SFC Interception Plan
Before the sweet afterglow of their honeymoon had completely faded, Nakayama Takuya had already plunged headlong into Sega Headquarters.
"Executive Director, welcome back."
His assistant placed a steaming cup of coffee on his desk, next to a stack of documents about half a foot high.
"Information on Nintendo." Takuya without looking up, simply reaching out his hand.
"Yes." The assistant immediately pulled out the top document and handed it over. "This is a summary of Nintendo's pre-launch promotional plan for the Super Famicom."
Takuya opened it and saw ten lines at a glance.
Nintendo's marketing strategy remains as steady, or rather, conservative, as ever.
The overwhelming number of games released were concentrated in Japan, and the initial lineup of games was quite "simple," consisting of only one game, Super Mario World, and one game, F-ZERO.
The assistant whispered, "The industry believes that Super Mario World alone is enough to establish the SFC's dominance."
They won. After all—that's Mario.
His tone carried an undisguised sense of awe.
"Mario." Takuya chewed on the name, his fingers tapping lightly on the report.
He certainly knew how powerful Super Mario World was; in his previous life, its terrifying sales of over 20 million copies almost single-handedly built half of the Super Famicom's empire.
But it is precisely because of this that he is even more aware that Nintendo is not invincible.
"What about North America?" Takuya suddenly asked.
"Hmm?" The assistant paused for a moment, then quickly flipped through the documents at the back. "The report says that Nintendo North America Division hasn't launched any large-scale promotional campaigns yet, and seems to be planning to wait until the domestic market in Japan stabilizes before making any moves."
Takuya smiled.
He closed the report and tossed it casually onto the table.
"That old fox, Yamauchi Hiroshi, is ultimately just an old man whose vision is limited to Japan."
The assistant looked at him with some confusion.
"He saw Mario's appeal in Japan, but he didn't see how much money Japan gamers had after the bubble burst." Takuya leaned back in his chair, arms crossed. "The world's largest gaming market is no longer Japan, but North America across the ocean."
"He wanted to establish a foothold in Japan first, then target North America. But little did he know, we were determined to prevent his product from being successfully launched in North America."
The assistant's eyes lit up: "You mean---"
"Do we have any games right now that can go head-to-head with Mario?" Takuya asked.
"Not at the moment," the assistant replied, sounding somewhat unsure.
"That's right." Takuya's knuckles tapped crisply on the table. "Since we can't beat them in Japan, then we won't fight in Japan. Let's dump all our major titles in development and our promotional resources on North America North America when the Super Famicom is about to launch there!"
"Before the Super Famicom launches in North America, we need to release all the major titles that Sega has already developed, to capture the attention and anticipation of North America players, and US dollar their pockets in advance!"
The assistant hesitated, "Wouldn't this be too risky? Besides, our several major titles are still some time away from completion."
"No rush, there's plenty of time. Yamauchi Haku won't push the SFC to North America so quickly." Takuya waved his hand.
He paused, picked up the report about Nintendo from the table, and weighed it as if it were a piece of scrap paper.
"Doing this might not fundamentally shake Nintendo, but it will certainly make them feel uneasy for a while. That's enough."
He recalled his father, Nakayama Atsuo's, stern face and the phrase he always uttered.
"After all, I'm alive to make Nintendo uncomfortable."
While his assistant was still pondering Takuya's plan, Takuya had already picked up the phone on his desk.
"Connect to the office of Tom Kalinske, President of Sega North America, at Redwood City, United States."
Hearing the muffled beeping before the call connected, Takuya glanced out the window.
It's early morning in Tokyo, California, across the ocean, it's probably the best time of day in the afternoon.
The call was answered quickly.
"Tom, it's me, Takuya."
"Oh, Takuya! My friend, it should still be early morning in Japan, right? What made you call me so early? Do you miss me?" A strong, cheerful voice came from the other end of the phone.
"No, I just started work here in Japan. I have some news for you." Takuya leaned back in his chair, shifting into a more comfortable position.
"Oh? Tell me about it." Tom Kalinske's tone was full of curiosity.
You know the Nintendo Super Famicom, right?
"Of course, you can see those guys' SFCs in industry magazines every day these days. What, you want to fight them to the death on Japan soil?"
"No." Takuya chuckled lightly, "I've already chosen the location for the final battle. Not in Japan, but on your territory— North America."
There was a moment of silence on the other end of the phone, followed by Tom's hushed voice:
"... Go on."
"That conservative old man, Yamauchi Haku, plans to reap the rewards in Japan first, and then slowly push the SFC to North America. I've estimated the timeframe; there will be at least a six-month gap in between."
"You mean..." Tom's voice held a hint of excitement.
"My meaning is very simple." Takuya sat up straight, his voice not loud, but carrying an undeniable force, "I want you to utilize all of Sega North America's resources, to pool all our nearly completed games and all our promotional budget. We need to hold a Sega -only carnival before the Super Famicom launches in North America!"
"Before Nintendo's Mario even set foot on the American Continent, we used our game and our advertising to ignite the market ahead of time! We snatched all the players' attention, their expectations, and every single US dollar from their pockets!"
There was silence on the other end of the phone again, even longer than before.
Finally, Tom's voice rang out again.
"Takuya, your plan is exactly what I'm looking for!" he practically roared. "This is what you call doing something big! Genesis should take down those plumbers! Don't worry, leave North America to me!"
"Keep a close eye on those guys at Nintendo North America Division. If they dare to show their faces, I'll plaster their flyers all over every electronics market in United States!"
"If you don't have enough money, just say so, and I'll get the board to approve it for you," Takuya added.
"Money is no problem!" Tom laughed. "Getting Nintendo to pay for this alone is worth it! Besides, both the Mega Drive and Game Pocket have sold extremely well this year. The integration of Game for Gamers that you mentioned last time was fantastic. Sega's consoles have naturally become a part of United States teenagers' lives. Wait for my good news about the surveillance, my friend!"
"Okay, then I won't bother you anymore. I'm going back to working on the game project." With that, Takuya hung up the phone.