Game Director from Hell - Chapter 34: Programmer

There’s something called a “first impression free pass” in the context of a blind date. It means creating a favorable impression during the first meeting, which leaves a positive impression on the other party’s parents.

Why is this story suddenly coming up? It’s because I’m starting to feel the parents’ sentiments.

“I heard from Jinkyung that you wanted to meet, so I came out, but I feel a bit hesitant about dinner.”

First round passed. Although I only glanced at his appearance and attire, a sense of goodwill began to grow inside me. Of course, I shouldn’t make a decision like this… I shouldn’t.

“This weather is getting warm. Maybe it’s because it’s spring…”

With a flick, he unbuttoned his white shirt, revealing a strange printed white T-shirt.

10 points.

“Let’s get straight to business. First, can you take a look at this?”

A laptop came out of his black backpack.

Preparedness? Another 10 points.

No, he deserved more than 10 points. My eyes widened.

The stickers all over the laptop…!

“Carrier stickers…!”

And they were first-generation IT company logos!

An industry-specific sensibility that ordinary people wouldn’t understand!

An unconscious expression of respect for the industry as a developer!

Another 20 points! The total score so far is 40 points!

“Enough!”

This is sufficient.

But wait!

“In fact, I took a look at your game. That’s why I came here today. I want to discuss it briefly. Just a moment…”

Goh Myungkyu started showing me something.

“Ahh…”

Swooosh!

As soon as the laptop started up, my neck tilted.

It was like the majestic preparation of a 155mm howitzer ready to fire, smoothly and calmly, like a machine of an engineer who didn’t miss a day of grease maintenance.

Posture is the trajectory of one’s life. It’s a trace, a tattoo.

You can’t create such overwhelming naturalness in just one or two days, and the angle of 47 degrees that can only be described as the art of geometry says it all.

“Chronic turtle neck…!”

With the addition 40 points from the turtle neck.

Already 80 points.

Without showing anything, I was convinced.

“I found him. My programmer.”

I suppressed my rising breath.

There is still the investigation of practical skills and work style…

“…The code was actually quite interesting. From what I understand, it was intended to reduce resources with a simple structure, right?”

“Uh…”

“Huh? Anyway, based on this code, I created a simple algorithm…”

Thunk!

I grabbed Myungkyu’s wrist.

He was flustered. No, he must have been.

Despite knowing that it was a rude action, I had no choice.

It passes by.

The years of hardship have passed by.

“I haven’t actually played any game.”

A art director who hasn’t played the game.

“Return my item! Waaah!”

A high school graduate sound director.

“Yeonho, Yeonho!”

“Sunbae, sunbae!”

They were noisy.

That’s right; I personally scouted and raised good team members.

In fact, I wouldn’t meet such precious talents again no matter where I go, and I know that even if I bring someone else, I can’t replace them.

But still.

Knowing this fact, I can’t help but feel this way.

I can’t help but be moved like this.

In fact, it’s natural.

In any case, employee scouting requires such overestimation in the workplace-related aspects to be the precondition!

“First impression free pass?”

It’s not even funny.

I confront my arrogance and whip myself.

I bitterly realize how hastily I judged others and regret it.

This isn’t a free pass.

If this were a formal introduction, and he was my future son-in-law.

I would confidently say.

“The king of introductions…!”

This would truly be the best introduction.

It felt like there was a halo shining.

At that moment, Myungkyu pursed his lips.

“Uh, um…”

“Sunbae. No, hyung.”

I interrupted.

“Let’s go to our office first. We can talk more there.”

Ah, now I’ve finally met my team member.

The one I can truly call a ‘team member’…

***

Goh Myungkyu, 27 years old, graduated from a Korean university with a degree in computer engineering, quit his job at a large company after 14 months, currently job hunting, reason: “Wants to make games.”

He chased his dream and, through a fortunate opportunity, was introduced to his junior.

The impression was good up until the moment they met.

“He writes code in such an interesting way.”

Researching the company’s work style is essential.

If you don’t know what programs are used and how to run them, your work will be difficult from the start. And it’ll be hard to delegate your work to someone else.

