Recaps

Nakayama Takuya's Who Wants to Be a Millionaire premiere drew overwhelming interest, and its ratings report the next morning showed it had dominated its time slot. The chapter left TV Tokyo celebrating a hit and poised to attract sponsors and contestants for the next season.

• A contestant named Mr. Tanaka lost his accumulated prize money by failing the final challenge, while another contestant quit with three hundred twenty thousand yen.
• Nakayama Takuya explained to Eri how the contestants' contrasting choices gave viewers drama and made the show a social topic.
• Eri called her father, Nakagawa Jun, who reported that the application hotline was overwhelmed and Kirin Beer wanted to sponsor the next season.
• Eri and Nakayama Takuya celebrated the premiere's success at home after she checked on their sleeping son, Kazuki.
• The next morning, TV Tokyo's ratings report showed Who Wants to Be a Millionaire had won its time slot.

Who Wants to Be a Millionaire became a national sensation, filling TV Tokyo’s advertising slots and drawing fierce debate. After a student won three million yen and walked away, Dentsu and other advertisers battled over the show’s remaining airtime, leaving Nakagawa Jun with a lucrative contract.

• News programs and commentators debated the sudden popularity of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire as public interest grew.
• Nakagawa Jun told Eri and Takuya that advertisers were flooding TV Tokyo, and that Dentsu had asked to reserve the second-half slots.
• A Kyoto University literature graduate student answered thirteen questions, won three million yen, and chose to walk away.
• Nakagawa Jun told Takuya that Kirin Beer’s sales had risen nearly ten percent after the broadcast.
• At TV Tokyo’s advertising meeting, Dentsu offered three times the first-half price for all second-half interstitial Game Gear spots, and Nakagawa Jun accepted.
• Other advertisers scrambled for the remaining slots, pushing their final prices beyond Nakagawa Jun’s expectations.

Nakayama Takuya directed Sega’s investment department through the pound crisis, waiting for the Bank of England’s emergency rate hikes before ordering the team to close its positions. After Britain withdrew from the European Exchange Rate Mechanism and the pound plunged, Sega secured a huge profit that could help fund its next-generation console research.

• Nakayama Takuya visited Sega’s investment department and reminded Hoshino to wait for the Bank of England’s sharp interest-rate hike as the final signal.
• The Bank of England raised its benchmark rate first to 12% and then to 15%, prompting Nakayama Takuya to tell Hoshino to prepare a quiet, staggered exit.
• Nakayama Takuya instructed Hoshino to contact Sugiura in London and begin drawing in the net before the market caught on.
• Britain announced its withdrawal from the European Exchange Rate Mechanism, and the pound plunged as Hoshino ordered the team to take profits.
• Sega’s investment department celebrated its enormous gains, and Nakayama Takuya told Hoshino the money would more or less cover research and development for the next-generation console.

Nakayama Takuya spotted Silicon & Synapse, the future creators of Blizzard Entertainment, in Sega’s sales report and instructed Tom Kalinske to pursue an investment while giving the studio complete creative freedom. Tom trusted Nakayama’s judgment and ordered Sega North America’s investment team to follow his directions.

• Nakayama Takuya found Silicon & Synapse and its game The Lost Vikings in a North American sales report.
• Nakayama emailed Tom Kalinske and the investment director, recommending an investment that would not interfere with the studio’s operations or choice of platforms.
• Tom Kalinske and the investment director questioned Nakayama’s generous terms and his praise of the studio.
• Tom recalled Nakayama’s successful prediction about Silicon Valley Online and told the investment team to follow the instructions exactly and approach Silicon & Synapse as friends.

Nakayama Takuya assembled technical, market, and developer support for a new Sega console built around 2D graphics enhanced by 3D, then presented the plan to the board. The directors balked at its billion-dollar R&D budget and argued that Sega should wait for rival companies to test the market.

