He Rong smiled as he looked through the current toy stocks he had and queried whether unmade figurines were possible as well. Jin was stunned for a moment before as he hadn’t considered this, but the System quickly told him that it was possible.
However stats wise, it would be of a standard attribute as per a freshly built model. The co-owner than asked if those stats could be seen in the Virtual Hologram and unfortunately Jin had not thought of adding that feature because this fighting game was designed for the underworld.
“Nevertheless, I did place some Virtual Hologram machines in the basement for them to choose and even place an NPC that helps to fix these models up in a jiffy. Depending on the money they are willing to spend. It can be fixed instantly; else, it should be within an hour or two. I am planning to offer paint jobs for miniatures as well. ” Jin shared as he pressed a button at the Shop instance where there was a Tiger Mascot at the side of the room.
The Tiger Mascot lit up a little as if it was scanning Jin for a moment before the statue of the Tiger Mascot moved away, revealing the stairs to the underground fighting game arena. Yong De had chosen one of Jin’s models as well (obviously unopened like the Knight Savant Jin was holding on.) while He Rong went for a Real Grade version of Gunndam 99, Metal Build edition and brought it along with him to the basement.
The Minimalist Modern style of the Arcade Store instance did not transit the same into the basement area. Instead, Jin made it dark and shady, accompanied with lots of neon lights. Leaning more towards the Cyberpunk genre. Everything looked rather futuristic, and even the goblin engineers who were in the instance inspecting and preparing the fight machines for the trio were wearing high tech gadgets with their usual clothing.
Some of the gadgets they wore were repurposed from the basic Gearbox suit which Yang Ling had made before. But instead of the full gearbox suit, It was broken into parts just as the Gearbox gloves and boots which the Evolved Goblins had used previously.
However, unlike the first iteration of those gearbox armour parts, the ones these engineers used were more functional rather than combative. The gloves featured a series of tools that would be useful for modelling purposes as a clipper, file, glue, and cement or green stuff (a sort of clay that dried up quick to cover holes or create new customised parts)
The same could be said for the one eyed visor, where the System gave instructions visually on how to tackle a particular nasty repair of a model. Initially, the System wanted the goblin craftsmen to handle these modelling issues, but then it decided to give the engineers a better understanding of the models that this underground community would build.
So, in return, the goblin engineers could apply that inspiration or new found knowledge on future designs. Perhaps on the Sandroku Golem or probably blueprints for a new model.
However, as Jin only allowed the Goblin Engineers to fix impromptu problems, the Goblin Craftsmen were the ones more responsible for the refurbishing of any broken toy models, and it included the customised paint jobs as well as building the model up if needed. (However, Jin did emphasise that the Goblin Engineers could join in if the model were futuristic or involved any mechanical parts.
Who knows? Maybe the Goblin Engineers could build their own series of miniature robots in the future that could be used to fight as compared to the three dimensional game which Jin had created. (Despite it being already too real life looking.)
The Goblin Engineers went ahead to turn the machine up, and that was where the miniature arena right in front of them started to glow. “Please choose your battlefield.” A computer voice suddenly spoke out, and Jin knew that it was none other than the System’s mimicked voice.
However, the rest did not know any of this.
At the same time, Jin was wondering if he should use Kiyu for the announcer’s voice. He did not think of that until he heard the monotonous System’s voice instead.
The game would differ based on the number of players entering the field. With three standing at the circumference of the arena, the System had determined that three players would join the game.
They then collectively chose the type of battlefield they would want to fight in. As Jin was the ‘game master’ for this particular match, he swiped the battlefield options for them to see. But what was amazing was not the options but how the mini arena right in front of them changed accordingly with the battlefield options. They could feel the weight of the ‘battlefield’ physically moving before it disappeared into mere bits of data.
The first option was a simple empty room concept battlefield, but as Jin swiped to the right, the choice of broken forest concept was selected as the entire empty room physically moved and replaced it with the broken forest concept battlefield. It was as if someone brought a new board and shove it through the arena’s playing field.
In addition, Jin had plans to increase the number of battlefield options, including allowing customers to create their very own mini arenas. They could pay the Goblin Craftsmen to create it according to their instructions or buy a selected number of prefabricated decorations and architectures to place them into the mini arenas. (Yes, there is a workshop for them to do this as well within the basement.)
While it was costly to create, they could be uploaded into the arena as an option called random concepts. Should the players or audience liked a particular piece of concept arena, the System would subsequently add it into the weekly rotation of battlefield.
