"We have implemented a strict review system, controlling the number of game releases and strictly guarding game quality. We must ensure that every cartridge players buy and insert into their consoles brings them joy."
The image on the screen changes, switching to the grey and purple SNES.
"In the 16-bit era, competition became intense. Some people used faster processors, others used more vivid colors." Masayuki Uemura didn't name Sega, but everyone present knew who he was talking about. "We added L and R shoulder buttons to the SNES. Many people didn't understand it at the time, complaining that there were too many buttons on the controller and that players wouldn't be able to handle them. And the result? Many games have proven the value of these two buttons."
"Now, we are standing at the threshold of the 3D era."
Masayuki Uemura emphasized his tone.
The image on the screen changes again, showing a black N64 console with that uniquely shaped controller.
Masayuki Uemura emphasized his tone.
The image on the screen changed again.
A black N64 console appeared, paired with that uniquely shaped controller.
"Over the past year, the industry has been flooded with all sorts of new buzzwords. Optical discs, mass storage, Full Motion Video, polygon counts, floating-point performance." Uemura listed these parameters in a flat tone. "Some say that whoever possesses the most powerful performance holds the future."
This was said quite bluntly.
Sony loved to boast about polygon generation capabilities when promoting the PlayStation.
Although Sega's Jupiter didn't excessively emphasize hardware performance, every one of its flagship games was a showcase of power and technical prowess.
"Performance is important. The N64 uses a 64-bit processor, and the custom graphics chip from SGI provides hardware-level Z-buffering and anti-aliasing. We have solved the most troublesome texture warping issues in 3D games; polygons no longer fly around like pieces of paper." Uemura paused for a moment, then changed his tone. "But is this really everything there is to the gaming industry?"
He picked up an N64 controller prototype from the podium and held it up in the air.
"We added an analog joystick to the controller.
For the sake of this little thing, the development team and the hardware department argued for half a year over whether to use optical encoders or potentiometers."
"We added an analog stick to the controller. For this little thing, the development team and the hardware department argued for half a year over whether to use an optical encoder or a potentiometer. It increased costs and made yield rate control difficult. Why add it, you ask?"
The audience was deathly quiet.
Even the reporters carrying cameras in the back row held their breath.
"The digital signals from a D-pad can only output 0 or 1, and cannot provide more directions for movement in 3D space. If Mario is to run in a three-dimensional world, he needs more nuanced control feedback. The physical displacement of a thumb pushing the stick is converted into an analog signal, determining how fast he walks and how smoothly he turns."
Masayuki Uemura set the controller down.
"No matter how powerful the machine's performance is, or how realistic the graphics are, if the player doesn't feel the joy of control while holding the controller, then this machine is just a pile of scrap metal."
Masayuki Uemura leaned forward, his hands resting on the podium.
"No matter how hardware evolves, whether the medium is a cartridge or an optical disc, the core of a game console is always about bringing players a good, or even unique, gaming experience. If you can't do that, players will abandon you without mercy. Atari is a cautionary tale, and Nintendo will always remember that."
"N64, releasing on June 23rd. Go to the West Hall, pick up the controller, and experience it for yourself."
Masayuki Uemura straightened up and bowed slightly.
"I wish you all a pleasant time at E3. Thank you."
After a brief pause, the Central Hall erupted in thunderous applause.
This speech attacked no competitors, nor did it boast about its own launch lineup.
Speaking as an old-school engineer, Uemura brought the topic back to the most fundamental attribute of games: being fun.
Probst stood up and applauded.
It was a masterfully delivered speech.
Nintendo had humbled itself, yet elevated its message to a lofty height.
Uemura walked off the stage.
Masayuki Uemura walked off the stage, handed the microphone to a staff member, and stepped into the shadows along the side stairs.
The applause lasted for a full two minutes.
Larry Probst withdrew his clapping hands, adjusted his tie, and leaned over to whisper to the vice president beside him, discussing the impact of Nintendo's statement on EA's upcoming negotiating leverage.
Reporters in the front row began packing away their digital recorders and notebooks.
The editor from GamePro shoved his worn-out recorder into his backpack, zipped it up, and let out a long sigh.
He turned his head to look at the photographer beside him, who was unhurriedly changing a roll of film with methodical movements.
"Let's go. We'll check out the Nintendo machines in the West Hall first, then head to the South Hall this afternoon."
The editor flipped over his media badge, which had a detailed exhibition schedule printed on the back.
Last May in Los Angeles had been a disaster for every gaming journalist.
On the day the first E3 opened, the IDSA had crammed all the major manufacturers' press conferences into a single day.
From nine in the morning until six in the evening, the high-intensity information overload had pushed people to their physiological limits.
Over eighty games, all sorts of next-gen 3D graphics, combined with complex and tangled exclusive business dealings, all exploded within the span of a dozen hours.
That night, the hallways of the Los Angeles Marriott Hotel were filled with the burnt smell of low-quality instant coffee, and the sound of typewriters and keyboards echoed throughout the night.
In order to meet their deadlines, editors even had to run to the restroom.
The Interactive Digital Software Association had received a flurry of protest letters at the post-exhibition summary meeting last year.
Media professionals complained that this kind of scheduling made it impossible to ensure the quality of their reports, and distributors also reported that trying to digest so much information in a single day led to errors in judgment.
This year, the IDSA organizing committee got smart.
They adjusted their strategy, and combined with the post-show wrap-up from last year, they split the various manufacturers' game showcases across two media days, May 16th and 17th, instead of dumping everything all at once on the first day like last year, which left everyone exhausted.
"Thank God, and thank that bunch of bureaucrats at the IDSA for finally using their brains."
The photographer hung his camera around his neck and patted his bulging camera bag. "I brought thirty rolls of film this year. Shooting over two days, I won't have to ruin my wrists."
The editor took out an Atari ballpoint pen Sega had given out last year and circled a date on the schedule.
Nintendo on the morning of the 16th, Sony in the afternoon, with some third-party manufacturer presentations interspersed in between.
The 17th would be Sega's big show, with the afternoon dedicated to smaller developers.
"With plenty of time, I can actually deliver the in-depth review the editor-in-chief wants," the editor said while walking. "Last year, we could only write dry spec comparisons; we had to file our reports before we even understood the game mechanics. It's different today. I plan to stay at the Nintendo booth for two hours to properly figure out how that analog stick actually works."
The two walked with the crowd out of the Central Hall, the morning Los Angeles sun shining on the glass curtain walls, dazzlingly bright.
The aisles inside the Convention Center were wide, and despite the crowd, it was orderly.
West Hall.
Nintendo's red and white logo hung at the very top.
Please Support me by becoming my Patreon member and get 30+ chapters.
[email protected]/Ajal69
change @ with a
Thank You to Those who joined my Patreon