Recaps

At UCLA, Alan, Frank, and Mike tested their Orcs & Humans Civilization mod and rushed to improve it after learning about a $100,000 mod-development competition. Meanwhile, Lin Lixin appointed Vivian CEO of Micron, whose memory production could solve NovaXeno’s video-memory shortage.

• Alan tested the Orcs & Humans mod, planned simpler resources and units, and continued designing its content while Mike slept.
• Frank burst into the dorm with news of a Civilization mod contest offering $100,000 for first prize.
• Mike volunteered to find a larger ROM, while Frank took over programming and Alan continued planning the mod.
• At Micron, Lin Lixin introduced Vivian as the company’s new CEO and told her that acquiring Micron addressed the video-memory problem.
• Vivian realized Lin Lixin had bought the memory-chip manufacturer to solve NovaXeno’s video-memory shortage.

Lin Lixin tasked Carmack with making a true 3D sequel to Wolfenstein 3D and agreed to find him a team. He then set out to acquire Activision for its founders, brand, and IPs while plotting to limit Bobby Kotick’s influence.

• Carmack celebrated Lin Lixin’s plan for a true 3D Wolfenstein 3D sequel, then admitted he needed a team to make a game of that scale.
• Lin Lixin agreed to find Carmack reliable helpers and joked that the game needed to earn at least a million dollars.
• Lin Lixin told Sam he intended to acquire Activision and recalled Bobby Kotick’s role in damaging Blizzard and its classic franchises.
• Lin Lixin called Jobs to warn him about Kotick and asked Sam to undermine Kotick’s acquisitions where possible.
• Sam questioned why Lin Lixin wanted Activision, and Lin explained that he needed its publishing capacity, brand, IPs, and four founding veterans.

Lin Lixin acquired Activision after Bruce Davis drove David Crane and the developers toward rebellion, then appointed David CEO. He also discovered Infocom and called Caneghem to offer him the adventure-game studio.

• Bruce Davis rejected David Crane’s complaints about Activision’s assembly-line approach, and David resigned as developers rallied behind him.
• An administrator told Bruce that Magnavo was suing Activision for $6.6 million, worsening the company’s financial crisis.
• Bruce accepted GAMENOVA’s acquisition offer at a thirty-percent premium, and the board approved the sale.
• After the acquisition, Lin Lixin dismissed Bruce and appointed David CEO, who celebrated GAMENOVA’s arrival and called the other members of the legendary quartet.
• Lin Lixin praised Infocom’s text adventure games, then called Caneghem to offer him the studio.

In 1987, Caneghem reconsidered his Heroes of Might and Magic design after playing Civilization, determined to start over rather than rush the game. Lin Lixin offered him a role as Infocom’s chief development director, and Caneghem eagerly accepted.

• Caneghem decided to scrap his early Heroes of Might and Magic design and begin again after playing Civilization on the NX.
• Lin Lixin called Caneghem and offered him an adventure-game studio from Activision to help with development.
• Caneghem declined to manage a studio because he wanted to develop games without constraints.
• Lin Lixin offered Caneghem the position of chief development director at Infocom while leaving operations under Activision.
• Caneghem accepted Lin Lixin’s invitation to join GAMENOVA.

Lin Lixin considered how to build a stronger Activision and brought Carmack to recruit Ben Gokey, a gifted young programmer working in a garage. After Carmack critiqued Gokey’s rendering system and proposed using BSP and light tables, Gokey realized Carmack had developed Wolfenstein 3D’s rendering system.

• Lin Lixin decided that acquiring Activision and reuniting its founders mattered more than Infocom’s IP, while reflecting on how Activision later grew through studios and Call of Duty.
• Lin Lixin identified Ben Gokey, a young programmer with strong technical skills, as a promising candidate to recruit.
• Lin Lixin brought Carmack to Gokey’s garage, where Carmack offered him work, but Gokey initially refused.
• Carmack criticized Gokey’s uniform-grid rendering design and proposed using BSP and precomputed light tables instead.
• Gokey recognized that Carmack’s advice was credible, then realized Carmack had developed the rendering system for Wolfenstein 3D.

