Right now it was already early May, and ZAGE had released a total of three games in the last month of April: MediEvil, Megaman X3, and Beyblade: Let It Rip!, all of them for the ZAGE console ZEPS 3.
These three games were all solid releases, and players rated them highly. First of all, there was MediEvil, which quickly stood out because of how unique it felt compared to other action-adventure titles on the market. The game mixed dark gothic atmosphere with strange comedy in a way that felt fresh and memorable. Sir Daniel Fortesque himself was a very unusual protagonist, not a cool perfect hero, but a clumsy undead knight who was both funny and strangely lovable. That alone already gave the game its own identity.
What made MediEvil even stronger was its presentation. The haunted graveyards, twisted villages, creepy crypts, and eerie magical environments all gave the game a style that players could immediately recognize. It had the feeling of a spooky fairy tale rather than a normal action game. At the same time, the gameplay was simple enough to be accessible, with combat, exploration, collectibles, and secrets that kept players interested without becoming too overwhelming. Because of that, many players felt MediEvil was one of those games that was not just fun to play, but also easy to remember long after finishing it.
Then after that there was MEGAMAN X3, which many players saw as an enhanced and more polished evolution of Megaman X2 for the ZEPS 3. The graphics were considered insane for a ZEPS 3 64 console title, with sharper sprites, smoother animation, more detailed stage backgrounds, and more intense visual effects during fights. The gameplay was also extremely smooth, which once again reminded people that Megaman was still one of ZAGE's strongest franchises.
What made Megaman X3 stand out even more were its new features. One of the biggest additions was the ability to use Zero in a more direct way, which immediately excited fans because Zero had already become one of the coolest and most beloved characters in the series. In fact, many fans openly adored Zero almost as much as X himself, and for some players, he was even the main reason they were so excited for the game. His design, attitude, and fighting style had already made him incredibly popular, so just being able to control him at all made the game feel fresh and gave players a stronger connection to the world of Megaman X. Even if his use was still limited compared to X, Zero's presence alone carried enormous appeal and made fans feel like the series was finally giving more attention to a character they genuinely loved.
On top of that, the armor upgrades for X felt more impressive, giving players new abilities and making progression more rewarding. The ride armors also added variety, letting players approach certain sections differently and making the stages feel more dynamic than before. Because of all that, many players felt Megaman X3 was not simply another sequel, but proof that ZAGE still knew exactly how to refine one of its most beloved action franchises.
After that there was Beyblade: Let It Rip!, and honestly, it was quite a good game based on the popular anime, which was also created by ZAGE. Since Beyblade was extremely popular right now, the game immediately gained a lot of attention from younger players and anime fans. The gameplay itself was simple to understand, but that simplicity was exactly what made it work so well. Players controlled their Beyblades in battle arenas, adjusting movement, timing, and attack patterns while also using special skills and abilities during matches. Different Beyblades had their own stats, strengths, and gimmicks, so battles did not feel exactly the same every time.
What made the game fun was that it captured the spirit of Beyblade battles from the anime. It was not just about spinning in circles until one side stopped. Players had to think about launch timing, stamina, aggression, positioning, and when to activate stronger moves. Some Beyblades were better at attack, some focused more on defense, while others could win by simply outlasting the opponent. On top of that, the story followed the anime closely enough to make fans feel familiar with the characters and rivalries, which made the overall experience even more appealing. Because of that, Beyblade: Let It Rip! became the kind of anime game that was easy for kids to enjoy, but still engaging enough to keep them playing for a long time.
Still, these three games clearly showed that players remained genuinely very interested in ZAGE titles, even with the arrival of X-Box and Apple's iPlay on the market. Although iPlay was already struggling and Microsoft was still trying to expand its lineup, ZAGE's strength remained obvious. It was not just about having the newest console or the most impressive technology. What truly made ZAGE overwhelming was the sheer amount of strong content it continued to deliver to players.
