Recaps

Nakayama Takuya expanded Sega’s BBS plans into Silicon Valley Online and launched ICQ, drawing users and major investors while overseeing Sega’s game projects and the birth of his son. The arc ended with Sequoia and KPCB investing $10 million in Silicon Valley Online as the company prepared to announce its next target.

• Nakayama Takuya completed the Tokyo Institute of Technology BBS project, helped launch BBS systems at the University of Tokyo and Tokyo Tech, and sent his team to deploy one at Silicon Valley Online.
• Nakayama Takuya and Tom Kalinske launched Silicon Valley Online’s BBS, whose debates and startup funding posts attracted thousands of users and front-page coverage.
• Nakayama Takuya appointed Tom Kalinske to lead the venture and directed Harry’s team to build ICQ with a secure account system for Silicon Valley Online’s services.
• Ken Kutaragi advanced Sony’s plans for a standalone PlayStation while Norio Ohga considered acquiring Japanese game companies, and Nakayama Takuya ordered Matsuda to track Trip Hawkins’s new console venture.
• Nakayama Takuya pitched Hiroi Ouji the Taisho-era game Sakura Wars, while Nintendo postponed its North American SNES launch and Trip Hawkins formed an alliance to develop the 3DO System.
• Nakayama Takuya and Eri welcomed their son Kazuki, and both families celebrated his birth and shrine blessing.
• Harry’s team launched ICQ, which spread through students and passed 500,000 registered users as Silicon Valley Online expanded its server capacity and prepared to raise financing.
• Sequoia Capital and KPCB each invested for a 5% stake in Silicon Valley Online, valuing it at $100 million, while Frank Marshall urged Tom Kalinske to announce the company’s next target.

As Sega’s arcade and game releases challenged Nintendo, Nakayama Takuya reorganized Sega’s development teams and pushed new projects. Nintendo uncovered Sony’s contractual route into the console market and turned to Philips, while Square began planning a new time-spanning game.

• Metal Slug sold out its first two thousand cabinets in two hours, and Sega rushed twenty thousand more into American arcades as Nintendo began investigating its success.
• Square released Final Fantasy IV with a soundtrack CD and art book, helping Mega Drive sales rebound, while Virtua Fighter and the SNES launch reshaped the arcade and console contest.
• Sega placed Hook machines in cinemas, drawing crowds and boosting both the game’s and film’s revenues, while Sony began planning PlayStation and recruiting developers.
• After Nintendo’s sales momentum slowed, Minoru Arakawa ordered stronger support for third-party developers, and Nakayama Takuya let Sony’s recruiting efforts proceed while Sega formed new development teams.
• Nakayama Takuya changed Sega’s hiring rules and invited employees to share development ideas, while Yu Suzuki began an F1 racing game and Mark Cerny’s team refined the John Wick arcade game.
• Yokoi Gunpei warned Nintendo that Sony’s developer recruiting pointed to a rival console, and Nintendo’s contract review revealed Sony could sell compatible hardware and publish games independently.
• Yamauchi Hiroshi kept Nintendo’s Sony partnership in place while sending Yokoi Gunpei to approach Philips about the SFC-CD.
• At Square, Sakaguchi Hironobu and Rieko Kodama planned a game spanning several eras with history-changing ideas, and Nobuo Uematsu appointed Mitsuda-kun to compose under his supervision.

Nakayama Takuya prepared Sega’s CES showcase as Sony and Nintendo’s clash reshaped the console race, and Norio Ohga backed Ken Kutaragi’s effort to build a new Sony console. Meanwhile, John Wick became a major success across theaters and arcades, leaving Tom Kalinske and Ron Meyer planning a wider franchise.

• Nakayama Takuya named the fighting game King of Fighters 1: Murder Beneath the Feast, added Metal Slug characters, and ordered a demo for CES.
• Nakayama Takuya and Tom Kalinske planned Sega’s booth around playable John Wick and King of Fighters games, while Nakayama asked Nakamura to assess Argonaut’s 3D coprocessor.
• Tom Kalinske introduced the Sega-CD and Sakaguchi Hironobu presented Chrono Trigger at CES, drawing crowds to Sega’s booth and its games and merchandise.
• Ken Kutaragi announced Sony’s PlayStation as compatible with SNES cartridges, but Minoru Arakawa revealed Nintendo’s SNES-CD partnership with Philips and announced a lawsuit over the PlayStation trademark.
• Norio Ohga rejected calls for Sony to abandon the console project and gave Ken Kutaragi ten months to create a machine free of Nintendo technology.
• Universal cast Liam Neeson as John Wick, and Sega’s arcade game drew strong demand as the film’s promotion and release brought crowds to theaters, arcades, and gun stores.
• After John Wick earned $32 million in its opening weekend and arcade orders surged, Tom Kalinske and Ron Meyer discussed developing sequels and stories about other assassins.

Nakayama Takuya helped Daigo Umehara rise from an arcade newcomer to national King of Fighters champion while advancing Sega’s next console plans and pursuing new partnerships and investments. The stretch ended with Nakayama and Eri watching Money Quiz as its contestant risked his winnings on an uncertain answer.

• Ron Meyer pitched Killer World to firearms executives, who discussed investing in the franchise and integrating products into future films, while Nakayama Takuya turned his attention back to Japan.
• Nakayama Takuya watched Daigo Umehara dominate King of Fighters arcade matches and chose to let the boy develop through competition rather than sign him.
• Daigo defeated Bai Ye and Nagai Kenta to win the Tokyo qualifiers, and his parents learned of his success and set rules to protect his education, play time, and prize money.
• Sega supported Daigo’s family against hostile press coverage, while Bai Ye, Nagai Kenta, and Sato trained him for the national tournament.
• Daigo swept Osaka’s team and defeated Hyogo’s ace with Eri Kasamoto to win the national championship, while Masao Umehara confirmed that Daigo would stay in school.
• Nakayama Takuya directed Sega’s next-console planning toward both 2D and 3D, proposed a hybrid graphics approach, and commissioned a controller prototype and market research.
• Nakayama Takuya urged Hiroi Ouji to cast singing voice actresses for Sakura Wars and proposed merging Bandai’s game development with Sega, then watched the revised Gundam 0083 premiere.
• Nakayama Takuya instructed his investment staff to monitor British banks as traders began selling pounds through offshore accounts, then watched Money Quiz premiere with Nakayama Eri as Mr. Tanaka risked his winnings on an uncertain answer.