Lin Lixin and Vivian arrived at CES in Las Vegas carrying Micro-Nova’s NovaRadeon, a new 3D graphics accelerator. After seeing Atari and Amiga demonstrate their graphics, they reached GAMENOVA’s booth and prepared to reveal the card’s capabilities.

• Lin Lixin approved Gorcy’s skills and set him to build a proof-of-concept demo within a week.
• Lin Lixin and Vivian arrived at CES with the NovaRadeon in Vivian’s briefcase.
• They passed Atari’s flight simulator display and Amiga’s animated 3D graphics demonstrations, joking that their arrival looked like they were crashing the other companies’ parties.
• Lin Lixin and Vivian reached the PC-compatible section, where Sam showed them the Dell-assisted PC prepared for the demonstration.
• Vivian opened the briefcase and prepared the NovaRadeon and the D0OM disc for the public reveal.

At GAMENOVA’s CES booth, Emma recognized a PC demo as Doom, the rumored sequel to Wolfenstein 3D, after spotting its new three-dimensional spaces and lighting. The chapter left her stunned as the game’s title appeared on screen, confirming the legend was real.

• Emma brought Vincent to GAMENOVA’s booth to try the games while they waited for their NovaXeno console.
• Vincent spotted a specially painted PC, and Emma initially assumed it was running a PC version of Wolfenstein 3D.
• Emma noticed platforms, freestanding pillars, and graduated lighting that Wolfenstein 3D could not produce.
• Emma realized the game was Doom, the rumored sequel hidden as an Easter egg in Wolfenstein 3D.
• The player was defeated by a demon, and the title Doom appeared on screen.

At the exhibition, Emma tried Doom and was stunned by its fast, detailed 3D graphics and violent gameplay. The demo drew attention to GAMENOVA’s new graphics cards and SDRAM, and news of the technology spread through the exhibition hall.

• Emma and Vincent entered GAMENOVA’s booth, where Emma tried Doom on a PC while Vincent started Civilization on a NovaXeno.
• Emma watched Doom’s world render with textured floors and ceilings, lighting, and complex three-dimensional spaces, then fought demons with a shotgun and chainsaw.
• Emma reached a room with a rotating metallic sphere and realized the demo was showcasing its graphical performance.
• A staff member told Emma that Doom had already been released and that its full experience required a 16-bit graphics card and SDRAM.
• Reporters spread news of GAMENOVA’s 3D game, graphics cards, and faster memory architecture, drawing attention from visitors and other manufacturers.

After the release of “D00M,” Lin Lixin discussed GAMENOVA’s graphics-card and memory strategy before returning to the team developing its next game. At Activision, he joined Carmack, Gorcy, and Caneghem as they planned a fully 3D engine and called for a 6DoF camera.

• Lin Lixin and Vivian discussed “D00M” as a low-cost promotion for NovaRadeon sales and considered how to address limited SDRAM and northbridge production.
• Lin Lixin decided GAMENOVA would rely on cross-licensing and standardization to make SDRAM widely accepted rather than bringing in another motherboard manufacturer.
• At Activision, Carmack and Gorcy debated the next game’s renderer, agreeing to retain BSP trees while rebuilding the world around vertices and triangular faces.
• Lin Lixin arrived and said the next title needed a true 6DoF camera, allowing players to rotate and move freely along three axes.

Lin Lixin assigned Carmack and the reorganized Activision to develop Quake and a reusable 3D game engine. After GAMENOVA’s CES graphics breakthrough threatened rival developers, Trip decided EA and Interplay would upgrade Fallout to VGA and OpenGL.

• Lin Lixin explained Degrees of Freedom and gave Carmack a proposal for developing Quake and a 3D game engine.
• Carmack agreed to lead the project with the reorganized Activision, while Lin Lixin described the work as building a new foundation from scratch.
• After CES, Trip saw GAMENOVA’s D00M running with its advanced graphics and ordered EA to contact Interplay.
• Interplay producer Fergus met with Trip and EA’s technical staff to discuss Fallout and GAMENOVA’s graphics technology.
• Trip ordered EA and Interplay to port Fallout to VGA and OpenGL, aiming to make it a 256-color PC role-playing game.

