First-Week Sales
Monday morning after Valentine's Day, in the MD release command center.
The sales manager, sporting dark circles under his eyes, held a stack of freshly printed reports retrieved from the fax machine. Standing before the whiteboard, he stared at the huge ">" symbol representing victory left on Saturday, his lips moving, but no sound came out for a long time.
Everyone was watching him.
"Speak up!" the Marketing Department manager urged impatiently.
The sales manager jerked his head up, his face contorted with a mixture of ecstasy and disbelief. He picked up a marker, the tip scraping harshly against the whiteboard.
On Valentine's Day, Super Mario Bros. 3 sold 68,300 copies in the Tokyo area!
When the number was written down, the office fell silent for a moment, then erupted into low chuckles.
"And what about us?" someone asked loudly.
The sales manager switched to a bright red marker and wrote down another set of data heavily next to Mario's numbers.
"102,000 copies of <Pokémon Adventure - Pokémon Land>!"
"Pikachu limited edition bundle, 15,000 sets in Tokyo - all sold out!"
"Nidoran♂ & Nidoran♀" Proof of Love Plush Toys - All 3,000 pairs in stock - gone!
"Waaaaaahh...
This time, the cheers were no longer suppressed; they were deafening. The sales manager threw down his pen, grabbed the head of the Marketing Department next to him, and patted him hard on the back, so hard that the man coughed.
"We won! We really beat Mario to a pulp in Tokyo!"
Nakayama Hayao, who had been sitting on the sofa at the back, stood up and walked to the whiteboard, staring at the two glaring numbers. He didn't speak, but simply reached out and patted his son's shoulder, his hand firm and steady.
Takuya gave his father a confident smile, then looked at the head of the Public Relations Department and said only one word, "Let's begin."
Once the order was given, the media machine, which had been ready for action, roared into action. The prepared press releases flew to major newspapers and television stations like snowflakes.
The next day, the battle situation was laid bare before all citizens at newsstands in Tokyo.
Asahi Shimbun: "The throne of the gaming world changes hands? Sega Mega Drive outsells Nintendo's New Mario in its first week!"
The Yomiuri Shimbun's headline was even more sensational. "Akihabara Carnival Victory: How Did Pokémon Beat the Plumber?"
On the midday news, the anchor reported with a slightly exaggerated tone, "Last Wednesday, we witnessed the social unrest caused by the ' Dragon Quest Commotion '; and last weekend, we saw the joy brought by Sega's ' Pokémon Land.' This contrast between the two companies creates an interesting image in the public's mind."
Nintendo's hardcore gamers were completely unaware of this. They were either up all night at home playing games or at work or school, oblivious to the storm brewing outside.
Kyoto, Nintendo Headquarters.
Newspapers were slammed onto the conference table by the wolf, Yamauchi Haku's face was so dark it seemed to drip water.
"Sega bastards!" one of the directors finally roared, "They ambushed us! Our players—our players are just playing Dragon Quest!"
After he finished speaking, the conference room fell into a deathly silence.
Yes, how can we refute that? Are we supposed to issue a public statement saying, "Our Super Mario Bros. 3 isn't selling well because another game, Dragon Quest III, which sells millions of copies a day, is so fun that it's keeping our core users at home"?
The massive apology press conference last Wednesday is still fresh in everyone's mind. Bringing up * Dragon Quest III * now is tantamount to slapping themselves in the face, and doing it to both sides. This frustration is stuck in the hearts of every Nintendo executive, leaving them speechless and unable to let go.
I almost vomited blood.
Riding on this wave of public opinion, MD's sales performance in the following days was like a Mustang, continuing to gallop at a high level.
The atmosphere in the command center shifted from initial tension and confrontation to an almost frenzied anticipation. Everyone felt as if they were sitting on a rocket about to launch, both excited and disbelieving.
On Friday at noon, the fax machine in the command center once again spat out a long slip of paper. The sales manager walked step by step to the whiteboard as if he were holding a royal decree. The entire room was silent; everyone held their breath. He didn't write anything immediately but turned around, looking at everyone with a peculiar expression on his face, a mixture of pride and bewilderment.
"Everyone," he turned back, picked up the marker, and wrote each stroke with great effort, as if using all his strength.
"MD console, total sales across Japan have surpassed 500,000 units!"
The numbers were displayed on the whiteboard, and the crowd gasped in shock, followed by barely suppressed gasps.
He didn't stop; he continued writing.
"Total sales of game cartridges have surpassed one million units!"
This means that, on average, each Mega Drive player bought two game cartridges.
"Our battle isn't over yet!" Takuya's voice rang out at the right moment, pulling everyone's jubilation back to reality. "The battle reports from North America and Europe haven't arrived yet."
All eyes turned to the international fax machine in the corner.
The wait was agonizing. Finally, on Saturday night, the fax machine emitted a crisp "beep" sound.
The staff member in charge of overseas liaison rushed over, tore off the thin fax, his hands trembling. He quickly walked to Nakayama Hayao and respectfully handed it over.
Nakayama Hayao, glanced at it, and the muscles on his usually serious face seemed to soften. He didn't speak, but handed the fax to Takuya beside him.
Takuya took it, his gaze quickly sweeping over it.
MD sales in Europe: 83,000 units.
MD sales in North America: 254,000 units.
Takuya gently placed the fax on the table and pushed it toward the sales manager, who was already somewhat unsteady on his feet in front of the whiteboard.
The sales manager picked up the fax machine, raised his marker, took a deep breath, and solemnly added two new lines of numbers below the total sales figure of 560,000 across Japan. He didn't calculate the sum, but everyone already had their own opinion.
Global sales in the first week totaled nearly 900,000 units.
After a brief silence, the command center erupted in thunderous cheers.
Amidst the jubilation, Nakayama Hayao walked over to Takuya, reached out, and placed a heavy hand on his son's shoulder.
He said nothing, but the warmth and strength of his hand conveyed everything.
Takuya placed his palm on Nakayama Hayao's hand and said, "Next week, I'll be leaving Konami in your care, Father."
Nakayama Hayao nodded, patted the door twice more, and left the command room.
Thus, the goal for the first week of release has been perfectly achieved.