1988 Retro Game Tycoon - Chapter 111



Only Noblemtl

Episode 111 – Underwater Fight

After CEO Seo Nam-jun and his party returned to Korea, Managing Director Nishikawa spent every day filled with anxiety.

I have personally witnessed the extraordinary knowledge, execution ability, and outstanding concentration of the Starbeat people, including CEO Seo Nam-jun, but even so, one month was too short.

To him, every single game on the Mega Drive was so precious, especially games like Fist of Jongno.

Setting a ridiculous time frame of one month for such a game, and then scrapping the project if it failed, was a ridiculous move considering the current state of Mega Drive.

It’s been almost a year since its release, and it was released in North America a few months ago, but sales have only reached about 1 million units.

It was a very poor performance for the only 16-bit game console on the market, which Sega had ambitiously prepared.

“The Nintendo Famicom, which has been in decline for a long time, is still being sold···.”

Managing Director Nishikawa lamented while drinking with a developer friend from the Third Research and Development Headquarters.

“Well, there are already hundreds of games out there for the Famicom. And they’re still being released.”

“Yeah, I wish Nintendo had stuck to 8-bit forever. They still sell so well.”

“If they postponed the announcement of the 16-bit console, there must have been some problem. I think it was a big mistake for Nintendo to give up on the arcade game center. Look, all the latest technology comes from the arcade, but when they focus on consoles and leave the arcade behind, they fall right behind in 16-bit.”

Nishikawa’s friend said this while eating skewers. Although his friend’s position was lower than Nishikawa’s, they returned to being friends after work and spoke informally to each other.

The resentment towards Managing Director Nishikawa was so strong in the development department that the two even went to places far from the company to drink.

“Then what are we going to do? We’ve created such an advantage, but we can’t use it at all. It doesn’t make sense that there were only 4 games when it was released, and it’s just too much that there aren’t even 10 games released this year. How are we going to sell the Mega Drive like this?”

“That’s definitely true. Is the situation similar in the US? But I heard that the US corporation there develops and runs games separately?”

“They’re pouring money into TV commercials and marketing, but the situation is the same. Because there are no games. There’s no strong move. They’ve signed contracts with famous sports stars and are releasing a lot of sports games, but that takes time to develop. There’s nothing we can do right now.”

“Then what about South America? Brazil? You took the Master System to South America and made a big deal out of it, right?”

“They think differently from us. Should I say they’re similar to Nintendo? They don’t think there’s a need to rush to bring in the Mega Drive when the Master System is doing well right now. They’re waiting until they have their game lineup ready. They’re very laid-back.”

“Oh, really? Who is it that you are doing so well thanks to? You don’t even recognize your benefactor. You act so ignorantly.”

“There’s nothing we can do. We all live on the land we stand on. So what about your headquarters? Do you think will fail there too?”

“I guess so. One month was too much, Isamu. Everyone thinks you’re being impatient and taking too many risks because you’re in such a hurry to meet performance targets. That Korean CEO blew himself up because he was too much.”

“No, it’s definitely not suicide. If you saw me working in a hotel room like that, you wouldn’t say that.”

“That story again? Yeah, I get that they’re being proactive. But they seem more desperate to me.”

“But I saw it. I saw them build a test stage in just one night.”

“Yes, the CPU is now being used quite a bit, so that’s fine. However, even our Sega developers have a hard time dealing with the VDP for MD graphics. I don’t know how they were able to make the character move in one night, but the actual game is much more complicated.”

Nishikawa couldn’t refute his friend’s words. In reality, what he saw was only a test stage.

“I haven’t seen the game myself, but it’s a burning theater, a car chase, and a spectacular production. You’re saying you’re going to port that in a month with a development kit you’ve never touched before? Sorry, but I’m skeptical. It’s impossible. We’re just getting used to the MD system.”

“Do you think so too?”

“I’m sorry. But I think you have some kind of illusion. I don’t know what you saw in Korea, but a month is impossible. Even if you finish it in a month, it will probably be a half-baked game that doesn’t properly capture the fun parts of the game. So don’t expect too much. The higher your expectations, the greater your disappointment.”

Nishikawa drank his draft beer in silence.

He put his glass down with a thud!

“Are you angry, Isamu?”

“Everyone was like that back then too.”

“Huh? What are you talking about?”

“When I said that I had to sell the Master System to Europe and South America, everyone said the same thing. Nishikawa is stepping in again. He’s so anxious about the results that he says anything. Nishikawa lives in illusions.”

“But, Isamu, this time, just like that time···”

“No, it’s not different. In fact, I feel more confident now than I did then. CEO Seo Nam-joon is completely different from other game developers I’ve met. What should I say? He’s not a person with common sense.”

“Common sense doesn’t work? I guess you’re just the type of person.”

“Then I am honored.”