Trip sought a reusable 3D rendering module for EA and proposed collaborating with Bethesda, whose Christopher had already built a promising 3D demo. Christopher agreed to trade the technology for Fallout, while Lin Lixin showed Will LCP and introduced him to its developer, David.

• Trip gathered EA’s core technical staff and said he wanted a reusable 3D rendering module for future games.
• Fergus suggested Bethesda, and Trip remembered Christopher’s success with Gridiron! and his previous refusal to join EA.
• Christopher showed Trip a rough 3D demo and rejected a ten percent revenue share, asking instead for the Fallout IP.
• Trip agreed to give Bethesda Fallout in exchange for working together on the rendering module.
• Lin Lixin showed Will LCP and introduced him to its developer, David.

Will introduced David to the Jazz character AI system he and Lin Lixin had designed, explaining how its decision-tree structure made complex behavior easier to build and maintain. David realized the system could extend beyond The Sims and would also be included in Carmack's 3D engine.

• Will asked David about the personality system he had designed for LCP, and David described how randomized parameters gave each little man distinct behaviors.
• Will explained that he and Lin Lixin had developed the Jazz system, a decision-tree AI inspired by LCP's finite state machine and design ideas from Civilization.
• David recognized that Jazz could make AI logic readable and editable through a dedicated tool, even for people without programming knowledge.
• Lin Lixin confirmed that Jazz would be included in Carmack's 3D engine for designing NPC and hostile-unit behavior.
• David connected GAMENOVA's games and innovations as a broader progression in video game technology.

Lin Lixin approved Ubisoft hiring the young Michel Ancel and saw him as a future creator of Rayman, which could fill GAMENOVA’s gap in side-scrolling platformers. Meanwhile, EA’s Fallout became a hit with its support for 256-color VGA graphics, and Lin discovered Bethesda’s involvement in the game.

• Bill told Lin Lixin that Ubisoft wanted to hire fifteen-year-old Michel Ancel after his animation impressed the Guillemot brothers, and Lin approved the hire.
• Lin recognized Michel Ancel’s potential to create Rayman and instructed him to train with the Guillemot brothers at Ubisoft.
• EA released Fallout, which sold over fifty thousand copies in its first week after drawing attention for supporting VGA graphics and offering lower-resolution modes for other systems.
• Lin tried Fallout, examined its S.P.E.C.I.A.L. attributes and tactical RPG gameplay, and judged it unlike the later Fallout he knew.
• Lin opened Fallout’s developer information and was surprised to find Bethesda’s logo alongside Interplay’s.

Lin Lixin approached Christopher Weaver to acquire Bethesda for its physics-engine research and RPG development, but Weaver rejected the offer and doubted GAMENOVA’s technical lead. A new quest prompted Lin Lixin to invite Weaver to test GAMENOVA’s game and judge its physics systems, leaving the acquisition unresolved.

• Lin Lixin considered recruiting Christopher Weaver and Julian LeFay after learning Bethesda had handled Fallout’s 3D rendering.
• Christopher Weaver interrupted a tabletop role-playing session and met Lin Lixin, telling him that EA had bought Fallout’s brand, a share of sales, and the rendering module for seven million dollars.
• Lin Lixin clarified that he wanted Bethesda for its physics engine and RPG development, but Christopher Weaver refused because he believed Bethesda could develop its own technology and games.
• A quest appeared, challenging Lin Lixin to release work whose technology Christopher Weaver would find difficult to match.
• Lin Lixin invited Christopher Weaver to try GAMENOVA’s game in closed testing and offer suggestions, especially about its physics systems.

Christopher received Quake from GAMENOVA and discovered that it used genuine real-time 3D rendering, far beyond the technology he had developed. The game’s visuals overwhelmed him, and after he recovered, he showed Julian the revolutionary camera movement.

• Christopher received a NovaXeno unit, a NovaRadeon graphics card, a mouse, and PC and NX discs from Lin Lixin, then loaded Quake on his computer.
• Christopher examined Quake’s smooth lighting and complex three-dimensional environment, recognizing that it surpassed D00M’s renderer.
• When Christopher moved the mouse and saw the view rotate in true 3D, he became dizzy and collapsed at his desk.
• Julian found Christopher unconscious, and Christopher woke to find Quake still running.
• Christopher showed Julian how Quake’s view could turn freely, and Julian realized GAMENOVA had achieved genuine real-time 3D rendering.