• Yuji Naka demonstrated a modified Model 1 board that combined a moving 3D polygon skeleton with detailed 2D sprite layers, and Yu Suzuki praised its expressive visuals.
• Director Nakamura judged the graphics approach feasible because it could reuse existing technology and control development risks and manufacturing costs.
• Nakayama Takuya reviewed reports showing that players wanted both 2D games and true 3D, while Sega producers, including Hideo Kojima, pressed for new 3D projects.
• Nakayama Takuya presented the research, prototype data, and a proposed R&D budget of over one billion dollars to Sega's board.
• Several directors objected to the cost and urged Sega to keep relying on the Mega Drive and wait for Nintendo, Panasonic, and the American 3DO company to move first.

Nakayama Takuya won approval for Sega’s next-generation console project after revealing profits from a currency operation and arguing that Sega had to lead rather than wait for rivals. He then assigned the core hardware work and proposed using a Model 2 arcade prototype to test the new chip design.

• Director Hoshino presented a report showing profits from a large-scale operation on the pound sterling, and Nakayama Takuya used it to support the next-generation console budget.
• Nakayama Takuya argued that Sega had to preserve its lead and act before rival consoles entered the market, and the board approved the project with two abstentions.
• Nakayama Takuya assigned Yuji Naka and Department Head Nakamura to develop a CPU that was easy for developers and third-party companies to use.
• Nakayama Takuya ordered Department Head Nakamura to bring back Sega staff working with Argonaut Software on the Super FX coprocessor and said Sega would sell its Argonaut shares.
• Nakayama Takuya asked Yu Suzuki to build a Model 2 arcade prototype using the new chip approach to test its performance and inform the CPU’s final design.

Nakayama Takuya chose MIPS’s R3000 as the blueprint for Sega’s next-generation console CPU and ordered the company to negotiate an exclusive custom design with SGI. He also outlined safeguards for the console’s save-memory cards, leaving the hardware department to test their write limits and Yuji Naka to plan player warnings.

• Director Nakamura reported that domestic 32-bit chip proposals were unsuitable, and he and Yuji Naka agreed that MIPS’s R3000 was the best option.
• Nakayama Takuya approved the R3000 and directed Sega’s U.S. branch to contact SGI about an exclusive customized CPU at a favorable price.
• Director Nakamura raised the problem of saving games on read-only CD-ROMs, and Nakayama proposed flash-memory cards paired with an internal battery.
• Nakayama ordered the hardware department to test safe read-write limits and add a counter to each memory card.
• Nakayama asked Yuji Naka to design system warnings for cards nearing or exceeding their safe write limits, including disabling writing after the limit was passed.

Nakayama Takuya approved a plan for reliable, refurbishable memory cards and agreed to handle the promotion of Yu Suzuki’s completed VR Racing. He called Tom Kalinske to arrange support for a launch event at the F1 Japanese Grand Prix, but the conversation ended before Tom’s response.

• Nakayama Takuya told Department Head Nakamura to account for memory-card battery life and consider refurbishing cards, and Nakamura promised to form a project team.
• Yu Suzuki told Nakayama Takuya that VR Racing had finished testing and was ready for release, but he could not manage its promotion while working on Model 2.
• Yu Suzuki asked Nakayama Takuya to arrange promotion at the F1 Japanese Grand Prix and help secure access to the paddock.
• Nakayama Takuya agreed to handle the promotion and said he would ask the North American branch to guide the local team.
• Nakayama Takuya called Tom Kalinske and told him that Yu Suzuki’s F1-themed racing game would launch at the Japanese Grand Prix.

Nakayama Takuya recruited Mark Cerny and a self-funded team of Sega North American promotional staff to help launch the F1 game at Suzuka Circuit. After the team arrived and inspected Sega Japan’s booth, Kevin noticed a problem with the setup.

