What? An Interview?

The screen in front of her went black, but the Narrator kept reciting his lines.

Xia Xiao, however, no longer had the heart to pay attention. She stood there, dazed, for a long while.

Suddenly, a decision formed in her mind: she would go check out the boss's office after work.

To see if that so-called keyboard and secret passage really existed.

"Ah, honestly, getting this obsessed over a game—what's wrong with me?"

Suddenly snapping out of it, Xia Xiao shook her head with a wry smile.

Just then, a new map appeared on the screen. Stanley had escaped this place and gained his freedom.

Then, the game restarted.

"Shouldn't it be over? Why is it restarting? Is the game glitching?"

Xia Xiao was full of confusion, but the next moment, her gaze inexplicably fixed on the game.

Was this ending really an ending?

Stanley had gained his freedom, but was she free?

Xia Xiao suddenly realized that she had been following the Narrator's instructions the whole time. Stanley's freedom felt more like something the Narrator had arranged.

A surge of impulse welled up inside her—she wanted to play it again!

"But if I play it again, I won't have enough time to write the article~"

By now, she was no longer bothered by the game's quality. The fact that she wanted to replay it said enough.

"Forget it, I'll just play it once more. Playing games is for gathering material anyway~"

After some self-persuasion, Xia Xiao started the game again.

It was still the familiar opening sequence. Once inside the game, the Narrator's chatter resumed.

After waiting a bit, Xia Xiao took control of Stanley and planned to head out and explore.

"Last time, I listened to the Narrator and chose the left door. What if I chose the right one?"

Xia Xiao absentmindedly controlled the game character, her mind wandering.

As she was about to step out, she accidentally clicked on the door and shut it.

The Narrator suddenly popped up.

"But Stanley couldn't handle the pressure."

"What if he had to make a choice? What if he messed up within his responsibilities? He never—"

"Now, all there is to do is wait, Stanley thought. Nothing can hurt me, nothing can bring me down—"

"Soon, this will end. Someone will come to talk to him, someone will come to give him orders. That day draws nearer, eagerly awaited, and it arrives."

Then, the screen went black, and the game restarted.

"Damn! That's actually an ending too? I just closed a door~"

Xia Xiao felt helpless. What had she done to deserve this?

But despite her speechlessness, she had a different opinion of the game now.

Even though it was just a game, she could empathize with it.

She had a feeling this game wasn't as simple as it seemed.

Well, of course, what she was considering now was whether to take advantage of the time and play it again?

On the university campus, in the Boys' Dormitory.

Wang Chuan sat in his chair, clicking away with his mouse.

He had no idea that The Stanley Parable had already worked its charm.

And hooked a game editor.

At this moment, he was focused on browsing information—well, game-related stuff.

Because he'd been so absorbed in developing The Stanley Parable, he only now had time to look into the state of the gaming industry in this world.

Since technology in this world was relatively advanced, game design concepts were still quite primitive.

As a result, the development of games, both domestically and internationally, wasn't much different.

It was the kind of situation where hardware was highly advanced, but software was severely lacking.

For example, in this world, holographic games were already fairly mature, but the gameplay was still stuck on the same old stuff from decades ago.

After browsing for a while, Wang Chuan headed to his class. Graduation was coming up, and this was supposed to be the last class meeting.

"Wasn't there supposed to be a class meeting?"

After sitting down in his seat, Wang Chuan felt a bit speechless.

No teacher was there, and the students were all chatting in groups. He'd thought he might get something useful out of it.

But nope~

"Wang Chuan, weren't you saying you were making a game? Are you planning to enter the Newcomer Competition?"

Just then, his deskmate came over and asked curiously.

The Newcomer Competition was specifically prepared for students like them.

Students would prepare a game, go on stage, and compete based on the data.

If they became champion, they could still become an official Game Producer.

"No, I just uploaded it directly to the Official Platform."

Wang Chuan didn't pay it much mind and said casually.

Hearing Wang Chuan's words, his deskmate was instantly stunned.

He made a game but didn't enter the easier Newcomer Competition, instead uploading it to the Official Platform?

That meant he was going the market route~~

"Wang Chuan, you're not joking, are you?"

"If you upload your game to the platform, you can't enter the Newcomer Competition anymore."

"You need to think it through. The market route isn't that simple. Forget being number one on the charts—even getting ten thousand paying players is ridiculously hard."

Though his deskmate was shocked, he couldn't help but try to persuade him.

Because going the market route to become an official Game Producer was truly difficult.

In their entire school, there hadn't even been ten who'd managed it.

"Don't worry, I have a lot of confidence in myself."

Hearing his deskmate's words, Wang Chuan felt a warmth in his heart. At a time like this, only a friend would patiently advise you.

But he was indeed full of confidence in The Stanley Parable.

Because when he chose the game, he deliberately avoided innovating in gameplay.

Instead, he chose to focus on the story.

After all, if the players in this world weren't used to or didn't like the gameplay, wouldn't that be disastrous?

But a story was different—a good tale never goes out of style, no matter the era.

That was also why he chose The Stanley Parable.

The gameplay was simple and common, but it added META elements, paired with the right story, to deliver a shock.

With that, Wang Chuan bid farewell to his deskmate and planned to go for a stroll.

After all, the classroom was too noisy, and there was nothing to gain here.

"Beep beep beep."

Just then, Wang Chuan's phone rang. He glanced at the caller ID—an unfamiliar number.

"Hello, is this Teacher Wang Chuan, the creator of The Stanley Parable?"

When he answered, a sweet female voice came through.

"Yes, I'm Wang Chuan. What can I do for you?"

"Oh, it's like this. I'm from Game New World, and I'm a game editor: Xia Xiao."

Her voice was very excited, and she got straight to the point.

"We'd like to interview you, and also about the game The Stanley Parable. Would that be possible?"

"Oh, right, if you agree, we can refund your prepayment."

On the other end of the line, Xia Xiao's heart was a little anxious, unsure if he would agree.