"...I don't understand."
"Why would anyone be obsessed with herding cows? And they're cyber cows at that, played for over a hundred hours; isn't he sick of it?"
Zhang Xiaojun, who routinely maintains the game community at Tianba Game Studio, rolled her eyes wildly as she looked at the post with the most replies on the forum.
"What's up?"
Hearing her complaint, Chen Ba got up and walked over to ask, "What happened?"
"Chen, take a look for yourself."
Pointing at the computer screen, Zhang Xiaojun said helplessly, "There's a player named 'Cowherding Sect Leader' who posted in the community about his cowherding insights and even released a dedicated tutorial."
Is there even a tutorial for this?
Chen Ba was greatly shocked and momentarily doubted the authenticity of his identity as a game developer.
This is absurd!
Even he, the game creator, didn't know there were so many tricks to cowherding. Is this guy just rambling?
[Tribute to Every Cowherder]
The title was quite something, but the content was even more explosive.
According to this player, nicknamed 'Cowherding Sect Leader,' he initially learned about the game Cold Window Study Simulator through Qian Duoduo's video.
The bug in the video, where after three years of cowherding, there's a sudden revelation leading to the top score in the entrance exam, left him bewildered.
So he bought the game, intending to personally experience three years of cowherding, read no books, but still manage to get into his dream high school, feeling so surreal.
In the process, he gradually became healed by the game.
Though the game's graphics were rough and abstract, during cowherding, one could not only see scenery but also enjoy melodic chord sounds, feeling the harmony between man and nature.
One hour, two hours...
As the game time increased, he suddenly understood!
The main character leading Old Huang the cow, leisurely strolling alone on the hillside, made his anxious heart gradually calm and enter a state of so-called "sage time."
What exams? What school?
When all these thoughts were pushed out of his mind, and he thought only of this land, only of the cow, he finally found where his soul belonged.
Then, he founded the so-called "Cowherding Sect" to tell others through his own experience, what relentless studying? What game mechanics?
Don't bother with any of those.
Just regard this game as a tool to cultivate one's mind and heal the soul.
"Cowherding is not merely cowherding, but a practice; what we herd is not cows, but our own hearts!"
"Come, join the Cowherding Sect!"
"From now on, break free from the shackles of game mechanics, step into the gates of practice, let the exhausted soul find redemption..."
Banging cyber wood fish, herding cyber cow, hinting at a bit of brain trouble.
The tutorial actually exists.
But this tutorial, it really has nothing to do with the game, saying it's the "core doctrine of the Cowherding Sect" isn't too much.
Some instructions like empty your mind while cowherding, choose a comfortable sitting or lying position, turn up the headphone or speaker volume, close your eyes to feel the non-existent Old Huang cow, then try to lead it away...
It's practically toxic!
The most outrageous part is that beneath this post, there are actually hundreds of players expressing belief and actively signing up for the sect.
Some even proposed organizing offline gatherings, everyone leading a cow, striving for each sect member to have cows to herd and grass to cut...
Still herding cows? Still herding cows!
The more Chen Ba looked, the more speechless he became, immediately using admin privileges to highlight and pin this "preaching post."
After Tianba Game was established, Chen Ba also built an official player community, with a website link embedded in Cold Window Study Simulator, akin to a forum.
Benefiting from Cold Window Study Simulator's popularity, the community had quite a few registered users, and many people posted daily discussing game content.
However, quality content posts rarely emerged in the community; most are meaningless water posts.
It's rare to see an experienced player sharing insights, no matter how absurd the Cowherding Sect he started is, at least from a content perspective, this post deserved to be pinned and highlighted.
Of course!
Chen Ba didn't quite endorse the Cowherding Sect Leader.
He spent effort designing so much game content, and this guy didn't play any of it, spending all his hundreds of hours of game time herding cows.
Anyone normal probably couldn't understand his peculiar ideas.
Finding insights and enlightenment from cowherding?
Just saying, isn't there a possibility the game is called Cold Window Study Simulator rather than Cow Herding Simulator?
"At this rate, it will truly become Cow Herding Simulator." Chen Ba sighed.
When creating the game, he never thought that the storylines, mechanisms, and numerical challenges he painstakingly devised would all pale in comparison to a cowherding event...
Why is it like this?
Chen Ba analyzed and thought, on one hand, it's because the cowherding event has a bug, attracting many players who are interested in it.
On the other hand, things like cowherding, cutting pig grass, picking corn... these are routine for rural kids, but quite novel for many, especially those grown up in the city.
"And there's another reason..."
Lu Jing, who had unknowingly arrived behind Chen Ba, smiled and said, "The events added in the game were just to highlight the hardships of relentless studying, but they also evoke childhood memories for many."
"Makes sense." Chen Ba nodded.
Considering these reasons, that's why players can't stop thinking about cowherding, even playing it into "Cow Herding Simulator."
You could only say Cold Window Study Simulator is a bit unfair.
Despite the gameplay being so strong and the storyline written so inspirational and touching, with all other aspects well executed except the graphics. Yet, after the game caught fire, the players' first impression was actually Cow Herding Simulator...
Success due to a bug, failure due to a bug!
Without that cowherding bug, Cold Window Study Simulator wouldn't have exploded in popularity, reaching such high download numbers.
But due to the cowherding bug, many players have overlooked the playability and completeness of the game itself.
"Cow Herding Simulator!"
This nickname online was even more popular and famous than the real name "Cold Window Study Simulator," known by more people.
When you say Cold Window Study Simulator, perhaps few players remember, but if you say Cow Herding Simulator, others would definitely respond: I know that one, it's quite fun...
Chen Ba was almost at his breaking point.
Could everyone please stop herding cows? Gentlemen, may you follow the main storyline, check the game plot, and experience the authentic gameplay?
Among players with over 50 hours of game time, eight out of ten are cowherding folks, going through the second and third rounds all herding cows, not sure where they find the patience.
Repeating the same event endlessly, and it's a cowherding event which is extremely boring, aren't they sick of it?