After securing Yuyama Kunihiko and tying the director firmly to the "Pokémon Mythical Beast System," Nakayama Takuya immediately flew to San Francisco.
His purpose this time was to inspect the performance of SEGA's North American branch on behalf of headquarters—to see how well Tom Kalinske, whom his father had poached from Mattel, was actually doing.
From the many faxes and reports sent to Tokyo, sales looked impressive. But everything else needed to be seen in person.
After all, in Japan, the burst of the economic bubble was already inevitable. The entire market was filled with a downward gloom.
North America, however, was now the most important—and fattest—battleground in the global gaming industry. Nothing else compared.
Last year's sales numbers for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Sonic the Hedgehog in the North American market had proven that beyond doubt.
His plane landed at San Francisco International Airport, where a car from the North American headquarters was already waiting.
The car sped along the Bayshore Freeway and finally stopped in front of a hotel in Redwood City.
It was only five in the evening when Takuya checked in.
Standing by the hotel's floor-to-ceiling window, looking at the city skyline bathed in the setting sun, he considered going out for a walk.
But then he recalled the future joke: "Daily gunfights, land of the free."
…Right. Best not risk his life going for a stroll at night.
He grabbed a quick dinner at the hotel restaurant, returned to his room, and casually turned on the TV.
After flipping through several channels, he stopped at ABC.
On-screen was a lively family in a sitcom—a few kids, open-minded parents, everyone bickering over trivial things in the living room.
The familiar scene made Takuya pause.
Wasn't this Growing Pains?
He remembered now: this was the era when the show was wildly popular across the U.S. If memory served, it ran for seven seasons, and later even featured a very young Leonardo DiCaprio.
He watched with interest, but soon, a detail made him frown.
The living room had everything—sofa, coffee table, carpet, paintings on the walls, even a VCR on the TV cabinet—yet one thing was missing.
A game console.
In that instant, a thought flashed through Takuya's mind: They had overlooked a massive blind spot—an advertising space that everyone had ignored.
He immediately pulled out his notebook from the suitcase and jotted down the idea.
Turning off the TV, he took a quick shower and went to bed early, though his mind was already constructing a new plan for the meeting tomorrow.
—
The next morning, Takuya left the hotel.
Walking along the lakeside path for only a short distance, he saw a building ahead adorned with a large blue SEGA logo.
Tom Kalinske was already waiting in the lobby, greeting him with a booming voice and an enthusiastic hug—pure American exuberance.
This former Mattel marketing genius was now one of the dominant figures in the North American gaming scene.
"Takuya! My friend! Welcome to Redwood City!"
Kalinske led him around the headquarters, familiarizing him with the environment.
Only then did they sit down in the president's office.
"Takuya, you will NOT believe our numbers this past half-year!" Kalinske rubbed his hands excitedly, pulling a report from his drawer. "As of last week, total sales of the Genesis in North America have surpassed 11 million units! And GamePocket has sold over 5 million!"
"We are absolutely crushing Nintendo!"
Pride radiated from his face.
The best thing he had done in these six months was expand distribution channels.
Without the sales network he built, Sonic the blue hedgehog would never have run this fast.
Takuya nodded, acknowledging the results.
He tapped his finger lightly on the table. "Tom, what are our main promotional channels for the GG right now?"
"Of course TV GG! That 'SEGA Scream'—every kid in America can imitate it now! And we've got mall posters, displays in toy stores—we're everywhere! Anything you can think of, we've done!" Kalinske boasted proudly.
Takuya waited until he finished, then calmly asked:
"Tom, when the commercial ends and the show begins… where are we?"
Kalinske froze. "What do you mean?"
"I mean, inside those TV shows and movies—in the living rooms of American families—where are we?"
Kalinske blinked, confused. He shook his head. "…Seems like… nowhere."
Takuya smiled.
"Tom, have you ever considered what the biggest obstacle is when a child begs their parents for a game console?"
"Parents think games rot their brains?"
"No. That's Asian parents. Other ethnic families don't usually take away their kids' basic entertainment." Takuya wagged a finger. "The real issue is that parents think video game consoles aren't part of a 'normal' household's entertainment. They're not mainstream. They think kids should play baseball, football, basketball, or go to someone's house for a party."
"We need to change that perception."
Leaning forward slightly, Takuya locked eyes with him.
"I want SEGA's consoles to become a natural part of American daily life—like Coke or bacon."
"I propose we contact every TV show and movie production team in the country. If a scene has a living room, find a way to place a Genesis on the TV cabinet. If a character is outside, waiting for a bus, traveling—find a way to have them pull a GamePocket from their pocket."
"We want viewers to subconsciously accept:
Going home to play Genesis, carrying GamePocket outside—these are normal, even trendy behaviors."
"And when Christmas comes, giving a game console or the latest game as a present will feel perfectly natural."
The excitement and pride on Kalinske's face froze—replaced by stunned realization.
A marketing genius like him understood immediately.
He slapped his thigh. "My God! Product placement! I can't believe I forgot! This is genius!"
He instantly grasped the terrifying brilliance of Takuya's plan.
This wasn't advertising.
This was defining a lifestyle.
"Exactly! We go to Hollywood!" Kalinske jumped up, pacing the office in excitement. "Let's go right now! Hollywood is just next door—full of stars and movies! We can get our consoles into big productions!"
"And we can scout for good movies to adapt into games!"
Watching the fully fired-up Kalinske, Takuya leaned back on the sofa, a faint smile on his lips.
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