Chapter Summaries

Nakayama Takuya rejected Toho’s expensive, flashy campaign for Lugia’s Explosive Birth in favor of mysterious posters, while Sega’s World Cup sponsorship drove strong European sales. He learned Nintendo was preparing a million SFC consoles and a new Super Mario game, leaving Sega facing a major rival challenge.

• Matsuoka proposed an over-budget promotional campaign for Lugia’s Explosive Birth, but Nakayama Takuya rejected it and presented understated, mysterious posters instead.
• Nakayama explained that Toho should keep Pokémon in the minds of students during exam season and let the movie become a reward after finals, and Matsuoka agreed to proceed with the plan.
• Yves Guillemot called Nakayama to celebrate the World Cup sponsorship’s success, saying Sega’s European warehouses were emptying as Mega Drive consoles and games sold rapidly.
• Nakayama told Yves that Pokémon would soon arrive in Europe and urged him to prepare for the next wave of expansion.
• Nakayama reviewed a confidential report revealing that Nintendo was nearing shipment of its first million SFC consoles and that Shigeru Miyamoto’s Super Mario World was in final testing.

Lugia's Explosive Birth premiered to packed theaters, and its connection to Pokémon Gold/Silver's Whirl Islands emergency broadcast sparked a nationwide hunt for Lugia. Nakayama Takuya's team then opened a game event at Pokémon Centers, sending fans rushing to unlock the route to the Sacred Cave.

• Toho revealed Lugia's final promotional poster, while Sega announced a lottery for a limited-edition Lugia electronic pet tied to movie tickets.
• Fans lined up for advance tickets, and Lugia's Explosive Birth premiered amid crowds of Pokémon players and families.
• A boy connected the film's story about the Legendary Birds to Pokémon Gold/Silver's Whirl Islands emergency broadcast, spreading excitement through player circles.
• Matsuoka told Nakayama Takuya that the film had earned nearly two billion yen in its first week and attracted praise for its environmental message.
• Nakayama's team posted a notice inviting players who triggered the Whirl Islands broadcast to bring their Gold/Silver cartridges and Game Pockets to Pokémon Centers to unlock the Sacred Cave route.
• Children and their parents rushed to Pokémon Centers to try to see Lugia, creating new queues and a surge in merchandise sales.

Nakayama Takuya prepared for his purification ceremony and wedding while learning that SNK had launched its expensive NeoGeo console. During the ceremony, he received news that Lugia's Explosive Birth had earned 6.08 billion yen and become the year's box-office champion, leaving him poised to negotiate with Toho.

• Nakayama Takuya reviewed a report on SNK's NeoGeo launch and predicted that its high price would make the console a risky gamble.
• Nakayama Miyuki finished adjusting Takuya's formal robes and ordered him to stay away from company business before his purification ceremony with Nakagawa Eri.
• Matsuoka learned that Lugia's Explosive Birth had finished its theatrical run with a 6.08-billion-yen box office, making it the year's top film, and sent Takuya the news.
• Nakayama Takuya and Nakagawa Eri completed their shrine purification ceremony and shared a laugh over the cold sacred water.
• Takuya showed Eri Matsuoka's message and said Toho would have to pay a price to secure promotion and distribution rights for the Pokémon theatrical-film series.

Nakayama Takuya visited Sega’s Hardware Development Department and approved the completed System 32 arcade board. He assigned Arcade Group Five a new side-scrolling shooter project built around a chibi military style, a rideable tank, and destructible environments.

• Nakayama Takuya returned to Sega Headquarters and visited the Hardware Development Department, where Director Takahashi welcomed him and teased him about his wedding.
• Nakamura reported that the System 32 Board had passed testing, with powerful graphics capabilities and development tools ready for mass production.
• Nakayama Takuya dismissed concerns about SNK’s NeoGeo AES and confirmed that the System 32’s costs were manageable for arcade operators.
• Nakayama Takuya asked Director Takahashi to select a skilled team for a major project, and Takahashi recommended Arcade Group Five, led by Uchida Minoru.
• Nakayama Takuya assigned Arcade Group Five a side-scrolling shooter featuring a humorous chibi military style, a versatile tank, and destructible scenery.
• Director Takahashi hurried off to tell Group Five about the project.

Takuya recruited Uchida Minoru and Arcade Group Five to develop a game built around comic-style soldiers, vehicles, and destructible environments. After revealing the powerful System 32 Board and approving Uchida’s demands for authority, staff, budget, and time, Takuya named the project Metal Slug.

