Game Development Giant

"I just saw you playing "American Cube" with all your concentration. You can forget about your hunger for the time being. I clearly felt that you felt happy from it. Isn't that the essence of video games? Simply provide people with joy!"

"I was just thinking, a middle-aged man in his forties and a designer who has played countless games can still get happiness and laughter from the game, let alone other people? If this is the case, then How could the game die?”

Jester spoke very sincerely, and his rhetorical question, like the previous question, caused his father and Mark Saini to fall into deep thought.

Yes, how could the game die!

After a long time, it wasn't until the first dish of sweet and sour pork was served that Jester's father spoke up and broke the silence.

"Actually, when I was at home just now, Mark and I were discussing future matters... I'm afraid it will be difficult for Atari to have another chance. I worked there in 1974 for a full ten years..." Jester's His father's tone was a little lonely and desolate, but Jester heard a different meaning from his father's words. He had made up his mind to leave Atari.

"Jace, what do you think we go to Japan?" Jester's father looked at Jester seriously and asked a question, "Sega's American branch has asked me, Mark and many software developers in the company The hardware engineer sent an invitation, hoping that we would go to Japan’s Sega parent company to continue developing game software and hardware. As you know, I love this industry and I don’t want to give up if I can.”

Jester's throat moved, but he did not directly dissuade him, because he knew that judging from the current situation, as long as he wanted to continue to develop in the video game industry, going to Japan was the only way.

But how could he let his father go to Japan? So he frowned and thought seriously for a moment, organized his words, and then spoke.

"Dad, grandpa is almost eighty years old and his health has not been very good recently. He has called several times and wants you to go back and visit. He misses you very much."

Hearing Jester's words, the expression on Jester's father's face changed severely, and a hazy moisture even gathered in his eyes in an instant. He took a deep breath and forced himself to let go. His tears subsided.

Jester knew that what he just said had an effect.

One aspect is that his grandfather is older, and another aspect is that his grandfather hates the Japanese the most in his life. If his father really went to Japan and worked for a Japanese company, then there might have been some relaxation between the two. There is no possibility of recovery in the relationship.

But it doesn't mean that he doesn't love his father. Only Jester knows that every time he goes to San Francisco, he always pretends not to care and prepares gifts. When he comes back, he will also pretend not to care. He asked for some news, just wanting to know how his grandfather was doing.

Jester's father ran away from home when he was in his twenties. It has been almost twenty years now. Except for the time when Jester's grandmother died of illness and the anniversary of her death, he has never returned home.

Speaking of which, the conflict between his father and his grandfather was just because of their differences in philosophy.

Jester's father is Chinese, but he is completely different from Jester's grandfather or Jester's uncle.

Jester's grandfather was born in China and grew up in China. He even made great achievements in expelling the invaders. Naturally, there is no need to elaborate on his feelings for his homeland. His uncle was already more than ten years old when he left the country and had already had his own. They have seen the great rivers and mountains of the motherland and the deep sufferings of the motherland. They know where their motherland is. They recognize Chinese culture and everything about China from the bottom of their hearts.

Just like the song "My Chinese Heart" written by the master of Chinese music Huang Zhan, "Although I am wearing a dress, my heart is still Chinese. My ancestors have already stamped everything on me with the Chinese stamp." "The blood flowing in my heart is surging with the voice of China. Even if I am in a foreign country, it cannot change my Chinese heart."

This song is a true portrayal of Huang Zhan's heart at that time, so he was able to complete it in one go when he first created it, because it was all what he thought in his heart.

But this is not only a portrayal of Huang Zhan's heart, but also a portrait of Jester's grandfather, his uncle, all of whom left the motherland for various reasons in their early years and traveled across the ocean. They know where the motherland is and what it looks like. An inner portrait of what is there and what it represents.

But his father is different. He is a typical second-generation immigrant. He was born in the United States, studied in the United States, and grew up in the United States. He has seen everything in the United States, loves American culture, and even likes American culture. American girl, it is impossible for such a person to love a country that has nothing to do with him other than blood, like his elders.

My father and my grandfather originally had a not very harmonious relationship because of this different outlook on life, especially when my father was dating a white girl and proposed marriage, but my grandfather mercilessly rejected me. After refusing, the conflict between him and his grandfather completely broke out.

Mark Saini also noticed the difference between the two. He didn't understand why Jester's father's mood suddenly became so gloomy. In his impression, his colleague had a very optimistic personality and seemed to Nothing could make him behave like this.

Jester also noticed Mark Saini. He could use family affection to persuade his father not to go to Japan, but this would have no effect on Mark Saini. He had to have other excuses to persuade him.

What is the most powerful thing for aspiring young people in the United States?

A dream, no doubt.

"Japan's market is too small, Mark, dozens of times smaller than the United States!" Jester's speech suddenly became very fast, his tone was contemptuous, and a series of words spurted out of his mouth like machine gun bullets. .

The target was none other than Mark Saini, who was still sitting there and didn't know what was going on.

"Mark, think about it, how many units can a home console sell in Japan at most? One million or two million? How many units can an arcade machine sell in Japan? One thousand units? Three thousand units? One game How many copies of the cassette can be sold in Japan at most? One hundred thousand? Two hundred thousand? Look at these numbers, they are not worth mentioning!"

