Game Market 1983

Chapter 90: The Birth of the Super Family

Since that day.

Gunpei, the second-in-command of Mintendo, couldn't even attend the Super Marigi 3 release event, as he was fully committed to a new development project.

The project newly started for the Super Family was named Super Marigi World. Thanks to the new generation hardware, Marigi was reborn with more dynamic and sharp 2D graphics, powered by new sprite capabilities.

However, perhaps due to the tight production schedule, Super Marigi World seemed remarkably similar to its predecessor, Super Marigi 3.

The stage structure, known for its side-scrolling style, was carried over to this World version, and the raccoon tail that once allowed you to briefly take to the skies was now replaced with a cape, letting you soar freely in the air.

But even he couldn't help but feel self-conscious about how similar the gameplay was to the previous Super Marigi 3.

He wanted to help Shige if possible, but in reality, both Kang and Gunpei were struggling, thanks to the whims of President Kamauichi.

It was all due to Kamauichi's ever-changing moods.

Despite receiving proper confirmation just last week, the next week, they kept suspending it for reevaluation due to higher unit prices.

"Damn it, how many times is this going to happen..."

Throwing the rejected approval documents, he scratched his head, and just then, Gunpei entered my room.

"Kang Jun. You're here."

"Gunpei, what's going on?"

"How about we take a break and have some tea to cool our heads?"

"Sounds good. I was on the verge of losing it."

"Haha, I didn't tell you, but when I was creating Gamboy, I was just like you."

"Oh, really? Gunpei, you're impressive. How did you manage to deal with President Kamauichi's fickle nature?"

"It seems I've learned a few tricks from serving President Kamauichi for a long time."

"Tricks?"

"Follow me; we'll discuss over some tea."

"Alright."

A while later, Gunpei and I stopped by a tea house near our lunch spot.

The tea house he guided me to was a traditional Japanese tea and wagashi specialty shop, serving traditional Japanese tea along with sweets, rather than a trendy coffee shop.

"These days, young people often go to coffee shops, but as I'm getting older, I find places like this more to my liking."

I sat across from Gunpei in a small room with tatami mats.

Soon, a server brought a hot cup of green tea along with a beautiful plate of wagashi, a traditional Japanese confectionery. Wagashi, when translated, meant "Japanese sweets." Wagashi were known for their visual appeal, and they emphasized the aesthetic aspect of enjoying food as much as the taste.

The key ingredients were glutinous rice, azuki beans, wheat flour, and natural colorants, resulting in a variety of colorful shapes and flavors.

The wagashi in front of me was so beautiful that it felt almost sacrilegious to eat it.

If Yuki had been here, she would have been thrilled.

"This is the first time I've seen a snack look this sexy."

While lost in thought, Gunpei took a sip of the hot green tea and began to speak.

"Dealing directly with President Kamauichi's approvals, it's not as easy as it seems, right?"

"Indeed. His whims are quite unpredictable."

"Haha... You see, President Kamauichi may appear quite eccentric on the surface, but in reality, he's a bit fearful."

"What? But he has piles of money in the vault and bank accounts. What's there to be afraid of?"

"It's probably because he experienced a lot of failures from a young age. Even though nowadays, the Family almost monopolizes Japan's console market, it wasn't always like this. Many of the businesses he started before were failures."

Ah, so that's why he's so cautious even with a single approval document?

"At 21 years old, after a sudden illness that took his father's life, he inherited Mintendo, but the truth is, back then, running the company wasn't what President Kamauichi truly desired. It was his father's earnest wish for him to take over the business."

"..."

"You may not know this, but Mintendo is famous for not having a direct heir from the very beginning, starting with 'Kamauichi Fūsahiro,' who first opened Mintendo's doors. With no sons to inherit the business, they brought in adopted sons over the generations to pass down the Mintendo card business. And the current President Kamauichi, the one who is inheriting the company now, was the first natural-born son. So, he received strict training to become the successor from a very young age."

"It seems like his way of thinking is quite dictatorial. He was practically born with a silver spoon in his mouth."

"In the early days, President Kamauichi thrived by creating the world's first plastic card deck like Trump, but soon, he hit his limits. He realized that solely in the card manufacturing business, there were limitations to the company's growth. After that, he dabbled in various businesses, from running a motel, making instant noodles, to even starting a taxi company."

"Instant noodles?"

