Today's livestream content revolves around the various publishers' conferences at Gamescom. The broadcasting rights had already been secured from the platform, so there was no need to worry about any safety issues regarding the stream.
Although this was the first livestream, Ichin's account had been verified long ago. As a developer with a game selling in the hundreds of thousands, obtaining the qualification to rebroadcast the event wasn't an issue at all.
Since the announcement had been made in advance, quite a few people entered the stream as soon as it went live.
Five minutes into the black screen, with nothing but darkness on the camera feed, the chat began flooding with messages.
"Where's the screen? Has it started yet?"
"Where's the host? Where's the camera? Come out and greet us!"
"Where's the cute streamer girl? I wanna see a cute girl!"
"What's the new game? Will it be revealed today?"
Thankfully, some people were actually asking about the studio's new game, which improved Ichin's mood significantly.
After confirming that the microphone was on, Ichin didn't rush to turn on the camera. Instead, he first captured the online livestream feed of Gamescom and then spoke:
"Hey everyone, welcome to today's stream. I'll turn on the camera later. Right now, I'm the only one here. The rest of the studio is still out having dinner and haven't returned yet."
Despite his explanation, the number of viewers kept increasing. The chat was filled with people urging him to turn on the camera, with some even sending Super Chats (SC) specifically requesting it.
"Hmmm~~~"
Ichin hesitated for a moment, but upon seeing a Super Chat worth 500 yuan pinned at the top, he finally gave in.
"Wow, you guys are really enthusiastic. Alright, I'll turn on the camera… but I'm just a guy. What's so interesting about that? Aren't you more interested in watching the game announcements?"
"A guy? Even better!"
"Come on, let me see!"
"A male-dominated chatroom? That's normal, isn't it?"
"Tsk tsk tsk, you people are really something else," Ichin clicked his tongue in mock disapproval but eventually turned on the camera, pointing it at himself.
Glancing at his second monitor, he nodded in satisfaction. "Hmm, not bad, looks pretty clear. Money well spent."
As soon as his face appeared, the chat exploded.
"Who are you?"
"WTF, this guy is actually handsome?!"
"Wait, why isn't he bald?"
Seeing the word "bald" pop up, Ichin's expression stiffened.
"Hey, that's just uncalled for. Did I ever say I was bald? I'm still young, and my hair is perfectly fine! Just because I'm a programmer doesn't mean I have to be bald, okay? Stop spreading misinformation!"
He sighed dramatically.
"I was actually planning to do a giveaway before the event starts—some Steam and Nintendo Switch keys for Slay the Spire—but with the way you guys are acting~~~"
Though this was his first time livestreaming, Ichin had watched plenty of streams before. He also had a pretty good understanding of the chaotic and hilarious nature of online audiences.
As expected, the moment Ichin mentioned a giveaway, the chat instantly changed its tone, suddenly becoming righteous and serious.
"I'm not here for the giveaway, I just can't stand people calling the streamer bald."
"Exactly! The giveaway is just a bonus. We're only trying to maintain a positive atmosphere in the stream!"
Seeing how easily the audience switched sides, Ichin couldn't help but chuckle as he quickly set up the giveaway.
"Hmm, let me check… Looks like I need to submit a request first? Should be simple enough. Alright, I'll set it up so that just following the stream is enough to enter. I won't make you guys send gifts or anything. This is just a rare stream—I'm usually too busy developing games to do this often. Okay, done. First round: 20 Steam keys for Slay the Spire."
Even though Ichin specifically said there was no need for gifts, people still started sending them after the giveaway was announced. Some viewers clearly had money to spare.
As the giveaway went live, the stream's popularity skyrocketed, breaking past 100,000 viewers in no time. Considering that Ichin had never streamed before, this was an impressive number—especially given that plenty of other streamers were also covering Gamescom tonight.
Since the giveaway results would take a while, Ichin didn't just sit around. While waiting for the conference to start, he spoke up:
"I haven't properly introduced myself to everyone yet, have I? Guess I should do that first. My name is Ichin Chowā, founder and owner of this studio. The studio's name comes from the initials of my name—simple and straightforward. Right now, I'm studying in Japan, and most of my team members were recruited from Eagle Jump. They're all highly skilled developers. I originally developed Slay the Spire on my own, but the later versions were handled by my team under my supervision."
"We don't care about the CEO! Where's the cute girl?!"
"Yeah, where's the girl?"
"I wanna see a cute girl!"
Ichin twitched at the flood of comments but forced himself to stay calm. "The others are out eating. They should be back soon. The event hasn't even started yet—what's the rush?"
Just as he finished speaking, the studio's front door swung open.
"We're back!!!"
Ichin turned to look and saw Kō Yagami entering excitedly, holding a cup of bubble tea. After switching into indoor slippers, she ran in with a bright smile.
"Ichin-kun, has the conference started yet?"
Just as she was about to step into the camera's view, Ichin quickly raised a hand to stop her, smiling as he said, "Kō-san, I'm live right now. You sure you want to be on camera?"
"Eh?"
Kō froze, glancing at the microphone and camera in front of Ichin before exclaiming in surprise, "Wait, you're actually streaming? I thought you were just joking!"
"No kidding. Why would I lie about something like this?" Ichin rolled his eyes before patting the empty seat beside him. "If you want to join, there's a free spot here. Or, if you guys move some chairs over, we can fit four or five people in the frame."
Kō immediately shook her head. "No, no, I'll pass! You guys have fun. I'll just watch from the side."
Even though their conversation was in Japanese, there were quite a few bilingual viewers in the chat. Some even started translating their exchange in real time via chat messages.
Though Kō hadn't shown her face, her voice made it clear she was a girl. Plus, the way Ichin addressed her led many viewers to guess her identity.
Glancing at the chat, Ichin smirked. "Kō-san, looks like everyone already knows who you are. You're quite famous, huh?"
"Eh? No way, that's impossible!"
Kō hurried over to check the screen, only to find that the chat was filled with Chinese comments. While she could recognize the characters, reading entire messages proved to be a challenge.
And just like that, as she leaned in to look at the screen, everyone in the chat got a full view of her.
The conference hadn't even started yet, but it was clear—this was already a stream worth watching.
...
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