Lin Lixin proposed reviving Activision’s Pitfall! as a 3D arcade game, then returned to GAMENOVA headquarters to meet Christopher and Julian. After seeing Quake’s capabilities, Christopher asked Lin to let them join.

• Lin Lixin played Pitfall! and suggested that David revive the game as a 3D arcade title.
• David enthusiastically agreed to discuss the hardware and gameplay design with Lin Lixin.
• Lin Lixin found a Kaboom! cartridge, but Sam called to tell him Christopher and Julian had arrived at GAMENOVA headquarters.
• Christopher told Lin Lixin that he and Julian wanted to join after Quake left him unable to understand how the game had been made.

GAMENOVA released Quake with an ESRB Mature rating, and players wondered whether it could live up to Wolfenstein 3D and Doom. When Emma experienced its realistic 3D graphics and physics, she realized Doom had only been a technology test, while the gaming world fell silent in awe.

• GAMENOVA released Quake on Presidents' Day with an ESRB Mature rating, and Emma noticed gaming magazines had not reviewed it.
• Emma worried that GAMENOVA was releasing games too quickly and might be repeating Atari's strategy of reusing the same technology.
• After Quake went on sale, Emma played it while her son Vincent was away and watched the game's lava and demons.
• Emma jumped in response to a fireball and was amazed by the game's realistic 3D world and physics.
• Emma admitted she had been foolish to doubt GAMENOVA, and players and critics across the country fell silent at Quake's groundbreaking graphics.

Quake's success highlighted the NX's efficient graphics architecture, while Hercules introduced an auxiliary 2D card to complement NovaRadeon. At Activision, Lin Lixin showed David how to build Temple Run with 2D tricks that created the illusion of 3D, leaving David impressed by the prototype.

• Quake's first-day sales exceeded 500,000 copies, and players discovered that the NX outperformed many PCs because of its direct chipset connection and efficient architecture.
• Hercules launched a 2D graphics card that handled ordinary rendering and freed NovaRadeon to focus on games.
• Lin Lixin declined Vivian's suggestion to contact or acquire Hercules, saying competition would help popularize graphics cards.
• David showed Lin Lixin the Temple Run project he and Ben Gokey had begun using Quake's 3D technology.
• Lin Lixin built a prototype using a jumping square and an enlarging line to create the illusion of a 3D road, impressing David.

Lin Lixin showed David a simple auto-running game design that used optical illusions and four directional controls, then proposed turning the pursuers’ distance into a health bar. The pair settled on an ancient-temple setting and true 3D models, while Lin Lixin realized he could approach Spielberg and Lucas directly for the game adaptation.

• David recognized that Lin Lixin’s visual approach used optical illusions similar to the techniques in OutRun.
• Lin Lixin demonstrated a game where the character moved forward automatically and players used four directional keys to dodge obstacles.
• David praised the simplified controls and suggested using Pitfall! as a rainforest-themed model.
• Lin Lixin proposed using the feeling of falling behind pursuers to create tension, and David compared the mechanic to a health bar.
• David and Lin Lixin chose an ancient temple setting inspired by Raiders of the Lost Ark and planned to experiment with true 3D polygon models.
• Lin Lixin realized he could approach Spielberg and Lucas directly about adapting Raiders of the Lost Ark.

Lin Lixin negotiated with George Lucas and Steven Spielberg to license Raiders of the Lost Ark for a GAMENOVA game, while Spielberg remained wary because of the disastrous E.T. game. Lucas supported the project and then raised a separate proposal involving NovaRadeon graphics workstations for Lucasfilm’s visual-effects needs.

• Lin Lixin met with Spielberg and Lucas to discuss licensing Raiders of the Lost Ark, but Spielberg distrusted the deal because of Warshaw’s E.T. game.
• Lin Lixin proposed having Activision developer David Crane lead the game, which made Spielberg even more uneasy.
• Lucas endorsed the collaboration, and Lin Lixin suggested developing a prototype first and abandoning the project if Spielberg still objected.
• After Warshaw escorted Spielberg out, Lucas asked Lin Lixin about obtaining NovaRadeon graphics workstations for Industrial Light & Magic.
• Lin Lixin learned Lucas was seeking support for Lucasfilm’s CGI work after Steve Jobs had bought its CGI division and renamed it Pixar.

