A product from the future

"This configuration is practically like a high-end PC."

Mike's lips twitched.

No wonder it's so expensive.

"Wait, what's with this CD player?"

Mike noticed the label on the storage section and his eyes widened.

"Didn't I tell you before? It's optical disc storage! Hundreds of MB in capacity!"

Frank danced around excitedly, shouting with joy.

When the configuration list was officially announced, a weight was lifted off his shoulders.

It's safe, absolutely safe!

"No, Frank, I was referring to its function—"

Mike interrupted Frank, who was preaching with great enthusiasm, and pointed to the fine print in the storage section.

"Function? What's wrong with the function?"

Frank looked over in confusion, glancing in the direction Mike was pointing.

"Pfft! The NovaXeno can be used as a CD player?"

It clearly states that the NovaXeno CD player is compatible with any CD-N standard disc.

This is a proprietary optical disc storage medium released by GAMENOVA itself.

Although the size has been reduced to 10cm, the capacity has not been significantly reduced.

According to the instructions, CD-N is suitable for storing games and audio content.

The audio uses GAMENOVA's own VorbisOgg format.

In other words----

As long as the official format is used to burn tracks onto the disc, it can be read by NovaXeno.

Although it's only compatible with its own format, this thing can actually be used as a CD player!

During their conversation, the two noticed that Alan's gaze was a little strange, and they both looked at him with suspicion.

His eyes were fixed on a certain column below, and he didn't move for a long time.

Following his gaze, the two turned back to the magazine.

Then, they all saw the thing that had stunned Alan.

[NovaModem]

[Supports RJ11 telephone line access]

[Voice calls can be made via NovaXeno dialer]

[Some games support online multiplayer]

"Online... online?!"

Based on this description alone, this is definitely not just the cable-based connection mode used in the previous NovaPocket.

It won't be a local area network connection either.

If it's a dial-up call----

They could even connect online with friends in New York from California.

People living in different places can play games together? That's unthinkable.

The three students, being students at the world-renowned UCLA, were even more shocked by this.

No one understands the significance of the internet better than college students.

With the development of TCP/IP, many top universities across the United States have begun to connect to the Internet.

This made them among the first people in the world to have access to civilian networks.

They can easily access websites set up by other organizations by simply entering the address on the school's PC.

Mike and his two companions were very clear about one thing.

The internet will be a key cornerstone of future computer technology.

Before long, the world will be swept by a new wave, ushering in another technological revolution.

At that time, players all over the world will be able to be connected by a thin network cable, allowing them to play games and watch movies together.

They've discussed this point countless times.

Now, GAMENOVA has achieved this by not using university dedicated lines at all, but by directly using home telephone lines.

"Calm down, calm down. This isn't the online gaming we're thinking of."

Alan could only convince himself with this thought, "The phone line bandwidth is so low, it's already doing its best to make a normal call, how could there be any extra bandwidth for the game?"

The statement in the magazine that "games can be played while on a call" seemed like pure fantasy to him.

How much data usage is involved in video games?

Even Tetris, an early game from Gamenova, required constantly transferring a large amount of resources.

Not to mention Civilization, which is already confirmed to be a new game that will be released on CD.

Is this possible?

That's obviously impossible.

It must be some kind of wordplay used for propaganda.

"It's probably similar to the score upload function found in game stores before, uploading the save score to the GAMENOVA server."

"That's possible. I think your idea is more plausible."

Alan's words resonated with both of them.

They were all high-achieving students from UCLA, and they knew very well just how demanding the connection requirements were for achieving true online play.

Even with the internet currently used in universities, it's difficult to achieve this.

This can only be achieved through special cables if it is a completely local area network connection.

"Okay, but even so, it's still amazing."

Frank, who had already paid, seemed quite nonchalant about it.

The money I paid was originally for my initial expectations of NovaXeno.

Now that more and more data has been collected, this money is becoming increasingly worthwhile.

Please, for just over three hundred, you can buy a multi-functional entertainment device that can make phone calls and play CDs.

Considering its primary function of video games, this is already a very cost-effective machine.

Looking at the entire configuration list, Frank couldn't help but swallow hard.

This is definitely a console from the future!

And now I have obtained a ticket to the future!

As more and more information is released, competitors are not so happy.

As the saying goes, the layman sees the spectacle, while the expert sees the details.

But even Sega's hardware division was no match for Gamenova, a sprawling giant with an all-encompassing presence in the semiconductor industry.

We can only watch the excitement.

That's so damn unreasonable!

An engineer slammed the magazine he was holding onto the table, clearly on the verge of a breakdown.

Well, more overtime.

"How is the situation?"

Sato Hideki, the head of the hardware department, approached the young engineer and picked up the magazine that had just been expedited from overseas.

They even got their hands on the initial materials from North America earlier than Game Freak.

This decision was reached after discussions between Sato Hideki and President Hayao Nakayama.

Hardware development cannot be delayed for a moment; we must go all out and know ourselves and our competitors.

"Section Chief!"

The young man let out a groan before finally speaking, "The specs are a complete upgrade from ours, even the audio source!"

"Is the situation that bad?"

Sato Hideki frowned, opened the magazine, and quickly flipped through it.

As the contents were displayed before him, Sato Hideki frowned deeply.

He's right, this is a device that far surpasses the next-generation console they're currently developing.

"Fourth generation—trouble is brewing."

If there's one competitor in the world that Sega absolutely doesn't want to face, Gamenova would undoubtedly be number one.

Their terrifying research and development capabilities are something even they, combined with Nintendo, cannot match.

In order to focus on making games, GAMENOVA has even developed itself into a Silicon Valley technology company that encompasses the semiconductor industry.

Most importantly, GAMENOVA's main battlefield is the Americas.

This completely contradicts Sega's strategic plan.

Their inability to compete with Nintendo in the domestic market has already severely hampered their performance. If they also face similar setbacks in overseas markets, then they're truly finished.