The image of President Kamauichi personally wearing a chef's hat and making noodle dough almost made me burst into laughter.

"After all, it was just instant ramen, but in the end, it was a massive failure. When Mintendo first went public in 1962, the stock price was 980 yen, and it dropped to 60 yen. We were on the brink of bankruptcy."

It was like crawling into the depths of hell, high-fiving a demon, and then climbing back up.

"In that dire situation, we somehow made it this far, thanks to the fun our toys brought to the boss."

"Ah, Ultra Hand, right?"

I made a gesture with both hands, as if gripping something tightly, and Gunpei blushed, looking embarrassed.

"I never thought that something I made from leftover scraps at the factory would become so popular."

"Back then, it must have looked like a fascinating toy to the kids."

"In the beginning of the family business, Kamauichi was quite against it. Even though he was always full of passion and used to challenge new things, he became overly cautious after facing countless trials and tribulations. Perhaps he, too, wants to take it easy during this time. We can't be sure if the new console will be a big opportunity for us or a poison."

Gunpei smiled wistfully and held up the steaming teacup.

A few days later, I requested a meeting with Mr. Kamauichi about the development of the next-generation console.

Even the hot-tempered Mr. Kamauichi, who was always quick to get annoyed, called me to his office with a somewhat puzzled expression.

"Kang, this must be something important if you want to talk to me separately."

"Yeah. I've always been with Gunpei or Shige, so it feels a bit awkward with just the two of us."

"This guy, always has a sharp tongue, huh? Go ahead, tell me what's on your mind."

"There's a saying in Korean, 'It's as cheap as bijitteok.'"

"Hmm? What does that mean?"

"Bijitteok is a type of rice cake made from the remnants of tofu, mixed with rice or wheat flour."

"I see. That sounds delicious."

"In Korea, we use the term 'bijitteok' to refer to something insignificant, just like the leftovers. It's cheaper compared to other rice cakes, and it doesn't fill you up quickly, plus it doesn't keep well."

"Okay, but why are you telling me this?"

"Currently, our Super Family console seems to be heading in that direction."

"What!?"

"Mr. Kamauichi, you've consistently been lowering the cost of the materials. While it does bring profit to the company, if we continue like this, we'll have to pay a lot of attention to post-production quality. After all, the Super Family is a game console for children to play with. It needs to be durable, without any issues."

"Why are you bringing up the already completed controller when we're discussing the console specs?"

The controller, developed even before the Super Family, had a 6-button system with additional Select and Start buttons, totaling 8 buttons and a D-pad for directions.

Mr. Kamauichi initially opposed my idea for a 6-button system, claiming that it was too complex for children to handle. However, I insisted on the 6-button system from the very beginning.

People might think of controllers as simple tools for maneuvering characters on the screen, but the buttons served many more functions than they realized. Beyond the simple "press and release to perform an action" concept, buttons played a significant role in creating numerous variables when designing games.

Pressing the A button, holding it down, pressing it in combination with the B button, or pressing it consecutively, were just a few examples of the many functions hidden within the buttons.

That's why the development department of the Super Family had a hard time with my proposal for the 6-button system from the start.

At that time, simultaneous input wasn't common knowledge, especially since there were many keyboards that couldn't handle it.

Maybe it's not too difficult to understand why such a complex system was hard to grasp.

"I get it. I understand. So, how much do you want?"

"You've been keeping the console's profit margin low and making money through cartridge royalties. Where did you come up with that marketing strategy?"

"I borrowed it from Gillette, the razor company. They sell basic razors at a low cost and make profits through the sale of razor blades."

"Thanks to that, you've made a lot of money from cartridge sales. I read in the newspaper that we made it into the top 10 Japanese companies."

"Well, I can't deny that. It certainly made up for the failures I've had over the years and even brought in extra income."

"You've earned over hundreds of billions in the past five years, haven't you? But it seems like you're still haunted by thoughts of failure."

"This guy... Money is something you should grab onto when you have it. You need to hold onto it tightly."

"Mr. Kamauichi, how much do you think you'll spend for the rest of your life?"

"What?"

"If we assume that a person spends their money on leisure and basic needs from birth until death, how much do you think is enough? 10 billion? 100 billion? Of course, the amount can increase infinitely depending on one's desires, but for an average person who enjoys occasional leisure, isn't 10 billion more than enough? If it were me, I'd probably have plenty left even with 10 billion."

"What are you trying to say?"

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