"An Outrageous Denunciation of Atlus's Shameless Conduct!"
Less than a week after Masahito Tanimura resigned, Tetsu Kobayashi saw an article in the newspaper.
The piece didn't go into much detail. It briefly outlined the development process of Ice Climber, then launched into a furious attack on Atlus.
Tetsu Kobayashi didn't even need to read it closely to know who wrote it.
As long as no one wrote anything, everyone could at least keep up appearances. Once something was put into print, though, things became much easier to handle.
Back when he acquired HAL, Tetsu Kobayashi had deliberately commissioned a lawyer to draft a comprehensive non-compete agreement, complete with a long list of clauses that everyone had to sign.
For three years after leaving, former employees were forbidden from engaging in any game-related industry, including development, publishing, or consulting. There were also strict provisions regarding publicly slandering one's former employer.
Apparently, Masahito Tanimura hadn't quite understood the legal language, so Tetsu Kobayashi decided it was time to send a reliable legal team to give him a proper lesson.
"This is nothing worth mentioning."
Tetsu Kobayashi casually set the newspaper aside.
As far as he was concerned, the matter was already over. Tanimura couldn't stir up any real trouble on his own, and handing the Second Development Division over to Satoru Iwata posed no problems at all.
He refocused his attention on the scene in front of him.
It was winter break, and the garage was lively again. Whenever she had nothing else to do, Saekawa would come by to play games. Right now, she was holding something up proudly, showing off her latest creation.
"So? What do you think? It's the polar bear from Ice Climber!"
She beamed. "I made it myself!"
Tetsu Kobayashi took it from her, turning it over and over, even holding it up next to his face to compare.
Honestly, it was… so-so. It didn't look very much like the original.
The polar bear in Ice Climber had been designed by Satoru Iwata using Tetsu Kobayashi as the model. That was why it had such a cool, dashing look—and why it couldn't be eliminated by in-game mechanics at all. A sort of president-protection Easter egg.
Tetsu Kobayashi fiddled with the hand-sewn polar bear and said solemnly, "You're finished. The merchandising rights for this game belong to Atlus. I'm suing you for illegally producing merchandise for profit. Ten years in prison. Off you go, little sister."
Saekawa froze.
Profit? What profit?! If he didn't like it, he could just give it back!
She reached out to grab it, but Tetsu Kobayashi raised it high over his head. The two of them tussled for a moment—just as the garage door slid open.
Nenene Anezaki stood there, lunch bags in hand, staring at them. The air instantly went stiff.
Tetsu Kobayashi was still holding his arm up. Saekawa was frozen mid-grab.
Nenene Anezaki gave them a single glance.
Flirting, huh.
Go on, don't mind me. I don't exist.
Tetsu Kobayashi coughed lightly and set the polar bear down.
"Lunch time! Everyone stop what you're doing!"
He took the lead in sitting down to eat.
Saekawa hid the polar bear, suddenly embarrassed to let anyone see it. Nenene Anezaki sat down beside her instead and calmly reached behind her, pulling the doll out.
"It's not very well made," she said.
Saekawa lowered her head shyly. "Rinko doesn't usually do things like this… I just made it for fun."
Nenene Anezaki's fingers lingered on the polar bear's baseball cap.
For fun? Not because you like him?!
The Inuit couple in the game were adorable too—why didn't you make dolls of them? Obviously it was because this polar bear looked like Tetsu Kobayashi.
"I'll teach you," Nenene Anezaki said, setting the doll down. "I'll show you how to sew it better."
A poorly made doll held emotion. A well-made one held only technique.
Saekawa's eyes lit up, and she nodded eagerly.
That was perfect.
She wanted to learn.
December arrived.
The Second Development Division continued supporting Sonic's follow-up development. Meanwhile, Tetsu Kobayashi received an unexpected phone call.
It was from Kentaro.
"Tetsu, I'll keep it short. Chairman Nakayama wants to see you—more precisely, he wants to see Atlus."
Tetsu Kobayashi was startled. "Hayao Nakayama?"
"Yes," Kentaro replied. "He probably has something he wants to say, but I hope you won't give him an answer right away."
This time, Kentaro didn't bother with euphemisms. He spoke bluntly.
"CSK has controlled Sega for quite some time now, and internal changes are coming. Chairman Nakayama inviting you to meet is almost certainly about securing support. Atlus may not be an internal Sega studio, but its ties to Sega are very close. Given Atlus's profitability so far, everyone wants your backing—it would be a huge advantage in the internal power struggle."
Tetsu Kobayashi tightened his grip on the receiver, his expression growing serious.
He hadn't expected that just after settling matters in the Second Development Division, he'd be dragged into this.
Kentaro continued, concise and direct. "Chairman Nakayama is the one who brought me back from IBM, so I have to stand on his side. But you're not me. Don't let sentiment bind you into a choice you don't want. Make the decision that's best for you—for Atlus."
The call ended.
Tetsu Kobayashi let out a long breath as an invisible pressure settled over him.
At such a critical moment, Sega was plagued by internal turmoil.
1985 was right around the corner. That was the year the Famicom entered the North American market and skyrocketed to fame with Super Mario Bros. 2, ultimately reaching sales in the tens of millions.
Before that—at the end of 1984—the Famicom's total lifetime sales in Japan were only 2.1 million units, nowhere near the astronomical figures people remembered later. Those numbers had been released by Namco after the Famicom's ironclad lineup took shape, and they were reliable.
It was only after Nintendo used Super Mario to break into North America in 1985 that it replaced Atari's position and truly took flight.
Tetsu Kobayashi was confident that Sonic could open the North American market just as well—but only if Sega didn't hold them back.
"Damn it, Nakayama's a crafty old fox," Tetsu Kobayashi muttered, rubbing his temples. "At a time like this, he's still obsessed with infighting. Expanding the market is what matters—who cares that much about who's president?"
His head throbbed.
It seemed that playtime was officially over. From here on out, they had to prepare for a real battle in the North American market.
History made one thing clear: whoever secured North America would win the first console war.
When Microsoft and Sony entered later, that would be the second console war—one focused on hardware power and graphics. And once only Sony, Nintendo, and Microsoft remained, the industry would circle back to fundamentals: gameplay.
Yuji Naka and the others looked over at Tetsu Kobayashi.
They couldn't hear the call, but his expression alone told them it was serious.
"What are you all staring at?" Tetsu Kobayashi said as he stood up. "Let's take the rest of today off."
Change clothes.
Tonight, he was going to meet Hayao Nakayama and see what the old man really wanted.
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