Just before the Christmas season, real-3do made its hasty debut, almost like a rushed launch.
It was as if it was meant to dampen Gamenova's recent momentum.
The arrival of real-3do was met with a fiery and provocative tone.
On the first day alone, a full three major launch titles were announced.
" One on One: Gold Edition" features comprehensive graphics enhancements and a wider selection of players compared to the original version.
As you can see, although it's just reheated leftovers, it's cooked exceptionally well.
It's a near-complete, seamless remake, including the physics engine, which incorporates a large number of new technologies, pushing the performance of the Real3do machine to its limits.
The theme of "ball" perfectly hits the sweet spot for North America players.
It's foreseeable that even if this game isn't a groundbreaking blockbuster, its sales will probably be decent.
However, the last two games are a bit hard to understand.
Those are two... well, how should I put it...
It's like an attempt to imitate " Myst," but without capturing its essence. Strictly speaking, these are probably two "FMV games."
This is the legendary interactive movie game.
In a sense, they perfectly align with Trip's vision for the 3do platform.
This also aligns with 3do's expectations for the future development of the gaming industry.
Many hardware experts have stated that with the rapid popularization of CD-ROMs today, and given such a large capacity medium, future games will inevitably be interactive movies featuring live actors.
This is a kind of "fantasy" that has spread throughout the entire industry.
Trip took it seriously.
" Harvey, aren't you going to the stadium today?"
"No, I'm going out in a bit, you guys go ahead."
Harvey hung up the phone, slung an empty backpack over his shoulder, and pushed open the door to leave.
Christmas season, a time when most United States stay home with nothing to do. Normally, he would do what he always does: go out and play ball with some colleagues.
However, there was something today that really piqued his curiosity, and he absolutely had to go and see it.
EA has made a host machine! A magical machine called Real-3Do.
It's said that its specifications even surpass those of Gamenova, making it the most powerful in the world today.
If possible, Harvey wouldn't mind spending more money to buy another game console.
Isn't the point of making money to spend it?
Gamenova doesn't have any new machine plans for the time being, and installing broadband doesn't really require too much of their budget.
Using the money saved to buy a machine with sentimental value is actually a good idea.
Moreover, EA started out making sports games.
As a football fan and sports game enthusiast, Harvey naturally had to go and see for himself.
Harvey's place wasn't far from the business district; it only took him about half an hour to get there by bicycle.
A large digital electronics market, it has everything from computer parts to all kinds of home computers, game discs, VHS videotapes, and more. Most of the city's population comes here to shop.
It was Christmas season, and the number of people coming and going was more than expected.
They carried large and small bags of their "spoils of war," and some even pushed their overflowing shopping carts and unloaded their purchases right there in the parking lot.
It seems that he wasn't the only one planning to let loose at the end of the year.
Everyone was holding their breath, ready to go on a shopping spree.
but...
Harvey glanced around, squinting as he carefully examined what the people were buying.
They even had super bulky color TVs, but I didn't see many of the legendary [ Panasonic Real 3DO ].
Out of such a large group of people, there seemed to be only three or four tables.
"It's probably because it was just released, and the marketing and promotion haven't been done yet."
He thought to himself.
He locked his car and then carried his bag into the store. Just a door away, the enormous convenience store was packed with an even more terrifying sea of people.
Consumerism materialized into a physical form at this moment, and a massive ideological current was constantly washing over Harvey's nerves.
He could almost feel his reason slipping away, and all he wanted was to indulge in a wild and unrestrained shopping spree.
" Quake 2..."
Before reaching the game console area, you must first pass through the game copy area, which is an unavoidable route.
It seems to be a peculiar little trick of the merchants; as long as these dazzling array of products are displayed in the showcase, the seed of wanting to buy a game console in the minds of consumers will quickly sprout and grow strong.
Although Quake 2 can be updated for free via the internet.
However, it still offers physical disc copies.
Whether you can't download it due to a slow internet connection, or you didn't have the original and are now looking to buy a physical copy, you can choose to purchase one.
Of course, there are also many collectors who specifically buy an extra set just to collect both sets of packaging boxes.
As Gamenova's final release of the year, Harvey clearly sees that Quake 2 is the most popular title here.
Unlike the other games, which are categorized by genre and publisher, Quake's own series— Wolfenstein 3D, Doom, and two Quake titles—occupies an entire wall of display cases.
