As Takuya returned to Tokyo from Yokohama and stepped into the Sales Command Center, a wave of heat mixed with coffee, sweat, and excitement washed over him.
The numbers on the whiteboard were still glaring, but everyone's gaze was no longer focused there.
They were anticipating new achievements.
The head of Development Team One, a somewhat unkempt tech geek, was now proudly wrapping his arm around the Sales Supervisor's neck, waving a fax paper in his hand.
"How about that? Didn't I tell you Fujita was my best classmate?
We developed a software together in college and even sold it for some money, so he took the money his family gave him and opened a software company!"
"Fujita? Which Fujita?" Someone from the Marketing Department leaned over to ask.
"Fujita Masaya of NCS!" The team leader slapped the fax paper on the table.
"They agreed! They're officially our third party! They even said their studio, Masaya, is very interested in the MD's capabilities!"
"Masaya..." A young planner mumbled the name, as if remembering, and asked, "Is that the Masaya that released 'Elthlead' on PC?
Their games are pretty good!"
Takuya listened, thought carefully, and his eyes lit up.
NCS!
At first glance, many people might not recognize this company, but when it comes to two games, many readers would definitely know them: 'Front Mission' and 'Langrisser (Mew Simulation Battle)'.
The ACT 'Assault Suits' developed by Masaya, a game studio under this company, was the predecessor of 'Front Mission'.
Of course, this 'Assault Suits' is not the RPG 'MetaIMaS eries' developed by Hiroshi Miyaoka of CREA-TECH.
And 'Langrisser' is an SRPG familiar to players in his previous life.
'Elthlead', mentioned by the planner earlier, is precisely the predecessor of 'Langrisser'.
"Exactly!" The team leader slapped his thigh.
"Fujita said they are conceiving a new SRPG, and the FC's capabilities simply can't handle it; our MD is practically tailor-made for them!"
Before the clamor here subsided, the President's secretary walked in quickly and handed a document directly to the Sales Supervisor.
The Command Center instantly fell silent, everyone saw that the President's secretary brought it directly from upstairs.
The Sales Supervisor's hands trembled slightly as he read word by word, his expression changing from solemn to ecstatic.
He looked up, his voice changing tone: "It's Konami!"
He didn't need to say more.
Everyone held their breath.
"Executive Director Nakayama — secured it!" The Sales Supervisor almost roared.
"Konami's first MD game, 'contra'!"
"Oh!!!"
A long-suppressed roar erupted in the Command Center.
If NCS was securing an elite special forces unit, then Konami's addition was equivalent to an entire heavy armored division joining!
The popularity of 'contra' in arcades was well-known, and its sales on the FC were also enviable, not to mention Konami's long list of high-quality games developed.
Takuya leaned against the wall, listening to the cheers, a smile on his face.
As expected, his father's involvement was a sure thing.
Just then, the international fax machine in the corner also "beeped" and spat out a long strip of paper.
The overseas liaison rushed over, tore off the fax, his speaking speed as fast as rap: "North America! EA! Hawkins agreed!
They are going to develop an Olympic-themed sports game for the MD, as the main cannon fodder for the EASports brand!"
One major news after another greatly boosted the morale of everyone in the Command Center.
Watching everyone dancing with joy, Takuya shook his head, brewed a cup of coffee, and returned to his office.
Before he could even sit down, the phone on his desk rang.
He picked up the phone.
"Moshi Moshi."
"Executive Director Nakayama, this is Mitsui from Bandai."
The other party's tone was very polite, "Regarding the MD platform, President Yamashina is very interested and would like to invite you to our company tomorrow for a detailed discussion."
"Okay, no problem." Takuya's voice was calm and unruffled.
Hanging up the phone, he returned to the Sales Command Center, saw the Sales Supervisor had just finished writing the names of the three collaborating developers, walked over, and patted his shoulder.
"Here," Takuya pointed to a blank space next to NCS, "leave a spot."
He paused, tapping lightly on the whiteboard with his index finger's knuckle.
"For Bandai.
Wait for my good news tomorrow."
The next day, Takuya Nakayama's Mazda RX-7 parked in front of Bandai's headquarters.
Mitsui Chuta was already waiting in the lobby on the first floor.
Seeing Takuya, he immediately went up to him, his attitude significantly more enthusiastic than last time.
"Executive Director Nakayama, you've arrived.
The President and all the supervisors are already waiting for you in the conference room."
Takuya followed Mitsui Chuta into the conference room, where the lineup was exactly the same as during the last discussion about 'super robot assembly'.
President Yamashina Makoto sat at the head of the table, flanked by executives from various departments, among whom the Development Department Head's troubled face was still vivid in Takuya's memory.
Upon seeing Takuya, everyone stood up and nodded in greeting, the atmosphere polite with a hint of urgency.
"Executive Director Nakayama, please have a seat." Yamashina Makoto gestured with his hand.
Takuya sat down, placed his briefcase aside, and did not rush to take out any documents.
Yamashina Makoto cleared his throat and spoke first: "Executive Director Nakayama, first of all, I must congratulate Sega on its brilliant achievements.
The first week's sales of the MD console were truly—shocking."
Takuya smiled: "President Yamashina, are you referring to the results up to last week, or yesterday's?"
Everyone in the conference room was stunned for a moment.
Takuya leaned slightly forward, his hands clasped on the table, his tone as relaxed as if he were chatting: "Just yesterday, our company confirmed several new partners.
Konami has decided to make 'contra' their first game on the MD platform.
EA from America has also officially joined, preparing to develop a major Olympic-themed sports game.
Oh, and by the way, NCS and their Masaya studio have also joined; Mr. Fujita Masaya is very interested in the MD's capabilities."
A series of names, each like a bombshell, exploded in the small conference room.
Konami! That was a heavyweight player in the Nintendo camp!
The Development Department Head's face grew even more troubled; he knew better than anyone what these companies meant in terms of technology and reputation.
Yamashina Makoto, as expected of someone in charge of a large enterprise, quickly regained his composure, though the solemnity in his eyes deepened.
"It seems Sega's circle of friends is expanding rapidly." He stopped beating around the bush and cut straight to the point, "We, Bandai, also hope to become a member of this circle of friends.
However, as you know, our company's situation..." He glanced at the Development Department Head beside him, "Our strength lies in IP, and our game development technical capabilities—still have a lot of room for improvement."
These words were spoken frankly, even with a hint of self-revelation.
The Development Department Head's expression became even more constrained.