• Nakayama Takuya offered F1 paddock passes to recruit an experienced promotional lead from Tom Kalinske’s team.
• Tom Kalinske told Nakayama Takuya that Mark Cerny had won the slot by rolling a twenty-sided die, while several other employees applied for leave to join him.
• Nakayama Takuya told Yu Suzuki that an entire North American team would arrive to help with the promotion.
• Mark Cerny and his colleagues arrived at Narita Airport, stayed overnight in Nagoya, and went to Suzuka Circuit the next day.
• At Sega Japan’s booth in Motopia, Kevin pointed out to Nakayama Takuya that something seemed wrong with the setup.

Nakayama Takuya and Kevin transformed Sega’s crowded VR Racing booth into a polished VIP area with numbered seating and exclusive Pokémon-McLaren merchandise. Takuya then brought Mark Cerny and the American executives into McLaren’s pit area, where they watched the team prepare for Suzuka and heard Ron Dennis warn that Michael Schumacher was challenging McLaren’s hold on second place.

• Kevin told the Japanese supervisor that the tightly packed VR Racing cabinets cheapened the experience, and Nakayama Takuya supported his criticism.
• Kevin directed the staff to space out the machines and add a lounge, free drinks, and a number-based waiting system.
• Nakayama Takuya revealed limited-edition Pikachu plush dolls and Pokémon-McLaren keychains, exciting Kevin and Mark Cerny.
• On October 19, Nakayama Takuya led Mark Cerny and the American executives into McLaren’s pit area to watch the team assemble its cars.
• Ron Dennis welcomed the visitors but told them not to touch anything, noting that Michael Schumacher and Benetton were threatening McLaren’s second place.
• Kevin explained how McLaren had to balance downforce for Suzuka’s corners against speed on its straights.

Nakayama Takuya and his group visited McLaren, where Ron Dennis showed off the team’s engineering legacy and racing triumphs. Nakayama then raised the danger of drivers’ unprotected heads in crashes, leaving Ron Dennis to consider the risks.

• Ron Dennis welcomed Nakayama Takuya and led the visitors to the MP4/7A, explaining McLaren’s carbon-fiber chassis and championship history.
• Kevin impressed Ron Dennis by recalling how the carbon-fiber survival cell had protected John Watson in a crash at Monza.
• Ron Dennis described McLaren’s 1988 season, when Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost won fifteen of sixteen Grands Prix in the MP4/4.
• Kevin asked which engine McLaren would use after Honda withdrew, and Ron Dennis said the team expected to switch to Ford.
• Nakayama Takuya praised McLaren’s safety innovations, then outlined how debris, rollovers, and side impacts could still fatally injure a driver’s head and neck.

Nakayama Takuya proposed two ways to improve F1 driver safety: a tether to restrain the driver’s head and a protective frame around the cockpit. Ron Dennis agreed to study the ideas after the season, leaving their development and adoption for the future.

• Kevin recognized that drivers’ heads lacked lateral support and asked Nakayama Takuya how to address the danger.
• Nakayama Takuya proposed tethering the back of the driver’s helmet to a collar or the seat to reduce neck injuries in a frontal impact.
• Nakayama Takuya suggested adding a protective ring and front pillar around the cockpit, and argued that drivers could adapt to the pillar’s obstruction.
• Nakayama Takuya cited Gilles Villeneuve’s fatal crash and suggested asking Jacques Villeneuve to help advocate for mandatory safety improvements through the FIA.
• Ron Dennis said he would find a way to study both proposals after the season ended.

Nakayama Takuya gave Mark Cerny’s team time and money to enjoy Japan before they returned to Suzuka Circuit to prepare Sega’s exhibition. There, Nakayama announced that VR Racing would make its global debut at the Grand Prix, drawing immediate interest from the press.

