The job postings went live, and the floodgates opened. It was early May, a prime time for job hunting, and the meteoric rise of Dark Forest acted as a powerful magnet. In just three days, Leo's inbox was overflowing with hundreds of resumes. He had to reluctantly shelve the final chapter of his game to wade through the digital deluge.
The screening process was a sobering, and at times comical, look into the state of the job market. He interviewed a 28-year-old modeler whose portfolio was a dazzling collection of intricate characters, but who fell apart during a simple practical test, unable to sketch a basic cube in the correct perspective. He spoke with a 23-year-old who proudly claimed three years of work experience, only to admit under questioning that one of those years was a part-time customer service gig during university. Another candidate, oozing arrogance, demanded a massive salary and then casually mentioned he'd left his last three jobs after explosive arguments with his supervisors.
Leo's criteria were simple. He needed skill, absolutely. But he also needed professionals—people who were passionate, stable, and could work as part of a team without drama. He was building a company, not a reality TV show.
After a week of sifting, interviewing, and politely declining, he had his team. His first four employees.
Owen, the 3D Modeler. A quiet, serious man of 28 with six years of experience. His portfolio was a testament to his versatility, shifting from photorealistic product models from his early e-commerce days to the fantastical, expressive game characters he'd focused on for the last four years. He had a craftsman's eye and a professional's demeanor.
Nina Xia, the Scene Designer. Young, at 24, but with a palpable hunger to prove herself. She'd spent her first two years out of university at a mobile game company. Her work was good, but Leo could see the raw talent straining against the limitations of the platform. She was a diamond in the rough.
Alex Xu, the Animator. A seasoned veteran of 29. He specialized in motion capture, and his resume was a who's who of well-known domestic RPGs. He had a calm confidence that came from years of experience, and he spoke about character rigging and facial expressions with an artist's passion.
And Helen Gable, the Accountant. At 39, she was the most experienced of them all, a sharp, no-nonsense professional who could navigate the labyrinthine world of corporate finance in her sleep.
With his founding team in place, Leo immediately took down the job postings. He had three weeks left to deliver on his one-month promise. There wasn't a second to waste.
He called his three new creative hires into the small, freshly painted conference room. The air was thick with the awkward, hopeful energy of a first day. Leo stood at the head of the table, his laptop connected to a projector, the first slide of his presentation glowing on the wall.
"First of all, welcome to Only Game," he began, his voice calm and steady. "We have a tight deadline and an ambitious project, so let's dive right in." He clicked to the next slide, a detailed concept image of a dark, grimy room. "This is our entire world for the next three weeks. It's a small, self-contained black room. You can think of it as being roughly the size of this conference room. Nina, all the set dressing and environmental details you'll need are detailed in the concept doc. Can you work with this?"
Nina, a quiet young woman with long, dark hair and round, attentive eyes, had been diligently taking notes. She started slightly when he said her name, then nodded quickly. "Yes, Mr. Sterling. The PPT is extremely clear. I can do this. I'll do my best to match it perfectly."
"Good." Leo nodded and clicked again. The screen now showed detailed, multi-angle renders of various props: a grimy deck of cards, a rusty pair of pliers, an antique electroshock device. "Owen, your workload is going to be the heaviest. This is a VR title, so every object the player can touch needs to be modeled with extreme detail. The player character will only be a pair of hands, but everything else… it all needs to be real enough to touch."
Owen, who had been listening with a serious, focused expression, simply nodded. At his age, he was long past the illusions of a glamorous game dev life. He knew what a crunch felt like. As he looked at the sheer volume of assets on the screen, he felt a familiar sense of pressure, but also a deep, professional respect. His new boss, a man four years his junior, had single-handedly created a design document over a hundred pages long, detailing everything from character motivations to the precise texture of a dirty fingernail. This is the guy who made Dark Forest, he thought. One man is an entire team.
"Don't worry, Mr. Sterling," Owen said, his voice a low baritone. "The concepts are all here. I'll get it done."
"I know you will. Thank you." Leo moved to the final section, showing animated storyboards of character movements. "Alex, we've purchased a top-tier motion capture system. We have a room set aside for shoots. But for now, the team is just… us. When it's time to capture movements, I'll need everyone to pitch in as actors. You'll be directing." He looked at Alex. "The game only has three characters, and the movements are all small and contained. No big action sequences."
Alex Xu, leaning back in his chair, studied the screen. "I understand, Mr. Sterling. But the character Lucas, on the PPT here, he shows his face. Are we planning on doing a facial capture session, or making a mask?"
Leo smiled. It was the question of a true professional. In the original game, Lucas Baker was a sneering, punchable sadist. But the system hadn't provided the face model assets. Hiring a face model actor and going through that process would take weeks they didn't have.
"We're putting a mask on him," Leo said decisively. "The players in this world have no idea who Lucas Baker is. We don't have time to build up his backstory. Instead of forcing players to accept some random guy as the villain, we'll make him a mystery. A masked killer is simpler, more direct, and frankly, more terrifying. I'll get you a design draft for the mask by end of day, Owen."
Both Owen and Alex nodded in understanding. It was a smart, pragmatic solution to a production bottleneck.
Leo clicked to the final slide, a black screen with the company logo. He turned to face his new team.
"Okay. The company has just been born. We're going to be immature in a lot of ways, and I hope you can all bear with me as we find our footing." He paused, letting his gaze meet each of theirs. "I'm not going to feed you corporate motivational garbage or draw you pictures of a fantasy future. Your salary, your commissions, your benefits—they are all exactly as stated in your contracts. But if you want to earn more, the opportunity is there. This is a meritocracy. Your success will be determined by your ability."
"So, here's the deal. You do your work, I pay you. We all work together to make this VR project a success."
He took a breath. "I know what some of you might be thinking. 'A VR game? Big foreign studios with hundreds of employees and unlimited budgets have failed at this. How can our tiny, brand-new company possibly succeed?'"
He leaned forward, his hands on the table, his eyes burning with a confidence that was utterly convincing. "I'm telling you, right now, that we can. We will. As long as everyone in this room does their job to the best of their ability, as long as we are united in this goal, we will create something incredible."
"When this game is released, and the players are blown away, that sense of accomplishment won't just be mine. It will belong to every single one of us."
He stood up straight, his voice ringing with passion. "So, let's work hard. Let's work together. And let's show the entire market what our small team can do."
He looked at them, a challenging glint in his eye. "Okay!?"
The three of them, caught up in the infectious energy of their young boss, exchanged a quick, determined glance. They all nodded, their expressions serious, their voices a single, unified chorus.
"Okay!"
PLS SUPPORT ME AND THROW POWERSTONES .