• Director Takahashi brought Uchida Minoru and Arcade Group Five to meet Takuya.
• Takuya sketched a comic-style soldier and tank, then described a game full of destructible scenery, explosions, and detailed character animations.
• Uchida Minoru warned that Sega’s existing boards could not handle Takuya’s vision without severe slowdown.
• Takuya showed Group Five the System 32 Board, whose dual 68000 CPUs and processing power convinced them the game was feasible.
• Uchida demanded creative authority, top artists, and sufficient budget and time, and Takuya granted his requests.
• Takuya announced that the project would be called Metal Slug.

Takuya organized Arcade Group Five’s ideas for Metal Slug into a plan for a game series, then approved the launch of the MD’s external CD-ROM drive project as the Mega-CD. The chapter left both projects moving forward.

• Arcade Group Five proposed a flood of Metal Slug features, but Uchida Minoru insisted that the first game focus on tanks and destruction.
• Takuya agreed with Uchida Minoru and told the team to sort their ideas across Metal Slug 1, Metal Slug 2, and Metal Slug X.
• Uchida Minoru gathered the team’s ideas as Arcade Group Five eagerly began planning the series.
• Director Nakamura told Takuya that a new file system and tiered resource loading could make an inexpensive 1x CD drive feel nearly as efficient as a 2x drive.
• Takuya approved the MD external CD-ROM drive project and named it Mega-CD.

Nakayama Takuya and Eri held a traditional wedding attended by leaders from the gaming and media industries, then completed the Nakayama family’s final wedding rites. The chapter ended with the newlyweds alone together in the bridal chamber.

• Nakayama Takuya and Eri exchanged vows at the shrine, and Eri took the name Nakayama Eri.
• Nakayama Hayao and Nakagawa Jun shared a ceremonial cup, marking the union of their families and industries.
• Takuya and Eri entered the wedding banquet, where they gave speeches and Eri thanked both sets of parents.
• Takuya and Eri returned to the Nakayama estate, crossed a brazier, and drank water mixed from both families before the family altar.
• Takuya and Eri removed their wedding clothes, shared their feelings, and began their married life together in the bridal chamber.

Nakayama Takuya and Nakayama Eri traveled across Europe on their honeymoon, sharing quiet moments and witnessing German reunification while Takuya calmly prepared Sega for Nintendo’s upcoming Super Famicom. They returned to Japan closer than before, ready to begin their married life.

• Nakayama Takuya and Nakayama Eri drove through Norway’s fjords and spent a quiet night together at a family inn.
• Takuya and Eri traveled through Denmark to Berlin, where they witnessed East and West Germany reunify on October 3, 1990.
• In Vienna, Takuya received a call from Sega Headquarters and instructed the company to continue its plans, study the Super Famicom, and learn about its development environment.
• Takuya and Eri continued their honeymoon through Italy and other European cities, enjoying a football match in Naples and sharing romantic moments.
• Takuya and Eri returned to Narita Airport and drove to the Nakayama family’s main residence, holding hands as they arrived home.

Nakayama Takuya studied Nintendo’s Super Famicom launch plans and decided Sega would avoid competing with Mario in Japan and instead dominate North America before the console arrived. He recruited Tom Kalinske to concentrate Sega’s upcoming games and promotional budget on the American market.

• Nakayama Takuya reviewed Nintendo’s Super Famicom promotion plans and learned that its North American launch had no major campaign underway.
• Takuya concluded that Sega should focus on North America and spend its upcoming game releases and advertising resources before the Super Famicom arrived.
• Takuya called Tom Kalinske and outlined a plan to seize American players’ attention and spending ahead of Nintendo.
• Tom agreed enthusiastically to mobilize Sega North America’s resources and monitor Nintendo’s plans.

After Nintendo sold two million SFC consoles in five days, Nakayama Takuya reassured Sega’s staff that its large installed base, strong finances, and third-party relationships could withstand the launch. He ordered the Marketing Department to exploit the SFC’s coming shortage of games by promoting Mega Drive’s older titles.

• Nakayama Takuya learned that Wednesday’s SFC launch lines were smaller than expected because schools and companies had discouraged people from skipping work or classes.
• Nintendo announced that SFC sales had exceeded two million units in five days, while Kirby on the Game Pocket sold about four hundred thousand copies in its first week.
• Nakayama Takuya argued that Sega’s diversified income and thirty-million-unit Mega Drive installed base would help it compete for players and third-party developers.
• Nakayama Takuya said Capcom and Koei received their SFC development kits only after launch, while Enix had received an early kit to work on the next Dragon Quest.
• Nakayama Takuya predicted that SFC owners would face a game drought after exhausting the launch titles and ordered the Marketing Department to promote Mega Drive’s older games during that window.

Nintendo’s Super Famicom sales exceeded 2.5 million in half a month, but production shortages limited further sales. Nakayama Takuya saw Nintendo’s supplier troubles and developer relations as opportunities for Sega to strengthen its alliances.

