Chapter Two: Pure Love Warrior Simulator

“Boss, are you saying you’ve already finished the game and it’s ready for official release?”

Wu Mengyou’s face was full of astonishment, her lips parting slightly in disbelief.

You already have a complete game? And you did it all by yourself... Is the son of Old Gu really that talented?

“Keep it low-key, keep it low-key. I just did a tiny bit of work...” Gu Meng initially made a playful ‘Korean male defense’ gesture.

Recalling the unfinished state of the project when he took over, he adjusted the scope of his ‘finger universe’ back to a normal male scale:

“Well, maybe it’s not exactly ‘tiny work’—let’s call it moderate effort.”

After Gu Ritian’s accident, Wu Mengyou had been gloomy, worried the company might fold and she’d lose her job. This was the first time she had smiled.

“Mr. Gu, you’re too modest. Even I, who know nothing about computers, can tell how massive the remaining workload was.”

“Well...” Gu Meng wanted to say, it was really the system that was impressive.

Using the virtual interface, he scanned the unfinished assets and the various planning documents left behind. Then, combining that with his own mental image of a realistic simulation game, he activated the synthesis optimization function.

This transformed the half-completed ‘Pure Love Warrior Simulator,’ which still had at least half the work remaining, into the fully fleshed-out version described in the planning documents—complete with numerous detail enhancements that surpassed the initial concept.

“The truth is, I’m a versatile genius in game design,” Gu Meng said, after trying out the system version, which was worlds apart from the original demo. He concluded confidently, “I’m a genius.”

...

‘Pure Love Warrior Simulator’ differs from those simple simulation mini-games like “You Were Born in Year XX,” “You Went to School in Year XX,” or management sims like “Internet Cafe Simulator” and “Supermarket Simulator.” This title specifically refers to a romance simulation.

During Maodou Games’ heyday, they had released a game called ‘Pickup Master Simulator.’

In early promotions, ‘Pure Love Warrior Simulator’ was touted as the spiritual successor to that title—

Which was somewhat misleading.

Aside from a minor NPC named Teacher Tong, who was the protagonist from ‘Pickup Master Simulator,’ this new game bore no gameplay relation to its predecessor.

There was only one heroine, and no pick-up or flirtation routes. At least, Gu Meng never triggered any pick-up content or flirtation mechanics—only pure love.

Players assume the role of a boy from a poor family, working in his hometown after graduating high school to earn money.

The heroine is a female college student, above-average in looks and in every way superior to the male lead—his goddess.

At the start, their relationship is already established, but the long-distance aspect makes it extremely challenging.

The male lead must work hard to support the heroine’s education and living expenses.

Later, he needs to take out loans to gather the bride price, desperately shower gifts on his fiancée, and attempt to get engaged.

This process forms the main storyline.

Each cycle has corresponding tasks, and if the player fails to meet the targets or doesn’t receive money in time, they get a breakup letter from the heroine, ending the game.

The core gameplay is about working various jobs to earn money—only by earning can the heroine be retained.

---

At first, the male lead’s jobs include bricklaying, delivery, food delivery, car washing...

Professions can be upgraded: reaching max level in bricklaying, “Cuboid Solid Directional Moving Engineer,” lets you carry even more bricks.

After working and training, strength attributes increase, boosting efficiency in all physical jobs.

Studying raises intelligence; meeting requirements and spending time obtaining certifications unlock intermediate professions like accountant, chef, various technicians...

Setting up stalls during breakfast and evening hours can earn extra money if luck is on your side.

Later, there are online store mechanics and physical store management. In theory, players can buy houses and luxury cars, but that requires capital.

With the heroine’s insatiable spending habits, the male lead can barely maintain a living; just affording food is a struggle.

He can only rent the cheapest place, wear his clothes until they fall apart, and if he gets sick without money for treatment, he must restart.

Big-ticket purchases like houses and cars are impossible in the first playthrough.

Each failed run grants achievement rewards if certain milestones are met.

Achievement points can unlock mid-to-high level professions or raise attributes at the start.

Or boost initial funds and add positive traits.