This would allow players to showcase their own ideas of a battlefield and whenever they were utilised, a commission fee would be given to the players and they could be credited as Panda Medals, or as cold hard cash. However, that was for the future when this game picked up traction.
Now, the mini empty room concept battlefield would be their designated training and fighting grounds which their three figurine models would fight in. Once the battlefield had been selected, they placed the intended miniatures they wished to use at the front of the highlighted area, so the System could analyse the figures and used them for the battle.
Anything that was on the model transporter would be teleported into the battlefield. Unfixed toy model versions would be fixed in an instant, and the System reminded Jin to place an automatic ‘fixing’ fee as part of the update later. “Ah, you can put it for me System. Place it the same price as fixing a toy model by a craftsman.”
When the figurines were transported, both Yong De and He Rong was surprised that his Real Grade Gunndam 99 which required a few days of proper trimming and fixing of the plastic parts were already created on the scene. Even Jin’s Knight Savant Model and Yong De’s Triple Goblin and Eight legged Boar figurine were out of their boxes and on the scene of the empty room arena.
“I thought you say the model box does not need to be open?” He Rong said as he saw that the Gunndam Model box that was teleported back was filled with empty plastic molds in it.
“Mhm, I did. Sorry that I did not explain it well. Anything that is used for a fight will have to be opened. The Gunndam 99 you placed on the transporter will build for you immediately, but the fixing cost as I have spoken earlier would be added in as well.” Jin apologised and told them about it.
“Damn! I lost a few hundred Yuan just like this?” He Rong asked, and Jin replied that the amount had already been transferred into their business accounts.
All three models.
“Why do these models need to be opened? What if the customers want to keep it in pristine condition?” He Rong questioned Jin, and it did not occur to him until now.
“Ah. Those toy model collectors huh…” Jin thought for a while before telling him the rationale behind the opened toy models. “Because this game physically utilises the toy models and any damage to it will need to be fixed, we can earn a little on the repairing fees. I thought that would definitely boost our profit quite a fair bit. This wasn’t exactly designed with the collectors in mind…”
The dungeon supplier was contemplating whether he should use the counterfeiter in the process of creating the game session, but that might be unfair to those who painstakingly created their models from scratch. Even if he used the counterfeiter, the collectors would wonder if the product was real. (Even though it was totally one to one copy. Collectors had such twisted logic.)
“How about we put a disclaimer? That way if the toy collectors wish to use their models for combat, they will bear their own responsibilities for the damage. Still, I too would not agree with opening collector models. Sometimes, I have occasional players that will play an extremely valuable card, but it was placed in a sealed tight reinforced plastic box.” Yong De suggested and He Rong did not seem very satisfied with the outcome.
“Can’t we use something similar to your dungeon instance system?? So that there is no physical contact to the models.” He Rong requested, and Jin was deep in thought for a moment.
“So, you are asking me to scrap the fixing figurines scheme and replace the physical with digital ones?” Jin asked for a confirmation, and they both nodded their heads together.
“Fixing wise could still be of a service because there are times even experienced toy modellers make a mistake, mainly because their parts were too fragile. But other than that, it should not be a deterrent to play the game. You can still charge a commission for assembling and even for painting them. That usually takes time, and I know a lot who would rather pay for it as long as the result is desirable.” He Rong suggested and Jin nodded his head with a bit of some reluctance.
He got the point from the two store owners. To Jin, the models were just a part of a money making operation for himself since the underground scene would no doubt be quite lucrative. But to Yong De and He Rong, the cards and toy models were a part of their life. It was more than just a mere hobby to them. They put in love, effort, soul and heart into this process just like how Jin did for his dungeon instances.
“I get what you mean. I see if I can make any changes before tomorrow’s grand opening, else I will keep this place closed until I resolve the issue.” Jin said to them, and they were delighted that their landlord was open to suggestions and recommendations. “But as for these three models, I do not think I can do anything about them.”
“Oh, it’s fine. This is a small price to pay compared to the love that we have for our customer’s hobby.” He Rong rubbed his nose as he looked at Jin and widened his eyebrows while showing the money sign and then putting his hand into the pocket.
“Gosh, He Rong. It’s good to know there is still a money minded person in this room.” Yong De said with some forced laughter when the other two looked at him momentarily. He Rong smirked back at Yong De and gave him a pat on the back.
“Boss, time to teach us how to play this game? I assume that aside from the models, everything else should be the same right?” He Rong smiled back at Jin, and he chuckled a little before proceeding to teach them the basics of the game.
The ‘Figure Fighters’.