• Yamauchi Haku demanded increased production after learning the Super Famicom had sold 2.5 million units, but suppliers lacked the confidence and funds to expand.
• Sega employees worried about Nintendo’s sales, while Nakayama Takuya noted that Nintendo’s second-week slowdown came from production capacity rather than weak demand.
• Nakayama Takuya argued that Japan’s economic troubles were undermining Nintendo’s suppliers and said Sega should focus beyond the Japanese market.
• The assistant reported that many developers had obtained Super Famicom development kits, while Square’s Miyamoto Masashi and Sakaguchi Hironobu had stayed away.
• Nakayama Takuya defended Sega’s accessible development-kit policy and said Sega had refunded Konami’s original kit fee through royalty offsets.

Nakayama Takuya learned that Sega’s MD ecosystem was generating strong royalty revenue and that its games were dominating the Christmas sales charts. Nintendo had restored SFC supply, but Sega’s promotions and third-party releases were drawing players toward the MD.

• Nakayama Takuya’s assistant reported that the MD software-to-hardware ratio had surpassed 5.2 to 1, GamePocket’s had reached 3.6 to 1, and quarterly royalties exceeded Sega’s previous-year console hardware and first-party game profits.
• Nakayama Takuya contrasted Sega’s developer-friendly strategy with Yamauchi Haku’s restrictive policies, while the assistant reported more than three hundred MD games and twelve million-selling titles.
• Yamauchi Haku’s advance payments restored SFC production, but Nintendo’s supply stabilized only after the initial rush had cooled and the Christmas shopping season had begun.
• The Marketing Department section chief reported that seven of the top ten games on Famitsu’s weekly chart were MD titles, including Konami’s Contra and Capcom’s Final Fight.
• Nakayama Takuya praised the MD Old Game Promotion Plan, which offered discounted older Sega games with Sonic and encouraged new SFC owners to buy MD games.

Nakayama Takuya turned Sega’s Mega Drive old-game promotion into a wider campaign by inviting other publishers to join and offering limited support in exchange for inventory protections. The campaign filled Japanese stores with discounted Mega Drive games, and children planned how to pool their New Year money to buy them.

• Nakayama Takuya received cooperation requests from Namco, Taito, Irem, and other publishers seeking to join Sega’s promotion.
• Kozuki Kagemasa called Nakayama Takuya, and they agreed that Sega would cover thirty percent of allies’ discount costs while helping return unsold cartridges to manufacturers.
• Nakayama Takuya told his assistant to present Konami’s agreed terms as the best available offer, prompting other publishers to cooperate.
• Publishers shared the discount costs, retailers gained return protection for unsold stock, and Mega Drive shelves expanded across Japan.
• At Yamada Electronics Store, a group of children planned to pool their New Year money to buy discounted games, including Art of Fighting, Contra, Final Fight, and Sonic.

Children’s group buying of discounted Mega Drive games helped Sega’s New Year promotion undermine Nintendo’s first third-party Super Famicom release. Yamauchi Haku responded by threatening third parties that worked with Sega and ordering Shigeru Miyamoto to expand Nintendo’s development staff.

• Kenta and the other children bought a large pile of discounted games, celebrating their haul as they left the store.
• A report showed Yamauchi Haku that Sega’s promotion had boosted Mega Drive cartridge sales while Quintet’s ActRaiser had sold far below expectations.
• Yamauchi Haku blamed Nintendo’s staff and ordered them to warn third parties against participating in Sega’s promotions.
• Yamauchi Haku raised development-kit prices for third parties that joined Sega’s New Year promotion and sent them to the back of the development-kit queue.
• Yamauchi Haku ordered Shigeru Miyamoto to double or triple the Development Department’s manpower and declared that Nintendo would provide its own game lineup.

Sega’s successful promotion strengthened third-party manufacturers’ loyalty, while Nintendo’s threats failed to persuade them to develop for the Super Famicom. Yamauchi Haku turned to Shigeru Miyamoto, demanding more first-party games to support the struggling console.

• Yoshiji Nishida reassured another manufacturer that it could keep profiting from Famicom and Sega games while waiting for the Super Famicom to gain a larger user base.
• Nintendo’s Marketing Department head reported that Taito, Namco, Capcom, and Irem were delaying or avoiding Super Famicom development.
• Yamauchi Haku recognized that third-party manufacturers were waiting for Nintendo to build the Super Famicom market on its own.
• Yamauchi Haku summoned Shigeru Miyamoto and told him that Nintendo needed to expand its development team and produce more first-party games.
• Shigeru Miyamoto felt the weight of Yamauchi Haku’s demand that first-party games become the Super Famicom’s only pillar.

