Chapter 514: The mystery is revealed! Go tell Aunt Rhody! |
Huh?
Huh—?
Huh—!!!
The moment he saw the news!
Hideki's entire body stiffened!
Then, as if witnessing a deity descending, his eyes lit up, his mouth formed a perfect 'O', and he repeatedly tapped the screen!
"This... this is... Golden Wind's official trailer?"
Following the prompt, he clicked and jumped to Golden Wind's official Twitter homepage.
Sure enough.
Without a doubt!
This was the second trailer for *Village Of Shadows*, and also the official trailer for Golden Wind's new game!
And players familiar with the long-standing grudge match between Golden Wind and Komera knew,
Whenever the two appeared at the same expo!
If Golden Wind intended to face the enemy head-on, to have a direct clash of titans with Komera!
Then they would definitely try their best to catch up with Komera's promotional schedule, take the initiative to attack, and declare war openly!
They would never stagger their promotional releases!
Obviously!
This time was the same!
Komera had just released their official trailer!
And right on its heels, Golden Wind's official trailer followed!
What did this mean?
This meant Golden Wind still regarded Komera as their biggest opponent at this Higashitsu Gaming Festival, bar none, and had made full preparations, intending to draw a final period on the four-year-long grudge between them!
After all!
Everyone knew!
Today's Golden Wind was no longer what it used to be, no longer a piece of meat on the chopping block to be sliced at will!
Wielding the world's most cutting-edge technology, their industrial prowess had completely surpassed Komera's!
The positions of the two sides had swapped!
Oh no! Not swapped!
Because theoretically, Komera's current situation was even worse than Golden Wind's back in the day!
What kind of company was Golden Wind back then?
A small workshop, small scale, low industrial level.
To put it bluntly, Golden Wind's approach to Komera back then was all about having nothing to lose.
They had room for error, and a lot of it.
After all, who would demand that a newly established small workshop, at a disadvantage in every aspect, must defeat the behemoth dominating the Eastern gaming circle?
Moreover, Golden Wind still hadn't gone public, they made their own money and spent it themselves, had no parent company, and didn't have to answer to investors.
They did as they pleased; if they lost, they could just start over.
Golden Wind back then could afford to lose.
But Komera was different!
As everyone knew!
Komera's current predicament could almost be said to have been beaten into them by Golden Wind!
Starting from *Escape* vs. *Silent Hill 1*, every major flagship title Komera showcased at international expos had ended in a disastrous defeat!
From changes in the president and board composition!
To three large-scale internal layoffs!
Although the foundation accumulated over decades could still support the company, preventing it from teetering on the brink like Illusion Engine.
Both the pressure from their parent company Vivendi and the negative impact from the sharp decline in external market confidence had made Komera miserable and exhausted.
Even before this confrontation began, many financial media outlets analyzed—
With the reversal of fortunes this time, Komera's margin for error had also been reduced to the minimum.
If they suffered another defeat, Komera would very likely fall into a prolonged slump in the secondary market, becoming an abandoned piece in the gaming tech sector.
Subsequently, they would be replaced by other established gaming groups with good development momentum in recent years, like "Aurora Games" and "FoxForce", as well as emerging mid-to-large-sized gaming groups like "Nuyan" and "MOSS Games".
In short, it was—
[The fall of the Eastern hegemon, never to rise again]
However, judging from the previous situation, Komera's bold attempt at change this time seemed to have coincidentally met Golden Wind's "arrogant complacency". The *Silent Hill: Ascension* helmed by Seiichi Nakamura did show signs of propping up a collapsing edifice and turning the tide at the last moment.
Yet!
At this most critical juncture!
Golden Wind, which had been completely silent for a full two months since releasing the first trailer, actually chose to take the initiative again, directly targeting *Silent Hill: Ascension*!
What gave them the confidence?
Like many players, Hideki's heart was also filled with a hundred question marks!
They were already considered "two of a kind" in public opinion.
Where did Golden Wind get the confidence to launch such a targeted promotional snipe against *Silent Hill: Ascension*?
For a moment, the chat barrage in the entire livestream was in an uproar.
And amidst this wave of explosive momentum!
Hideki slowly clicked open this "Official Trailer for *Village Of Shadows*"—
.......
[Once upon a time]
[A little girl and her mother went to pick berries for their hardworking father]
[But the forest was cold and silent, the bushes empty...]
It was still that sweet, gentle female voice, still the opening of a dark fairy tale.
In the pitch-black screen, the woman's voice was delicate and warm, making one feel as if sitting by a fireplace, listening with half-closed eyes to a bedtime story.
However, this opening, identical to the first trailer, also left Hideki utterly confused:
What's going on? Same as the previous trailer? Is Golden Wind... just reposting the old trailer?