• Nakayama Takuya gave Mark and the American team an envelope of spending money and told them to enjoy Japan before resuming work.
• The team explored Tokyo and Nagoya, while Kevin visited an underground tuning shop and ordered rare car parts for shipment to the United States.
• On Wednesday night, Nakayama Takuya called Mark, and Mark told the group their vacation was over and they would return to Suzuka Circuit the next day.
• At Suzuka Circuit, Mark and the team saw that Sega’s exhibition area had been transformed into a polished experience zone with VR Racing cabinets and a rest area.
• Nakayama Takuya told Reporter Watanabe that VR Racing would make its global debut at Suzuka Circuit and invited him to try the game.

Nakayama Takuya and the Sega group visited McLaren’s paddock, where they watched the team prepare for the race and met Ayrton Senna and Gerhard Berger. Senna thanked Nakayama for his safety suggestions, and the group shared a warm conversation before the story left them exchanging autographs.

• Nakayama Takuya led the Sega group into McLaren’s paddock, where Ron Dennis described the team’s drive for perfection and said the drivers were walking the track.
• Kevin and the others watched McLaren’s technicians carefully inspect and prepare the MP4/7A.
• Ayrton Senna and Gerhard Berger returned from the track walk, briefed the engineers on their observations, and then greeted Nakayama Takuya.
• Senna thanked Nakayama for his safety suggestions, prompting Nakayama to remember Senna’s future fatal crash at Imola.
• Kevin asked Senna about his 1988 Monaco qualifying lap, and Senna described feeling as though the car were part of his body.
• Senna and Berger signed autographs for the Sega group, while Mark Cerny had Senna sign a dollar bill.

On the first day of the Japanese Grand Prix, Sega promoted VR Racing and Pikachu merchandise at Suzuka Circuit, drawing crowds of racing fans and families. As the limited-edition Pikachu figures nearly sold out, Nakayama Takuya ordered staff to release that day's backup stock and announce weekend restocks.

• At lunch, Nakayama Takuya told Senna and Berger about Sega's new F1 game and its steering wheel modeled on the MP4/7A, but Ron Dennis reminded Berger of his afternoon data meeting.
• On Friday, October 23, Sega displayed VR Racing and helmet-wearing Pikachu signs around Suzuka Circuit, attracting racing fans and families with children.
• Kevin watched visitors enjoy VR Racing in the orderly Motopia exhibition area as players praised the game's speed and steering-wheel force feedback.
• At Sega's sales point, crowds of children and parents bought Pikachu figures until staff reported that nearly all five thousand limited-edition figures had sold.
• Nakayama Takuya instructed staff to bring out that day's backup stock and post a notice promising more figures for sale at 9:00 a.m. on Saturday and Sunday.

Nakayama Takuya and his team watched practice at Suzuka, where Nigel Mansell dominated the timesheets and Michael Schumacher impressed as a rookie. The next morning, Sega’s limited-edition merchandise drew crowds and professional scalpers, and the expanded stock sold out just as quickly.

• Nakayama Takuya led the group to the grandstand, where they watched Ayrton Senna and Nigel Mansell race through the S Curves during practice.
• Nigel Mansell set the fastest time, beating Ayrton Senna by 1.282 seconds, while M. Schumacher placed fifth.
• Nakayama Takuya told Mark Cerny to remember M. Schumacher, predicting that he might open the next era of racing.
• F1 Newsflash publicized Sega’s VR Racing debut, and crowds gathered at Sega’s sales area the following morning.
• Scalpers bought the limited-edition Pikachu merchandise in coordinated teams, and Sega’s extra stock sold out as quickly as the previous day.

During the 1992 Japanese Grand Prix weekend, McLaren was outpaced by Williams in qualifying, and the race turned into a war of attrition after several leading drivers retired. The chapter ended with Nigel Mansell’s engine failing while he led the race.

• Nigel Mansell and Riccardo Patrese took the front row in qualifying, leaving Ayrton Senna third and Gerhard Berger fourth, while Michael Schumacher qualified fifth.
• On race day, Senna’s engine failed on the second lap, forcing him to retire and leaving Kevin devastated.
• Michael Schumacher retired on lap thirteen with gearbox trouble, turning the race into a war of attrition.
• Nigel Mansell retired on lap forty-four after his engine exploded while he was leading.