From that perspective, he scored a perfect 100 points.

“I didn’t know you could do it like this!”

The algorithms were impressive.

Understanding those algorithms and creating examples for about a week significantly improved the quality of his works.

It became second nature to him.

“I want to work with someone like this.”

That’s how it started.

The initial 100-point evaluation began to drop gradually.

“-10 points.”

Face -10 points, height -10 points, physique -10 points, precise pronunciation, semi-formal suit, confident attitude, and rude gestures -40 points.

A total of -70 points.

In other words, a total score of 30 points.

Myungkyuinternal evaluation, unlike Yeonho’s, was gradually declining.

If you were to graph the evaluations of the two people and overlap them, it would form a supply-demand graph that unmistakably resembles an X.

Well, you can’t judge a person just by their appearance.

Myungkyuhad the same thoughts as Yeonho.

And so, they arrived at the office.

The evaluations hit rock bottom.

“Huh? Who’s that?”

“Oh! He looks good at studying!”

“What’s going on? Are we hiring new employees?!”

“Wow…”

They were all women.

Every single person in the office was a woman.

Myungkyu was taken aback.

His gaze turned towards Yeonho with an expression that seemed to say he couldn’t believe it.

“These are our employees. Please introduce yourselves.”

I thought casually.

‘…Is this guy?’

It took only two hours for this person to become the employer and him to  become an employee.

A storm raged in Myungkyu’s mind.

What does he think of this IT company?

Does he intend to make games?

Why are there only women in the company?

Oh, right. He is a man too, isn’t it?

It reminded me of my college days!

The past when I was forced to participate in a drinking session because of Han Jinkyung!

-“Jinkyung brother is so much fun!”

-“Hahaha! Is that so? Oh, but over here is my senior…”

“Oh my god! What the…!”

His heart sank deeply.

At that moment, a realization struck him.

“Oh, come to think of it!”

This guy was Han Jinkyung’s junior!

Of course, they’re in cahoots!

He’s using me just like Han Jinkyung did!

Finally, my internal evaluation reached zero points.

Myungkyu’s eyes were bloodshot.

He was trembling all over.

“For now, please have a seat. We need to start with an introduction to the company.”

I took a seat.

Even though my mind was boiling, I decided to focus on the work since he seemed to have coding skills. It was the last shred of my rationality.

“Well, it’s a relatively small indie company. The individual workload is quite high. I assume you were aware of this. Firstly…”

It was quite long.

Myungkyu summarized Yeonho’s explanation briefly.

“So, programmers – you and me, and in terms of work direction, coding autonomously within the boundaries you set after meetings, followed by meetings and feedback before actual implementation, and debugging afterward?”

“You’ve understood it correctly.”

“Hmm…”

We had already covered discussions related to salary up to this point.

For a fresh graduate, the salary was quite good.

On top of that, there seemed to be additional allowances.

Work intensity?

In this industry, who works at a relaxed pace?

If you think about it, as long as a decent company offers proper compensation, working overtime or overnight is considered a standard, so getting extra allowances is a good deal.

What bothered him was the work direction.

“We have quite frequent meetings.”

In other words, genuine communication about programming.

Myungkyu, who had already experienced working in an office, understood this.

If you encounter an overbearing boss in a team, you often have to adjust to their way of working, which can lower your work efficiency and coding efficiency.

In that regard, the work environment didn’t seem bad.

It was good to see a strong commitment to coordinating from the bug detection stage.

Above all, Myungkyu liked that Yeonho had no reservations about sharing his expertise.

There was a lot to learn.

Myungkyu prioritized work abilities over age or seniority.

“Oh, that sounds fine…”

While contemplating, Yeonho spoke.

“I’ll be honest. I need someone like you. You’ve seen my way of doing things, and finding someone who can adapt to it has been a bit challenging. We’re not a company that attracts experienced professionals. But finding a young person like you who understands my algorithms as well as you do is rare.”

Honesty was appreciated.

Myungkyu had somewhat expected this, so he understood it well.

