Chapter 196 - – The Game’s Designers Are Madmen!
Problems would always follow those living to the fullest in this world. For example, last night's secret small drama before the gathering, which was only known by five people, including two who caused it, was a problem.
However, problems could be divided into small, manageable, and big. Reaching Tier 2 in Midnight Heist was Max's immediate problem that he needed to solve. He only had 6 days left until the tournament, and he needed to win 5 more games without losing a single one.
Not only him, but apparently his friend faced a rather big problem.
"Please! Join my team! Two of my Roach Planet teammates suddenly moved to our rival team. We need two more people to fill their spot!"
And he brought the problem to him, asking for help. It was still early in the morning, just right after the sun had risen. However, the fact that Flexy contacted him so early in the morning showed how serious and considerate he was just asking for help. His friend knew that he was usually only free at this time.
"Are you sure you're not asking the wrong person? I never played FPS before, not to mention an annihilation slash defensive game like Roach Planet."
Roach Planet was an FPS game that focused on annihilating mutated cockroaches on a specific map. And in one map, there were more than 40 players, divided into 10 teams with 4 players in each. All those teams could sabotage the others.
In short, it was a battle-royale game focused on defending one's base. It was similar to V-Shelter Survival but with less looting and more fighting. There was no weapon upgrade, but one could create a bulletproof plate from a cockroach's shell.
The team with highest annihilation point and survival point combined, which could be gained from killing mutated cockroaches and defending the base, would win the game.
Max had never played this type of game before, and he didn't think he would play it, considering how disgusting cockroaches were.
'Besides, I am also busy with Midnight Heist and Mercenary Quest for my livestream.'
"Yeah, I am sure."
Flexy exclaimed. His face, reflected on the screen, looked desperate.
"The opponents are pro gamers. I don't need to win, but at least I want to struggle to win. Among people I know, you're the best one, buddy. Can you help me this time? I know it's a hard request because you have a Midnight Heist tournament. But consider it, please.
Naturally, there is a pay in it."
"Hmm…"
Even after hearing that he would be paid, Max was still a bit hesitant. He wanted to help Flexy, but he also had one important problem that he hadn't told anyone yet.
'That monster is too scary… Why Roach Planet? Why? Can't they just make Cat Planet or Dog Planet? Those games would do better than Roach Planet.' He shouted in his mind. 'The way they looked at me from dirty ventilation when I was bound in that chair still haunted me.'
Just by hearing the game's name, Max had an aversion not to playing it. Heck, he even avoided all videos related to Roach Planet.
But then, he still owed Flexy quite a bit for his repeated kindness. So, he wouldn't outright refuse him. He would check Roach Planet's video first to judge whether he could handle it or not.
"Let me think about it first. This is just too sudden. I only woke up a few minutes ago, so give me time to process it."
"Thanks, buddy. That reply put my mind at ease." Flexy laughed merrily. "I will look forward to your reply. In the meantime, I will contact StoneSword and beg for his help."
'Indeed, Flexy needed two people, not one. StoneSword sounded like a good choice to be invited to. Not only does he have a high SR, but he is also a skilled player.' Max thought.
"Alright. I will send you a reply soon."
After that, the video call ended, and Max heaved a sigh.
"What should I do?" He asked himself, leaning against the couch in his living room.
It put a little bit of a burden on his mind. Flexy always helped him immediately whenever he needed help. And now, that person himself was the one in trouble and asked for his help. Refusing it because he didn't like cockroaches was something he couldn't do.
'For now, let's watch the Roach Planet video. Flexy must've uploaded some already.'
As long as the cockroaches in the game weren't a literal one that crawled and could use an ultimate to fly in the sky, he would be fine. Even V-Shelter Survival's zombies and Infecteds weren't scary to him.
Opening Punchtube, he found Flexy's channel. Just as he had expected, that guy had uploaded a few videos about Roach Planet titled 'Training for Competition!'
The thumbnail of the video was his large face, with three other people that Max didn't recognize wearing some kind of space suit. Finding the first ever video, Max clicked on it and watched.
"People!"
Flexy's face suddenly appeared and filled the screen. He had a friendly smile.
"How are you doing? Today, we will annihilate roaches!" The orange-haired streamer exclaimed proudly, having his hands on his hip.
The camera showed that he was surrounded by three other people. The ground he stood on was gray, and the sky was dark. In the distance, one could see a large blue planet glowing slightly with the sun hovering on the right.
Just from the first look, Max realized that the game's setting was on the moon!
'Space cockroach.' Max winced just by thinking about it.
How scary were they in space if they were already so scary on the ground? They would have an infinite ultimate skill, fly!
'No no no, let's focus on the video.'
Roach Planet was in short a pretty balanced game. Flexy and the other three were given starter equipment, which they could further upgrade in the base after killing cockroaches.
After the initial 3 minutes of grace time to get themselves in position ended, they arrived.
"It's at the 6 o'clock direction! The first raid has started!"
Someone from the south area warned, and everyone but one person ran toward him. They climbed the stairs and pointed their energy gun toward the distance.
A second later, their appearance was clear. Hundreds… Or maybe thousands of black dots crawled to the base. They weren't just 2 to 5cm big. No… They were in meters. Their bodies were covered in shiny exoskeleton, and their eight legs could allow them to crawl more than 20 KM/H.
"This is madness!" Max shouted loudly when he saw their figures. "The game's designer is so nasty! Why would they create such a game? Madman. They are madmen."
Even so, Max still watched. Surprisingly, he had no problem with what he saw. Was it because the cockroaches were big? They weren't as scary as when they were small.
Was it because he saw them through the screen? Or was it because of their size? He didn't know. At least he could rest assured that they wouldn't be able to crawl inside his ears. That was a saving grace.