Offline entertainment industry is booming, and he is earnestly building a massive TRPG "gaming platf

Offline entertainment industry is booming, and he is earnestly building a massive TRPG "gaming platform."

Interviewee: Wang Yijun, Founder of Shanghai Migu Technology Co., Ltd. "Mirror Earth" Interview Date: November 2020 Driven by passion, he gave up the leisurely life abroad and chose to return to China to start a business. He worked hard to turn his hobby into a career and do something interesting with a group of fascinating people.

I. "Ambition and Passion are the Twin Wings of Great Deeds" Several years ago, while studying and working in Australia, a young Wang Yijun had already spent nearly four years immersed in the world of TRPGs (Tabletop Role-Playing Games). TRPG, or tabletop role-playing games, is a type of game where the story is driven forward by players narrating their character's actions, and it is the earliest form of role-playing games.

In Australia, life seemed to be in slow motion, and everyone was leisurely enjoying the comfort and ease of the slow-paced lifestyle. For Wang Yijun, life there was "like looking at the end from the beginning." It was a routine of work and leisure, day in and day out. "I could already foresee what my life at 50 would look like when I was in my twenties." Though relaxed and comfortable, it was not without a sense of emptiness and monotony.

To fill the void in his life, Wang Yijun and his local friends embarked on their TRPG journey.

While finding freshness and joy in TRPGs, Wang Yijun thought that creating a similar TRPG for the Chinese audience, allowing them to experience tabletop role-playing games within their own cultural context, would be exciting.

Every idea, no matter how insignificant it may seem, in some way shapes the direction of one's life.

Before entering the TRPG industry formally, Wang Yijun, who had previously pursued a degree in business, conducted an in-depth analysis of the tabletop gaming, immersive, and entertainment industries both domestically and internationally. He noticed that although script-based games had become extremely popular in China in recent years, traditional TRPGs like Dungeons & Dragons and Call of Cthulhu still held more influence in Western countries. At the same time, TRPGs were still a niche interest in China, primarily due to factors such as a high entry barrier and a limited number of professionals in the field. The slow growth rate of TRPGs in China was apparent.

To many observers, returning to China to develop the TRPG industry in such a situation seemed like a risky venture. However, Wang Yijun had a keen eye and saw the untapped potential of the TRPG market in China. He believed that "script-based games, with their vibrant vitality, are poised to take off in the Chinese market." Even though the future was uncertain, Wang Yijun always believed that opportunities often come with challenges, and wherever there are challenges, there is also potential for success.

"There are so many intelligent and diligent people in this world, so there are very few things worth doing that are left for later generations. I think TRPGs are one of them." Even without a background in the gaming industry, Wang Yijun, driven by his years of experience and passion for TRPGs, returned to China, crossing thousands of miles, to start creating TRPG products tailored for the Chinese audience.

II. Aiming to Be a High-Performing Ship in the "Blue Ocean" In the early days of his entrepreneurial journey, despite lacking experience in game design and running a business, Wang Yijun remained confident about the future. "If you don't know, learn. If you don't understand, ask. It's not like we're building rockets; how hard could it be?"

With limited development experience, Wang Yijun sought advice and learned from industry veterans. He had a background in marketing and project management, and he leveraged his strengths to find connections between his academic expertise and his passion for TRPGs. He filled the gaps in his knowledge and skills through self-study.

TRPGs are different from traditional video games in many ways. In TRPGs, the system cannot automatically perform calculations, which requires developers to convey rich information to players in a concise language and enable players to perform calculations on their own to simulate real-life situations. The key to developing TRPGs is to design rules that are logical, comprehensive, and concise, which demands strong communication skills from developers.

Before embarking on entrepreneurship, Wang Yijun was a dedicated gamer, but his patience with individual games seemed limited. He often moved on to the next game once he had grasped its gameplay and the designer's intentions.