Meanwhile, considering how he was putting himself out there, he was certainly good in terms of social skills (this part was negative).

Myungkyu’s gaze turned towards Yeonho.

His appearance still didn’t sit well with him.

But more importantly, the problem was…

“Yeonho, Yeonho! What’s up with our programmer? Who is he? A senior? Did you go to the same school?”

“Sunbae, sunbae! Please introduce us too!”

…They both seemed like they would suck the life out of me without a doubt.

The other two I could ignore, but for some reason, these two were likely to create issues that I’d have to deal with.

Just the thought gave me a shiver.

And then, it happened.

Thump!

The two of them seated themselves on either side of Myungkyu, as if surrounding him.

Myungkyu’s body stiffened.

Huh?

The scent of cosmetics.

“Wow! Oppa? Is it really you? Your skin is so fair!”

“Unni, look here! His fingers are so pretty! Crazy, they’re prettier than mine!”

“Wow, what is this skin? How can there not be a single blemish? Oppa, do you have a skincare routine? What skincare products do you use?”

“Amazing! Your clothes even smell nice. What fabric softener do you use?”

“Uh, um…!”

Goh Myungkyu, 27 years old, junior high, high school, public service, followed by engineering, quit after joining an IT company.

Immunity to compliments from the opposite sex: 0.

Especially immunity to compliments about appearance: -100.

In other words, “0” dating experience.

“Well, you see…”

“Wow, by any chance, what’s your weight? You seem thinner than me! Incredible!”

“Your nails are so neat. Oppa, can I try applying nail polish to them?”

Hyeji and Yumi’s firepower was explosive.

At least for Myungkyu.

“Um, well…”

It only took 5 minutes.

Their cheerful and appreciative words, always looking at others with kind eyes, began to change Myungkyu’s worldview 180 degrees.

“Huh?”

Have I been somewhat popular?

Was it because I’ve been studying all this time and didn’t realize?

Certainly, I don’t go outside much, so my skin is fair. I don’t like to eat much, so I’m skinny… and I don’t sweat much…

“I thought it would be bothersome to get involved.”

Myungkyu, who had thought this way until now, had become someone who you coudnt find anywhere.

“Both of you, please go back to your seats. We’re in the middle of a discussion.”

Yeonho who to break the mood.

That was the moment.

Whack!

The two of them grabbed Myungkyu’s arms as if surrounding him.

“Why don’t we chat a bit more~?”

“Right! If we have a new colleague, we should get to know each other!”

“Ugh…”

Myungkyu was out of breath!

That was the moment.

Yeonho narrowed his eyes and scolded the two of them.

“Don’t you see that my brother is uncomfortable?”

But the more Yeonho tried to pull them away, the stronger the two of them held onto Myungkyu’s arms.

Inside Myungkyu’s brain, cognitive impairment due to lack of oxygen was occurring!

“Above all, my brother never said that he’s joining our team, so why are you making him feel uncomfortable like this?”

“I’ll do it.”

“What… will you do?”

“I’ll do it. I’ll be the programmer.”

Myungkyu replied, turning bright red.

It wasn’t a completely rational decision.

Of course, the conditions were good, but wasn’t job hunting supposed to involve some deliberation?

Yeonho pointed out that concern with a worried expression.

“I appreciate it, but… there are still many things you haven’t heard about. Are you sure it’s okay?”

“Umm…”

Myungkyu nodded.

In that moment, philosophical thoughts emerged.

What do humans live for?

Why do we work and function as part of society, running towards our futile deaths?

Right now, Myungkyu found the answer.

“To be happy.”

Yes, if he’s happy, that’s enough.

Myungkyu was very happy right now.

“Woohoo! Oppa, I’m counting on you!”

“But, where do you live, oppa? Is it close to home? Oh! Do you have Facebook? Let’s be friends!”

His sense of smell was numbed by the scent of cosmetics.

In the end, it was like that.

“Umm… I’ll go get the contract. Let’s talk in detail while looking at that.”

Rewind Studio, successful recruitment of a programmer!