More importantly, these releases showed that ZAGE's audience was not tied to only one genre or one kind of experience. In just a single month, the company had managed to satisfy players looking for eerie action-adventure, fast-paced futuristic platforming, and anime-based battle gameplay. That kind of variety was difficult for other companies to match consistently. While many competitors were still trying to build one strong identity for their platform, ZAGE had already reached the point where its identity was abundance itself. No matter what kind of player someone was, there was usually something in ZAGE's lineup that could catch their attention.
Month after month, ZAGE kept proving that it was not relying on hardware alone, but also on the trust players already had in its name. That reputation had become one of ZAGE's greatest weapons. Players believed that when ZAGE released a game, there was a high chance it would at least be worth their attention, and often much more than that. Even when one title was not aimed at every audience, the brand itself still carried enough confidence to make people curious. That kind of trust was not built overnight. It came from repeated success, careful management of their franchises, and a release schedule that kept rewarding player loyalty.
There was also a psychological advantage to that reputation. Once a company became known for quality and consistency, players began approaching its future games with optimism instead of doubt. That alone made a huge difference in the market. Other companies had to convince people to care. ZAGE, meanwhile, only needed to announce something, and attention would naturally follow. In a business as crowded and unpredictable as gaming, that kind of automatic interest was incredibly powerful.
In the end, these three April releases reminded the industry that ZAGE's true power was not just innovation, but consistency, content, and an incredibly strong reputation built over time. Their hardware mattered, of course, but what truly kept ZAGE on top was the simple fact that players had learned to trust the name itself.
This was also the first time Bill Gates of Microsoft truly felt ZAGE's dominance.
As for Microsoft, they were still in the middle of pushing forward with new game development. To strengthen the X-Box lineup, they were relying on a combination of internal studios and third-party developers, which was already starting to gather quite a lot of interest from players and industry watchers alike. Even if their overall library was still behind ZAGE in both scale and consistency, Microsoft was clearly serious about building momentum step by step. Their strategy was not to overwhelm the market all at once, but to slowly create enough appealing titles that players would begin seeing X-Box as a platform with real long-term potential.
As for iPlay, things were gradually getting better for Apple as well. Several hotfixes and patches had already been created to address major issues, especially the connection-related problems that had hurt the platform early on. Of course, the damage had already been done to some extent. First impressions mattered a lot in the gaming industry, and iPlay's early technical troubles had already weakened public confidence. Even so, Apple had not given up yet. They were still trying to recover step by step, and one of their biggest hopes remained Zanki from ZUSUGA, whom Apple was collaborating with closely. Zanki and his team were still working on new games for iPlay, and Apple hoped those projects could at least be completed within the year. If those games turned out strong enough, then iPlay might still have a chance to recover some ground and rebuild player interest.
Still, this realization hit Bill Gates quite hard. Only after truly stepping into the video game industry himself did he begin to fully understand just how overwhelming ZAGE really was. From the outside, it was easy to think that ZAGE's dominance came only from bold ideas, money, or timing. But once Microsoft started seriously building games, managing studios, handling hardware, and trying to maintain a strong release schedule, Bill understood that ZAGE's power was far deeper than that. Their consistency, speed, content pipeline, and player trust were all on an entirely different level.
Back when Microsoft had not yet seriously started developing games, seeing ZAGE release three to five titles a month only made Bill Gates think, "Okay, that's impressive." At that time, he could still look at it from the outside and treat it as just another sign of ZAGE being unusually productive. But after Microsoft actually began making games itself, he finally understood how absurd that pace really was. Once he saw how difficult development truly was—how much time, coordination, testing, polish, and manpower each single game required—he realized that ZAGE's speed of development was not merely impressive, but almost insane. More than that, it made him understand just how special ZAGE really was as a company.
Because of that, Bill was now discussing the matter seriously with his engineers inside the Microsoft offices. What made the situation even stranger, however, was that Steve Jobs was also there. This was not just a Microsoft meeting, but a rare joint discussion between Microsoft and Apple, with both sides talking about the same problem: ZAGE. In a bizarre way, the sheer pressure of competing against ZAGE had become enough to place two major rivals in the same room, if only for a while and now the meeting started….
To be continue
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