After oil prices crashed when the United States released its Strategic Petroleum Reserve, Director Hoshino realized Takuya’s advice had saved Sega from major losses and called him. Takuya then urged Hoshino to invest the profits in American military-industrial companies for a short-term gain before returning the funds to blue-chip stocks.

• Director Hoshino watched oil futures plunge after the United States announced the release of its Strategic Petroleum Reserve and recalled Takuya’s warning to leave the market once decisive action came.
• Hoshino remembered selling Sega’s oil futures after UN Security Council Resolution 678, earning more than fifty million dollars in profit.
• Hoshino called Nakayama Takuya in relief and told him the oil-price crash showed how dangerous it would have been to keep holding their positions.
• Takuya suggested investing the untouched profits in American military-industrial companies that could benefit from wartime weapons sales.
• Takuya told Hoshino to treat the trade as a short-term opportunity and later return the funds to blue-chip stocks, and Hoshino hurried to assign the work.

Nakayama Takuya received Michael Crichton’s signed copy of Jurassic Park and learned from Tom Kalinske that the novel had become a massive bestseller in the United States. He arranged for the Golden Axe team to develop an arcade game adaptation, intending to lead the project himself, while viewing the game as only the beginning.

• Nakayama Takuya opened a package from Michael Crichton containing a signed second printing of Jurassic Park.
• Nakayama Takuya called Tom Kalinske, who told him the novel topped The New York Times bestseller list and praised his early licensing deal.
• Nakayama Takuya proposed launching the first Jurassic Park game in arcades, and Tom Kalinske promised to distribute it across the United States.
• Nakayama Takuya asked Director Takahashi for a development team to make a dinosaur beat-'em-up based on Jurassic Park and its upcoming Spielberg film.
• Director Takahashi recommended the Golden Axe team, and Nakayama Takuya assigned them to the project once they finished Golden Axe 2, saying they should come directly to his office.

After Eri became nauseous and realized her period was more than two months late, Takuya rushed her to the hospital, where they learned she was eight weeks pregnant. The couple shared the news with both families and moved into the Nakayama mansion, where Miyuki eagerly welcomed Eri and prepared to care for her.

• Eri told Takuya her period was more than two months late after she felt nauseous from the smell of miso soup.
• Takuya booked an urgent examination at Sugiyama Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital, and a doctor confirmed Eri was eight weeks pregnant with a healthy fetus.
• Takuya called Nakayama Miyuki and Nakagawa Takako to share the news, and both families reacted with joy.
• Miyuki ordered Takuya and Eri to move into the Nakayama mansion and told Keiko to prepare a sunny suite.
• Miyuki and Keiko welcomed Eri at the mansion and ushered her inside while Takuya followed with their luggage.

Nakayama Takuya supported pregnant Eri while Yu Suzuki returned from the United States with completed motion-capture data but reported that the 3D arcade board could not meet performance needs at a manageable cost. Takuya directed him toward Fujitsu’s CAD/CAM and semiconductor capabilities, and Yu Suzuki left to pursue a partnership.

• Nakayama Takuya attended pregnancy-support lessons with Eri and helped persuade Nakayama Miyuki to accept modern prenatal advice.
• Yu Suzuki returned from the United States with a modular maternity pillow for Eri and reports on the completed motion-capture data.
• Yu Suzuki explained that the arcade board lacked affordable 3D graphics hardware, so Takuya suggested searching the CAD/CAM industry for relevant technology.
• Takuya asked Kobayashi to compile a list of Japanese CAD/CAM companies, and the faxed results led them to consider Fujitsu’s semiconductor and ICAD capabilities.
• Yu Suzuki concluded Fujitsu could provide a promising route to both chip design and development tools, then left with the documents to pursue negotiations.

Nakayama Takuya laid out an ambitious System 32 arcade game plan for Group Two, combining dinosaur combat, crafting, taming, vehicle chases, and environmental boss fights. He then inspected a smoothly running Sega-CD prototype and learned that its development kit was due by the end of the month.

• Takuya told Aizawa and Group Two to develop a dinosaur action game inspired by the novel, with distinct character roles, including a brawler, a crafting-focused scientist, and a dinosaur trainer.
• Takuya proposed high-speed jeep chases and boss battles that used environmental hazards, while insisting the game remain fast-paced and visually styled like hard-edged American comics.
• Takuya explained that Group Two should learn item-system design from RPG teams but simplify complex mechanics into direct, satisfying arcade actions.
• Aizawa pledged to make Jurassic Park a success, and Takuya asked Group Two to refine the ideas without letting its features undermine one another.
• Takuya visited the Hardware Development Department, where Nakamura showed him a Sega-CD prototype that played Mega Drive DDR smoothly and met its read-speed targets.
• Nakamura told Takuya that the first fully functional Sega-CD development kit would be ready by the end of the month.