After VR Racing’s successful debut at the Japanese Grand Prix, Yu Suzuki reviewed player feedback and discussed the limits of the current hardware with Nakayama Takuya. With Nintendo’s Super Mario Kart selling strongly, Nakayama called in Marketing Department Head Tanaka, leaving Sega’s next move unresolved.

• Riccardo Patrese won the chaotic Japanese Grand Prix, while Gerhard Berger took second place for McLaren and Senna remained disappointed.
• Nakayama Takuya advised Mark Cerny and the others to leave Senna alone, then saw Mark off at Nagoya Airport after praising VR Racing’s debut.
• Nakayama reviewed the project’s sales and publicity success, while Yu Suzuki presented player feedback and described technical shortcomings and difficulties developing the Model 2 board.
• Nakayama considered Super Mario Kart’s sales of over four million copies and summoned Marketing Department Head Tanaka to discuss Nintendo’s success.

Nakayama Takuya planned a lavish Sega-CD launch for Chrono Trigger, using a collector’s edition and a limited-edition watch to build the game’s prestige before a broader Mega Drive release. He explained to Sakaguchi Hironobu that the watch would arrive around Christmas, after players had time to embrace the game.

• Nakayama Takuya told Minister Tanaka that Sega-CD and Chrono Trigger would launch in November, targeting devoted fans rather than ordinary consumers.
• Nakayama Takuya proposed a deluxe Chrono Trigger package with music, an art book featuring Akira Toriyama’s work, and a separately sold collaborative wristwatch.
• Minister Tanaka understood the plan to establish Chrono Trigger as a prestigious niche release before offering a cut-down Mega Drive version to a wider audience.
• Sakaguchi Hironobu called Nakayama Takuya after reading the marketing plan and praised its extravagant treatment of the game.
• Nakayama Takuya told Sakaguchi Hironobu that the watch’s delayed production would let Sega sell it around Christmas, after the game’s reputation had grown.

Nakayama Takuya proposed a Square Game Concert to celebrate Chrono Trigger’s Sega-CD release, and the game went on sale in Japan as an expensive deluxe package. Despite modest initial sales, players and critics praised its cinematic presentation and story, and Famitsu awarded it a perfect score.

• Nakayama Takuya told Sakaguchi Hironobu to organize a concert featuring Nobuo Uematsu and Yasunori Mitsuda when Chrono Trigger went on sale.
• Chrono Trigger appeared in Japanese electronics stores as a lavish 11,800-yen Sega-CD package, and devoted buyers purchased it despite its high cost.
• Department Manager Tanaka reported that initial sales lagged behind million-selling Mega Drive games but buyer feedback was overwhelmingly positive, and Nakayama Takuya urged Sega to wait for word of mouth to spread.
• Jeff opened the game, experienced its animated scenes and CD music, and became absorbed in exploring the Millennial Fair.
• After players completed the game and praised it, Famitsu awarded Chrono Trigger a perfect 40-point score, prompting renewed interest.

Chrono Trigger’s perfect score and strong sales proved Sega’s expensive Collector’s Edition strategy could succeed, while Nakayama Takuya framed the Sega-CD’s costs as an investment in future technology and development experience. He hinted that two major Sega-CD games would arrive next year, leaving Tom Kalinske eager to learn the second title.

• Sakaguchi Hironobu received a report showing Chrono Trigger had sold 203,451 copies in two weeks, including 128,802 Collector’s Editions, and celebrated with Nakayama Takuya.
• Executives at Namco and Capcom worried that Chrono Trigger’s perfect score and Sega’s planned releases could overshadow their games, while Shigeru Miyamoto’s forced rest left a gap in the market.
• Tom Kalinske told Nakayama Takuya that North American players praised Chrono Trigger, but worried the Sega-CD remained far from recovering its hardware development costs.
• Nakayama Takuya explained that Sega viewed the Sega-CD’s costs as tuition for CD-ROM technology and large-scale game development.
• Nakayama Takuya teased Tom Kalinske with two major Sega-CD games planned for next year, revealing only that Mark Cerny’s Jurassic Park was one of them.

