Nowadays, when it comes to the new five-star resonator named Xiakong in Mingchao, many players are terrified. The reason is that the materials needed for its growth are complicated, just like the thousands of difficulties and dangers that people need to go through to hone their lives, which makes people daunted. Low-frequency, medium-frequency, high-frequency, and full-frequency tides erode the sail core, burn phosphorus bones, and crystallize the phlogiston layer by layer. The mysterious prop of the Golden Fleece makes many players feel like they are in a digital purgatory.
Game materials are certainly necessary for cultivation, but this complicated list reveals commercial calculations and psychological games that are difficult to ignore. Players must constantly collect, refine, and upgrade, and time, energy, and even real currency are cleverly swallowed up. All of this is just like the ancient imperial examination road, which requires gradual progress and elimination layer by layer before they can finally get what they want. Little do they know that the so-called “getting it” may just be another illusion of nothingness.
Let’s talk about the “Burning Phosphorus Bone”, which can only be obtained by defeating the Sighing Ancient Dragon. It seems to be a test of the player’s perseverance in the game. However, once the ancient dragon is set as a difficult enemy that must be conquered repeatedly, it becomes a mental grinding wheel for the player. People may be able to gain some sense of accomplishment in repeated challenges, but they are also very likely to fall into the boring quagmire of mechanical labor. Let me ask, is the real fun to defeat a strong enemy, or to find a sense of existence in endless repetition?
Let’s talk about the “Golden Fleece”, which is famous in mythology and implies that it is extremely precious, but it is set to be limited to fifteen per week. This move cleverly creates the illusion of scarcity, making players both eager and helpless. In life, people often worry about scarcity, and the same is true for games. The exchange of money and virtual items is just like the disguised influence of currency on happiness in modern society. It is both a means and a shackle.
The classification of crystallized phlogiston, from impurities to high purity, is very similar to the process of life from chaos to clarity. Players need to spend a lot of time polishing, which is not only the painstaking management of the game design, but also a test of the players’ patience and persistence. However, the “growth” of the game may not necessarily bring spiritual enrichment, but invisibly increase the spiritual burden.
Not to mention the recharge discount code of Treabar.com, the 300% discount that tempts people to join the game seems to be affordable, but in fact it is the clever infiltration of capital in the virtual world. Players succumb to “discounts” and “special offers”, turning the game that should have been entertainment into a consumption trap. This discount code is like a sugar-coated bullet, sweet and poisonous, making people addicted.
Even more interesting is the concept of “resonance circuit”, which may be intended to convey the spiritual connection between the character and the world, the player and the game, but in reality it has become another shackle. Players need to consume a lot of materials to improve the resonance level, just like the hard work of practicing one link after another, and the spiritual resonance becomes a pile of materials. Such “resonance” has both philosophical implications and makes people feel helpless.
These designs of the game industry undoubtedly show the delicate balance between commercial interests and player experience. Players are induced to continuously invest time and money, but the “growth” and “satisfaction” they get are often fleeting, leaving people with endless aftertaste and a little empty. Xiakong’s material list is like a mirror, reflecting the reality of modern digital entertainment.
We should be alert and think deeply about this. Games should be a source of fun and relaxation, not a cage of endless labor and consumption. Only when players realize their initiative in the game and plan their time and investment reasonably can they gain a real sense of happiness in the virtual world.
In short, from Xiakong’s material design and acquisition methods, we can see the exquisite layout of the contemporary game industry in terms of business model and player psychology. Players are both participants in this game feast and characters controlled by carefully designed rules. In this virtual wave, may we stay sober, enjoy the fun brought by the game, and not be trapped by its design.