"Although Phantylia is a Lord Ravager, this is still perfectly reasonable!"
"After all, it's even recorded in the Chronicles of Zulo's Death!"
-------------------------
With the perfect conclusion of the campaign, the popularity and discussion surrounding the Aetherium Wars completely exploded on the internet.
#WhatIsAetheriumWars?#
#VictoryatWindCity!#
#PerfectTeamworkCapturingPhantylia#
#ASmashHitNewGameInTheHonkaiIP!#
#BecauseOfTheGame,ACityBlewUp#
All kinds of trending searches wildly satisfied the curiosity of the netizens.
Along with the increasingly heated real-world craze for catching events, it could be said that Aetherium Wars was taking off at a speed incomprehensible to both industry insiders and outsiders alike.
...
: Honkai: Star Rail is way too popular! Damn, even in my small third-tier city, people went nuts over Aetherium Wars during the event!
: Tell me about it, same thing in my district!
: Insane! I just saw the news that in one afternoon, Wind City gathered over thousands of outsiders, completely overloading the city's accommodation and transportation systems!
: Hahahaha, for the locals, that's a happy kind of problem.
: Too crazy, I can't even imagine this level of effect. Normally when over-limit zones pop up in other districts, they're nowhere near this busy.
: Exactly, a lot of people still haven't realized how rare over-limit zones are this time, but next time it'll be a different story.
: This really showcased the full power of the Honkai IP!
: Hahaha, the Wind City authorities immediately implemented traffic flow controls!
...
Under various related topics, discussions among viewers skyrocketed.
The Wind City authorities also responded very quickly.
They immediately took advantage of the momentum and posted a poster on their official account.
The poster showed a drone aerial shot of the park packed with people, captured at the moment when Phantylia was successfully caught, with everyone raising their hands in cheer.
In the air above, there was a massive image of the captured target.
Below it was a bold calligraphic slogan, "Phantylia: Come back once again."
This interaction by the authorities attracted a massive wave of attention.
Only thousands had actually come to the city, but through the internet, millions saw the poster.
Wind City had made a killing with this wave of publicity.
At the very least, the publicity department deserved extra bonuses.
Seizing the opportunity, Wind City's official account began once again spreading propaganda, posting once per minute, pushing local tourism, culture, cuisine, and attractions.
The effect was un-remarkable. Netizens were more focused on Aetherium Wars/
...
Inside MiHoYo's offices.
"Boss!"
"In the first 12 hours, total player count has already passed 340 million."
Silver Wolf, holding the report, felt dizzy at the numbers herself.
"In other words, about one in every fifteen people are playing Aetherium Wars."
Xia Wen nodded.
This result seemed exaggerated, but was actually reasonable and normal.
Times have changed, and there are already a lot of gamers.
After consistent effort, the Honkai series had long become the top-tier series, with fans across all age groups.
Aetherium Wars, being a game adapted from the IP, naturally brought in the show's fans.
And with its interactivity and real-world linked zone mechanics, it spread memetically at lightning speed.
In his view, the number hadn't even peaked yet.
Many fans might be too old or too young to participate, but over time, the number should steadily rise.
Aside from those who hadn't tried it yet, new fans from the ongoing series would also join in.
Aetherium Wars, this seemingly small game, still had huge potential!
But no matter how you put it, a first-day active player count of 340 million was still an astonishing and shocking figure.
Ring ring ring.
Just then, Xia Wen's phone rang.
It was a message from internal staff.
"Sigh…" Looking at the message, Xia Wen rubbed his head in frustration.
Silver Wolf tiptoed to peek:
"Let me see, 'We sincerely invite your company to visit and experience our local culture, and are ready to welcome the next over-limit drop…'"
"So it's the tourism departments trying to work with you again…"
Silver Wolf shook her head.
This was already the tenth invitation Xia Wen had received in just one hour.
Big cities, small towns, almost every tourism department from every place was frantically sending invitations.
The heat Wind City got this time was just too enviable.
"Ah, over-limit drops don't just happen because you want them to."
"But cooperation could indeed help boost events."
"Then we could launch a few special activities."
Xia Wen smiled wryly and shook his head.
It was great to be this popular, but it also meant more work.
These collaborations would require MiHoYo to make entirely new plans.
From another perspective though, this meant that the Honkai IP's influence had reached an overwhelming level.
And that influence could create very positive effects.
While Xia Wen was sighing with emotion, he didn't notice several missed calls on his phone.
All from Furina.
...
"Damn it!"
"Boss, pick up the phone!"
"I really want to participate in an event like this too!"
In a small rural town, Furina was furiously poking her phone with her finger in frustration.
This place was so remote, that every zone she encountered was just a normal one.
And along the way, she hadn't met a single other Aetherium Wars player.
The burning fire of pride in her chest from fighting the Doomsday Beast had nowhere to go.
Furina even began to suspect that the boss had intentionally sent her away.
Hmph! Of course!
The great Furina was just thinking that casually, not that she really believed her boss was a bad person.
Sitting in her chair, Furina started absentmindedly scrolling on her phone.
She had been in this rural area for a week now, and the only reason she stayed was because the scenery here was quite nice.
After the "terrifying incident" right after leaving the airport, Furina decided to spend some time sightseeing here.