Game Development Giant

Jester's first reaction after hearing the news was definitely disbelief, because no matter who it was, it was impossible to believe that in this case, the other party would do something like this that would hurt the enemy ten thousand times. , a matter of self-destruction, and this enemy is not the direct competitor before, but a close partner.

However, after being surprised, Jester's mind started spinning quickly.

He was thinking about what he could use in this, but after thinking about it, it seemed that this matter had little to do with him, and no matter what the outcome was this time, it would be a great opportunity for Nintendo. Hurt, at least whether their new console can be released has become a complete variable, but what about the behemoth Sony?

It seems like we are back to the old ways again!

Although the processes are different, the results are surprisingly the same. In the history that Jester knows, Nintendo and Sony went from close cooperation to the final breakup. This was also the case. It was unexpected, even worse than expected.

Nintendo and Sony had just announced their cooperation to develop a Super Nintendo CD-RM player named PS. Wanshu◎bar◎ .nsb.cm type, just a month later, Nintendo unilaterally announced that the cooperation between the two parties had completely broken down without notifying Sony in advance, and this was even after the contract had been signed. under a cooperation agreement. And this was also the initiator that made Sony determined to enter the game industry to get a piece of the pie. Nintendo thought that their actions at the time were stopping a greedy wolf. In fact, what they didn't know was that they put in a greedy wolf. A much more terrifying tiger.

Jester read an article about Kutaragi Ken's memories, which introduced the whole story in detail.

It was the morning of May 29, 1991, on the platform of Line 21 at Tokyo Railway Station. Kutaragi Ken is excitedly preparing to take the Shinkansen to Kyoto. The purpose of this trip is to have a final run-in with Nintendo for the PSX joint announcement to be held at the CES Consumer Electronics Show in Chicago, USA in two days. He is full of bright prospects for future development. gained confidence.

Just as the Shinkansen was about to depart, Nobuyuki Idei, who was Sony's director of publicity at the time, appeared in front of Kutaragi with a serious expression: Kutaragi! A major change has occurred. Nintendo will prepare to break the contract with Sony, and Philip will replace it. ... Kutaragi Ken was shocked: This is absolutely impossible! The two hurried to the VIP reception room at the end of the train and made emergency contact with the headquarters of Philips Company in Orlando, USA through international phone calls, but still got nowhere. After arriving in Kyoto, they took a taxi to the Nintendo headquarters in Tofukuji Temple. The two of them remained speechless in the car. After arriving at Nintendo headquarters, Hiroshi Yamauchi and even Masayuki Uemura, who had been working closely with him in the past, all avoided seeing him. The person who greeted him was Minoru Arakawa, the president of NA (Nintendo of America) whom he had never met before. After a brief exchange of pleasantries, Kutaragi Ken immediately went straight to the request. Arakawa explained the rumors of broken contracts published in major European and American newspapers, and Minoru Arakawa bowed his head and remained silent for a long time. Then he replied word for word: Don't worry! Nintendo will definitely abide by its contractual commitments.

After receiving such an answer, Kutaragi Ken was temporarily relieved. They felt that as the recognized successor of Nintendo and the second-in-command of a company with a grand international reputation, it was impossible for him to deceive himself on such a serious matter. .

Therefore, a few days later, on June 1st, Sony officially announced the SFC expansion CD-RM host play-statin at the CES exhibition as scheduled. This was the result of their previous discussions with Nintendo, and they were waiting for them. of. It is a ruthless betrayal by Nintendo.

The very next day, June 2nd, Nintendo was in the same venue. A press conference was held with Philip, and it was at this press conference that Nintendo unilaterally announced that they would jointly develop a CD-I specification console for SFC. This move immediately caused an uproar in the industry, because it is well known that there is a war on CD specifications. Therefore, CD-RM and Philip's CD-I happen to be mortal enemies.

Of course Sony could not tolerate this kind of betrayal, but they were also thrown into confusion by this unexpected situation. At that time, Kenichi Fukunaga, the head of the publicity department, immediately went to Nintendo to inquire after this incident. Nintendo's answer to this is: The CD-console and play-statin developed in cooperation with Philips are products with the same extension line, and there is no conflict with Sony's original contract.

This is obviously nonsense and treats Sony like a fool. Of course, it is impossible to satisfy Sony. However, in order to restore their cooperation with Nintendo as much as possible, Sony has been negotiating on this matter for a whole year. It can be seen that at that time Sony's sincerity, but under the instruction of the ruthless Hiroshi Yamauchi, such negotiations were worthless. It was not until May 1992 that Sony announced that its cooperation with Nintendo had officially broken down.

