Honkai Impact: I, The Herrscher of Ice, Am Loved By Players-Chapter 193: Otto’s Animated Short Goes Live; Ana’s Little Plan

Chapter 193 - 193: Otto's Animated Short Goes Live; Ana's Little Plan

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In the real world, within Brother Cake's live stream.

The game's storyline did not include further developments about Ana's actions, but that didn't hinder Captains from witnessing Otto's final Chapter.

As for Otto Apocalypse's conclusion, all viewers in the live stream expressed their congratulations and paid their final respects to him.

[Goodbye, great inventor.]

[Highest regards to former Bishop Otto Apocalypse!]

Similar bullet comments continuously flooded the chat, marking one of the most unified moments in recent memory on Brother Cake's stream. Of course, this wouldn't be the last such instance.

Given the quality and level of this animation, it was highly likely that future updates would feature more character-focused shorts. This put pressure squarely on Theresa's side.

Who among them still lacked a dedicated theme song since the game's launch, let alone a personal short film? The Theresa fans were heartbroken, though they had already achieved what other fandoms couldn't manage.

Of course, if viewed from another perspective, Ana fans have also achieved what other character supporters couldn't. Unfortunately, the one responsible was fundamentally a follower of Zhurong and an Ana detractor.

Nevertheless, it could still be argued that Ana fans accomplished something unique, as initially—even when Ana was still "him"—they were among her own devotees.

"However, bringing so much joy to these people seems somewhat out of character for me."

In front of the screen, Ana observed the bullet comments flooding the live stream, murmuring softly to herself. But then...

The source of this c𝐨ntent is freёnovelkiss.com.

She recalled the game titled "Kallen's Fantasy." What was its purpose? Initially, it was merely Ana's desire to see things through completely, creating more possibilities for this world line while ensuring Kallen's survival.

Yet, the ending where Kallen dies once again proved undeniably intriguing.

This outcome occurred without Ana's interference and should satisfy the Captains' expectations.

"Don't they love a tragic twist? Hehehe—"

Ana chuckled softly, her voice unusually eerie, sending chills down one's spine. "Oh dear, it's not like I'm some devil," she murmured.

The girl then took out her phone and dialed a number.

In this world, due to the System, Ana possessed a prominent and wealthy background, along with shares in MiHoYo. Consequently, making minor adjustments within Honkai Impact 3 was no insurmountable task for her.

After all, as a major shareholder, in reality, MiHoYo, in a sense, precisely guards against shareholders like Ana, opting to buy back shares and avoiding going public.

Of course, Ana wasn't malicious; she had no intention of disrupting the game either. She merely wanted to utilize her resources to introduce a small event.

However, even if this small event were to be implemented, it could only happen in the next update. But that works perfectly fine, since typically, new animated shorts are released alongside the upcoming version... Hehehehe...

"I hope... you'll still be able to enjoy playing the game when the time comes."

Taking one last glance at the lively bullet comments in her stream, Ana closed it down. Unbeknownst to Brother Cake's chatroom audience, a notorious account known for stirring controversies and causing disputes silently exited the live stream.

Even if someone had noticed, they wouldn't have cared, as nobody knew the true significance behind this account.

For the Present World, half a game update cycle—no, even just one full cycle—is considered quite lengthy, naturally speaking from the perspective of an idle person.

However, for Ana, it felt like merely the blink of an eye.

Although her Divine Self has not fully emerged yet, Ana's perception of time is already aligning with that of the Divine Self, essentially embracing the new era prematurely.

As for the Honkai World... there isn't much to say either.

This period marked a rare moment of tranquility for the three major organizations. Of course, it wasn't truly peaceful, as unnoticed in a corner, the Herrscher of Corruption had been born.

It was the outcome orchestrated by the Will of Honkai or Prometheus, and Ana chose not to interfere.

Although Ana now possesses the ability to nip any potential issues in the bud, her Divine Self's metamorphosis requires further nourishment.

By following the original trajectory, she can once again harness the otherwise useless System's capabilities.

This is also one reason why Ana remains consistently engaged with the Present World. By challenging players' defenses, it doesn't lead them to despise the game more; instead, it often sparks greater affection among them. However, if pushed too far, negative consequences may arise, such as alienating casual fans and diminishing goodwill.

The pitfalls can be observed from MiHoYo's past experiences, where popularity acts like a double-edged sword. While it attracts numerous players, it also breeds toxic fanbases like "MiHyo Defenders," "Crystal Frags," and even "Immortal Armies."

In simpler terms, just as a vast forest harbors diverse creatures, so does increased exposure attract all sorts of individuals.

Moreover, as Ana's power grows, she no longer needs to strictly rely on player sentiment towards her character specifically. Any emotional response, whether positive or negative, becomes useful for her purposes through the modified System.

Moreover, even emotions generated by players due to other characters within the game could be harnessed through her modified System for her own use.

As for the System itself, with the emergence of Divine Self, Ana no longer found it as mysterious or insurmountable.

The only issue was that before her Divine Self fully blossomed like a butterfly from its cocoon, she lacked the capability to create such a System herself. In essence, this System must have been crafted by a Transcender.

Perhaps, from the perspective of that Transcender, they foresaw Ana's future and thus created the System, leading to her current existence.

