Chapter 37: The Mysterious Game
Junpei's praise sparked a positive response among users, and Final Frontier began to gain popularity. Junpei was known as one of the most trusted reviewers among family users. Even though he had a critical nature and didn't give a perfect score to even outstanding games, he awarded Final Frontier 36 points in his review.
Intrigued by his review, users who had doubts decided to give Final Frontier a try, and the results were overwhelmingly satisfying. In the first week, 3,000 copies were sold, and after a month, they were selling 30,000 copies a week. Kawaguchi, who had returned from his fishing trip, called with a trembling voice to express his disbelief.
"Mr. Junhyuk, what on earth is happening?"
"I told you to wait a little longer. Good games are discovered by users first! Word of mouth has started, and it will sell like hotcakes. Inquire about additional cartridges from Min-Tendo before stock runs out."
"Thank you. When you come to Tokyo, please visit our office. Mr. Junhyuk, there's so much I want to discuss with you."
"Understood. I'll contact you before coming."
He had been complaining as if he were about to die before leaving for a fishing trip, but now he was in high spirits. I nodded and put down the phone. Suddenly, the phone started ringing again.
"Hello...?"
"Junhyuk!? It's Junpei. Have you finished work?"
"I've finished, so I answered the phone..."
"Then come to Osaka."
"Osaka!? You're in Osaka? When did you...?"
"Just now. Remember when I asked you to come here sometime because it's nice? Get out here quickly. My boss is waiting."
"Are you seriously asking me to come from Tokyo!?"
"This time, there's something I need to ask you because of the article, and I want you to help me."
"Alright. I'll be there soon. Wait for me."
A while later, after driving to Dotonbori in Osaka, I looked around for the meeting place. It would have been easier if I had a cell phone, but these inconveniences of the 80s had a nostalgic charm of their own.
"Hey, over here!"
I turned my head at Junpei's voice and saw him waving with a cap pulled down over his head. He approached me with a professional film camera slung over his shoulder, as if he were a journalist, and said,
"It's been a while. How have you been?"
"Eh, you know, here and there. Couldn't you have at least contacted me before coming to Osaka?"
"I thought you might use work as an excuse to run away."
"You're quick to catch on."
"Haha, let's grab something to eat first. You said you're treating, right? How about we indulge ourselves in the local cuisine of Osaka today?"
"Alright, alright."
Dotonbori was an entertainment district situated around the Dotonbori River in the southern part of Osaka.
From Ebisu Bridge to Sen'nichi, a stretch of about 500 meters, was packed with dazzling signs of street vendors and restaurants, like a complex Tetris game.
Junpei, still munching on takoyaki as he headed towards a restaurant, said, "Ah, it's so hot! Woo, hot!"
"If you keep eating that hot stuff, you'll burn the roof of your mouth..."
I chuckled as I watched Junpei rolling takoyaki around in his mouth, swaying my head from side to side.
Since coming to Japan, except for Kung-pei and Shige, I hadn't met many people who could be considered friends. Was this guy the only one with whom I could have an open conversation in this era?
A little later, we rented a small room in a restaurant with a unique sign featuring a giant crab swaying.
"So, is this the place you were talking about? Did you not like it? Want to go somewhere else?"
"No, it's fine. It's just that my inner pervert briefly took over. If you say it's good, it's good."
"Hey, you thought I was taking you to a brothel, didn't you?"
"Shh! You're always so busy with work, you never have time for women."
"Who do you think I am, a playboy?"
Raising our glasses lightly, Junpei frowned as he lifted his glass to his lips. He put it down with a displeased expression, and I asked, "What's eating you?"
Junpei's expression turned more serious. "The reason I came here today is that I have something I want to ask you directly."
"Is that so?" I replied, picking up a piece of sashimi. Junpei furrowed his brow slightly.
"Fine, I'll listen carefully. What's so important?"
"Have you heard of a game called Dragon Emblem?"
I chuckled inwardly. So, that was it after all. "Yes, I have. Why? Are you interested in that game too?"
"I'm a game journalist by trade, so of course, I'm interested. But have you played it?"
"Yeah, I've played it."
"What? Where did you get it?"
"I bought it at a secondhand game shop, just as the rumors say."
"Where is that game shop? Tell me."
"It's in Kyoto. I don't remember how to get there from here. Besides, when I bought it, there was only one left. I got lucky."
"It turns out the rumors were true! You've been spotted at secondhand shops in Kyoto and Osaka, more often than in Tokyo!"
