Starting as a Manga Editor-Chapter 17: Gacha Game

If you asked Tang Yao right now to come up with a storyline suitable for a gacha game, her first instinct would absolutely be the Fate series.
Because in terms of story setup and proven success, it's hands-down the best fit.
That Servant system built around summoning legendary heroes—it fits gacha mechanics like a glove. Existing job titles, classes, skills, Noble Phantasms… all of it already in place.
And then there's the once-glorious (though later poorly managed) mobile game Fate/Grand Order.
All of that was a huge plus.
Most importantly, the original Fate was genuinely interesting. And don’t even get her started on Fate/Zero, an adult-themed prequel story written by Urobuchi Gen and produced by the ever-meticulous Ufotable.
Sure, most anime held up by nostalgia often lose their shine after a few years… but Fate/Zero was clearly the exception.
It was one of those rare shows that stayed legendary even after multiple re-watches—just look at how Ufotable never managed to surpass it with anything afterward.
FZ’s sharp character design and fast-paced storytelling were etched into memory.
As a narrative hook for a game, it couldn’t be more perfect.
A lot of people in her past life liked to joke that gacha gamers were dumb and rich.
But the truth was—most players were actually rational. If they could save money, they would. If you wanted them to spend for love, then you had to at least get them to feel that love first. Pushing out a half-baked gacha game with nothing but pretty artwork and expecting players to open their wallets was reckless, arrogant, and naïve.
In her past life, even when gacha games were booming, plenty of copycats went down in flames. They thought all it took was some cute illustrations to rake in money—way too naïve.
To make players fall in love with the characters? Yes, artwork mattered—but so did voice acting, story, character development, even gameplay.
And right now, Tang Yao couldn’t pull off most of those elements.
So she had to take a shortcut—of sorts.
Like… using a great original story.
She couldn’t produce anime yet, obviously, but manga was possible.
Of course, manga didn't hit as hard as animation. They were two very different mediums.
And unfortunately… Fate/Zero's success owed a lot to its lavish animation budget. Recreating that feeling in manga form was basically impossible.
Despite their similarities, anime and manga had fundamentally different strengths.
Take Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End, one of the best anime she’d seen before she died. Even fans of the manga’s battle scenes often admitted, “Yeah… this really needs to be animated.”
But a great work could still shine through its flaws. If people loved it, that meant it had something strong enough to overcome those flaws.
Sure, Frieren's action scenes weren’t amazing in the manga, but that didn’t stop it from being good.
And Fate/Zero? Even stripped of its jaw-dropping animation, it still had bold, unforgettable characters, tight storytelling, and brilliant ideas. Enough to make readers say, “This manga is seriously good.”
If the manga gained traction… if the Servant system planted seeds in readers' minds… if the characters won their hearts…
Then the game mechanics would become easier to understand and more widely accepted. Characters that debuted in the manga would come with built-in appeal in the game, leading players to want to pull for them—not manipulate, just inspire that desire.
So—
The first step of this game wasn’t drawing pretty girls.
It was drawing a manga based on Fate.
And the best choice was obviously Fate/Zero.
“……”
Tang Yao slowly wrote on the page: Draw the manga version of Fate/Zero.
Of course—
Nailing that first step was anything but easy. Adapting anime into manga was already tough. Spreading out the dense lore of Fate into comic panels? That alone made her head ache. Then there were the battle scenes. And after it was drawn, how would she promote it?
Obviously not something she could solve in one go—it would have to be step by step, doing her best.
As for the second step, that was clearly about the game itself.
She had to think through the game framework. Anything too complicated or resource-heavy was off the table. It had to be feasible. Anything too difficult was a no-go.
And then there was Fate/Grand Order…
It ended up horribly managed.
Tang Yao had already given up on copying it wholesale. She could borrow its command-based combat system, since that was relatively simple.
But everything else would need rethinking. It couldn’t be too basic, or players would think, Why should I roll for anything if the gameplay’s so easy? But it also couldn’t be too complex—she had to stay within what she could realistically manage right now.
Her plan was to first nail down the full game framework, then build it out gradually, adjusting along the way.
Super troublesome.
But Tang Yao forced herself to be patient. She carefully listed out all the good mechanics from various gacha games, then separated them—what was doable and fun, and what was trash or too hard to implement. Then sorted those again by difficulty.
In their tiny apartment—
Tang Yao hunched over her desk, scribbling nonstop.
When Tang Kaoru finished doing the dishes and entered the room, she saw her sister surrounded by a mountain of paper, filled with terms she barely understood.
Combat systems. Upgrade systems. Gacha resource distribution. Pool design…
And more kept piling up.
“What are you doing?”
Kaoru stared for a bit, then asked curiously.
“Game proposal draft.”
Tang Yao looked up. “Let’s talk later… Kaoru, I’m deep in brainstorm mode.”
“……”
Kaoru didn’t say anything else. She quietly took out the hairdryer and started drying her sister’s hair.
