novelraw Chapter 140 : Q-tube Membership?
Chapter 140 : Q-tube Membership?
Q-tube Membership?
The Origin of Stylish Action.
As much as its title suggested, *Demon Must Cry* from the console era was immensely popular.
With news that such a game would be returning as a virtual reality experience, many were both excited and apprehensive.
Could the developers deliver a work worthy of that legendary reputation?
If expectations weren't met, disappointment would be great, proportional to their deep affection.
At last, the game was revealed and the first live test stream finished. To everyone's surprise, fans shared an outstandingly unified opinion.
[〈Sir〉 Demerc reborn! 〈Congratulations〉]
[Demerc is invincible! CAP COMPANY is god!]
[Ah, lol, this is true metamorphosis]
[Snowstorm, who made Gunforged, are you watching?]
[I'm in my 40s and feel like I've gone back to my 20s, lol]
[The craziest part is, this is just a test build lol]
Posts sprang up like mushrooms in the Demerk Meta community.
A perfect—no, more than perfect—reproduction.
The consensus was clear: the new VR work didn't tarnish memories of the old console version; if anything, it revived the joy and fun from those days.
And everyone recognized that it wasn't just the game that was outstanding.
[Today's play was truly 'Durante' in the flesh]
[Honestly, if there were no physical prowess, he would've been underrated lol]
[Elden fan should bow 108 times daily toward Godple's house, lol]
[So grateful to be alive in Godple's era]
[Ah, lol, I put in a vacation request just to catch the rest of the stream, lol]
No matter how great a game was, without the right player, it meant nothing.
But Lee Gyeongbok easily had more than enough capability, and just his prologue playthrough moved everyone.
And the desire to play welled up in those who had been captivated.
[Ugh, lol, I found my dad's old console]
[(Photo)
Was reminded immediately after watching today's stream.
I always complained, "Why do you keep this ancient thing?"
Turns out your son was the idiot!
(Photo)
Storage is pristine! You can see the Demerc 5 download version, right?
Ugh, lol, I'm booting it up right now
(Photo)
It runs, right? Super smooth, right?
Ah, lol, I'm off to become Durante too!
(clown emoji)
No~! Don't keep re-releasing!
Just play the console version and that's enough!]
[-Is this what they call being born with a silver joystick?]
[-Wow, lol, I'm so jealous]
[-Crazy, can't believe a console showed up here]
[-What is this, artifact excavation?!]
[-I never liked watching console play videos, but is it different if you play yourself?]
The mood in the community shifted rapidly with these new posts.
[Argh, damn, I have the console, but no Blu-ray]
[Here's proof of the OG Demerc, first version]
[This thing won't turn on—is it dust? Is it okay to open it up?]
[What's happening? Was a time machine invented or something?]
[Suddenly, everything feels like archaeology, lol]
Veteran fans and new arrivals alike started unearthing the consoles their parents had kept, posting so-called "proof shots."
And this trend didn't stay within the community's walls.
[Insane, lol, indie streamers just started streaming Demerc on console]
[I went to the Tri channel thinking Godple was up since Demerc appeared in the category, but lol
Some smurf I'd never seen suddenly pulls out a console and plays Demerc, lol
But, surprisingly, there seemed to be actual demand among Devil fandom, just like right now?
Already over 100 viewers, lol
At this rate, other indie streamers will try it out in no time lol]
[-Insane, lol, what a bait and switch]
[-Oh? If you record a play video and upload it to Q-tube, the Demerc keyword might bring in some traffic]
[-True! As soon as a Purple channel video goes up, people will be searching]
[-Amateur streamers have brains too, lol]
[-Is this viral marketing by the indie clique?]
As the streamer world is highly sensitive to trends, a few quickly jumped to the 'Demerc' keyword and started broadcasting.
But that effect was fleeting.
[-Just checked it out—not great at all]
[-For real, lol, they can't play with a controller]
[-Honestly, do kids nowadays even know how to use a controller?]
[-Crazy, these days... boomers, lol!]
[-But how did Godple do it when controller play is that hard?]
[-That's what I'm saying, lol, the more I watch, the more I realize how insane Godple's skill is]
Attracting viewers and retaining them were two very different tasks.
Even though the game wasn't direct motion control but played with a controller, their level was far below Lee Gyeongbok's.