For example, “Night Watcher” reduces the male lead’s sleep time, allowing him to work an extra job;

“Speedster” lets him run faster, cutting travel time;

“Thick Skin” lowers mental damage from scavenging garbage;

“Social Butterfly” increases affection points gained from giving NPC gifts, and so forth...

The simulation and management elements are diverse and packed with detail. Gu Meng felt it was very promising even from a rough playthrough.

The romance aspect is also well-crafted. Every time the male lead saves enough money, after supporting the heroine, any surplus can be spent to take a bus to meet her.

That’s where Maodou’s strengths in romance simulation come into play.

To Gu Meng, the main improvements should focus on the simulation and management parts, plus various optimizations.

The romance route is Maodou’s normal territory; the demo had already developed much of the plot.

The male lead can suggest various date locations, choose activities, prepare surprises and gifts, select conversation topics and dialogue options, and based on choices and emotional intelligence stats, roll dice to increase the heroine’s affection.

Over time, the heroine’s affection naturally declines, and if it falls below a threshold, there’s a chance of receiving a breakup letter.

Dates can also trigger random events—sometimes a bit melodramatic—left over from the era of video-adapted games.

For example, encountering a thug in a nighttime park requires spending money to “buy off trouble” or resolving the conflict based on strength, combat training, intelligence, and eloquence. The game offers multiple solutions.

Choosing “persuade” and failing might lead to the heroine being harassed—or even the male lead being humiliated by the thug.

If the protagonist’s mental state collapses, it’s a bad ending.

The intimate interaction section is impressively complete. Except the heroine is quite conservative and not very risqué, the writing reaches Maodou’s usual peak quality.

Gu Meng needn’t worry much about this line; he’s no expert in romance and doesn’t focus on those storylines.

When playing, he only cared about how to earn more money before hitting a bad ending and how to increase the male lead’s strength.

Throughout the entire gameplay, bad endings were plentiful.

---

According to the planning documents, there are dozens of bad endings, including failing to repay debts, falling into ruin through gambling, contracting untreatable diseases, or getting fatally hit by a dump truck while crossing the street...

But the bad endings mostly revolve around the heroine; a careless move can lead to breakup.

The male lead can’t accept it, causing his mental state to shatter.

If too few gifts were given previously, or the heroine’s affection is too low at breakup, she might say harsh words, and the male lead might even commit suicide.

Truly, this protagonist is fragile.

But since the system optimized the game, there’s no changing that now. If settings were flexible, Gu Meng would have extended the mental state duration.

What worried Gu Meng more was Maodou’s prior rhythm. This game was set to release after the disastrous ‘Rebirth: Beauty Multiple Choice,’ which had drawn fierce criticism.

He recalled that during the worst backlash, Gu Ritian had even warned him to avoid the company, as there might be hostile fans waiting downstairs to cause trouble.

What a surreal world.

It was just false advertising—why such harsh reactions?

Not much time had passed since ‘Multiple Choice,’ so this release might still provoke old Maodou fans to boycott.

This ‘Pure Love Warrior Simulator,’ despite being called the spiritual successor to ‘Pickup Master,’ was obviously just riding on the brand’s coattails.

The company inherited a mess with no second chances.

They could only hope this game, through quality and promotion, would win back players.

Fortunately, the generated game was strong enough, with rich gameplay. The story portion handled by Maodou, from his outsider perspective, seemed fine. He wasn’t concerned about the romance line.

With this title’s high quality and the current average level of domestic games, barring accidents, it was sure to sell well.

Besides, the game was priced at just 68 yuan, set during early promotion.

Judging from the original demo, the price was fair; now it was practically a friendly gesture.

The simulation and nurturing content alone justified the ticket price, and the romance part was a free bonus—would players really complain?

With the advantage on my side, it’s a sure win.

“Arrange for the game to be reviewed and start the promotional campaign as soon as possible.”

Leaning back in his executive chair, Gu Meng’s face shrouded in shadow, he thought about how to spend the profits after a big hit, while maintaining a calm exterior.

“Understood, Mr. Gu.”

Gu Meng glanced at Wu Mengyou. Since he had shown his skills, she no longer called him “Little Mr. Gu.”

Not bad.