This unexpected ordeal made Ken Kutaragi experience physical and mental pain that he had never felt before. He once believed that Nintendo had a more common language than some of his colleagues. The sudden betrayal made him feel extremely angry. Within Sony, Kutaragi Ken also encountered tremendous pressure from all aspects. Sony originally planned to terminate the supply plan of sound processing chips for SFC as retaliation for Nintendo's breach of contract, but the huge losses of billions of yen caused by this were Sony, which was in a bad situation at the time, couldn't bear it. Many colleagues who had opposed the digital business in the past accused Kutaragi's abrupt move of damaging Sony's face.

For a long time, Kutaragi kept a sullen face and said nothing. At that time, the director of the cmg crisis management agency, Tokuchu Hihisa, who was not familiar with him, once described it to others in the future: Kutaragi at that period was like a tower. It is a moving active volcano that is in danger of erupting at any time, and I have always been worried that he will do something amazing.

However, Kutaragi Ken has not lost his mind, he is just constantly introspecting and adjusting. In the business report in February 1992, it can be clearly shown that his strategic vision has undergone major changes: The times are about to usher in a new change, and the consumption of teenagers The psychology is also constantly changing, and Nintendo’s superior position is about to collapse. As long as Sony can grasp a clear direction, it can carve out its own development path.”

After the cooperation with Nintendo officially broke down in May 1992, the argument that Sony would completely withdraw from the game console business temporarily dominated the mainstream. Many people believed that Sony could not compete with Nintendo, which had dominated the TV industry for many years. Even President Ohga Norio thinks so too.

Only Ken Kutaragi disagreed. On June 24th, a management meeting hosted by Norio Ohga personally was held at Tennoyama. At the meeting, the progress and retreat of the game console business were discussed. The vast majority of senior executives believed that an immediate announcement of withdrawal was the best policy. What's more, a certain veteran I think Sony can't sell even one console without Nintendo's help. Kutaragi listened calmly to the speeches of his colleagues, and then stood up to speak: At the current situation, Sony has three paths to choose from. One is to fully support Nintendo's current 16-bit consoles, and the other is to develop Sony's own line of game consoles. The third is a complete retreat. As far as my personal choice is concerned, the second route is Sony’s choice.”

This was a confrontation that has gone down in the history of Sony, and the two sides of the confrontation were Norio Ohga, the actual controller of the Sony Group at the time, and Norio Ohga, who insisted that Sony enter the video game industry. Kutaragi Ken who has no support from his peers.

Norio Ohga asked: What reliable basis for success is there for your choice?

Ken Kutaragi replied: Using Sony's existing technical capabilities to develop three-dimensional graphics technology that is completely different from past game consoles, providing consumers with absolutely shocking sensory effects...

What size of LSI do you estimate would be needed for such a plan?

The preliminary idea is that it should be around 1 million integrated circuits.

Norio Ohga couldn't help laughing when he heard this. Sony's technical capabilities at the time were only able to realize the commercialization of integrated circuits with a scale of about 100,000. There were only a handful of manufacturers in the world that could produce integrated circuits with a scale of 1 million. Kutaragi's idea was real. Some fantasy.

Kutaragi Ken seemed to have foreseen Oga's ridicule. He replied calmly: To compete with Nintendo, the dominant player in the gaming industry, we must develop products that it cannot follow. As for the 1 million circuit LSI, with Sony's technology Considering the basic strength, it can be easily realized in the near future.

Norio Ohga is a well-known elegant gentleman in the Japanese business community. His usual hobbies are playing the piano and serving as a band conductor. He does not show emotion or anger in his daily life. However, Kutaragi Ken seems to have already grasped his psychology. He keeps using words in his words. Nintendo and Sony's technological capabilities were teased, and Ohga's suppressed resentment at Nintendo's betrayal and deep trust in Sony's technological capabilities gradually grew.

Then let's give it a try?

Ken Kutaragi, an ordinary employee, actually launched the final challenge to the president at this moment: Please make a decision immediately!

The air finally reached the critical point. Norio Ohga suddenly stood up and punched the table with his fist, and at the same time roared loudly: D-it!!

And like the historical incident of the collapse of the Suo Ren Alliance, it is unfolding in this time and space. Of course, Sony, which has been prepared for a long time, is not as embarrassed and embarrassed as it was in history, because this time they were the first to breach the contract, and they also He has been prepared for a long time, but now Kutaragi Ken is also facing inquiries from Norio Ohga and a number of Sony executives in Sony's headquarters.