What slightly surprised Ana was that if this were the case, she would likely bear some form of causal entanglement towards the Transcender.

However, Ana found absolutely no such ties on herself. She neither needed to reciprocate nor had any means to trace back to the Transcender. Ultimately, she attributed this absence to the unique nature of the System.

Nevertheless, Ana wasn't in a rush. As her power continued to grow, sooner or later, she would unravel the true secrets behind the System. For now, her focus remained on maximizing its benefits.

In the Present World, for its players, the arrival of a new game version wasn't eagerly anticipated; if anything, they hoped it would be delayed. The reason being—new versions introduced fresh characters.

Not only were these new characters expensive to obtain, but also older characters often provided better value for investment.

Ideally, everyone would want to acquire the latest characters, fully upgrade their Stigmata and dedicated weapons, but doing so consumed vast amounts of crystals—a resource that casual players had to carefully plan around.

This was one key difference between Honkai Impact 3 and MiHoYo's other wildly popular games at the time.

In Honkai Impact 3's Abyss mode, to reach higher tiers and earn more crystal rewards, players needed specific character setups.

Only with superior configurations could one secure additional crystals, enabling them to draw new characters for further progression in the Abyss. This created a vicious cycle for casual players.

Of course, this self-perpetuating cycle partly stemmed from player competition, as internal rivalry increased the pressure.

Overall, due to these reasons, players generally did not wish for the swift arrival of new versions.

However, established elements cannot be altered simply due to player demands. It's akin to how, over many years, the amount of crystals given by previews remained unchanged despite rising costs elsewhere.

As for the pacing and controversies... one could say they have never ceased.

But this isn't necessarily a bad thing, not because controversies generate traffic, but rather because—never attempt to empathize with game developers; their primary goal should always be, and ought to remain, monetization through microtransactions.

For now, the new version preview had not yet arrived. Instead, what premiered first was Otto's animated short film—"Thus Spoke Apocalypse."

In Brother Cake's live stream,

the chatroom was already bustling with viewers, but this wasn't due to any impressive gameplay from the streamer. Rather, it was anticipation for the latest animated short titled "Thus Spoke Apocalypse."

Of course, if someone wanted to watch the short film, they could directly search for it on a video-sharing platform without needing to join the live stream. So, why did people flock to the stream instead?

Naturally, it was for the shared atmosphere.

People need outlets for their emotions, and expressing them individually versus collectively can be vastly different experiences. The responses and resonance from others also add to the enjoyment.

This is why readers often appreciate reading comment threads, and viewers enjoy seeing various remarks while watching videos—it becomes part of the overall experience.

Currently, the stream had just changed its title, but even before starting the video, the chat was already flooded with messages from eager viewers.

Naturally, the content of these comments was predominantly optimistic and enthusiastic.

Soon, Brother Cake clicked to play the animation.

As the video progressed, the number of bullet comments decreased slightly, yet those that remained were high-quality. Additionally, many seized the opportunity to multitask—posting bullet comments on the original video while keeping the live stream open, seeking this form of engagement.

Typically, streamers with Brother Cake's following have dedicated fans who create highlight clips, so it wasn't surprising that some wanted to make their mark online, even if they couldn't do so in person.

Of course, such individual habits aren't worth dwelling on; people differ greatly from one another.

Despite the video's plot aligning with the game's ending, Brother Cake's live stream maintained similar popularity as before, if not even more viewers this time.

The short film was brief, lasting only nine minutes, but upon its conclusion, everyone felt a sense of wanting more.

In response to this sentiment, many viewers requested Brother Cake to replay the video.

However, this time, he chose to decline.

"Brothers, if you want to remember the bishop, please watch the short film directly."

Smiling, Brother Cake refreshed the video page and nodded at the increasing view count, uncertain how high it might go this time.

Securing the top spot on the platform's charts seemed like a given.

"This update also includes a small event; let me check it out first, guys."

As Brother Cake spoke, he opened Honkai Impact 3. While waiting for the game to load, unusual messages appeared in the bullet comments:

[Brother Cake, run fast! There's danger ahead!]

[Wahh, Lord Bishop's sacrifice...]

[This is outrageous, how could they do this...]

"..."

Naturally, Brother Cake saw the bullet comments, but he couldn't let them sway him; after all, it didn't make sense to react based on such remarks.

Moreover, if numerous comments echoed this sentiment, wouldn't it enhance the show's entertainment value? With such free material handed to him, who would choose to ignore it?

"Haha, don't worry, let me see what's going on." Smiling, Brother Cake clicked open the latest event. In pursuit of maximizing viewer engagement, he skipped even his daily tasks and immediately entered the new event.

To put it simply, this was a small event tailored specifically for Otto. Typically, when introducing new characters, there might be accompanying events.

At first glance, the event seemed harmless, titled "A World Without You."

Generally speaking, these mini-events aren't challenging and require no real concern. However, due to the bullet comments' warnings, Brother Cake felt a slight anticipation.

What? Being cautious and apprehensive?

Come on, how could a game so bright and uplifting warrant caution or fear?

With unwavering confidence, Brother Cake opened one of the event endings, only to encounter—sudden shock.