Chapter 5: The Surprisingly Positive Review
Days turned into weeks, and Ace anxiously awaited the publication of Chloe's article. He checked the gaming website religiously, refreshing the page every few minutes, his stomach churning with a mixture of hope and dread.
He knew Chloe was a fair journalist, but he couldn't shake the feeling that she was still skeptical about his success. He worried that she would paint him as a clueless amateur who had simply stumbled upon a fluke hit.
Finally, the article was published. Ace took a deep breath and clicked on the link, bracing himself for the worst.
The headline read: "Potato Simulator 2024: A Triumph of Absurdity? One Developer's Accidental Journey to Gaming Stardom."
Ace scrolled down, his eyes scanning the text, searching for any signs of criticism or negativity. To his surprise, the article was overwhelmingly positive.
Chloe praised "Potato Simulator 2024" for its unique gameplay, its quirky humor, and its surprisingly addictive quality. She acknowledged that the game was objectively terrible, but she argued that its very awfulness was what made it so appealing.
She described Ace as an "unconventional visionary" and a "maverick of the gaming industry." She celebrated his willingness to break the rules and his refusal to take himself too seriously.
"Ace Carter is not your typical game developer," Chloe wrote. "He's a bit of a mess, he's endearingly awkward, and he clearly has no idea what he's doing. But he's also incredibly passionate, relentlessly creative, and surprisingly insightful."
She concluded the article by suggesting that "Potato Simulator 2024" was a sign of things to come. "In a world of increasingly complex and sophisticated games, perhaps the future of gaming lies in embracing simplicity, absurdity, and the occasional potato," she wrote.
Ace stared at the screen, dumbfounded. He couldn't believe what he was reading. Chloe had actually written a glowing review of his terrible game.
He checked his company's bank account. The article had caused another surge in sales.
"This is insane!" Ace exclaimed, throwing his hands up in the air. "I'm trying to fail here! Why is the universe so determined to make me succeed?"
He knew he couldn't let this success go to his head. He needed to double down on his efforts to sabotage his own company. He needed to find new and innovative ways to lose money.
He brainstormed ideas with his employees, encouraging them to come up with the most ridiculous and wasteful projects they could imagine.
Brenda suggested hosting a "Potato Cosplay Contest," offering a grand prize of a lifetime supply of potatoes. Gary proposed developing a virtual reality version of "Potato Simulator 2024," complete with a vibrating potato controller. And Tiffany volunteered to redesign the game's logo, replacing the pixelated potato with a photorealistic image of a rotting potato.
Ace approved all of their suggestions without hesitation. He was determined to turn Potato Studios into a laughingstock, a monument to incompetence and excess.
But as he watched his employees work on their ridiculous projects, he couldn't help but feel a sense of pride. They were all so enthusiastic, so dedicated, and so genuinely excited about their work.
He realized that he had accidentally created a positive and supportive work environment, even though he was actively trying to fail.
"Maybe I'm not such a bad boss after all," Ace thought.
He quickly dismissed the thought. He couldn't afford to become sentimental. He had a mission to accomplish, a goal to achieve. He needed to lose money, and he needed to lose it fast.