Metal Slug

Director Takahashi was incredibly efficient; before long, he returned with a team of men in a flurry of activity.

The man in the lead was in his thirties, thin, wearing black-rimmed glasses, and with somewhat messy hair.

His expression was serious, with a lingering weariness between his brows, but his eyes were bright, like a knife hidden in its sheath, its sharpness concealed.

Behind him were four or five young men, all with dark circles under their eyes, as if they had just crawled out of some hellish battlefield. The arrogance that belonged to top-notch technicians had been worn away by the continuous failures.

This is Arcade Group Five, a team recognized within Sega as having top-tier technical skills, but limited by their creativity, the games they developed were not very popular.

"Executive Director, I've brought him to you!" Director Takahashi pointed to the man at the head of the group, his tone full of admiration. "This is the head of Group Five, Uchida Minoru. Don't let his youth fool you; he's incredibly capable!"

Uchida Minoru bowed slightly, neither servile nor arrogant. "Executive Director Nakayama."

His team members behind him also bowed in greeting, but their movements were somewhat restrained, and their eyes were filled with doubt and unease.

Director Takahashi had just rushed them from their workstations, saying there was some incredibly good news, but he hadn't revealed a single detail, leaving them feeling very anxious.

"Team Leader Uchida, everyone, no need for such formalities." Takuya smiled and waved his hand, signaling them to relax. "I called you all here to ask you a question."

He paused, then scanned the faces of each of the five groups with his own light.

"Do you want to make a game that will go down in gaming history, a game that players will still talk about with great enthusiasm twenty years from now?"

Uchida paused for a moment, his brows furrowing almost imperceptibly.

His team members behind him exchanged glances, some even wearing wry smiles.

To be remembered in gaming history? They'd be lucky if their projects were even released and not cancelled.

They've heard this kind of empty promise far too many times.

Takuya sensed their distrust but didn't point it out. He simply walked to a whiteboard, picked up a pen, and with a few strokes, a chibi-style figure with exaggerated lines, a headband, and a resolute expression appeared on the whiteboard.

"First of all, our protagonist shouldn't be one of those muscular hunks, but rather a soldier king with a bit of a comic book feel."

Next, he drew a uniquely shaped little tank next to the little figure, with a round turret, a short cannon barrel, and tracks drawn in a very dynamic way.

"Then, equip him with a mount. A versatile tank that can jump, lie prone, and fire powerful shells."

"Of course, you can design many more vehicles in similar styles."

A small commotion arose among the five groups of people.

Several group members with art backgrounds lit up, staring intently at the few simple outlines on the whiteboard, their minds already automatically filling in the details.

This art style is quite interesting.

"That's not enough." Takuya changed the subject, tapping his pen heavily on the whiteboard. "I want everything in this game to be destructible!"

"From enemy soldiers to their bunkers, planes, and tanks, to everything along the roadside—coconut trees, cabins, tin cans—everything must be blasted to pieces by the player's artillery fire! I want the game to be filled with non-stop explosions from the very first second!"

"Flash and the sound of metal shattering!"

"In addition, all units have a variety of details that can surprise or amuse players, including but not limited to facial expressions, actions, and even two NPCs released from a house can perform a little pantomime."

He didn't mention any complex systems or profound concepts; he simply used the most direct and impactful language to depict an extremely refreshing and entertaining picture.

The entire laboratory was completely silent.

A young programmer behind Uchida couldn't help but swallow hard, muttering under his breath, "How many active components does this take? Can the substrate even hold it?"

All eyes instinctively turned to Uchida Minoru.

Uchida Minoru ignored them, his gaze fixed on Takuya like a nail. After a few seconds of silence, he finally spoke, "Executive Director Nakayama, the effect you're describing is simply impossible to achieve with the current capabilities of the circuit board. The number of active blocks and scrolling layers on screen would reach a terrifying number. Forcing it would only result in constant frame drops, making the gaming experience a complete disaster."

He spoke very directly, without the slightest bit of politeness; that's what makes him so "stubborn"—he will never compromise on anything that's technically impossible.

"Well said!" Takuya not only wasn't angry, but he laughed instead.

He turned around and gestured "please" to the System 32 Board that had just finished testing.

"So, I've prepared this for you."

"Dual 68000 CPUs, 16MHz and 12MHz, boasting exceptionally high simultaneous color display and active block processing capabilities. Its performance is designed for you to fully utilize."

Uchida followed Takuya's finger and his pupils contracted sharply when he saw the outline of the brand-new circuit board and the performance data remaining on the test screen next to it.

His team members behind him immediately erupted in excitement.

"My God! Dual 68000MHz? 16MHz plus 12MHz?"

"Is this some kind of monster created by the Hardware Development Department?"

"It can do all of what the executive just mentioned!"

Excitement, shock, and disbelief quickly spread among the five teams.

Their previous dejection and apathy vanished, replaced by the fervor that only technicians have when they see top-of-the-line tools.

Director Takahashi watched with great excitement; he knew the fish had taken the bait.

Takuya took in everyone's reactions, and finally turned his gaze back to Uchida Minoru.

"Team Leader Uchida, now, do you think this project is ready to proceed?"

Uchida pushed up his glasses, and the sharp edge that had been hidden in his eyes behind the lenses was now drawn fiercely, shining with an astonishing brilliance.

He took a deep breath, and instead of answering Takuya's question, he made his own request.

"Executive Director, I need top-level access to this project. From the art style to the program implementation, I don't want laymen interfering."

"Okay." Takuya nodded.

"I need the best animators and pixel artists in the entire company."

"No problem, you can pick anyone in the Human Resources Department."

"I also need..." Uchida paused, seemingly realizing his request was a bit unreasonable, but remembering the crazy world Takuya had just described, he gritted his teeth and said, "I need an absolutely sufficient budget and time for this kind of game with such a high level of detail..."

It's built up over time and effort; it can't be rushed.

"Hahaha!" Takuya couldn't help but burst into laughter. He walked up to Yutoshi Uchi and patted him hard on the shoulder. "Yutoshi-kun, like I said before, this is a project that can feed you for half your lives! For a project like this, Sega's resources have no upper limit!"

"Now, can you tell me the name of this project?" Uchida's breathing became somewhat rapid.

Takuya's lips curled into a smile as he uttered a name that would one day resonate throughout arcades worldwide.

"MetalSlug."

Metal Slug.