1988 Retro Game Tycoon - Chapter 98



Only Noblemtl

Episode 98 – The Three Kings of the Arcade

The hot summer has passed and the harvest season, fall, has arrived.

After a period of chaos in responding to the explosive influx of local arcade demand, the company has returned to a period of stability.

Although the excitement of dopamine and adrenaline is good, staying in that state for too long is not good.

Especially for a development organization like ours that must constantly develop new games, continued excitement can actually hinder development.

When the surroundings are noisy, it is difficult to calmly concentrate on one’s own thoughts.

Fortunately, humans are creatures of adaptation, and after reorganizing the sales organization, the company also regained psychological stability.

In the meantime, cash continued to pour into the company’s account.

We weren’t the only ones who received cash baptism.

The owner of Gangnam Computer Arcade smiled and said that after introducing eight A1 boards, the arcade’s profits increased noticeably.

“At first, people would only gather at and the arcade would be a bit chaotic, but these days, they’re slowly looking around at other games as well. Now that the customers are getting used to the games, they seem to have more time to relax. Thanks to that, business is going much better.”

That’s why killer titles are important in arcades.

If there is a killer game that draws people in, they will initially be drawn to that game. However, it is rare for them to go to the arcade and play just that game.

Even after the game is over, you end up wandering around to see if there’s anything else fun to do, and then you start getting interested in a new game.

It’s hard to get people to come to the arcade, but once they do, they’re bound to spend a coin or two.

Naturally, the existence of a killer title has a huge impact on the profits of the entire arcade.

became a killer title in Korean arcades in just one month due to its explosive popularity. The arcades sucked in countless coins like a black hole, and some of those coins flowed back to Myeongseong Capital in the form of interest.

Every time Myungsung Capital increases the lease contract by one, we sell one A1 board to Myungsung Capital, so our company’s bank account also gets fatter.

As the coin turned, the triangle formation of Star Beat, Arcade, and Myeongseong Capital was all satisfactory.

We dug deep into the Korean arcade in one breath and started to solidify ourselves.

In September, when the weather has become quite cool, we have released and for arcades in succession.

Before releasing the two games, I decided to conduct a beta test in several arcades, including Gangnam Computer Arcade, which had installed a large number of A1 boards.

Most of the owners readily accepted my request. It was not a bad deal for the arcade since they could see the reaction in advance.

However, the owner of the Gangnam computer arcade showed a somewhat indifferent reaction.

“Well. is okay because it’s baseball. isn’t my style. There are hot and intense games like , so do I really need to bring them into my arcade?”

“ is a killer title, but an arcade can’t do business with just that. It needs supporting titles. I felt that way when I came here with my youngest last time, but the old man’s arcades only have really strong games. They’re all flashy, new games, so it’s hard for people who just want to have fun to go.”

“How arrogant. Are you teaching me, who has been running an arcade for 10 years, to make games? Doesn’t anyone know that? It’s because there aren’t many arcade machines that can be put in an arcade. Do you know how much I worry every time I put a game in there and take it out?”

“Of course, your arcade is great. It’s the best in Gangnam, and probably the best in Korea. But it’s also true that the owner’s personality is too strong. If you balance it out a little more, you’ll be able to attract a lot more customers. Try it out with .”

“Hmm···.”

“If is a solid noodle that gathers customers, is a game that goes well with kimchi or radish kimchi. Just as a killer title that draws you in, a game that can support it is also important. Try it out, thinking you’ll be fooled.”

“Okay, but just for a week.”

The owner of Gangnam Computer Arcade reluctantly accepted the beta test for .

And the owner immediately felt the change.

“Huh? What is this? Is this the ?”

“When did you come out to the arcade? Oh~, the graphics have really changed.”

“I tried this game at home. I think I can do it too.”

In Korea, held a very special place among gamers. It didn’t matter whether they had a Gemix V or a O-Sung Gemboy at home or not.

was the first purely Korean game to achieve commercial success in Korea.

Starting from Jemix, the sales of , which was transplanted to Oseong Gyeomboy, reached 500,000 copies.

In terms of popular recognition, is ahead, but was the first game to show people with even a passing interest in games that Korean games could be played.

It is a title that is always welcome and a hometown of the heart that you can visit without any burden.

Compared to , which requires proper commands to fully enjoy the game, , which can be played with just one button, is a game that anyone of any age or gender can easily enjoy.

People who visited the arcade to play found and and sat down in front of the game with happy faces.

In an arcade with a fair amount of 16-bit games, if the 8-bit had been there, it might have seemed like an old-fashioned game that was already outdated, although it would have been welcome.

However, we have taken measures to greatly upgrade the graphics of to fit 16-bit, and to enhance the game’s gameplay, including additional stages exclusive to arcades, as well as big jump items that increase jumping power.

proved that arcades also need a game portfolio with diverse genres and compositions.

“What should we do, sir? Should we leave out ?”

“Huh? Hmm, ahem. No, well… Since I already installed it, it’s a hassle to remove it. Just leave it. I tried it myself and it was pretty good.”