However, that's not Harvey's goal today.
He glanced at the information on the card box and then put it back on the shelf.
He'd already done it.
But not at home.
After all, although he had some spare money, he didn't have enough to spend thousands of dollars to equip a high-end console capable of running Quake 2 smoothly.
Harvey went to that "internet cafe" with his friends.
It's right inside the arcade.
Call ahead to reserve a private room for 5 people, and once you get a spot, you can go with your friends.
Whether it's pizza, Hamburg, fries, or iced cola, just click on the software on the computer, and the waiter will bring it to you.
The whole experience was absolutely amazing, even more so than playing at home.
More importantly, the brothers could sit side by side and play against five friends in another box. Honestly, sometimes Harvey even felt a strange sense of social interaction during the game, similar to that on a sports field.
Sometimes, when they encounter like-minded rivals, they'll get to know each other after the event and then find a place to throw a party.
Okay, Harvey admits that his personal subjective feelings might have played a significant role in his experience with internet cafes.
If we look at it objectively, internet cafes today have a very serious problem!
It's so bad it will ruin everyone's experience!
It's overcrowded!
The private rooms were a bit better, but the main hall and the catwalk were packed with cameras, with some people even just standing there watching.
They didn't rent a camera spot, they didn't buy anything, they just stood there with a bucket of popcorn, watching for hours on end.
In other words, everyone present was a former arcade player and had a high tolerance for being watched.
Some people even took pride in it and deliberately showed off their skills in front of the onlookers, eliciting cheers.
If you look at it this way, it's actually not much different from an arcade game.
Shaking his head, Harvey suppressed that wonderful memory for the time being. Even if he wanted to go now, he couldn't; it was simply too crowded. Both Gamenova franchise stores in their area had already suspended reservations.
Even those who have already joined the queue still have to wait ten days to half a month before it's their turn.
To address this issue, store managers have even started limiting lease terms.
Not only is the renewal function suspended during the computer session, but there are also time limits for reservations.
Unless you pay more.
"Let's talk about it when we have time. Maybe we'll get an even better piece of work in a while."
Harvey glanced again at the row of CDs on the shelf.
After thinking about it, I just grabbed a disc of " Wolfenstein 3D ".
Consider this a way to complete my collection.
Each installment of the Quake franchise has its own unique style.
After passing through the crowded Gamenova area, there was another area with a considerable number of people. Sierra, OriginSystems, Border Bundles, Activision...
A group of game publishers crowded together, each vying for a precious spot in the media spotlight.
There have been quite a few good works this year.
It's not just the PC market; various platforms are dropping bombshells one after another.
After a casual stroll, he had stuffed seven or eight discs into his hand.
However, he also discovered some unusual things.
What about EA?
In the past, as one of the major publishers, EA would occupy a relatively prominent position in these regions.
Looking at the publishing industry, the only companies that can rival EA's direct sales model are Sierra Entertainment and Border Bundles, along with Activision, which is backed by Gamenova.
But this time is different.
ea is not here.
However, the answer to this question soon appeared on its own. Harvey looked up.
Behind the booths displaying copies of several games, a large light-up sign hung from the ceiling.
Like the directional signs in other areas, this is used to indicate the content of this area.
Gamenova also has similar dedicated zone navigation signs.
[Electronic arts & 3do]
"Special Zone?"
Harvey was taken aback, then suddenly realized what was happening.
Yes.
EA is now a major company with its own platform.
It's already qualified to have its own dedicated section, just like established companies such as Gamenova, Nintendo, Atari, and Sega.
Thinking of this, Harvey immediately perked up and quickened his pace toward the direction indicated by the light sign.
EA really went all out this time. Harvey could easily locate the EA section without even needing to consult the navigation, having barely left the game section.
Across a wide corridor, there is a large, spacious area on the other side.
The white walls were covered with light-up signs featuring the Electronic Arts logo, as well as sections for 3DO.
It wasn't the later design with a circle and the letter ea, but a more classic blue-green grid logo.
Squares, circles, triangles.
Below is a row of capital letters.
[Electronic arts]
There was a significant flow of people coming and going.
Every now and then, people would be drawn to the exaggerated slogans and walk closer to the booth to see what was going on.
Soon, Harvey became one of those moths drawn to the flame, stepping into the crowd.
With just one glance, he saw something that sent shivers down his spine.