That's because I'm living around here now. It's only natural.
"But that game is surprisingly expensive, right? I bought it for 8,000 yen at a secondhand shop, even though I heard it was only 1,000 yen."
"It's naturally skyrocketing in price! That game is creating a huge buzz among family game enthusiasts!"
As Junpei had mentioned, Dragon Emblem, which had originally started at 500 yen for a trade-in, was now being purchased for as much as 6,000 yen. Of course, this was only for new copies with saved game data intact.
I finished my drink and pulled out a game cartridge from my pocket. When I did, Junpei's eyes widened, and he opened his mouth.
"Oh...? Could that be..."
"Just in case you asked about it, I got another one a few days ago."
In reality, I had just brought one from home.
"Junhyuk! This little...! Oh, this lovely thing!"
Junpei, brimming with emotion, tears welling up, accepted the Dragon Emblem I handed him and examined it from various angles. Though it looked just like any regular family cartridge, Junpei inspected it with curious eyes.
"Don't wear out the cartridge. Hey, you, put it down and have a drink."
"I was so overcome with emotion upon seeing the real thing."
"It's fine. You'll probably resent me in three days..."
"Huh? Why?"
"They say no one has cleared that game in one go, and it seems like no one has cleared it at all yet. If you can't clear it, you'll show your true colors."
"Wait, are you telling me that if your character dies in the game, the data gets deleted?"
"Moreover, if you get a game over, you can't play it again. So be careful when playing."
In fact, Dragon Emblem had one secret that only I knew.
Well, it would probably be revealed someday, but for now, I wanted to enjoy the reactions of the users. I filled my empty glass and smiled.
"Who the hell supplied the cartridges without our consent!?"
During the weekly meeting, President Kamauichi's booming voice echoed throughout the room. In response, Mr. Gunpei adjusted his glasses slightly and answered, "It seems it might be the result of the recent illegal replication by Chinese manufacturers."
"Are they seriously making games through illegal replication?! Is that even possible?"
At that moment, Shige, who had been staring into space with a somewhat absent expression, spoke up, "That's right. It doesn't make sense that such a remarkable game would be produced illegally. Oh, my Katrina..."
"Shige, why has that kid been acting like this since earlier?"
President Kamauichi directed an uncomfortable look toward Shige, who had been making a bewildered face since the beginning of the meeting. Seated next to Shige, I took it upon myself to respond to President Kamauichi.
"Oh, it's because the main female character in Dragon Emblem, who Shige was playing yesterday, died..."
"I kept her safe in the rear and never expected the enemies to ambush her from behind. Ugh... The director of this game is like some kind of cruel level designer..."
Shige muttered in a low voice as if the events from yesterday were coming back to her. Oh my, get a hold of yourself. Still, it was a little gratifying to see Shige, a renowned game director, so captivated by playing.
"However, Dragon Emblem has entered the second-hand market instead of the official distribution channel, and we have no way of finding out who created it. It's possible that it was made by amateurs."
"I don't care who made Dragon Emblem. What I want to know is how this game, which hasn't provided us with any royalties, is secretly circulating!!"
President Kamauichi shouted in frustration.
In the meeting room, in addition to me, Mr. Gunpei, and Shige, there were also the factory manager in charge of cartridge production, the head of the security team, and several executives from the finance department.
"But why am I, who works in the next-generation console development department, here..."
It had been two months since I had distributed Dragon Emblem in the second-hand market.
When Shige and Mr. Gunpei initially heard the rumors, they dismissed them as an urban legend about family games. However, as users' feedback continued to grow and inquiries even reached the headquarters, they started investigating. After visiting several second-hand game shops, they confirmed that Dragon Emblem indeed existed.
Currently, Shige, Japan's top game developer, was intrigued by this new type of game, and after a few days of searching, he finally got his hands on Dragon Emblem. But after a day, all his characters met their demise on the wickedly challenging fifth stage, rendering his Dragon Emblem cartridge unusable.
"However, this game has a rather unique aspect."
Finally, Shige, who had regained her composure, spoke, and all the employees in the meeting room fixed their gaze on her.
"The Dragon Emblem I experienced... It's almost like a survival game that pushes the player to their limits. Once you get a game over, you can never play the game again. But if you plug in a cartridge that's reached such a conclusion, you get a certain message."
"A message?"
"What could the message '[email protected]' possibly mean?"
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