The owner of Gangnam Computer Arcade felt embarrassed but eventually decided to bring into the arcade.

“It’s amazing. I installed this and after a few days, I don’t know how they knew, but female customers started coming. They even came and played baseball games with each other.”

“I heard there used to be a women-only arcade in front of Ewha Womans University and Sookmyung Women’s University? There is no distinction between men and women in games. Women like games as long as they have the right games.”

“That’s right. That’s what happened. I think I should reconsider the layout of the arcade. I didn’t know it would turn out like this. Maybe I’ve unknowingly become biased when it comes to games for the past 10 years.”

The arcade owner did not show any pride in the face of the changed sales.

Seeing that they didn’t insist on their own opinions in the face of results, it seemed like Gangnam Computer Arcade would remain stable for another 10 years.

and did not debut in the arcade as flashily as , but they quietly but surely infiltrated the arcade.

When we released the game for the arcade, we didn’t do any special marketing, but sales of the game ROM packs also started to increase.

and , which were born at the end of the 8-bit era, were reborn as 16-bit arcade games and enjoyed a second revival.

Starting with , and , the three games were called the three must-have games for arcades among business owners.

Starbeat no longer needed to prove our presence in the arcade.

Since the founding of Starbeat, we have achieved a great deal in the Korean gaming market. Now, I think it would be safe to say that we have reached a certain level of stability.

Now we can focus on developing new games until CES.

– I thought so.

***

People in the game division of Oseong Electronics were very nervous.

This is because Nishikawa, the managing director of Sega, their most important business partner, visited Osung Electronics. He is an executive in charge of console parts sales and came to Korea to check the situation in Korea.

Oseong Electronics made thorough preparations to welcome Managing Director Nishikawa.

After touring the Gumboy factory on his first day in the country, Managing Director Nishikawa visited the Yongsan Electronics Market the next day.

As I entered Najin Shopping Mall, the main shopping mall in Yongsan Electronics Shopping Mall, I saw Oseong Gyeomboy boxes lined up in the most eye-catching shopping mall area.

“Wow, I didn’t know there was a specialty store like this in Korea.”

“The popularity of Gemboy is quite good in Korea. Hyunmyeong Electronics has been selling the Nintendo Famicom since the beginning of this year, but we are actually ahead in terms of sales.”

“Ah, I see. In Japan, Nintendo is holding on so firmly that there’s no room for us, but I don’t think we’re inferior to Nintendo.”

Managing Director Nishikawa nodded with a satisfied expression.

However, Nishikawa did not know that the stores painted with Gemboy were actually stores that Oseong Electronics had paid the store owners to stack the boxes to impress him.

Osung Electronics’ Director Hwang stayed close to Managing Director Nishikawa, closely marking him so that he could not deviate even one step from the route that Osung Electronics had laid out.

“So what are the current sales figures in Korea?”

“Currently, Gemboy is looking at 250,000 units. We have almost sold out the bundled games we had prepared, so we are placing additional orders.”

Osung Electronics briefly discussed whether to order additional bundled games, but when they saw the popularity of and rekindled once they were installed in the arcade, they decided not to worry any longer.

“Is this the game? ? Hmm… It’s quite high-level.”

Mr. Nishikawa knew that Korea had its own bundled games, but he had never tried them himself.

All I heard from the people in charge was, ‘It’s a very, very good game, better than they thought.’

However, he was surprised when he saw and at the Yongsan Electronics Market. It was not just okay, but much more complete than he had expected.

“Starvitto? This is the first time I’ve heard of this company. Are there any game companies like this in Japan?”

“No, it’s not a Japanese company, it’s a Korean company. It’s the most popular game company in Korea, and in fact, you can think of it as almost the only company that makes games in Korea.”

“Huh? A Korean game company?”

This time, Managing Director Nishikawa was really surprised.

He naturally assumed that Oseong Electronics would have commissioned a slightly less famous game company in Japan to produce a bundled game.

I also expected that would definitely be a copied game. I just hoped that it wouldn’t be too obvious that it was copied.

But when I actually played it, I could immediately tell that it wasn’t a game that imitated monkeys. It was a game made with a solid concept of gaming.

But it’s a game made in Korea.

It was an unbelievable story.

“The bundled games played a big role in the steady sales of the G-Boy without any particular ups and downs. If there were just one or two more hit games, I think it would not only greatly surpass Hyunmyeong Electronics, but also beat Jewoo Electronics and become the number one game console in Korea.”

“How are the game software sales? Are they going smoothly?”

“That is…, unfortunately, the game is in a very disappointing state compared to the console. is doing a little well, but the rest are not living up to expectations.”

“I see. What titles are currently released in Korea?”

Managing Director Nishikawa looked around the store and clicked his tongue inwardly at the poor titles.

It wasn’t necessarily Osung Electronics’ fault for being unprepared. The Sega Master System had few third-party developers and suffered from a chronic lack of titles.