Nishikawa, on the other hand, smiled pleasantly.

Almost no one in the company believed that StarBeat would be successful in transplanting.

Nishikawa, who had been shaking with anxiety, regained his composure.

‘Even at this moment, Korea is working hard to transplant MD. I must not be the first to give up here.’

He made up his mind. After about two weeks, an airmail arrived from Korea.

This was the design of the new Japanese character ‘Isamu’ in . He was huge and wore a school uniform, but his right arm was torn, revealing his muscles.

‘also!’

As he thought, Starbeat never gave up or made a game half-heartedly.

Nishikawa assumed that the port of would be released on time, and instructed that the game’s production and distribution be inspected and that marketing be prepared to begin immediately.

“But sir, if we fail like this….”

“Think about it the other way around. If we succeed, but we’re late and can’t release the game on time, what are we going to do then? Can we blame others for the Mega Drive not selling?”

Nishikawa persuaded his employees, and sometimes gave them strong orders, while preparing for the launch behind the scenes.

He was already destined to be on the same boat as .

But even before the promised 30 days had passed, I received a call from Seo Nam-joon asking me to set up a meeting.

“Huh? It hasn’t even been a month yet, and you’re already saying that? Since you promised for 30 days, wouldn’t it be better to fulfill the entire period?”

“No. I think it would be better to show you how fast we can do it if we put our minds to it. And if we find anything to improve during the meeting, we may have to make some revisions.”

“Okay, then I’ll prepare for the meeting.”

When Nishikawa requested a meeting, Sega was once again in an uproar over the Fist of Jongno issue.

After Seo Nam-joon left, Star Beat and were issues of great interest even within Sega. Of course, most people thought it was absolutely impossible.

“You already did it? It hasn’t even been a month yet?”

“I thought you’d give up. You seem to have quite a bit of grit.”

“No. How much of a rag did you have to make the game to say it’s finished already?”

“Right. You said it was a Korean company? Do you think they even know what a game is?”

“The day when Managing Director Nishikawa will be completely embarrassed is not far off.”

No one took the transplant seriously. It was at best just gossip in the company.

The conflict between the development headquarters and Nishikawa has reached a point where it can no longer be hushed up.

And finally, that day came.

As soon as he got to work, Nishikawa went to see Managing Director Yamada at dawn.

It was still before work time.

Executive Director Yamada was the one who, representing the development headquarters, refused to transplant at the last meeting.

“What’s going on?”

Executive Director Yamada asked with a cold look in his eyes. Behind him were framed images of the titles of many arcade classics released by Sega.

It was almost like a room where the history of Sega arcade games was gathered together.

Nishikawa stood in front of Managing Director Yamada and bowed deeply without saying a word.

“What? Out of the blue in the morning?”

“I have come to you because I have something I really want to ask you, dear Managing Director.”

“What is that? Are you saying that you want to save face even if you bring a game that is like a dog-eat-dog game?”

“No, that’s not true. I know very well that the managing director doesn’t like me. I work hard for the company in my own way, but I also know very well that I’m not satisfactory in the eyes of the managing director.”

Executive Director Yamada leaned back in his comfortable chair and looked at Nishikawa. His eyes seemed to be searching for what he was going to do.

“Today’s meeting is a very important one that can help rekindle the flame of the Mega Drive, which is lacking in games. I earnestly request that you put aside your feelings about me for a moment and only look at the game and make a wise decision.”

“Is that what you came here to talk about? So if the game is a mess, you’ll accept whatever I say?”

“The managing director is the best game expert in Sega. That means he is the best expert in Japan, and the world. If the managing director sees the game as a mess, I think it can’t be helped. However, I am worried that his feelings toward me will cloud his view of the game. That is my only concern.”

Nishikawa said politely.

Managing Director Yamada stared at Nishikawa.

“What are you doing, coming into someone else’s room out of the blue in the morning? Who said you hate Janie? Where did you hear that weird thing? Of course, I’ll just watch the game and make a judgment. So, just get out.”

“Thank you. Thank you, sir!”

Nishikawa bowed his head several times. As he was about to leave, Executive Director Yamada called him again.

“Hey, Director Nishikawa. Why on earth are you doing this? It’s just a Korean game.”

“It doesn’t matter if it’s Korea, Japan, or the US. I just think about whether it’s a fun game? What’s best for our Mega Drive? That’s all I think about.”

Nishikawa greeted him and left Managing Director Yamada’s room.

He went straight to the airport to greet Seo Nam-joon and his group. Seo Nam-joon entered the country carrying a black briefcase and smiled brightly at Nishikawa.

“Thank you for your hard work making the game.”

“Thank you for your hard work. I was able to finish it safely thanks to you, sir.”

“How about the game?”

“The preparation is perfect.”

Seo Nam-joon tapped his briefcase with a confident voice.

