The opening animation wasn't anything special; it was just a similar main storyline design to the movie " Moonwalker."
The evil drug lord Mr. Big, plans to kidnap all the children in the world.
Michael, on the other hand, must transform into a superhero with superpowers to fight against Mr. Big and his henchmen and rescue the child and his pet gorilla Bubbles.
This scene is absolutely classic for fans who are familiar with Michael Jackson.
After all, this seemingly unoriginal, classic storyline contributed an action sequence destined to be forever etched in history.
Anti-gravity tilt.
After a brief introduction to the plot, the classic coin-flipping scene begins.
Michael inserts a coin into the jukebox, and " Smooth Criminal " begins playing, officially starting the game.
In that instant, Tom seemed to understand why those people had reacted so strongly.
He hadn't noticed it while standing in line, but now that he was actually sitting in his seat, he realized just how exaggerated the sound effects were.
The two speakers were clearly specially designed with a specific sound field, centered precisely on his location, allowing the sound to completely envelop him.
It felt like being there! It was as if Michael was really singing right next to you, right in front of you.
It wasn't just the ingenious soundstage design that was remarkable, even though Tom's ears weren't as discerning as those of a professional musician.
Even so, Tom could clearly sense that... its voice was different.
He initially thought it was because he was used to the 8-bit sound effects on the Atari and his ears couldn't accept it for a while.
But the more Tom thought about it, the more he realized that things weren't so simple.
Sound quality is a very subtle thing, and it's difficult to describe in words.
It is warm, clear, full, and rich, with both high and low frequencies perfectly balanced.
The high frequencies are not harsh or shrill, and the low frequencies are not overly muffled.
This is definitely not a simple matter!
Tom's gaze swept over the instruction stickers on the fuselage.
[This device uses a 32-bit audio chip developed by Gamnova: Nova Yuandao ]
[Striving to recreate the highest quality audio effects for gamers, hi-fi level live sound quality] "My God..."
Not long ago, he was still playing 8-bit games.
Meanwhile, Gamenova, which was still playing Lynx in a daze, had already quietly developed a 32-bit audio chip!
32-bit audio chip!
Immersed in the near-perfect sound, a sound that surpassed even CD quality...
For the first time in his life, Tom gained a clear understanding of the beauty of music.
The rigid set of values that had been established in the past was once again impacted after being ruthlessly shattered by Gamenova.
"So... music is such a wonderful thing?"
If I had known, I would have taken the Yuandao!
Even if I don't play any games, even if I just sit here and listen to music, this is already a rare treat in my life.
However, if he actually did that, he would probably be torn to shreds by the group of players eyeing him covetously.
Ultimately, Michael Jack's Moonwalk is still an arcade game. To fit the arcade style, it's not exactly easy; in fact, it's quite difficult.
If you're not careful, you might get surrounded and beaten to death by this large group of bandits who come up at the first checkpoint.
but...
Who is Tom?
Former well-known Atari fan leader, a rabid scumbag, and a speedrunner of " E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial."
What is the one thing that 8-bit games have in abundance?
8-bit games are never short of difficulty.
In an era when graphics couldn't be refined, audio was unremarkable, and memory was pitifully small, designers with mediocre skills could only try to extend the lifespan of games by increasing difficulty, euphemistically calling it increasing challenge.
In other words, Tom is a born hardcore gamer.
On the contrary, Gamenova's difficulty curve, which caters to different players, took him quite a while to get used to when he first started playing.
The buttons aren't complicated. After quickly trying out all the buttons on the panel and referring to the instruction stickers, Tom was already able to fight smoothly.
He even started actively syncing to the beat, fighting in sync with the rhythm of the movie " Smooth Criminal " playing in the background. Tom wasn't sure if it was just his imagination, but he felt that the enemies' movements were also in sync with the rhythm.
If he can perfectly control the rhythm, he can even easily achieve a no-damage run in this game.
The rest is about creating the most spectacular effects possible.
"That voice..."
The more focused Tom was, the more he noticed those unusual details.
As the character moves in different directions within the level, the stereo sound effect will change accordingly.
The most outrageous thing is that even the objects in the scene are interactive and can make sounds.
Take, for example, the piano placed in the middle.
When your character steps on it, it really does produce various piano note sounds.
The sound produced will vary depending on where the character steps.
These are all synthesized in real time.
Although the entire level is essentially the same classic beat-'em-up gameplay, the first level alone is incredibly engaging. You can interact with almost any object in the scene.
A ladder suspended in mid-air can be knocked down by kicking it with magic, turning it into a shortcut that can be bypassed.