Yet!
Before Hideki's doubt could even settle!
Crunching sounds began.
In the pitch-black picture, a faint, tiny beam of light appeared.
Under the pitch-dark night, heavy snow covered the small paths through the dense forest.
Creak, crunch—the sound of snow echoed as a man holding a weak flashlight trudged with difficulty through the deep snow that reached his ankles, moving forward amidst the interwoven dry, black branches.
"Hss—huff—huff—"
Slightly trembling breaths rose and fell faintly, puffs of white vapor dissipating in the silent, drifting night.
The woman's voice continued its narration in this cold winter night:
[The mischievous girl was determined to find the berries, so she broke free from her mother's hand and ran deep into the woods]
[She ran through the forest, through the vines]
[The mother's panicked, tearful calls gradually faded away]
[And the girl was gradually swallowed by the dark woods...]
In a daze.
The man traversing the heavy snow seemed to see a memory from beside the fireplace—
Under warm, yellowish lamplight, a woman wearing a floral dress sat on a sofa in front of the fireplace, holding a storybook, telling this tale.
"This story... is way too dark, isn't it?"
In the memory, the man's voice sounded.
And the woman in the memory chuckled softly:
"It's just a local legend, don't be so tense..."
Wait a second?!
Wait wait wait!
Hideki's heart skipped a beat!
And at this moment, the livestream chat was also filled with shock—!
'No? Huh? Is this *Village Of Shadows*?'
'Whaaaaaaaaat—?'
'I really like a certain phrase from Golden Wind players:'
"Huh???"
The hell... is this live-action? Don't you dare tell me this is CG?
Hold on? Damn, something's off? Weren't we promised a dark fairy tale? What's with this sudden top-tier photorealistic rendering?
'Damn—I feel kinda tricked?'
What the f... So the first CG was just a scene from the wife's storybook???
'Whoa! They can even trick us like this?'
'Why does the wife's back look a bit familiar...?'
'The voice sounds familiar too, but I can't remember where I've heard it...'
"Hiss—Something's off! Damn, this official trailer is seriously off! I feel like GW is preparing something huge!"
'Whoa, I got goosebumps all over...'
'...'
For a moment!
The entire livestream chat was in a state of shocked uproar!
We've been had?!
Without a doubt!
If Golden Wind hadn't changed their mind midway, then this official trailer they were seeing now was the proper preview for this new Golden Wind title!
In other words!
The "dark fairy tale" that had been discussed by media and players for two whole months—was just a "trailer for the trailer"!
That was just the dark fairy tale the wife was telling!
It wasn't what Golden Wind actually wanted to make at all!
And at this very moment!
As the man gradually passed through the dark woods!
Under gloomy twilight, a snow-covered, lifeless village appeared at the edge of the dense forest!
Ghostly shadows suddenly flashing past the window.
A rotting, plague-ridden cow head on the road.
A sinister ancient castle standing in the distance under the vast, pale snow.
Grotesquely twisted puppets with abnormal postures in a dark little hut.
Bizarre bubbles churning in a filthy, murky green wastewater lake.
Dull, dark figures being mass-produced in a massive factory.
And as the wrinkled, aged face of an old woman hidden under a mysterious hood appeared!
All sound in the trailer instantly fell silent!
Hideki was holding his breath.
And the eerie screech of a violin arrived in the next moment, like the cry of a night hawk—
[Go tell Aunt Rhody !]
[Go tell Aunt Rhody!]
[That everybody's--]
[DEAD......]
BOOM—!!!
The next moment!
A hoarse, roaring scream erupted in the livestream!
"OHHHHHHHHHHH—!!!"
Hideki literally jumped up from his chair, flying into the air!
He was going crazy!
As a player, he couldn't be more familiar with this eerie and horrifying theme song!
And the livestream chat instantly exploded at this moment!
Everyone knew what this theme song meant!
Now!
Everyone finally understood that the work Golden Wind had prepared for this Higashitsu Gaming Festival was not some "dark fairy tale" at all!
But—!!!
'Resident Evil!!!'
'Resident Evil is back!!!'
The livestream chat erupted!
Correct!
This theme song was precisely the once wildly popular *Resident Evil 7* theme song that had made countless players pale with fear!
As Golden Wind's first foray into handling a global-level horror game IP!
Resident Evil 7, upon release, with its unique first-person immersion and Golden Wind's signature brand of terror, had slaughtered the motion-sensing gaming circle of that year with an unstoppable force!
And now!
The "Resident Evil" series was making a comeback!
The scalp-tingling title then appeared at the end of the trailer!
Now!
The mystery was solved, and the world was in an uproar!
[Resident Evil VIII: Village]
[Golden Wind]
[Grand Presentation]