in the setting, the Protagonist is also an employee of this factory. And he developed a hallucinogenic drug that can be transmitted through water, thereby gaining a certain degree of influence."

"The organization was pleased, colluded with the Police Station and the hospital, designated the entire Town in the game as the experimental area, and appointed the Protagonist as the person in charge."

"At the same time, they selected a historic mansion in the Town and converted it into an Experimental Observation Room with hidden rooms and secret passages, making it convenient to collect the residents' mental data."

"With this opening, the first unsuspecting family moved into the mansion—The Lucy family I mentioned in the PPT."

Just then, Manager Liang from Infinite Network Entertainment indicated he had something to say.

Meng Shu smiled and gestured for him to speak.

[President Meng, according to your plot design, could it be that the Protagonist caused the deaths of those families?]

As soon as he finished speaking, Xu Hong and the other two exchanged glances, clearly having guessed the same thing.

After all, it was just too obvious.

Renovating the house, making the incoming residents completely unaware they were under surveillance, and not knowing that outsiders were even living alongside them in their own home.

The mere thought of it sent chills down one's spine!

[So the Protagonist's purpose in doing all this was the experiment, right?]

"Of course, next comes the story of the Lucy family."

"The Protagonist, through various means and the hallucinogenic drug transmitted via water, successfully drove Lucy mentally unstable, isolating her from her parents. Her parents took her to the hospital for treatment, but the more they treated her, the worse she got, because the hospital was also a participant in the organization."

"In the end, under the Protagonist's manipulation, Lucy tore off her own lower jaw with her bare hands, completing the first family's experimental data collection."

"And since the police were also participants in the organization, they promptly suppressed the news to allow the experiment to continue. So it was time for the second family to move in—The Dolores family."

At this point, Manager Liang from Infinite Network Entertainment had already grasped the general outline of the gameplay.

[I think I understand what kind of game this is, President Meng. You have some great ideas, and I fully support you. But what about the Protagonist's suicide?]

Meng Shu slid the PPT to another concept sketch—it showed a couple who appeared deeply in love.

"Having done so many shameful things, he naturally felt guilt. So the Protagonist had been taking the organization's Anti-Stress Pills long-term to maintain stability in his life."

"See this concept art? In my setting, the Protagonist had success in both career and love, had a son and a daughter, and lived an ordinary life. But he had been working for the organization for over twenty years and knew far too much. So—"

Meng Shu slid the PPT again to another concept sketch.

This one showed the mansion's hidden rooms and secret passages all sealed up.

"—it was the Protagonist's family's turn to be arranged into the mansion."

Hearing this, Xia Nianzhen couldn't help but feel a chill run down her spine.

This setting... was just too ruthless.

Did she have to build the scenes for this kind of terrifying mansion too?

"After that, the Anti-Stress Pills the Protagonist was taking were swapped for Stress-Release Pills. At that point, the long-accumulated pressure, guilt, and unease were instantly released. Unable to bear it, the Protagonist's mind broke, he killed his entire family, and then committed suicide."

Saying this, Meng Shu flipped the PPT back to the very first sketch—the one with the three bound people.

"So at the very start of the game, the Protagonist has already committed suicide. Then, the player, who doesn't understand what's happening, controls the Protagonist's consciousness within this mansion, reviewing the fates of those families to see his own sins clearly."

"In summary, the entire game flow is the Protagonist's journey of self-redemption after death. The main gameplay focuses on the player personally experiencing the tragic suffering and despair of those families. After learning their stories, the player chooses whether the Protagonist takes the path of redemption or the path of corruption."

"Everything is left for the player to decide."

"That's the plot of 'Visage.' I haven't gone into too much detail, but I hope you can understand it."

Silence—

The meeting room fell into a brief hush.

Xu Hong and the others were already frowning, imagining this plot in their minds.

To be honest, this storyline did have more depth than the simple, straightforward shoot-'em-ups on the market.

At the very least, the plot just described was entirely for the players to explore and discover on their own.

From knowing nothing, to gradually understanding, to uncovering the truth, and finally arriving at the shocking twist that the Protagonist was actually the villain—that sense of shock and awe would definitely be interesting!

So Xu Hong and the others were already full of anticipation for this game.

Over at Infinite Network Entertainment, they had gone silent, clearly on mute and discussing among themselves.

After a moment, Manager Liang's voice came through again.

[President Meng, I think I roughly understand your game. The story you've created is really imaginative, and it's clear you've done your homework. It also shows you've put a lot of effort into this game and are determined to make it work. Since you're so confident in it, and the game is indeed very good, we won't doubt your judgment. This game—]

He paused, then his next words were decisive.

[—the funding will be approved within three days. Infinite Network Entertainment will give you our full support!]

Now that the game's settings have been clearly explained, production can start immediately. I'll shorten the game's development cycle directly and won't write it in too much detail, so we can get to the main subject quickly.

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