The stool can be kicked away, like in a martial arts movie, to block and repel enemies.
Seeing how smoothly he was playing, the surrounding crowd, far from being impatient while waiting, instead showed a hint of anticipation.
Tom's lips curled into a smile.
He knew what these people were waiting for.
He's waiting for it himself.
Tom wasn't in a hurry; he continued to methodically clear out the enemies while quickly searching for the kidnapped children in the scene.
At the same time, the number of enemies in the scene is clearly increasing.
Everyone present held their breath, quietly waiting for that moment to arrive.
Then, Tom quickly tapped the buttons a few times.
"Aww!" Michael pointed to the sky, and a spotlight shone on him.
The drumbeats in the background music " Smooth Criminal " suddenly intensified, becoming even more powerful.
All the enemies present seemed to be controlled, dancing in place with him.
"Oh--!!!"
Cheers erupted suddenly; the onlookers were clearly extremely satisfied, howling with delight.
Some crazy people even pushed through the crowd and started imitating MJ's dance moves, making strange noises that made everyone burst into laughter.
"Damn, that's so cool! Who came up with such a brilliant move? It's so addictive!"
Even Tom himself couldn't help but burst out laughing.
This ingenious move design can truly bring a smile to one's face.
Even a casual fan like him, who isn't particularly familiar with MJ, can get the point.
If Gamenova simply added some devastating special effects and created a full-screen attack that blew everything around it up, the visual effect wouldn't be as strong as this.
MJ definitely had this style, conquering people with his music. "Here it comes! Anti-gravity tilt!"
Amidst everyone's excited gazes, the group of enemies, along with Michael under the spotlight, executed the classic 45-degree forward lean move.
Then, with a "bang," they were all knocked to the ground.
"Cool!"
It's not just about auditory enjoyment and the MJ fan effect.
As a veteran in the gaming industry, Tom could clearly sense that the quality of this game was exceptionally high.
Even if you removed all of Michael Jack's elements, it would still be an absolute must-play arcade action masterpiece.
The movements are elegant and fluid, with a virtually lag-free and responsive control experience.
The most amazing thing is the character's movements themselves.
Tom continued pressing the button, making MJ move around in the second level.
His every movement, even the angle of motion of each joint, is exactly like that of a real person.
Aside from a slightly lower pixel count, there's absolutely nothing wrong with it. "Optical motion capture..."
This must be thanks to the new technology that was reported in the media.
If I'm not mistaken, every move Michael makes in the footage before me was recorded by Michael himself.
Not only that, but when he reached the second level, even the game's background music changed.
Even if Tom is not familiar with Michael Jack, he couldn't possibly have never heard of the classic song "Beat It".
When the music changed, these enemies seemed to change their behavior patterns to match the new rhythm.
Although the gameplay itself has not changed.
However, with the changes in sound effects, level objects, and enemies, the entire game feels completely refreshed, and there is absolutely no sense of fatigue caused by repetition.
For a moment, even the people queuing behind them stopped urging them on.
Sometimes, watching skilled players perform impressive feats is an extremely enjoyable experience in itself.
Moreover, if it were really my turn, I doubt I'd even be able to get this far.
It would be a real shame to be defeated before even being able to unleash a powerful move.
This is a rhythm game.
A game that perfectly combines music and gameplay, but it differs from relatively fundamentalist rhythm games like Rocksmith.
No one expected that an arcade game that sounded like a gimmicky product aimed at fans could achieve this level of success.
Of course, putting aside the technical and artistic aspects, this work is also a huge commercial breakthrough.
The reorganization of Atari Games into NovaArcade is not just a matter of game development.
A complete arcade machine manufacturer is actually composed of numerous departments working together.
Apart from Silicon Oasis, which was recently incorporated into novaarcade as a distribution network, Atari Games themselves have a very complete supply chain.
Of all these, the one that Lin Lixin values most is actually a seemingly insignificant department.
Overseas sales representative.
In the past, these people's only job was to make follow-up visits and be responsible for the inspection and maintenance of the machines.
But in this film, * Michael Jack's Moonwalk*, they had a new task: checking the coin count on the mechanical coin counter and ensuring the tamper-evident seals were intact.
According to the contracts signed with store managers in various regions, 40% of the machine's revenue must be handed over as profit sharing.
Lin Lixin had attempted to implement this technology in collaboration with Silicon Oasis, but the project was abandoned due to workload issues and the decreasing proportion of arcade business.
Now that the arcade department has finally become formalized, it's natural to put this technical approach on the agenda as soon as possible.