The Game Director Who Returned from Hell - Chapter 2 (Part 1): 

 

I am proud of my deep knowledge of fantasy.

 

It wasn’t really that wrong.

 

My actual profession is a game director.

 

To imagine, plan, set up things that don’t exist in reality, and bring them to life in physical form requires a significant amount of data, or input, as they say.

 

As much as that, I’ve been exposed to various popular media like games, movies, comics, and novels since I was a child.

 

From my perspective.

 

“Yeon-ho! How long are you going to stay in your room!”

 

I have regressed

 

 

Back to the past, to a day in the autumn of 2008, just after I finished my military service.

 

To my lively 22-year-old self.

 

Surprisingly, there was a past at the end of hell.

 

*

 

I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t embarrassed about the current situation.

 

Obviously, at the moment of death, I was a 41-year-old middle-aged person.

 

Retirement happened in the 23rd year, and the game I developed single-handedly won an award in the 27th year, so it must have been about that time.

 

I couldn’t call the memories of the past a dream.

 

I was certain I existed in the future, and there were means to prove that the future was real.

 

[Ah! Giants lost!!!]

 

“Oh damn it! Those damn bastards lost again! They lost again! I’m an idiot for believing in them!”

 

“Why are you so worked up about it?”

 

“Damn it! If I watch baseball again, I’m not a human!”

 

The exclamation of my father, a passionate baseball fan from Busan, echoed outside again.

 

In that 2008 postseason, the team my father cheered for finally stood on that glorious stage after a long time, carrying fans’ expectations, only to disappoint them.

 

The event unfolded just as I remembered.

 

Would anything more than this be needed for proof?

 

Even after that, my father continued to support that team for 20 years, proving to be a pitiful future apart from the fact, and my time travel became an established fact.

 

By this point, there was nothing surprising.

 

If regression was real, then so was hell.

 

If you flip it around and think, if hell exists in reality, what’s to say time travel is impossible?

 

There was no reason to turn away from the harsh reality.

 

I just had to accept it humbly.

 

That’s when I made up my mind.

 

I started to immerse myself in one task, forgetting about time.

 

Square― square―

 

Drawing with a pencil on a fresh white A4 paper was still a vivid memory of hell.

 

Even recalling it made my heart race as if I were going crazy, a fragment of a fascinating world.

 

It would be so fun to turn those moments into a game.

 

I wanted to share that sight.

 

That feeling stimulated the pathological obsession that used to dominate my past self.

 

There was impatience.

 

I was afraid this sentiment might fade, and the awe and memories might wither over time.

 

With that worry manifesting as despair, I had no choice but to throw myself into documenting that world, cutting back on sleep.

 

Not only did I record it as drawings, but I also documented it in words, along with the object elements that made up that hell.

 

My young brain worked relentlessly throughout the process, rolling along like an oiled machine.

 

It was a step in the process of shaping the landscape into the form of a game.

 

What genre for the game? How much content?

 

What’s the direction of the design, and what level of performance can be achieved?

 

How much money do I have?

 

Time! How much time will it take?

 

The calculator kept churning tirelessly.

 

Slowly narrowing the gap between reality and ideals, searching for points of alignment.

 

And so, after roughly sketching out the plans and finishing calculations.

 

‘I can’t wait any longer.’

 

I could see myself, driven by an insatiable thirst, to the point where I couldn’t hold back any longer.

 

I went to the bathroom to calm down, splashed water on my face, but the thirst and excitement didn’t subside.

 

In the mirror, I saw myself grinning like a maniac.

 

Even if I were crazy, I had no words to say.

 

I just had to accept it.

 

It’s quite an agreeable thing.

 

The excitement when inspired by creative ambition is a stimulation that won’t fade no matter how much time passes.

 

Finally, a decision was made.

 

‘Let’s do it.’

 

I could do it.

 

It wasn’t just a dream-like story.

 

Even the suspicions that tormented me until my past life were now hidden.

 

If I really returned to the past, and if my past life wasn’t a lie.

 

I am undoubtedly capable of doing such a thing.

 

‘I am···.’

 

As someone who had already proven themselves.

 

It was a task I was more than ready to take on.

***

 

I collected my thoughts and delved into the planning process.

 

On the computer monitor, a blank white page of a word program was displayed.

 

‘First things first…’

 

I needed to assess my situation.

 

Although I had dreams of creating something, turning those dreams into a practical form required careful consideration of many factors.

 

In other words, I needed to grasp the theme.

 

I pondered calmly.

 

‘Financial limitations.’

 

I was a 22-year-old youth who had just completed military service.

 

I had saved up 2.4 million won from tutoring for six months after entering university, 800,000 won from the military, and an untouched savings of 3.2 million won.

 

A total of 6.4 million won.

 

Could I accomplish anything with this amount?

 

Unfortunately, it seemed impossible.

 

My knowledge of the financial world was limited to a mere fraction of what was needed to make use of this 6.4 million won.

 

The financial disasters I knew of were widely known and, of course, I had no idea when they would happen.

 

So, was the alternative any better?

 

Unfortunately, it wasn’t.

 

‘Lack of resources.’

 

I was now in a position where I had to develop a game on my own.

 

Complex, labor-intensive tasks and a vast amount of work were nearly impossible to manage.

 

I couldn’t acquire the necessary workforce.

 

Even if I had some individuals available, they wouldn’t have a reason to help me create a game.

 

In other words, I had nothing.

 

No money, no resources, and beyond that, in 2008 I lacked the necessary skills.

 

‘I need to compromise.’