I was confident that Sega’s arcade lineup was good enough.

“I don’t see any must-have titles like yet. Let me tell you about some games separately.”

“Thank you, sir. That will be a great help to us as well.”

After looking around the Yongsan Electronics Market, we went to Gwanghwamun and Gyeongbokgung Palace for sightseeing. Director Hwang wanted to make sure that Nishikawa didn’t learn too much about the situation in Korea.

In this way, Director Nishikawa’s second day’s schedule ended without any problems.

But as we were about to head to the bar we had a reservation at after dinner, Nishikawa suddenly asked me.

“But I’ve come all the way to Korea, but I haven’t been to an arcade yet. There must be an arcade in Korea, too. I’d like to see how many Sega games they have.”

“Are you talking about the arcade?”

“Yes, I’ll just take a quick look around. I’m curious about what games are popular in Korean arcades.”

If Nishikawa wanted to see something else, he said he couldn’t help it because of his planned schedule, but he had no reason to refuse a request to stop by the arcade for a bit.

Director Hwang urgently ordered Nishikawa to find an arcade that he could visit. However, there was no staff member who knew much about arcades.

It would have been embarrassing to invite Sega’s executives to a shabby arcade. Director Hwang quickly called the top expert in the field.

It was Seo Nam-joon.

“Oh, then Gangnam Computer Arcade would be good. It’s big, the atmosphere is bright, and they have a lot of games.”

O Sung Electronics guided Managing Director Nishikawa to the Gangnam Computer Arcade under the guidance of Seo Nam-jun.

“Oh! There’s !”

As soon as he entered the entrance, Nishikawa smiled brightly at the sight of Afterburner 2. It was the brightest expression he had ever had since coming to Korea.

Director Hwang was a little sensitive because the schedule he had prepared had been disrupted, but Managing Director Nishikawa seemed to like it anyway.

I just wanted to quickly play a few games, get him drunk, put him to sleep, and get him on a plane tomorrow.

“hmm···.”

Mr. Nishikawa nodded as he carefully looked around the games in the arcade. Most of them were familiar to him.

“huh?”

But there was a strange scene in Nishikawa’s eyes.

The arcade had eight identical games.

The genre was similar to Golden Axe, but the visuals gave off a Korean and Japanese vibe.

Besides, all 8 of them were playing games so there was no room.

“What game is this that has eight of them?”

“Ah, this game is called .”

“I’ve never heard of this game before. Where was it made? Taito? Capcom? Then there’s no way I wouldn’t know about it.”

“This is also made in Korea. It’s a partner company called Starbeat that supplies the Oseong Gemboy bundle game I mentioned earlier.”

“Huh? This game too?”

If it was just a surprise before, this time it was a shock.

The game seemed to be a level above just by looking at the graphics.

‘Masaka (no way).’

His heart was pounding.

The game even felt elegant and beautiful, with smooth movements and intense action in harmony.

I never thought I would come across such a heart-fluttering game in Korea.

“Sir, if you’ve looked around, I’ll take you to the bar I’ve prepared.”

“No, I’m sorry, but please wait a moment. I really want to try this game.”

Nishikawa had to check if his excitement was real.

Although he was impatient, he waited patiently for others to finish their games.

As soon as a seat opened up, he sat down in front of the game console. Director Hwang quickly put in a coin for him.

‘There are four characters?’

He chose the weakest-looking female character. It wasn’t because he only chose female characters when playing games. It was because he could feel the true difficulty and fun of the game only by playing the weakest character. Anyway, it was true.

Stage 1 has begun.

His mind was half and half.

I half hope the game will be as good as the graphics.

I have a feeling that games made in Korea cannot be as good as Sega games, and that they should not be as good.

‘This is so stupid!’

Nishikawa felt both joy and confusion as he manipulated the stick and buttons with trembling hands.

The excellent control and impact were transmitted to the fingertips. It was fun to watch, but it was ten times more fun to actually do it.

Every time Suzy kicked her opponent with her high heels, revealing her white legs through her torn skirt, Nishikawa felt a strange pleasure stabbing his heart.

I couldn’t believe that a game like this was made in Korea, a complete outskirts of the gaming industry.

“Sir, I have a favor to ask.”

“Yes, go ahead.”

“I’d like to go to Stabitto. Can you reserve a seat for me?”

“yes?”

Director Hwang barely managed to hold back his expression from crumpling. His plan to just let them go sightseeing and then send them back home quietly ended up going awry.

Same time.

The owner of the Gangnam computer arcade, holding a fly swatter in one hand and an Epquila in the other, was looking at the crowd of men in suits gathered around .

“You really have to live long to see this. Now even Japanese people come to our arcade. Ah! You damn mosquito!”

He muttered to himself and sprayed Epquila at the mosquitoes.

As he swatted away the pesky autumn mosquitoes, he soon forgot about the suiters.

I never dreamed that they would be high-ranking officials from Sega and Osung Electronics.

1988 Retro Game Tycoon Episode 99