Thanks to this, community users were newly reminded of just how skilled Lee Gyeongbok was.
Their cravings were left unsatisfied. Night wore on.
[Demerc's Durante for capsule—playable now!]
A title simply impossible to ignore.
[(Photo)
Ugh, lol, that Durante was in Bark mode, lol
Found this while browsing overseas communities, lol. Looks like it was made as soon as they saw the design on a Godple stream?
No question, the ultimate fans are Western fans—they move so fast lol
(Video)
This is a sample video uploaded by the mod creator.
If it looks good, you can download it at the source. To any Devil fandom feeling left out, go grab it, lol]
[-Are you working for a newspaper or something?]
[-For real, lol, that's a professional-level headline]
[-What's even more infuriating is...it's not wrong, lol]
[-Thumbed up as soon as I saw the skin quality]
[-Seriously, lol, they made it well]
Overseas fans were in much the same situation. The content seemed to settle the craving... for a moment.
[-No, this isn't the real Durante!]
[-Damn, lol, got killed clowning against zombies]
[-Where'd the stylish action gooo!]
[-Should've at least included Bullet Time, don't you think?]
[-Legendary: I'm installing a mod at this hour, lol]
[-Is there a Saint Sandra skin?]
[-Ready to meet Honeydra? If not, get ready to get cussed out by Saint Sandra]
[-That actually might be better, lol]
[-Sharp wit for fanservice, lol]
[-Poor Devil fandom...]
The mod didn't receive high marks. It lacked the essential sense of action, only fueling thirst for the real thing.
[Ugh, lol, western fans are making Godple memes now]
[Saw this while reading some overseas Demerc communities after checking out the above mod, lol.
Roughly translated some memes that are popular here, too, lol.
This is Shiba Inu, lol
/Image of crying Shiba Inu/
(Perfect-Durante: Before watching)
"Demon Must Cry? Who plays that old game?"
("/Demerc/? Who even plays ancient games like that?")
/Image of muscular Shiba Inu wearing a red coat/
(Perfect-Durante: After watching)
"That's me! I am Immortal Demon Hunter!"
("That's me! I'm the immortal demon hunter!")
Here's the indigestion remedy meme, lol
/Image of a man sighing with relief/
(My worries)
(What if the quality is disappointing?)
(What if it's controller play only?)
(What if the story sucks?)
/Image of a man with a bright smile/
(Purple)
This is a famous "Take my money" meme, lol
/Comic character glaring with a frown/
(Demerc for capsule?)
/Same character pulling fistful of cash from pocket/
(Just take my money!)
This one's hilarious—they put a Godple stream screenshot as the reflection in the eyes, lol
Seems Demerc is trending hot in North America too, lol]
[-Whoa, lol, meme output is wild]
[-Dang; even Western fans are using prefix memes now, lol]
[-Devil fandom didn't just paraphrase—the meme actually calls it 'Perfect-Durante', lol]
[-It's funny how people everywhere think the same]
[-No, this is specifically about 'perfect', lol]
[-Whoa, it wasn't this fast even during Bark's ending]
[-Different situation, lol. Bark's ending was world-first, but this is also 'exclusive']
[-For real, if memes are getting made, this is global class]
[-Because of the time difference, the North American fanbase will probably get even more fired up]
People felt a sense of pride, knowing Lee Gyeongbok was being recognized overseas.
[-Ah... Can't wait for the next stream]
[-Devil fandom, go to sleep lol—you gotta sleep for tomorrow to come]
[-Yep~ I took the day off~ I'll stay up all night, sleep during the day, and watch the stream in the evening~]
[-Are you a genius?]
Yet despite all that, the yearning for the next stream only grew.
* * *
The next day, early afternoon.
Lee Gyeongbok and his friends met at a café.
"Hey, my dad says to come over sometime if you're free."
"Huh?"
Before Team Perfect's meeting could start, Choi Byeonghun suddenly spoke up.
"Oh, my mom said something similar. That you should come over for a meal when you have time."
Hearing Park Juho's follow-up, Lee Gyeongbok looked surprised. Why were both their parents suddenly inviting him?
The two friends stifled a laugh at his expression.
"Did you already forget? You gave them that robot vacuum as a present."
"They messaged yesterday that they received it. Looks like it arrived at about the same time."
At last, Lee Gyeongbok let out a small admiring sigh.