Lin Lixin offered Lucas laboratory-grade graphics hardware and a powerful rendering system in exchange for a stake in Lucasfilm. Two weeks later, he brought a jungle-themed arcade machine to Lucasfilm for Spielberg and Harrison Ford to test.

• Lin Lixin offered Lucas a 3D rendering engine and an SGI-based rendering supercomputer, impressing him with their potential value.
• Lucas agreed to exchange one percent of Lucasfilm for Lin Lixin's technology.
• Two weeks later, Lin Lixin brought a large, temple-themed arcade machine to Lucasfilm.
• Spielberg, Lucas, and Harrison Ford gathered to inspect the machine, and Spielberg entered it to begin the playtest.

Spielberg tried Lin Lixin’s arcade game, a simple endless runner, and found himself unable to stop playing as its obstacles and pursuers kept him engrossed. After he crashed, the game continued rather than ending, leaving him focused on surviving while Lucas waited in the lounge.

• Spielberg examined the vertically mounted screen and started the game, triggering cries and approaching footsteps as the protagonist fled a temple with a golden skull.
• Spielberg discovered the protagonist ran automatically and used the four directional buttons to jump, slide, dodge obstacles, and collect coins.
• Spielberg realized the game was simple but found his hands kept operating the controls whenever new obstacles appeared.
• Spielberg failed to react quickly enough to a tight sequence of obstacles and crashed, but the pursuers drew closer instead of a Game Over screen appearing.
• Lucas asked when Spielberg would emerge, while Lin Lixin explained that the game’s endless loop and dynamic difficulty kept players hooked.

Lin Lixin pursued a secure player-data system for Temple Run, insisting on microprocessor IC cards while storing game data in the cloud. As Micron prepared to manufacture the cards and the server work moved forward, Henry finished repairing a ticket dispenser at ArcadeArea.

• Lin Lixin proposed using IC cards to save player information and extend Temple Run’s progression beyond individual runs, but Gerald warned that IC cards were expensive and had limited capacity.
• Gerald suggested cheaper magnetic stripe cards, but Lin Lixin rejected them because they were less secure and explained that the cards would hold personal information while game data would be stored in the cloud.
• Lin Lixin went to Vivian at Micron, who said Micron could use its COB packaging line once they obtained a card production line.
• Lin Lixin planned for Carmack and the others to optimize the server for high concurrency and add message queues and partition scheduling.
• Henry finished loading tickets into a Metal Gear cabinet’s new dispenser, checked its circuit board, and told a player the machine was ready.

Henry received GAMENOVA’s new Temple Run arcade machines and discovered that its universal cards saved player progress and unlocked character customization. He realized the rewards could keep players at the machine for hours.

• Henry heard from Silicon Oasis that GAMENOVA had released a new arcade machine and ordered two before other shop owners could learn about it.
• Henry watched the Temple Run machines being installed and received a box of GAMENOVA-PASS cards.
• Henry played Temple Run as Indiana Jones and was captivated by its tense chase gameplay.
• Henry inserted a Snake card, registered as ArcadeArea-Henry, and saw that the card saved his progress and added character customization options.
• Henry discovered that hats and outfits could be unlocked through play and recognized how the rewards might keep players playing for hours.

Henry realized GAMENOVA’s secure All-in-One Card could link player data across arcade machines, PCs, and NovaXeno through the cloud. The chapter ended with All-in-One Cards selling out and Lin Lixin noticing that their design rankings could reveal which characters players liked most.

• Henry tried to order more Temple Run machines, but Silicon Oasis had no available phone lines or launch stock left.
• Henry examined an All-in-One Card and learned it contained a secure microprocessor and stored player data on GAMENOVA’s cloud servers.
• Henry gave a longtime customer a Guile card, and the customer said he hoped console and PC games would get arcade ports.
• The customer’s comment led Henry to realize cloud-stored player data could synchronize progress across arcade machines, PCs, and NovaXeno.
• Players quickly bought out the All-in-One Cards, and Lin Lixin reviewed sales rankings that could indicate which characters were most popular.