Chapter 85. GG
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Sega Headquarters.
"Are you kidding? How could we possibly cooperate with Sony?"
Nakayama Hayao had the hairstyle of a strong person.
Especially those few long hairs on top of his head, which looked as if they would blow up in the wind at any moment.
Because of his balding, Nakayama deliberately grew his remaining hair long and combed it to one side to cover the sparse patches.
Although somewhat comical, the powerful aura he carried made people not dare underestimate him.
"To challenge Nintendo. President Nakayama, don't you want to defeat Nintendo?" Kiyoshi Yuuma asked.
"Even so." Nakayama Hayao didn't hold back and said bluntly, "What help can Pokeni and Sony provide?"
In his previous life, Sega had once attempted a unique collaboration with Sony, but it fell through due to Nakayama's last-minute change of heart.
Sega chose another partner at the time: Bandai.
It had to be said, Sega truly seemed cursed with bad luck. In his previous life, when Bandai went bankrupt, Sega had a chance to merge with them, and the deal was already set.
However, a wave of electronic pets led by "Tamagotchi" became explosive hits, saving Bandai from crisis. Due to opposition from Bandai employees, the merger was cancelled.
When American company EA entered the gaming market, the first thing they did wasn't to apply to become a third-party developer for Sega. Instead, they quickly reverse-engineered the Sega Genesis and developed games that ran without Sega's authorization.
It was absurd. With that effort, why not crack Nintendo's SFC instead? Why specifically target Sega?
Later, when Sega was promoting its products in America, their mascot Sonic's large balloon leaked air and injured many people…
The number of such incidents was truly endless. Even Kiyoshi Yuuma sympathized with them.
"Sony can't make game consoles at all, and they're not good at software development either. Why should we cooperate with them?"
Of course, there was a more practical reason Nakayama didn't say directly: Sega's consoles were doing fine.
If Sony and Pokeni joined in, wouldn't the pie be divided further?
It was already barely enough to go around, and now even more people wanted a share. How could that work?
The console war was essentially a fight for dominance. How could Sega allow outsiders to interfere?
"Sega's GG has very serious battery problems, and this issue can only be solved with Sony's help," Kiyoshi Yuuma replied calmly.
This company, Sega, was really something… Not only was their luck terrible, but even their naming choices were remarkable.
The handheld was called GameGear, abbreviated as GG. Although "GG" didn't exist as slang in that era, the final outcome of the handheld was indeed GG.
…
When he heard "battery problem," the corner of Nakayama Hayao's mouth visibly twitched. Kiyoshi Yuuma had hit his sore spot perfectly.
The current GG handheld did have natural hardware advantages: a color screen, far better performance than Nintendo's GB. But the biggest issue was glaring. To achieve a color screen, they used fluorescent lamps for backlighting, which drastically increased power consumption.
Six dry batteries only powered the GG for just over 2 hours, not even reaching 3.
Meanwhile, Nintendo's GB, despite its black-and-white screen and simple games, offered 8 hours of battery life.
A portable console that could only run for about 2 hours had basically lost the meaning of being "portable." Ordinary players simply couldn't afford such a device.
Moreover, to fit a fluorescent tube plus six batteries, Sega's handheld had to be bulky and thick—basically a brick. It even reached an astonishing 0.5 kg.
At that point, it wasn't a handheld anymore.
It was a wrist exerciser.
"What Sony has isn't just storage technology. They've also achieved remarkable results in batteries," Kiyoshi Yuuma said with a smile. "If Sony joins, Sega's handheld will undergo a qualitative leap and gain a crushing advantage over Nintendo's GB."
Yes, Sony didn't just lead the world in storage. The company had another lesser-known achievement: they were the first to bring lithium-ion batteries to market. In 1991, they launched the commercial era of lithium-ion batteries and changed battery history.
Lithium-ion batteries were simply on another level compared to dry batteries. Sustainable charging, far better capacity, and greatly reduced size. This invention later became the foundation of mobile phones and handheld consoles.
If Sega's handheld combined Sony's lithium-ion technology, its size would shrink significantly, and its battery life problem would be solved at the root. Kiyoshi Yuuma's words weren't without substance.
…
Nakayama Hayao began to waver.
"We—Pokeni, Sony, Sega—have a common enemy: Nintendo," Kiyoshi Yuuma continued. "I understand President Nakayama's feelings, but before Nintendo falls, why not cooperate?"
"I don't know how familiar President Nakayama is with the history of the Three Kingdoms."
"In that era, Cao Cao held the greatest power. Liu Bei and Sun Quan united to resist him and defeated his forces at the Battle of Red Cliffs, eventually forming a three-way balance."
"But if Liu Bei and Sun Quan had undermined each other and fought internally, the only outcome would have been their annexation by Cao Cao."
"Before Sega becomes the hegemon, please consider Pokeni's proposal," Kiyoshi Yuuma said.
…
At the word "hegemon," Nakayama Hayao's heart thudded heavily.
Kiyoshi Yuuma was undeniably a powerful negotiator. He clearly understood what the other side wanted and what he himself could offer. Complementing each other's strengths and exchanging what each needed—this was a true win-win.
More importantly, he had moved Nakayama Hayao. Sega's dream had always been to defeat Nintendo and take its place.
As for cooperating with others…
After hesitating for a long moment, Nakayama Hayao let out a sigh.
"Please give us some time. Sega needs to hold a meeting to discuss this."
"Alright, President Nakayama."