That morning, Lin BaoCheng arrived at Galaxy Games Company.
It had been half a month since Donkey Kong was completed and entered trial operation. The trial operation data from all participating countries for the past two weeks had already been sent over by fax.
Arcade games were currently Galaxy Games' most profitable product, and also Lin BaoCheng's main source of income. Therefore, he was very concerned about the sales performance of Donkey Kong.
Among all markets, the United States was the largest. In its two‑week trial run there, Donkey Kong was extremely popular, warmly received by players. Its popularity was no less than that of Hong Kong Blocks or Pac‑Man. It could be said this was a hit game.
Just like in the U.S., Donkey Kong was also warmly received in Canada, Britain, France, and Germany. Players flocked to arcades daily to play.
However, the Japanese market was different. Donkey Kong was not popular there. While it wasn't that no one played it, it certainly wasn't a craze. Arcade owners could eventually recover their costs, but they wouldn't make big profits. This limited the game's sales in Japan.
Lin BaoCheng was surprised. He hadn't expected Donkey Kong to perform so modestly in Japan — especially since the lead developer, Shigeru Miyamoto, was Japanese.
Lin knew Donkey Kong would make money. Otherwise, in his previous life, the game wouldn't have spawned multiple sequels, nor would the classic Mario series have emerged. Clearly, if Donkey Kong had lost money for Nintendo, they wouldn't have developed follow‑ups or spun Mario into his own game.
That was why Lin had supported its development from the start — he knew it would be profitable. But he hadn't known the exact performance.
Thus, its lukewarm reception in Japan surprised him. Fortunately, the strong response in the U.S. and other markets meant big profits were still expected.
"Richard, what do you think?" Lin asked the forty‑year‑old foreign man sitting opposite him.
Richard Yuan, head of Galaxy Games' sales department, had been recruited as the company grew. Liu Yihui's abilities were limited — fine for managing the factory, but not the entire company. So Lin had specifically hired a sales expert to manage this crucial department.
Lin chose Richard, a Briton, because the sales department dealt with agents worldwide, and a foreigner was more convenient.
Recently, Lin had also been scouting for a professional manager to run Galaxy Games. He didn't require extraordinary ability — just someone to manage departments while Lin determined the company's direction. In short, a "tool person." If the manager were too capable, he might resent being just a tool, leading to conflict.
Richard already had ideas. He replied: "Since Japan's performance has been mediocre after two weeks, the company should waive the exclusive agency fee and still let Taito Corporation handle sales — we've cooperated twice before. But if Taito thinks Donkey Kong is too average and refuses, then let our Japanese branch handle it. Sell whatever we can."
"Notify Taito, then hand sales directly to Yamada Hideyoshi at the branch," Lin said after thinking. "I recall Taito's Space Invaders is about to launch. They'll focus on their own game. With Donkey Kong already performing modestly, if they don't push it, Japan won't see results."
Richard didn't object. He added: "As for the U.S. and elsewhere, since the game is as popular as ever, we should raise exclusive agency fees and increase arcade machine prices."
Lin nodded, reminding: "Negotiate with agents, but don't open your lion's mouth too wide. Our cooperation isn't just this once."
"Rest assured, Chairman Lin, I understand," Richard said. Profits had to rise, but agents also needed margin. Otherwise, sales would suffer, hurting overall performance.
"Go ahead then. Secure more deals, and the company will earn more," Lin said.
"I'll do my best!" Richard replied, then left the office.
Lin then went to the software development department — where Shigeru Miyamoto worked.
This was the game development division, managed by Miyamoto. Lin came specifically to see him.
Lin told Miyamoto about Donkey Kong's two‑week trial results, praised him, and said the game he had led was a success.
"Thank you, President, for your support!" Miyamoto was overjoyed. This was the first game he had led. Though Lin had given some guidance, most of it was Miyamoto's work. His first project was a success — he had reason to be happy.
"This is what I should do. Miyamoto‑kun, you haven't disappointed me," Lin said, patting his shoulder. "As for the Mario character game I mentioned before, you can start preparing. It will be released on our console, so discuss with Yokoi‑kun to develop a game suited for the system."
Lin would not abandon the classic Mario series. He would advise Miyamoto, making it a joint effort. He didn't have time to handle everything himself, but he could provide ideas for gameplay and settings, leaving most of the development to Miyamoto.
"President, rest assured, I'll get to work quickly," Miyamoto said. The success of Donkey Kong filled him with confidence and energy. He was eager to begin the next project.
Lin nodded with satisfaction. With Mario and other games on the console, he believed its launch performance would be strong.