In August, Ken Kutaragi, head of Sony's interactive entertainment, held a press conference with spokespersons from many game manufacturers, including Namco, Konami, Capcom, and also Pokémon.
The main content of this press conference was:
To promote the development of the game industry, Sony took the lead, and these companies joined forces to establish an Electronic Entertainment Industry Association.
The industry was shocked.
The seating arrangement at the press conference was based on the current status of each major company in the industry.
Mr. Ken Kutaragi sat in the middle, as Sony was the initiator this Time, and Ken Kutaragi was primarily responsible for electronic entertainment products within the company.
On his two sides were Konami's President Kagemasa Tsukimoto and Namco's President Nakamura Masaya, followed by Capcom's Tsujimoto Kenzo and Square's Miyamoto Masafumi... It was rare to see such a grand occasion, where legendary Big Bosss from half of the game industry gathered in one place.
As for the other half of the industry, it was naturally Nintendo and Sega.
These two companies stated: If we were to join Sony's Electronic Entertainment Industry Association, wouldn't we lose face?
Nintendo and Sony have a long-standing feud, a grudge formed in 1993, which is well-known to everyone.
As for Sega, last year's console war with Sony was a life-and-death struggle, and they are still severely weakened. Nakayama Hayao, the President, is seething with anger. Under such circumstances, how could he possibly join his arch-rival's association?
So, it seemed that today's press conference was grand, and many companies were present, but it still felt a bit lacking.
Because the two most powerful and influential Big Bosss in Japan were not there.
However, this did not dampen the enthusiasm of the attendees.
After the press conference began, Mr. Ken Kutaragi delivered the first round of remarks.
He stated: "In 1947, Thomas Goldsmith Jr. and Estle Ray Mann developed a game prototype called the Cathode-Ray Tube Amusement Device. This device simulated missile and spaceship interactions by moving points on a screen.
Although it was just a simple experiment, it is considered one of the precursors of electronic game."
"If this device is considered the starting point of modern electronic game, then the electronic game industry has already gone through 48 years of history.
It's been almost 50 years.
Half a century, it can be said to have influenced more than two generations."
"Before today, electronic game was often categorized by people into the field of [toys]."
"So, as you could see before, our electronic game were basically exhibited alongside various Ultraman, Transformer, and children's toy cars.
Sometimes, you'd even see musical sticks that made sounds, used to entertain babies."
Hahahahaha.
A burst of laughter erupted below.
"However, with the continuous expansion of the electronic game industry, its influence is actually constantly increasing.
Electronic game, to some extent, is no longer just the simple concept of a [toy] in the traditional sense.
dragon quest tells the story of defeating evil dragons for justice and to save the world.
final fantasy also carries many epic stories.
More game with spiritual connotations and emotional resonance have joined in.
Take the twin game, CL and LL, developed by Pokémon last year, for example. Their portrayal and expression of family, emotions, and romance are deeply moving, bringing people to tears.
This has already far exceeded the simple definition inherent in [toys] themselves."
Don't look at Ken Kutaragi, who usually seems a bit dull and purely like an engineer, but when he narrated this part at the press conference, he was very expressive and truly looked like a leader.
"Similarly, animation and movies also bring experiences and feelings to everyone, but they are unlikely to be called toys, and they wouldn't participate in so-called toy exhibitions with toys, right?
So we also believe that with the development of the Time, especially game itself as a very important cultural carrier and expressive tool, it can also be a transcendent art, just like movies, animations, and TV series.
Our game culture, after almost half a century of development, may still have a longer way to go.
However, under such circumstances, we believe that [toys] are no longer suitable for encompassing electronic game.
Electronic game needs its own specialized structure, and electronic game needs independence.
Under such circumstances, we..."
Ken Kutaragi looked left and right, casting grateful smiles at the participating game manufacturers.
He even paused for an extra second or two on Aoki Haruhi's face.
"After our discussions and decisions, we established this Electronic Entertainment Industry Association."
