Time had quietly reached the end of February.
Love Cottage and the recalled Famicom both released simultaneously, and as expected, the game quality was excellent, earning widespread praise.
Kobayashi Tetsu wasn't surprised.
The Famicom's success came from many factors. If a single hardware disaster could have destroyed it, the Famicom would have already been discontinued back in 1984.
At the end of the month, Kobayashi also received his monthly payment—over ten million yen again.
Yamargade, or rather the Salamander game, had been completed and was ready to be submitted to SEGA for approval.
This was an essential step in game publishing at the time. Every finished game had to pass platform approval, whether for Nintendo, SEGA, or even future Sony and Microsoft consoles.
This requirement would gradually fade in the internet age of the twenty-first century, when any game, no matter how unusual, could be uploaded to a platform.
Before that, game submissions had strict standards.
That's why early games rarely turned out terribly; most were inherently playable.
Kobayashi and Naka Yuji set off for SEGA with the finished game.
On the train, Kobayashi casually chatted.
"By the way, have you heard of this theory? If you like a girl but aren't at the stage of pursuing her, you might behave strangely. You deliberately try to set her up with another person—not because you like her, but to see the other person embarrassed, thinking you might have a chance. And honestly, you might not even know if you truly like her yourself."
Naka Yuji paused, shaking his head. "No one gave me chocolate on Valentine's, so how would I know! But, is it only guys who do this? Can it happen the other way around?"
Kobayashi thought for a moment.
The other way around?
A girl trying to set up another girl just to see her embarrassed… this kind of "loser" behavior probably doesn't exist.
With that thought, the two arrived at SEGA.
The approval, of course, was handled by the publishing department, and Kobayashi wasn't greeted by an ordinary employee—but by Minoru Tanaka, the head of the department.
Every visit, Naka Yuji marveled at this.
He could only meet regular staff at SEGA, while Kobayashi went straight into the director's office without knocking.
After the assistant served two cups of tea and left, Tanaka inserted the cartridge into the console and began playing.
"Yamargade is quite famous recently. That anime, the design within it—all of it is Kobayashi-san's work. Truly unprecedented."
"Oh, it's nothing. I'm just standing on the shoulders of predecessors, inspired by Clover and Gundam plastic models."
Tanaka nodded and started playing.
The console booted, and the screen appeared before him.
With a glance from Kobayashi, Naka Yuji began explaining the game, slightly nervous.
Kobayashi could remain calm with Tanaka because he could write perfect essays like My Father, the Director, but Naka Yuji could not.
"Well, the game has officially started. It supports two-player mode. The plot mirrors the anime: two fighter jets enter the giant serpent Yamargade to destroy it. You'll travel through space, flesh and bone, warships, and other varied settings, ultimately destroying the serpent from within."
"The game has different attributes—speed, firepower, wingmen—which can be upgraded as needed."
As Naka Yuji spoke, Tanaka played.
The moment the screen scrolled forward, his hand trembled, nearly tossing the controller.
His bald head gleamed like a giant lightbulb, and only one thought filled his mind:
What the heck is this!
This! Damn! Is! A side-scrolling game on a home console!
"It works like this, the principle is—"
Naka Yuji began to explain, but Tanaka interrupted.
"No, don't explain. I don't understand the tech. Just… you made it, right?"
Naka Yuji nodded. "Six stages, both horizontal and vertical scrolling."
"No need to say more. I approve of publishing this game. And it should be a large-scale release. I can't decide alone; it needs the board's approval. Just the title alone is enough—quality almost doesn't matter. Claiming it as the first side-scroller on a home console is enough!"
Tanaka clearly valued the reputation over actual game quality.
Not that the quality would be poor anyway.
He looked at Kobayashi, who now stood as well.
"Kobayashi, when do you think is the best time to release it?"
Kobayashi quickly calculated.
"The Yamargade anime airs mid-February. Thirteen episodes make one season. I think launching just before it finishes—in May—would be best."
Tanaka quickly considered.
"May has Children's Day. Releasing then seems ideal, though exact production and publishing schedules must be discussed at the meeting."
He carefully packed the cartridge.
The game hadn't released yet, but he already envisioned the results.
"Keep it secret… No, not secret—promote it heavily! Even if other games release first, we have the advantage. Unless other companies rush development and compromise quality, we're ahead. This time, we've seized the lead!"
As Kobayashi and Naka Yuji left the office, Tanaka's murmured exclamations trailed behind them.
Kobayashi shrugged.
"Now we can relax a bit. I don't have other projects for now. If you have ideas, you can discuss them with Masuko and the team, like arcade ports."
Naka Yuji nodded.
Arcade hardware was more powerful than home consoles, so ports could be bolder.
But Kobayashi needed a break.
And he needed to think about spending money.
Money in the bank is just a number; spending it is what makes it real.
If funds allowed, he'd even invest in hardware—upgrading computers, producing handheld consoles.
But tens of millions of yen wouldn't be enough. Hardware is expensive. Sony spent billions just to launch the PS1; that was far beyond Kobayashi's means.
Software, however, was still feasible.
The late 1980s saw rapid technological development; electronics evolved daily. Sometimes, a single day could bring a new technology.
Perhaps he could find new applications in the market for his games
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