Game development begins with destroying Girls' Frontline.

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During the "Summer Spark" event, participants can complete certain activities and purchase skins or games within the various games and the Spark platform.

You can obtain a certain number of [Spark Collection] card packs.

This is an activity launched by Spark to stimulate consumption, which is equivalent to bringing the buy-one-get-one-free promotion of Spark's peripheral mall online.

This was originally a good thing. Players could get some rewards for completing tasks, and paying players could also get the [Spark Collection] card pack in addition to the recharge benefits.

Even if you spend money, the maximum number of card packs you can get is 10.

But it’s not bad.

After all, there was no extra charge.

It also expands the player base of the [Spark Collection] card pack, which is a win-win situation.

There is only one problem that needs to be solved.

The 【Spark Collection】card pack was originally a free gift with purchase from the merchandise store, meaning it would simply be shipped directly to the player along with any other purchased item.

It will take a few days to complete.

For a player who has already purchased the merchandise, this is something they can afford to wait for, and Spark doesn't need to pay extra for shipping.

but now.

If the event becomes an online activity, participating players will still have to fill in their addresses and wait for delivery.

While it's not impossible, it's somewhat illogical.

Just like when players pay, you are bombarded with a bunch of confirmation prompts or redirected to another payment process.

Sometimes, a player's impulsive purchase lasts only a few seconds or tens of seconds.

Ever since.

To address this pain point, the [Spark Collection] project team added an online card-drawing feature.

Players can open the card pack online after completing the event or purchasing it with real money.

After opening.

Players have two options: one is to fill in an address, wait for the factory to print the cards, and then collect the cards they drew.

Another option is to sell them directly through online card sales channels.

The channel for selling these online cards is StarCard, a game trading card system currently undergoing internal testing on the Spark platform.

Star Cards are the same as Steam's trading cards.

Cards drop when playing games, and there are platforms where you can sell these cards, but there is one difference between star cards and other cards.

First, regarding the card drop and design, Spark has a standard template.

To get your game to drop star cards, you first need to meet the entry standard, which is for your game to enter the best-selling charts.

Even if you only appear on the leaderboard for a second, Spark believes you are qualified.

Chapter 462 Spokesperson

As long as you've been on the bestseller list on the Spark platform.

Once this threshold is met, developers can submit 24 card designs to Spark. After approval, these designs will be added to Star Cards, which players can obtain by playing the game and making in-game purchases.

Besides the inclusion of a review mechanism, another feature of Star Cards is that they are available after collecting the complete set of cards for a certain game.

You can choose to exchange them for real-world cards to keep as collectibles.

This mechanism of redeeming physical cards undoubtedly gives Star Cards more collectible value compared to Steam.

It can also help boost game sales.

Of course, this is for differentiation, and also for cost reduction.

Although the printing of the Star Cards was still done at the Shanghai Printing Factory, only the most basic anti-counterfeiting technology was used.

Even so, compared to purely virtual cards, printing these star cards is indeed a cost expense.

However, in Lin Li's view...

This amount of money is just a drop in the ocean compared to Xinghuo's marketing and promotion expenses.

Lin Li is willing to invest as long as they can differentiate the Spark platform.

not to mention.