"The home console, which was once just a children's toy, has now rapidly evolved into an entertainment platform connecting people all over the world."
"The main purpose of the Electronic Entertainment Industry Association is to help electronic entertainment products better discover their own platforms and spaces, and then help the domestic and even global electronic entertainment industry to flourish."
"Before the establishment of this association, many standards on the market were actually very chaotic. Each company had its own set of standards. Some used game cartridges, some used optical discs, and different consoles were not compatible, which meant that players had to buy various different devices and cartridges to continue playing game.
Even within the same company, game console models and cartridges were different.
This situation led to confusion, which was not very friendly to players, and also not very friendly to game developers.
It invisibly increased many costs."
As soon as Mr. Ken Kutaragi said this, there was an uproar below.
All the reporters immediately aimed their cameras at him.
Many people's eyes sparkled, feeling that Ken Kutaragi was very good at creating news effects.
Although Ken Kutaragi's statement was a fact, it always had a subtle implication of criticizing Nintendo and Sega.
However, some small businesses, who were truly the younger brothers in the game industry, nodded repeatedly while listening attentively.
The world has suffered from Nintendo for a long Time.
Although Sony had selfish motives this Time, it was also what everyone hoped for.
Just as Ken Kutaragi said, being able to unify industry standards, having an association dedicated to mediating disputes, and working together to solve problems for everyone's common interests, promoting development, and providing a broader and more comfortable space for game development, is something many game manufacturers have dreamed of.
Before, they were oppressed by big manufacturers, especially Nintendo's seigniorage, and paying royalties made them miserable.
Sony PS also requires royalties, but Sony made many concessions, only requiring a 10% royalty, while Nintendo's is 30%.
In short, if it can really be as Mr. Kutaragi said, then game people would wholeheartedly agree.
"The president of our association, I will temporarily serve as the first president, but it is a rotating system. This is also to ensure that no single company dominates.
Again, we hope that through this association, we can create a better game ecosystem in Japan, allowing more game merchants to find their own space for survival and development.
And also to allow more and better quality game to be born, bringing better experiences to players.
This is our original intention in creating the association."
After Ken Kutaragi finished his speech, there was a thunderous applause below... Then, the presidents of each company spoke in turn, but they were largely similar, all for the better development of the industry, to concentrate efforts, organize and standardize, formulate rules, and make the game industry more fair, transparent, and competitive.
For this, major game manufacturers felt that the creation of this Electronic Entertainment Industry Association was very necessary.
Next came the reporter Q&A session.
The reporters present had long been unable to hold back and raised their hands to ask questions.
"Um, Mr. Kutaragi, I only have one question: Why didn't you invite Sega and Nintendo to such a good association that can set unified industry standards?"
Wow!!!
There was an uproar below.
This really shows that people love to watch drama. This reporter's question was truly sharp and tricky, directly bringing up a fatal issue.
This was also what everyone present was particularly concerned about and wanted to know.
Many people sneered, wanting to see Ken Kutaragi make a fool of himself.
Good heavens, you're setting up this Electronic Entertainment Industry Association, but you're not bringing in the most influential top two. Without the support of Nintendo and Sega, can it really get off the ground? What kind of unified standard is this then?
"Um..." Ken Kutaragi was well prepared and didn't panic at all. He picked up the microphone and sincerely replied, "We didn't not invite them.
For some reason, after multiple invitations for Nintendo and Sega to join, they repeatedly declined.
There was truly nothing we could do."
This was actually inevitable.
Nintendo itself is the boss, and it operates as a one-man show. As a challenger, you still want President Yamauchi to be your subordinate? Isn't that a joke?
Sega's reason was the same.
However, Ken Kutaragi was very clever. He knew that Yamauchi and Nakayama would not agree, but he still shamelessly invited them, so the blame would not be on Sony.
It's because your vision isn't grand enough, and you don't consider everyone's interests, which is why you don't join.
The responsibility lies with Nintendo and Sega.
This is taking the moral high ground.
