Ready Player One can also be considered a cross-generational movie.
The story itself of this movie is actually not very attractive. In fact, this movie does not rely on the story to win, but on something else.
Easter eggs.
In games, movies and TV shows, there are things called Easter eggs.
This easter egg can be some special items or scenery left in the game by a certain game developer, or it can also be some hidden special elements left in the movie by a certain movie director.
Sometimes it is to pay tribute to someone, sometimes it is to imitate oneself.
For example, Quentin has a standard foot fetish. Foot shots are absolutely indispensable in every movie... Well, this metaphor seems inappropriate.
It's like the first recorded easter egg in the game. A game developer hid his name in a hidden room in the game.
To enter this room, you need to perform a series of complicated operations. Finally, the players found this hidden room, which is the easter egg.
Generally speaking, Easter eggs are accessories of some cultural and entertainment products.
He felt that he was probably trying to make a lot of money by licensing IP in large quantities.
Tukarev's head suddenly started to hurt.
Good guy.
Previous film and television dramas authorized Zhuyouxing to collect up to 10% of the box office share.
If the world view and universe of future cyberpunk is recognized by players, the stories between them can really be integrated more deeply and more interesting story content can be derived.
Anyway, Youxing Electronic Entertainment has never been stingy, and they are very happy to give money.
This... is really a novel idea.
"That's no problem, I can contact you."
They will not be moved by the story, but will frantically look for Easter eggs in the movie.
It is a dystopian world, and people are addicted to the virtual world and cannot extricate themselves.
This time it’s going to be 30%.
If that's the case, let's give it a try!
Anyway, I have always been a person who is willing to take big gambles.
The people here have the most standard template of cyberpunk: high technology, low life, and big companies control everything.
Tukarev felt that this was not a big deal.
"Don't get me wrong, I just authorize you to use most of my IP in this movie, and I also get a share of it. You see I have invested in so many IP works, so I can give you 30% of the profit, which is not too much.
.”
But as Zhu Yuxing said, the story is not the core of this movie, the easter eggs are.
"Then tell me, what do you want me to do for you?"
"You can develop together with Metal Gear Solid and several other works. Don't worry, our Unreal Engine team and special effects production team will work closely with you. My latest version of the AI version of Unreal Engine is also available for you to use.
.”
Bamboo Planet depicts a future utopian cyberpunk-like world for Tukarev.
There are Easter eggs in almost every minute and every second.
Under the cutting-edge technology, ordinary people can still only survive hard, eating junk food and living a bad life.
Zhu Yuxing also plans to use this movie to reveal a little more about the world view related to Cyberpunk 2077.
Later, he even bought a Blu-ray disc and rewatched it many times but it was not enough.
It’s hard to say about other Zhu Yuxing, but just because Zhu Yuxing had watched Ready Player One in his previous life, he listed this movie as his number one movie of the year.
"Will anyone buy this kind of movie? It always feels like a bit of a hodgepodge. I'm afraid it will confuse many players. It's possible that the works they like will only appear in the movie for a few seconds, and it is not considered a kind of movie for them.
Insulting?"
Most core video game players like many games, and it is rare that they only like one game but not all the others.
But in Ready Player One, the Easter eggs are the core element of the movie.
However, there is no Kubrick's The Shining in this world, so the story of the second act probably needs some modifications. Takeyusei plans to change it directly into a Resident Evil scene.
But Zhu Youxing insisted, then... give it a try first.
After Zhu Youxing's explanation, Tukarev was stunned for a while.
But who wants to worry about having too many top-level IPs?
"Zhuyou, are you planning to give me all your IP?"
This money is too easy to make.
"Then I'll give it a try, but I'm a little unsure whether a movie like this will really be successful."
The setting of this story is not very novel. The film and television drama culture in this world is quite developed, and there are quite a few cultural works of this type.
Now Tukarev is still a little worried about the 30% share.
"Find me some top-notch actors, and I will use them to make games. Also, find me some top-notch musicians. I have a game that requires relatively high-quality music works."
And this has also become a carnival for gamers and movie and TV drama audiences.
"Oh, by the way, you see, since I am willing to license my IP to you to develop movies and TV series, then maybe you can do something for me."
Anyway, this is just a scene difference and will not have much impact on the main story.
AI Unreal Engine, this is the product that Zhuyouxing is most concerned about recently. This is a tool that can greatly improve efficiency. If used properly, it can surpass most competitors.
"What you said makes sense, but I think players should be more excited than disappointed."
This took away part of the box office revenue, and Zhuyouxing only paid for some IP licensing.
At that time, it will be explained that the story of Ready Player One takes place in another city, while Cyberpunk 2077 takes place in Night City.
If he had so many top IPs, he would have nothing to worry about for the rest of his life, but now that he is using IPs like this, he feels that it is a waste of resources.
At that time, he was very keen on finding all kinds of Easter eggs that he had not discovered over and over again.
Even directly integrating the story background of Ready Player One into Cyberpunk 2077 is not inconsistent.
Tukarev had also heard about this thing and roughly knew that it seemed to be very powerful, so he didn't say anything more.
Is this really just about licensing the work?
It's no big deal to take another gamble this time.
This more than 100-minute movie contains hundreds of Easter eggs.
It hurts a little bit.
Nowadays, some celebrities in the film and television circles have begun to spread the news that working on video games can sometimes make more money than making movies.
Because video games are indeed the industry with the highest profit margins right now.
As a result, the gaming industry is very generous with money.
Help some friends by giving them some game-related work, and they should be happy with it.