7 EP. 3: A toy company called Mintendo. (1)

For the next month, I lived like a tourist visiting Japan. Tokyo's landscape looked a lot like Seoul in the 1990s. Well, at the time, the trend was 10 years ahead of our country, so it's not surprising that we feel the same.

“Hmm! I'm bored that I don't have a cell phone.”

Oh, by the way, Japan is not a Haysei, it's a show and an era... It feels very different to think of it that way. I arrived at Akihabara Station with a bite of ice cream for sale on the street.

Before Otaku culture began, Akihabara felt a strange heterogeneity in pure e-commerce with no maid cafe or cosplay. Wherever she visited in 2013, Akihabara was filled with game posters and animated characters, and every few steps, shoppers selling games or comic books were busy, now just PC-related products (also personal computers).) or a small radio. (It was the size of a head) And there was a walkman the size of a fist with tape in it.

“Is the family launch event ready yet? I knew it was today. ”

I walked around Akihabara on a crowded weekend. The game content business was not yet active, so it was unlikely to find a professional gaming store like in the 2000 's. Why don't we just set up a game store? I don't think that's bad either.

No? If you came all the way out here to sell your stuff from Mintendo, what would the old man think of me?

Now that I think about it, isn't the old man I met a god? I thought about it. To help rebuild the collapsing gaming industry... if I'm reading all the trends about the future, can I give the users a better game in 2015 that will be welcomed in the distant future?

What do I do now to do that? I first took out the game & watch to get information about the family issue.

- Mintendosa's family, released July 15, 1983...

“Today's the day.”

I was eating ice cream flipping the page with my fingers, and there was a strange beat somewhere.

“Huh? Did you just...? ”

Phew... I found it! I hurried the ice cream into the trash. The direction in which the sound was heard was far from where Softmab, a second-hand gaming trading company, would enter. Small shops line up now, but the buildings line up in the late '90s. And that's where I met Atari's next great game machine for wrinkling in the 1980s.

If there's one thing that breaks... I didn't know the first game console was a street stall.

“Ira Shaimase! Ira Shaimase!”

Rather than being a professional salesperson, Mintendo's corporate staff was rolling up their shirts and promoting them. However, in contrast to their enthusiasm, the public's reaction was tremendously slow. But I thought mintendo, who released the game & watch, would start a fire from the very beginning, but this is exactly the opposite of what I expected...

The collapse of the gaming industry left Atari in shock was enormous. Of course, when Atarisa initially created a market where anyone could freely create games with open source tools, the user's reaction quickly subsided as unfinished games poured into the marketplace, targeting only the interests in front of them. But I never thought that aftermath would reach Japan so quickly across the Pacific.

“Welcome! This is the next generation of 8-bit gaming machines from our very own Mintendosa. Enjoy it all!”

I approached the temple in front of an advocate on the throne and smiled and asked. Of course, in front of me was a rather crude family of designs mixed with red and white.

“Are they selling a lot? ”

“Yes? Welcome, sir. Would you like to play it? This is our new 8-bit game machine from Mintendo. ”

Why is the word eight bits so funny? I accepted the controller the employee handed over. Whoops, the controller line is too short!! In 2015, the console was powered by Bluetooth wireless, so it was easy to sit on the couch and play games from afar, but the initial family model was forced to combine 1P and 2P controllers into the game console. Ultimately, it was designed to make gaming a reality in front of the Brown Tube TV.

I really don't understand what kind of maniac built this. At this point, they wouldn't have realized it was a monster machine that was going to be sold to close to 70 million people around the world. It's a home console made of profit simply because the game & watch is in play, so the initial expectations were not high even in Mintendo.

The family was launched with a total of three games, including Popeye and two series of Dongking Com. There were many third-party gaming companies that made games in Japan, such as NEGA and CAMCO, but this was a time when families, the newest gaming machines, were all producing substrates for the arcade market.

“How many have you sold so far? ”

“Oh, well, not yet.”

Huh! It's almost 1: 00 in the afternoon and you haven't sold any yet?

“How much is this now? ”

“Yes. 14,800 yen. ”

Expensive. 14,800 yen in 1983... But Sally can't pay enough for an unverified first-generation console. I first sat outside in front of a little television set. Then people passing by started staring at me.

“Can you turn on the comic book, please? ”

“Yes, I understand. ”

The employee opened the lid of the cartridge insert, plugged in the black cartridge, and powered up. Pico Pico. At the bottom of the screen, the Italian woman in the red hat was climbing up the hill with a giant sledgehammer.

The game is over by avoiding the wooden barrels thrown from above or smashing them with a hammer and climbing to the top and defeating them. I tried to jump by moving Maridge from side to side with a glancing smile. Every time I passed the log, elasticity poured out of the mouths of those around me.

“Oh...”

A happy smile was heard from the sound of the sound of the jump from band to band.

“Ooooo!! ”

After easily completing the first stage, the Mintendo staff tilted their heads and asked me.

“You're very good. ”

“I've been in the game center a lot, so I just got used to it. I'll buy Popeye and Dongkingcomb with my family. ”

“The first customer of our mintendo family. Thank you!! ”

I'm the first customer to buy this legendary gaming machine... How strange. Then an employee picked up the camera and asked me.

“Hey, do you mind if I take a picture? ”

It's a historic photograph! Not bad! Then I heard a little voice behind my back.

“Mom!! I want that too!!! ”

“No. Takashi, you promised your mom you'd watch for a while. ”

“Still... I can do better than that brother!! ”

What? The kid's got balls. I smiled bloody and asked the child.

“Kid, what's your name? ”

“Takashi Toshiyuki. ”

Takashira Toshiyuki... Where did you hear that? I took out the game & watch for a moment and looked at the information of a man named Toshiyuki. Ah! I see. Is this the first pro-gamer to be called the Takashi Muse in the future? Super player to become the master of Speed Clear in the Wonder Boy game released in 1994. I looked at him casually and asked.

“Do you like games? ”

“Yes!! I love it!! ”

“Really? Then I'll give it to you. Give me another one of those kids, too. ”

Then Takashi's mother surprised me and tried to stop me.

“You don't have to do that.”

“It's okay. I like it. It's okay. Take it.”

I stroked my head, handing Takashi one of the game machines that the Mintendo staff brought.

“Have fun. ”

“Thank you, brother. Thank you so much! ”

“Hey, what about your picture? ”

“Take a picture of your first purchase with her. Later on, there will be more gratitude for this child in Mintendo. ”

“Yes? I don't know what you mean.”

“Just know that it's going to happen. ”

I bought a few more games & watches from the stands in Mintendo that day and returned to the hotel where I stayed. On the corner of the morning newspaper from the hotel the next day, Takashi had a small picture of him smiling brightly with a family box in his hand.

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