"However, I don't think this is a conflict," Ken Kutaragi continued with a smile, adding, "The creation of the association is just the beginning. In the future, we can absorb more members to join.
And the association won't cease to exist just because there are too few members.
Because the Time is developing.
Everything will change, and the world should give us this opportunity and Time for development.
We always welcome Nintendo and Sega to join."
Ken Kutaragi spoke very cleverly:
Everyone grows from a baby, and the establishment and growth of any organization have a process.
Nintendo and Sega not joining today doesn't mean they won't join in the future.
This can also be seen as Ken Kutaragi giving Nintendo and Sega a way out.
Whether they are willing or when they are willing, those are no longer important. What is important is that Sony has already taken the high ground and placed this attitude here.
A grand vision.
This is an open strategy, this is the king's way.
At this point, there was nothing more for everyone to ask.
However, the reporters all smiled, knowing that they had material for tomorrow... Pokémon, as a newly emerging Big Boss, but still a junior in terms of seniority and company size, was arranged at the very end of the table.
However, this did not affect Aoki Haruhi's performance at all, making him the most dazzling person on the scene.
Because this Time point was actually quite clever, it coincided with the hot sales of pokémon 3d world and the surge in Sony PS sales.
So, after politely interviewing the other Big Bosss, the reporters asked Aoki Haruhi the most questions.
"Mr. Aoki Haruhi, what are your thoughts on the Electronic Entertainment Industry Association?"
"I strongly agree with Mr. Ken Kutaragi's words."
Aoki Haruhi said with a smile, "As you all know, we invited Hayao Miyazaki from Studio Ghibli to be the Art Director for CL and LL, which we released last year.
I had an interview with Hayao Miyazaki two years ago.
Among them, there was a passage from Hayao Miyazaki that left a very deep impression on me.
He said that game, to some extent, is like animation, an important medium used to express the creator's thoughts."
"So, we treat every game very seriously, giving our all, and want to put more thoughts, life insights, and experiences into it.
From these factors, game has long departed from the simple scope of toys."
Electronic game wants independence, this is today's theme.
But, good heavens, you directly brought up Hayao Miyazaki, so what else do we have to say?
Afterward, Aoki Haruhi didn't forget to promote it:
"game, like animation, carries many important missions, but game itself is different from animation in that it is based on players' immersion as a premise.
It allows for a higher sense of engagement and experience.
And what we need to do is to make these experiences even better.
For example, with this pokémon 3d world, our use of a brand-new 3D production method is actually a bold innovation, aiming to bring players a more novel three-dimensional experience."
"Mmm. If that's the case, congratulations, President Aoki, your 3D game is quite excellent."
Even the reporter friend didn't know what to ask and could only agree.
"The establishment of the Electronic Entertainment Industry Association is very necessary," Aoki Haruhi concluded, "because win-win cooperation is our biggest demand.
Take pokémon 3d world, for example. We initially wanted to develop such a game, but we struggled with hardware capabilities and couldn't find a suitable console manufacturer to support us.
Under such circumstances, Sony found us, and Mr. Ken Kutaragi and I had a pleasant conversation.
They strongly agreed to support us in making 3D game and would also incorporate relevant 3D hardware support into their console.
The controller design was actually made according to our needs, and for this, I reluctantly wrote many design drafts for Mr. Ken Kutaragi."
Aoki Haruhi looked at Ken Kutaragi, raised an eyebrow, and smiled slyly, "Although I'm not very professional, Mr. Ken Kutaragi fully adopted our suggestions."
Ken Kutaragi was truly torn between laughter and tears.
This game of yours, it almost ruined me.
Not to mention the Time and effort, before the game was released, how badly was the PS controller criticized? You, Aoki Haruhi, don't know, do you?
Aoki Haruhi turned back and smiled, "You'll find that dual-analog stick controllers are actually very suitable for 3D game."
Then he put down the microphone.
Nani?!
Everyone present was greatly surprised.
So after all this, this weird controller was designed by you!
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