Based on this platform's player trading system, many interesting things can be developed, such as a game item trading system...

~~~

The bus became increasingly lively.

The person in charge frowned.

"Hey, hey, hey, don't get too excited! Although there are only two items on the itinerary, our mission this time is very important."

Despite being big stars in the public eye, the Nogizaka46 girls have little say in the company's staff.

"Have you all read the filming schedule booklet that was distributed to everyone?"

Seeing that everyone had quieted down, the person in charge nodded.

The Nogizaka46 members participated in the Summer Spark event because they had signed an endorsement deal with Spark Japan.

The reason why Xinghuo signed an endorsement deal with Nogizaka46 is not only because Xinghuo itself wants to expand its publicity reach.

Another reason is related to the fact that Nogizaka46 is an artist under Sony.

After Spark and Sony signed a cooperation agreement.

Lin Li is also leveraging Sony's locational advantages in Japan to expand his influence.

Of course, these grand strategies have nothing to do with the members.

But for the people in charge of Nogizaka46, it has a lot to do with it.

For them, Xinghuo is a very high-quality partner, with a sufficient budget and generous cooperation.

Like this collaboration.

In addition to promotional videos and advertisements, these are not the traditional endorsement projects.

Spark even sponsored a game-themed variety show for Nogizaka46.

Even for an indoor variety show, this is quite a large-scale production.

Even Sony Music knows that Spark is using Nogizaka46's current popularity to expand its own publicity.

However, this is indeed a win-win situation.

Because everyone is very satisfied with the cooperation.

Therefore, the Nogizaka46 executives attached great importance to this trip to China.

For a group that has reached the top in its home country, expanding outwards is undoubtedly the best way to increase its influence.

Among neighboring countries, China is undoubtedly an important market.

Under these circumstances, Mr. Lin, the legendary figure associated with the publicity department of Spark Music, naturally became the key to Sony Music's journey in China.

To win over President Hayashi, we must be on our toes today and showcase Nogizaka's business acumen.

"Remember, today's schedule isn't long, but this is work, not team building. I hope everyone can stay focused!"

"Also, after the morning's schedule concludes, President Lin of Xinghuo will be attending the afternoon celebration. We might run into him in the lounge..."

"So in the lounge, we'll organize group visits; please don't go alone."

"Yes~"

Most of the girls understood and responded in unison.

But there are a few people, like Minami Hoshino, who don't understand.

"This is our first time in China, and we're going to visit President Lin on our own? We don't even speak the language."

Sitting next to her, Akimoto Manatsu smiled slightly.

"It's precisely because they don't understand Chinese that bumping into each other is so interesting; they even save themselves the trouble of making excuses."

"what?"

~~~

After about a 40-minute drive.

The girls arrived at a huge seaside parking lot.

"We've arrived. Everyone, please get off the bus. We're still a bit far from the scene. Now, please stay close to me and don't wander off!"

"Yes~~"

Group outings are something the members of Nogizaka46 are very familiar with, and they don't feel uncomfortable at all.

Saito Asuka got off the car with her teammates, holding her phone in her hand.

That's why I was playing on my phone while walking.

It's because the game she's playing has reached a very crucial moment, and the plot is so captivating that she can't let go.

Saito Asuka is not exactly a fanatic about anime culture.

But it wasn't entirely unfamiliar; before joining the group, I quite enjoyed reading comics, watching anime, and playing Nintendo games.

In an interview, she once revealed that she was good at cutting out comics and magazines to make collages.

However, since Nogizaka46 itself follows the route of a pure and innocent young lady, Saito Asuka rarely reveals her hobbies.

These things only come up in private, during relaxed chats with friends.

Saito Asuka started playing FGO because a friend outside her guild would recommend it to her every now and then.

Given FGO's current status in Japan.

This kind of recommendation is quite normal.

The FGO that was improved by Spark has been a top seller in Japan for many years.

This kind of bestseller list is itself a way to attract traffic.

Therefore, from the second half of 17 to this year, FGO has increasingly shown the characteristics of a social game.

A large number of non-core users, players who had never been exposed to FATE or even the anime, and even casual viewers came to visit.

The first to feel this change were the Spark FGO operations department, because it started from this point.

The FGO survey has begun to show a clear trend of casual players.

How to cope with this change is actually a choice that a game must make after it breaks into the mainstream.

Just like Honor of Kings back in the day.

So when Shiokawa was unsure about the situation and started telling Lin Li about it, Lin Li's first words were...

"I never thought we would encounter such a happy trouble one day."

It is indeed a happy kind of trouble.

After all, such problems don't usually occur in most games.

The series of problems arising from changes in the user ecosystem due to the increase in users are only seen in games that truly break out of their niche and become a phenomenon in a particular market.

Lin Li also had some references to consider when dealing with this change.

For example, Honor of Kings.

Honor of Kings has also faced similar issues.

Their approach was "clever"—they added a large number of robots to the game.

Ultimately, it became a 5V5 PVP competitive game.

It has been transformed into a MOBA simulator, where players determine their wins and losses by controlling AI opponents in the game.

Chapter 463 The New Version of FGO