"Oh, right, that."
"Yeah, man. You know what my dad said? 'I thought my son was finally maturing. Hey, learn a thing or two from your friend!'
That's what he said!"
Choi Byeonghun snickered, imitating his father's tone playfully.
"You really could stand to learn something."
"Hey, I still give my parents an allowance on time!"
Lee Gyeongbok smiled as he watched his friends bicker as usual.
"I'm glad they liked it. I'll have to show my face if I get the time."
"Yeah. By the way, you really don't need to worry about stream content for a while."
"Wow, look at this guy transitioning into business mode with no warning."
Park Juho glanced at Choi Byeonghun and adjusted his Anqing.
"The streams are locked in until Demerc's ending. Anyway, content isn't today's agenda. Byeonghun, the materials."
"You really are a workaholic, you know."
Still grumbling, he manipulated his Smart Link. Several graphs were projected as holograms in front of them.
"See here? Subscribers shot up in just one day?"
After yesterday's stream, the graph soared—reaching about 830,000.
A smile naturally formed on Lee Gyeongbok's face.
"Wow, I thought what I saw last night was it, but you gained 130,000 in just one day?"
"That's right. And it hasn't stopped there—the growth rate has slowed a bit, but it's still on the rise."
As Park Juho said, the graph kept trending upward. Subscribers were still increasing in real time.
"But what's important now isn't the number, but the breakdown by country."
Choi Byeonghun enlarged a pie chart nearby. The sections, each a different color, looked like slices of pizza.
"Because the relay channel was in North America and Japan, most new subscribers are from there. There are also new fans from Europe."
"Among subscribers gained since the last stream, the majority are foreigners. Currently, the foreign subscriber ratio for the Purple channel has reached 20%."
As Park Juho spoke, he turned his gaze from the graph to Lee Gyeongbok.
"This trend will probably continue until the test streams end."
"Yeah, I noticed. There were more people in the relay stream than I expected."
Lee Gyeongbok agreed with the forecast.
By the end of the stream, the North American channel had about 60,000 viewers, while the Japanese one had around 40,000.
"That's just the start. Even though it was a test build, your playthrough proved there was nothing lacking in quality. Even the skeptics will hear about it and come to watch."
"Oh, that's a given. At this rate, the company's own predictions were way off."
Choi Byeonghun shook his head with a wry chuckle. Lee Gyeongbok couldn't hide his curiosity.
"What do you mean their predictions were off? Is something wrong?"
"No, it's not like that. They predicted you'd pass a million soon, right?"
Though Choi Byeonghun hadn't been at the contract talks, he already knew the details. He smirked as he continued.
"At this rate, you'll pass a million before the end of the test stream, not 'soon.'"
"A million subscribers..."
The number freshly dawned on Lee Gyeongbok. When he'd signed the contract, he'd had 700,000 subscribers—so another 300,000 felt like a distant goal.
But a million was more than just a number.
'I'm becoming a Gold Q-tuber?'
A million subscribers was the next benchmark; the level to get the Gold Button on Q-tube.
He'd seen lots of Q-tubers with a million-plus while watching, and they'd all put in massive amounts of time.
He'd only been streaming for a full two months himself.
'This feels different than when I hit Silver.'
On his first day streaming, he hit 100,000. But 100,000 and a million were worlds apart.
"But it's not entirely a reason to celebrate."
Lee Gyeongbok glanced over as his friend's voice cut through his thoughts.
"Of course, having more subscribers is good. But the rising foreign percentage is a different issue."
"Tsk, that's true. With Tri, there's no issue due to language restrictions, but Q-tube's algorithm is the problem."
Choi Byeonghun clicked his tongue in agreement.
"Like with Bark? But the ratio was way higher back then, wasn't it?"
Lee Gyeongbok recalled the early days of streaming. It wasn't the first time he'd had a spike in foreign subscribers.
On launch day, when he first hit 100,000, roughly 60% were from overseas. So wasn't this actually pretty healthy?
"Well, this time it's more an issue of absolute scale."
Choi Byeonghun scratched his head at Lee Gyeongbok's reaction.
"Obviously, the actual algorithm is proprietary so Qoogle doesn't disclose it. But there are things you learn from experience."
"From experience?"
"Yeah. The content of the Q-tuber's uploads isn't the only thing the algorithm registers. It collects data on 'who' is watching the video—they say that's industry knowledge."
