Translated article (English)

Gunshin: Three Kingdoms, a board game created by a 23-year-old Hongkonger:
Don't hesitate for your dream. 
"Many people die at 25 and aren’t buried until they are 75."  The classic quote has been a heartfelt question for countless people. A 23-year-old Hongkonger, who is now working in risk management in the banking industry has initiated the idea of ​​creating a board game, which featured the Three Kingdoms era since junior high school. Focused on the public examination and lack of resources, he did not have the chance and resources to develop the game. Soon later, he entered HKUST and studied Risk Management and Business Intelligence, and during his 4-year at university, he obtained funding from HKUST Entrepreneurship Center and he could finally begin to put his dream into practice. The journey has not been stopped by graduation and his career, throughout years of development of the game, he spent more than HKD 100,000 (~USD 12,850) to pursue his dream, and invited people from different countries to participate in the design of the game components. Among them, a designer from Odessa, a city in Southern Ukraine, sculpted the fantastic and detail-refined 3D models, which are now presented on Gunshin: Three Kingdoms's website and social media platform, even before and after the fierce war between Russia and Ukraine. Edison's game, Gunshin: Three Kingdoms,  will be launched on Kickstarter to seek sufficient crowdfund for the game's continuous development in Summer 2022. Reflecting on the whole journey, also the walks of life, "If life is responsible for faults and responsibilities, then why don't we try to be responsible for our own dreams at the same time?"













Connected with Board Games at a young age, it turned out to be game development ideas

Edison, the 23 years old, has been exposed to board games such as Monopoly and Risk since he was 6 or 7 years old. As his interest in these types of games grew, he began to have the idea of ​​independently creating board games of the Three Kingdoms era and sharing the fantasy with other gamers.  Lack of sufficient resources, the idea could only be put aside.  Until he enrolled at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, he learned that the university provides an Entrepreneurship Acceleration Fund, which allows students to submit creative projects, and successful applicants shall receive HKD 10,000 (~USD 1,285) as a start-up fund, which reinvigorated his dream and the game's development. "I always ponder myself with the question, is this game really gonna work? No one knows, However, Amazon sold e-books only at the very beginning, and who could know or predict it would then become the largest e-commerce platform and cloud services provider on earth today? Why don't you just try it?"

Being optimistic and courageous, he applied for the fund, and he started to design the game, intern, and study at the same time during his final year at HKUST. "The life of my final year was basically, working from 9 am to 8 pm, studying at night until 10 o'clock in the evening, returning home to take a shower, and continuing to design the game until 3 am, and it lasted for a semester.”

After he started working in risk management for a bank, he still did not give up on his dream, furthermore, he spent more than HKD 100,000 (~USD 12,850) with his own savings just for the quality of his own game, Gunshin: Three Kingdoms, "There are about 50 Champions in the Game. Each card illustration costs more than US$400 (equivalent to approximately HKD 3,120), and the design of the 3D model shall easily cost more than USD 800 (equivalent to approximately HK$6,240). Together with the expenses on patent application and promotion, it is estimated that the entire Game should cost at least HKD 700,000 - 800,000 (USD 89,970 - 102,830).” In order to save time and cost, he decided to invite professionals from different countries on the online platform for cooperation, and planned to launch a crowdfunding campaign on Kickstarter from July to August. The Game will provide Classic Pledge, which features the 2D version of the game board, and a 3D version. The former is priced for early-bird at about USD 78 (equivalent to about HKD 608) and  USD 88 without the early-bird discount (about HKD 686), meanwhile, the latter is priced at about USD 288 (equivalent to about HK$2,246). The 3D pledge allows players to enjoy both an immersive gaming experience with the 3D board and also the modeling of the 3D landscape.












Game Creator: Dream is worth pursuing for

Edison recalled that in the process of creating and designing of the game, numerous failures and setbacks were encountered. "Sometimes it is just like playing a game. If you cannot defeat the enemy in front of you, then maybe you should think about the crux of the problem and ask, 'Is there any other possibility or way to do it well?'" What taught him an even more important lesson was that, In October last year, Edison worked with a sculptor from Odessa, a city in Southern Ukraine, and the sculptor designed the amazing 3D models of Zhao Yun and Lu Bu, which will then be 3D printed into 4cm and 20cm tall as game component and paintable figures. At then, Russia and Ukraine had not yet been engaged in a fierce battle. Odessa has now become one of the battlefields under heavy artillery fire. When the two sides chatted last month, Edison learned the comforting news that the sculptor was still safe. However, no one knows what shall happen tomorrow, but he emphasized that he will definitely cooperate with the sculptor and entrust him with all Champions' models designing work. "If life is responsible for faults and responsibilities, then why don't we try to be responsible for our own dreams at the same time? It made me reflect that life is always short, yet we can make it a meaningful one by contributing as much as we can to society."

In addition to launching the Game on Kickstarter, Edison said if the Game is profitable and sustainable, he shall allocate a sum of about HKD 150,000 - 200,000 (USD 19,280 - 25,707) to form a start-up fund to support high school students' innovative ideas and projects to allow them to achieve their dreams. The action plan includes providing early training and workshops to enable students to understand themselves and enrich their skillsets. At the same time providing money, connections, and resources to develop their creative ideas, thereby increasing their chances of successful business ventures.

At present, Edison's game, "Gunshin: Three Kingdoms"  is under promotion, the Game is expected to be launched on Kickstarter in July - August 2022. Should you be interested, please follow the Instagram (@gunshin.games: www.instagram.com/gunshin.games) to obtain the latest information and SPECIAL OFFERS.