And Tang Yao didn’t seem affected at all—she soon put down her pencil, opened her laptop, and began typing furiously.
Super fast.
Every time Kaoru looked over while drying her hair, there were more and more dense lines of text on the screen.
Those same terms—combat system, upgrade system—were now expanded into full descriptions. Some even included numeric breakdowns and art notes.
What was she doing?
Kaoru didn’t totally understand.
But somehow… she felt like her sister had become even more impressive.
Even though she’d always been impressive.
By the time Kaoru finished drying her hair, Tang Yao was still typing without a hint of slowdown.
She kept speeding up—occasionally grabbing paper to sketch something.
Kaoru watched, hesitated, then decided not to start her next chore. Instead, she went to hang up the laundry and finish a few other tasks.
By the time she came back, it was almost midnight.
Tang Yao had finally stopped typing. She was reviewing and patching holes—there was still a lot she couldn’t write down yet. Many things would have to be adjusted during development or even through testing.
Her goal now was just to map out the overall game structure—partly to organize her thoughts, partly to show others what she was aiming for.
“So next up—draw the Fate/Zero manga that acts as the story intro, then confirm the in-game characters, write the story, and finalize the character art.”
Tang Yao reviewed everything from top to bottom. No major issues. She raised her arms and stretched.
Honestly—
Even she was a little shocked by how much she’d done.
It had all come together so fast.
Even with past-life memories helping her, this was still crazy fast.
Aside from Kaoru interrupting briefly, she’d been totally locked in—her mind replaying games she’d played, news she’d read, articles she’d devoured…
Was this what people meant by “in the zone”?
No idea.
But it was probably a good thing.
The basic concept was now clear: draw Fate/Zero, then finalize the main characters—basically the SRR-level Servants—their art and stories. Then production…
Of course, there were still problems: funding, marketing, production itself—none of that was settled.
But overall? It was doable now.
“Finished?”
A voice snapped her out of it.
Kaoru’s voice.
Tang Yao turned and saw her little sister standing nearby in short shorts, her long pale legs practically glowing.
“Sorry, are you trying to sleep? I’ll turn off the lights. Wait, what time is it…”
She grabbed her phone and checked—then froze.
“…Huh? It’s already midnight?”
Tang Yao was shocked. She hadn’t realized how much time had passed. She quickly started to apologize. “Kaoru—”
“I’m not sleepy. I was waiting for you.”
Before she could finish, Kaoru cut her off. “Wait here.”
Then she turned and walked to the small shelf by the bed, rummaged for a bit, and came back with a measuring tape.
“Stand up. Stretch out. I’ll measure you, then we can sleep.”
“Huh? Measure what?”
Tang Yao stood up while asking, confused.
Kaoru didn’t answer. She handed the tape to her sister and took a step forward.
Tang Yao reached out and took it—then, as her little sister leaned in, she instinctively wrapped an arm around her waist. “Wait—what are you—eeeep! What the h*ll?!”
Before she could finish—
Something cold touched her back. Kaoru’s hand.
Tang Yao jolted like she’d been shocked and tried to squirm away. “Why are you unhooking my bra?!”
“Don’t move.”
Kaoru held her sister tightly, not letting her escape. She tilted her head slightly, her eyes locking onto Tang Yao’s beautiful face. “It doesn’t fit anymore, right? If you want to embarrass yourself in public, be my guest.”
“……”
Tang Yao froze.
Compared to being embarrassed at home, she was definitely more afraid of it happening outside.
And truth was… it had stopped fitting. She was planning to just deal with it.
But if Kaoru was offering to help… that was honestly a relief.
Still…
“You could’ve at least said something first! Give me time to mentally prepare!”
Tang Yao’s face flushed as she glared at her sister. “Also, you’re way too sharp! I never said anything!”
“If I had, you’d have brushed it off and rejected me.”
Kaoru lowered her head again and set the warm clothes on the chair. “And as for being sharp—you kept shifting uncomfortably. Who wouldn’t notice?”
“I didn’t!”
“That’s because you’re dense. Don’t move.”
“….”
That felt like a burn.
Tang Yao pursed her lips, staying still, turning her head away while lightly pinching Kaoru’s shirt with her hands.
Kaoru’s eyes flicked sideways—her motions slowed for some reason.
Not that Tang Yao noticed. She was too tense. “Is it done yet?”
“Almost.”
“It doesn’t have to be that precise.”
“What are you saying?”
“Kaoru, I’m your sister, not some auto-measuring robot.”
“…There. Done.”
Finally—
After much pestering, Kaoru retracted the measuring tape and muttered quietly, “So tell me again—who’s actually the one going through puberty?”
“What?”
Tang Yao’s pretty face still had a lingering blush. She pulled her clothes back into place and shot her sister a small glare.
What was she even saying?
Doesn’t an older sister get any dignity?
Even though… yeah, that was pretty undignified just now...
“I’ll go buy one tomorrow after school.”