In addition to his leisurely entertainment, he also independently studied and explored various mature TRPG rules. Moreover, Wang Yijun's professional background was in marketing and project management, so he had some understanding of information communication from his previous studies and work. To gain more systematic knowledge of game design, Wang Yijun also took selfpaced game design courses from MIT and Carnegie Mellon University. All of these experiences deepened Wang Yijun's understanding of TRPGs. "Since I've made the decision, I'll give it my all. It would be a joy if we could bring good games to more people. Do good deeds without worrying about the future." After returning to China, Wang Yijun devoted most of his time to studying TRPGs. While one person can go fast, a group of people can go far. Those who share a love for TRPGs will inevitably come together because of it. The inherent charm of TRPGs brought together many TRPG enthusiasts around Wang Yijun, and together they formed the TRPG Developer Alliance, all working toward the same dream.

In terms of recruiting talent, Wang Yijun values three key traits: character, talent, and passion.

Interestingly, the team didn't consist of traditional tabletop gaming industry professionals; instead, members came from various backgrounds, including the internet, consulting, media, and finance.

"Since we want to approach this with a new perspective, we can't have rigid thinking. Only by piecing together the professional skills of team members from their original industries can we hope to accomplish an industry upgrade."

"In today's rapidly growing entertainment industry and the full-scale integration of the internet, this is an excellent opportunity for us to take the lead in a bend." Wang Yijun and his team compared the development status of the TRPG industry in China and abroad and found that in Western countries, including Europe, the United States, and Japan, their mobile internet technology was not as advanced as in China. Therefore, their web-based TRPG tools were more comprehensive, but they neglected the development of mobile applications. In technologically advanced China, it was challenging for extensive web-based TRPG tools to gain player preference. To develop a brand-new TRPG game in China, they needed to break conventions and boldly try to meet players' demand for a convenient mobile experience.

Initially, Wang Yijun and his team wanted to create a framework that could encompass nearly all TRPG genres. However, they found that the larger the framework, the more difficult it was to create a refined and perfect gaming experience. Moreover, they realized that many traditional TRPG copyright holders had little interest in the Chinese market.

"If we manage to establish ourselves in the Chinese market but use foreign core content and brands, as a startup team, we would be quite passive. We've always insisted on having our team handle everything, from rule design to content filling and technological innovation." Based on this philosophy, Wang Yijun and his team developed their own rule system and mobile application, called "Mirror Earth," based on the modern Chinese gaming psyche and interactive habits.

Through the Mirror Earth app, players could carry their character sheets on their phones. Even if they didn't have extended leisure time, they could browse characters, explore information about different worlds, and interact with other players during their daily fragmented time. While providing convenience for players' leisure entertainment, the Mirror Earth app also increased the stickiness of TRPG players during their fragmented time.

"Do not underestimate the power of vision and direction; they can turn seemingly insurmountable obstacles into wide-open paths."

III. In the Future, Unchanging Sincerity and Steady Progress "With limited experience and abilities, we've implemented everything we could think of and do." Although the TRPG industry in China was still relatively untapped at the time, it was showing signs of stable growth.

To further lower the barrier to entry for TRPGs and break through the industry's development barriers, Wang Yijun and his team adhered to the core concept of "easy to learn, hard to master" when designing the Mirror Earth system. They focused on creating a captivating story that would offer players a memorable, immersive, movie-like gaming experience.

As Wang Yijun put it, "TRPGs are often called 'reality simulators' because they make you think when you encounter certain situations in real life. While TRPGs have a learning curve, it doesn't mean forcing players to read a thousand-word script or study overly complex character skills. It might be about 'how to escape from a pack of wolves' or 'how to console a war orphan who lost their parents.' These learning curves are enjoyable because they are a part of life. From the perspective of Mirror Earth, we want players to explore not more complex rules and logic but a wider variety of stories and challenges that require deeper contemplation. In the future, we will expand our content from this perspective."

"Finding something worth doing is not easy, finding something you love and worth doing is even harder." For Wang Yijun and his team, Mirror Earth is not just a business venture; it's a mission.

What they want to bring to people are countless adventures and unforgettable dreams under the starry skies of different worlds.