Sega and Square announced a Chrono Trigger wristwatch, a Mega Drive release, and a symphony concert, thrilling fans and leaving many ordinary players eager to spend while they waited. After hearing that shoppers were crowding around Sega’s shelves without finding a suitable purchase, Nakayama Takuya decided to revive the 1990 New Year Thanksgiving Festival plan.

• Sega announced a Casio Chrono Trigger wristwatch, a Mega Drive version due in summer 1993, and a Square game-music concert featuring Nobuo Uematsu and Yasunori Mitsuda.
• Fans celebrated the announcements, with collector’s-edition owners especially excited by the watch and concert.
• Sakaguchi Hironobu called Nakayama Takuya to discuss the players’ reaction and the marketing potential of the watch.
• Distributors reported that eager shoppers crowded around Sega’s shelves but left without finding a way to spend their money on Chrono Trigger.
• Nakayama Takuya asked his assistant to find the plan for the 1990 New Year Thanksgiving Festival.

Nakayama Takuya launched Sega’s New Year Grand Thank-You Festival with third-party publishers, prompting Nintendo to announce a rival discount campaign. The chapter ended as Nintendo’s executives received the first week’s sales report, with its results still unknown.

• Nakayama Takuya invited third-party publishers to join Sega’s New Year Grand Thank-You Festival, framing it as a response to players’ support for Chrono Trigger.
• Namco, Konami, Taito, and Irem quickly contacted Sega to participate in the promotion.
• Yamauchi Hiroshi’s executives debated whether Nintendo could imitate Sega’s campaign, but worried about the Super Famicom’s small game library.
• Yamauchi Hiroshi ordered Nintendo to launch its own New Year Appreciation Campaign and match Sega’s share of participating games’ discount costs.
• A department head handed Yamauchi Hiroshi the first week’s sales report, and the conference room fell silent.

Nintendo’s discount campaign matched Sega’s and helped draw new players into Japan’s booming game market, while Nakayama Takuya saw the rivalry as a way to cultivate future customers. The campaign ended with third-party publishers and retailers profiting, and struggling software companies began considering game development.

• Yamauchi Hiroshi reviewed Nintendo’s promotion results and attributed their success to the downturn, lower prices, and an influx of newcomers.
• Young shoppers in Akihabara shifted their budgets to buy discounted games from both Nintendo and Sega.
• Nakayama Takuya told Sega executives that Nintendo was helping expand the market and cultivate customers for future games.
• The month-long promotion cleared old inventory, boosted new game sales, and brought record revenue to retailers and third-party publishers.
• After seeing the game market thrive while software clients cut spending, a company president called a meeting to explore developing games for the Mega Drive.

Casio’s limited-edition Chrono Trigger watches sold out across Japan on release day, surprising Casio and intensifying interest in the game. Nakayama Takuya refused to authorize a reissue, expecting players’ regret to boost attention for future Sega merchandise and the Mega Drive version.

• On December 24, buyers rushed Casio stores and purchased all fifty watches allocated to the Ginza flagship store within ten minutes.
• Casio stores in major cities sold out, and the Shibuya Store posted a sold-out notice as disappointed customers searched for remaining stock.
• Casio’s marketing director asked Sega for another production run, but Sega refused and reaffirmed its no-reissue policy for limited-edition products.
• Players who missed out complained in the community, while the frenzy made other players more willing to wait for the Mega Drive cartridge version.
• Department Chief Tanaka told Nakayama Takuya that the watches had sold out and Casio wanted a second wave, but Nakayama ordered him to refuse and said players’ regret would strengthen future sales.