On the day of the competition, outside a large stadium in downtown Los Angeles, the atmosphere was bustling with people.
CBS's broadcast vehicle was already in position.
Mark Thompson sat primly behind the anchor desk in the CBS studio, meticulously adjusting his tie, his eyes behind his glasses calm and unwavering.
Only he knew that at this moment, his heart was still filled with strong resistance to this 'unprofessional' task.
"Good evening, viewers, and welcome to CBS's coverage of the Los Angeles DDR City Championship tryouts. We now connect to our field reporter, Sarah Chen, who will tell us about the situation on site."
His opening remarks were as professionally standard as ever, but his voice, compared to when he reported serious news, lacked a certain cadence and had more of a perfunctory tone.
The screen switched, and reporter Sarah Chen's face appeared in the frame.
Behind her was a sea of people at the competition venue.
He connected with field reporter Sarah Chen through his earpiece.
"Sarah, how's the situation on site?"
Sarah Chen's voice carried the 現場noise, but her excitement was palpable.
"Mark, you absolutely can't imagine the atmosphere here! It's packed with people, like a grand party!"
The camera switched to the interior of the venue where Sarah was located.
Dazzling lights, deafening music, and a surging crowd instantly filled the screen.
The contestants wore various outfits; some were in professional dancer attire, while others wore casual everyday clothes, but everyone's face was beaming with excitement and anticipation.
On the judges' panel, several dance experts who appeared quite professional sat upright.
Sarah's voice carried a hint of excitement, infected by the atmosphere.
"The contestants' skill levels are also quite high, and the judges' panel has invited several well-known local dance experts from Los Angeles."
Mark nodded politely, cleared his throat, and began his broadcast, which he found tedious and uninteresting.
"Good afternoon, audience friends, we are now live broadcasting the tryouts for the DDR Los Angeles City Championship."
His tone was steady, yet carried a hint of formulaic perfunctoriness.
However, as the competition progressed, the performances of some contestants began to surprise him.
They weren't just mechanically stepping on arrows.
Many skillfully integrated difficult street dance moves, Latin dance spins, and even the elegant postures of ballet into their DDR dance steps.
The arrow indicators on the game screen seemed to become a catalyst for them to showcase their personal dance talent.
That kind of body coordination, that kind of stage charisma perfectly synchronized with the music rhythm, made Mark have a slight change of opinion about this game for the first time.
The live broadcast proceeded in an orderly fashion.
Suddenly, the director's urgent voice came through the earpiece.
"Mark! Mark! The ratings! The ratings exploded!"
Mark frowned slightly, subconsciously turned off his microphone, and whispered into the communicator, "Calm down, Bob, what's going on? Don't be so jumpy." He thought the director was teasing him.
"It's true, Mark! Our ratings for this time slot are rising at an astonishing rate! They've already surpassed the ratings for the pre-season football game on the other channel!"
The atmosphere in the studio instantly froze.
Several staff members who had been quietly chatting were now staring wide-eyed in disbelief, with only the faint hum of machinery filling the air.
Immediately after, the front desk phones began ringing one after another.
Viewers kept calling, asking for detailed information about the competition and even requesting the TV station to arrange a rerun.
Mark Thompson was stunned.
He looked at the young people on the screen, sweating and dancing freely, and at the fervent cheers of the audience below.
Then he recalled the incredible ratings data the director had mentioned.
A strong shock impacted his preconceived notions.
This "game of dancing and stepping on arrows" that he had always scorned seemed to contain a huge energy that he had not perceived.
He began to seriously examine everything on the screen.
Taking advantage of a commercial break, Mark immediately connected with Sarah, his tone unconsciously becoming much more serious: "Sarah, interview a few more outstanding contestants, and also the judges. I want to know their thoughts on DDR, why they came to compete, their backstories, the more detailed, the better."
After hanging up the call, Mark quickly instructed his assistant: "Quick, find me more information about DDR, about street dance culture, esports, and the background information of those dance experts on the judging panel, as fast as possible!"
In the subsequent broadcast, Mark's tone clearly showed genuine emotion.
He began to combine the newly acquired information, attempting to introduce the cultural origins of different dance steps in DDR, analyze the technical characteristics and on-the-spot reactions of the contestants, and even make simple comments on the completion of some difficult moves.
He began to understand, more or less, why this seemingly simple game could attract so many people to devote themselves to it and go crazy over it.
He realized that this was not just a game; this program, this competition, might be Mark Thompson's excellent opportunity to shed his "unlucky guy" label and make a spectacular comeback.
The Los Angeles City Championship concluded successfully amidst cheers.
When the ratings report came out that night, the entire CBS television station was shaken.
The DDR live broadcast not only crushed all competitors in the same time slot but also set the highest viewership record for that time slot in the past six months.
Mark Thompson's name was for the first time closely associated with terms like "ratings miracle" and "phenomenal program."
He keenly realized that the potential of DDR, and the energy of the emerging field of esports, had not yet been fully uncovered.
And he, it seemed, had unexpectedly stepped onto the crest of a new wave.
The next morning, Mark proactively knocked on the door of the department head's office.
"I suggest producing an in-depth interview program for the Los Angeles City Champion."
"And, within this week, arrange at least two reruns of the competition."
"More importantly," Mark looked at the supervisor, his eyes firm, "regarding the upcoming Global Finals, I believe CBS should strive with all our might for full coverage, including live broadcast rights for the Tokyo Finals."
The supervisor looked at Mark, his expression complex.
He knew that many people in the station were already eyeing this suddenly popular "hot commodity" that was DDR.
Some colleagues who had previously disdained this project, and even waited to see Mark fail, were now actively trying to get a piece of this huge success.
The supervisor tentatively asked, "Then for the interview and rerun, I'll arrange it for Mark—" Before the supervisor could finish, Mark interrupted his probing.
"Sir, I was the first to see its potential, and I was the one who captured the audience's hearts during the live broadcast. Of course, I will be responsible for the interviews and reruns."
Ultimately, Mark argued his case based on the fact that he was initially "forced" to take on this project and his impeccable professional performance during the live broadcast. The television station executives, moved by DDR's astonishing ability to generate revenue and buzz, also recognized Mark's outstanding performance in this coverage.
They agreed to Mark's subsequent plan.
Mark Thompson successfully retained the leading role in the DDR series coverage.
Walking out of the supervisor's office, Mark let out a long sigh of relief.
His team had already begun intensive preparations for the exclusive interview with the Los Angeles DDR champion.
Meanwhile, in over a dozen other cities around the world, the flames of the DDR City Championship were burning fiercely.