Seo Nam-joon arrived at Sega headquarters and waited in the conference room for a moment before asking Nishikawa a question.

“Would you like to try the game in advance, sir?”

“No. I will watch it with others in the conference room.”

Nishikawa, who had been thinking for a moment, shook his head.

While I was waiting, time seemed to pass more slowly.

But no matter how slow it is, time still flows.

The meeting to decide whether or not Sega would publish began on time.

***

I stood again in the conference room where I first presented to Sega executives and employees.

The conference room layout was the same as before. The only difference was that instead of an arcade cabinet, there was a Mega Drive.

The atmosphere in the conference room was not much different from that day. The Sega executives and staff kept their faces as expressionless as possible, but they could not completely erase the faint smiles of confidence in victory.

“Hello. This is Starbeat CEO Seo Nam-jun. As promised, I have completed porting to Mega Drive within a month.”

“So, how was it when you tried it yourself? Was it difficult?”

Sega President Tanaka asked.

“No. The Mega Drive is such a great console that we were able to work on it without much difficulty. Also, I know that there were many Sega employees here who were concerned and encouraged us. I think it was probably thanks to that.”

The expressions on the faces of the Sega employees flickered faintly. Some even snorted quietly.

“Games aren’t something you talk about. Then, I’ll show you ported to Mega Drive right now.”

I took the black 007 briefcase I had brought with me out onto the desk with a loud noise and pressed the lever forcefully.

In the quiet conference room, the lock was released with a click!

All eyes were focused on the bag.

I took out the black MD ROM pack with the title written in Japanese and showed it to President Tanaka and the Sega executives.

Then I put the ROM pack into the Mega Drive, which had ’16-BIT’ written in gold, and turned it on.

The Starbeat logo appeared with a clean sound, and a title screen that was simpler than the arcade version appeared.

“The MD transplant version removes the Hong Kong-woo character from the original, and adds a Japanese character instead. A new character, Isamu, a high school student who is still immature but has a burning desire to become a knight, appears. Today, I will show you the game with the Isamu character.”

“You ported the game in a month and even added a new character?”

“Isamu Ramen…? Isn’t that Director Nishikawa’s name?”

The conference room was buzzing.

They seemed a little shocked, as they had no idea that I would create something with a new character.

I held the Mega Drive pad and pressed the start button to start the game. The Mega Drive had three buttons: A, B, and C. They corresponded to punches, kicks, and jumps, respectively.

People held their breath and focused on the screen.

Thud thud!

Isamu, who had found a shabby bar carrying his friend’s remains, grabbed the right arm of his school uniform and tore it off. The sturdy muscles of his arm twitched powerfully on the screen.

– Avenging your friend is true patriotism!

Isamu, who has been wandering around without being able to learn anything in depth, and who fights without a pedigree, with a mishmash of karate, judo, wrestling, and back-alley fighting, would blow the lion’s roar every time he showed off his signature move.

It was a line that symbolized Isamu, a hot-blooded young man who wanted to be a knight and would recognize anyone who was strong and had a similar mind.

In an era dominated by militarism, imperialism, and totalitarianism, he was a character who symbolized the conscience of an individual, even though he was a back-alley fighter.

“This is… almost exactly the same as the arcade game I saw back then?”

“Is this really possible? In just one month?”

“Are you sure that what you developed is correct?”

As the game progressed, I could hear the bewildered voices of Sega employees.

Surprise. Shock. Wonder. Bewilderment. Doubt.

They were almost in a panic as the transplanted game, which they had thought would be a mess, turned out so well and smoothly.

Even the face of Director Yamada, who had rejected us the most, was wrinkled.

A deep wrinkle had formed on his forehead from the start, and he was frowning and clenching his teeth.

Was he hurt by his pride? Or was he just surprised because it was so unexpected?

It wasn’t easy to figure out his true intentions. But whatever he thought, one thing was certain: there were only more surprises ahead.

“The overall stage configuration is the same as the arcade game, with five stages. However, the volume of each stage has inevitably been reduced. Now, let’s move on to Stage 2.”

“wait for a sec!”

At that moment, Executive Director Yamada raised his hand and shouted in a heavy voice.

I paused the game and looked at Managing Director Yamada.

Everyone’s eyes turned to him in the unexpected situation. Managing Director Nishikawa’s face was tense and tense.

“I’m really sorry to interrupt your meeting, but sir, can I try playing that game myself?”

Managing Director Yamada asked President Tanaka. President Tanaka turned his head to me.

“You should ask the person doing the demonstration. What do you think? Is that okay?”

I rolled my eyes slightly and looked at Managing Director Nishikawa. He nodded.

“Of course. Please sit here.”

I gave up my seat to Managing Director Yamada.

Yamada, who runs Sega’s game research and development department, took the pad in my place.

The game started again without me having time to figure out what he was up to.