He took a quick drink, glancing around.
"Let me give you an example. Imagine someone loves military-related content on Q-tube. What kind of game would they enjoy?"
"If it's military... probably Gunner Ground?"
"Exactly! Then someone who likes GunG might be likely to enjoy military videos too, right?"
"Seems fair."
Choi Byeonghun clapped lightly at that answer.
"Exactly! This accumulated data gets processed by the algorithm. Then it goes further and uses it for recommendations and marketing."
"So, people who only play GunG get recommended military videos, and vice versa."
Park Juho, who had been silent, jumped in at this point. Lee Gyeongbok could sense what they were worried about.
"So right now, the Purple channel is still gathering data. It's only barely a month old."
"Yeah, that's the point! Plus, you're a serious gamer, so your data is really broad—meaning it'll take even more time for the algorithm to settle."
"And with overseas viewers of different cultures and interests joining in, the data could become messier. That's the main issue now."
Choi Byeonghun waved a dismissive hand after Park Juho's explanation.
"Don't take it too seriously. This guy always prepares for the absolute worst and gets all serious."
"That's a manager's job."
"Anyway, the ratio is still low, so it's fine for now. But it does mean we need to prepare."
"Prepare? How?"
Clearly, they had a solution. Lee Gyeongbok's question prompted Park Juho to fiddle with his Smart Link.
"Have you ever heard of a Q-tuber called 'Seyoung's Dad?'"
"Uh... No, I don't think so."
With that answer, a Q-tube channel popped up.
[Seyoung's Dad]
[Subscribers – 1.704 million]
Most of the channel video thumbnails were of food.
"He's a chef-turned Q-tuber who runs a cooking channel. But that's not all."
Soon, another channel appeared beside it.
[Seyoung's Dad – Games & Chat]
[Subscribers – 683,000]
It was clearly the same person, but the thumbnails were different. Where before it was all food, now it was filled with games and chat content.
"He's a good example of channel separation, even though his case is a little different from yours."
"Channel separation?"
"Yeah. To prevent the algorithm from getting muddled, it means running channels with different themes simultaneously."
"We already upload full-play videos separately. This is an even clearer form of separation."
Choi Byeonghun added.
Lee Gyeongbok also ran a sub-channel for full streams, apart from his main channel.
"For foreign fans, spinning off a global channel is one way forward."
"Yeah, that way the Q-tube comments sections won't get mixed up either."
Lee Gyeongbok nodded easily. If there was a solution, why not choose it?
"But it's not only benefits. There's a drawback you have to accept."
"Drawback?"
"As you can see, once the channel splits, each channel's scale shrinks."
"Oh, right."
A sub-channel for full streams is an addition, but here, you'd be splitting subscribers between two channels.
Even if your total subscribers stayed the same, each channel's individual scale would shrink, meaning their individual value would drop.
After some thought, Lee Gyeongbok spoke up.
"But in the long run, this is the right move, isn't it? That's why you brought it up."
"That's true."
"Then it's settled. The subscriber count will grow again as long as I keep streaming."
He made his decision with a bright smile, his voice full of confidence.
His friends responded with smiles of their own to his attitude.
"And one more thing."
"Hm?"
"Channel splitting is only 'one' method. It's not the only way to prepare."
Choi Byeonghun spoke up proudly.
Then he brought up another hologram.
"What's this?"
"Regular donations aren't exclusive to Tri."
"Q-tube has its own regular donation system: Q-tube Membership."
Just as Tri viewers could regularly support streamers, q-tube viewers could support channels with recurring payments as members.
"It's not just a way to collect money. Q-tubers can provide 'members only' videos."
"Wait, does that mean...?"
From that, Lee Gyeongbok understood his friends' intentions.
"Yes, you can provide special videos just for overseas fans."
"By separating the data between regular supporters and the general audience, it reduces the effect on the algorithm. And above all..."
Choi Byeonghun made a circle with his thumb and forefinger, wiggling it.
"This creates a new revenue stream."
With memberships, you gain an extra source of income.
Lee Gyeongbok couldn't help but laugh.
To not just solve the problem, but turn it into profit, as well.
"Perfect."
Himself and his friends.
For a moment, the fact that the three of them made up 'Team Perfect' really hit home.
---