"In Japan, this market is too small! So small that it is almost impossible to become an industry! Mark, what are you trying to do by working in such an industry!"

Jester's face suddenly became stern, and he spoke unceremoniously some words that Mark Saini was very unwilling to hear.

He is directly questioning Mark Saini's dream, which is a very serious matter in the United States.

This made the young Mark Saini become a little angry. Jester's two previous questions made him think that the other party was a fellow of his. They both firmly believed that the video game industry they loved would have a bright future. He must be someone who has great potential, but he didn't expect that the other party would say such ugly words in the blink of an eye.

"Jester!" Mark Seney interrupted Jester angrily, not even willing to call out Jester's nickname, as if the friendly relationship established through "American Cube" had disappeared with Jester's words. Contemptuous words are lost.

“Atari 2600 has sold more than 20 million units, and the arcade machine I designed has sold 30,000 units, and one of Atari’s best-selling game cartridges can sell for one to two hundred units. Ten thousand pictures. At its peak, Atari's annual profits were US$2 billion, more than any other Hollywood company. This is an industry that has just started, but you say that such an industry is so small that it is almost Can't it become an industry? It's so funny!" Mark Saini argued with Jester mercilessly, but he didn't realize that after hearing his words, Jester's face didn't have any anger at all, but instead showed a look of anger. A hint of smile.

"You also know that you are talking about the United States, not Japan. The American market is large enough to independently promote the emergence, development, and rise of an industry, but Japan cannot." Jester interrupted Mark with a smile. · Seni’s words.

Hearing Jester's words, Mark Saini's neck instantly seemed to be strangled, and his throat kept rising and falling, but he did not continue to speak.

His face suddenly turned a little gray, and he seemed to be speaking to himself and others in a low voice: "Yes, Japan is too small."

"So, now it's back to the question I asked at the beginning, do you really think video games are dead?" Jester asked the question again.

Without the slightest hesitation, Mark Saini said to Jester straightforwardly: "Although the current market is collapsing, I firmly believe that a person can continue to bring people joy, bring people laughter, make people forget their sorrow, and make people inadvertently The industry you are so immersed in will never die no matter what!”

Jester nodded, clenched his fists in front of him, and at the same time, said to Mark Saini in his most unswerving tone: "Since you think this is the case, and I also think this industry has great potential, then why Why don't you continue in the United States? You have to know that even if you go to Japan and continue to make video games, if the industry really improves, you will still have to return to the United States in the end, because Japan is too small and cannot support such a large market. !”

"Believe me, if you really believe that video games have a future, then stay in the United States, because no matter where you go, as long as you are still engaged in this industry, you will definitely come back! Since you will come back in the future, then Why don’t you just leave now?”

Mark Saini's blood boiled with excitement after what Jester said, and he kept reminding himself in his heart that what Jester said was right. Since he would definitely come back in the future, why didn't he just leave now?

But when I think about the current situation of the American game industry, the market has almost collapsed, hundreds of thousands of game cartridges are buried in the sand, home game consoles are being cleared out at 20% off, and the warehouses are filled with arcade machines that cannot be sold... ...The blood that had just been ignited seemed to have cooled down in an instant.

The look of defeat on Mark's face became even more intense.

He wanted to say something that he would not leave the United States, but the words failed to come out.

He doesn't want to leave the United States, but reality is difficult to change by personal will.

In fact, Trammell's plan to completely transform Atari into a computer company has already begun. Just last month, the headquarters laid off thousands of game designers in one fell swoop. In terms of arcade machines, , the layoff plan has also been launched, and there may be results by the end of the month at the latest.

"Nolan Bushnell was not a few years older than you and me when he founded Atari. At that time, there were no more than a thousand people in the United States who knew what video games were, but they were all successful and sold hundreds of thousands. Taiwan pong! Sold 20 million Atari 2600s! Let every American know the concept of video games! Then why can’t we? Our situation now is much better than theirs back then! At least we don’t Parents of their children need to be educated on what video games are when they buy Christmas gifts at Christmas!”

Jester spoke loudly, and even stood up when he was so excited, waving his fists, and his voice was almost roaring.

The surrounding diners looked at Jester as if they were crazy.

But Jester didn't care.

Seeing that Mark Saini was still silent, Jester simply continued.

"This is not a job! Mark, this is not it! What we have to do is to stand up and tell everyone with our actions that we can bring video games back to life, make video games popular again, make video games popular in the United States, and make video games popular in the United States. Return to the track it should be on, instead of being thrown into the corner like garbage as it is now. In a few decades, our descendants will only know what their parents were doing when they were young from encyclopedias. "

"They're like, Oh, video games? Pointless stuff!"

"This isn't a job, Mark."

"This is a mission!"

"Your, my, mission for everyone who loves video games!"

“It calls to us, the people who really love it.”

"Someone has to step up and do something! Do you want to step forward and be a hero, even for just a few minutes, or do you want to be a coward for the rest of your life?"

"It's your choice!"

After speaking loudly, almost in a roaring voice, Jester sat down with a heavy breath.

His father and Mark Saini both looked at him in disbelief.