Los Angeles, May 1984.
"The impact of the Atari crash on the gaming market continues to expand. Experts predict that the domestic video game market will require at least twenty years to recover."
A bulky CRT television intermittently broadcast today's program, its low-resolution speaker, so characteristic of the era, was filled with static and background noise.
Ethan stared blankly at the flickering screen before him, his expression a complicated one.
Just a moment ago, he had been carrying home the package containing his newly delivered Nintendo Switch 2, happily looking forward to an evening of gaming.
How had he ended up in this place in the blink of an eye?
He turned his gaze towards the window. California's sun was as generous as ever. Even in the early morning, it already carried a scorching warmth.
Cream colored walls, red tiled roofs, and several nearly identical apartment buildings lined the street.
There were few pedestrians outside. A handful of students rode bicycles, while boxy sedans occasionally rolled by.
Ethan's eyes settled on the arcade at the street corner. It had long since closed, and even its display windows had been smashed.
This wasn't his neighborhood. It wasn't even anywhere he recognized.
This was Los Angeles of the 1980s.
[Ding!]
[Thank you for choosing this transmigration service. This service is completely free of charge]
[Binding....]
[Please read and determine whether you agree to this system usage agreement.]
[□ I have read and agree.]
"...?"
A transparent screen suddenly unfolded before Ethan.
"Hold on for a second. What the hell is all this? My cheat ability just activated this casually?"
Since the system had already been delivered to his doorstep, there was no reason for him to refuse it.
Although Ethan still hadn't figured out what was happening, he immediately checked the box.
[Ding!]
[Thank you for using the Game Godfather System!]
[User]: Ethan Hayes
[Attributes]
[Programming Development]: 15
[Script Writing]: 2
[Graphic Design]: 2
[Music Composition]: 1
[Unassigned Attribute Points]: 0
......
[Skills]: None
[Items]: Beginner Gift Pack ×1
"Game Godfather? So this thing wants me to develop games? But in this age, what games even exi…"
His words got caught in his throat as his eyes widened towards the television.
The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.
The news report about the Atari crash had just ended.
Only a year ago, Atari, the undisputed king of the American gaming industry, had managed to commit an act of spectacular self-destruction.
Under the genius strategy of "quantity over quality," nearly ten thousand games had flooded the market within a single year.
The overwhelming flood of copycat and low-quality games completely shattered players' confidence.
Then, during the 1982 Christmas season, it all exploded thanks to E.T., the most infamous disaster in video game history.
The gaming market, once worth 3.2 billion dollars, shrank by over 97%, completely burying the future of the domestic gaming industry.
Staring at the television, Ethan swallowed hard.
He seemed to be standing at what might be the most important crossroads in the entire history of video games.
This year, Nintendo was still dominating its home market with the Famicom. As for the other two future giants, there wasn't even a trace of them yet.
The old king had fallen.
The new ruler had yet to arrive.
This was the only true vacuum period in the history of the American gaming market.
"A once in a lifetime opportunity!"
Ethan's heart rate spiked, and he couldn't help blurting it out.
Knock! Knock! Knock!
Just as he was about to continue studying his system, a rapid knocking suddenly came from the door.
Ethan jumped and dismissed the panel before walking over.
Opening the door, he saw a man with brown hair and green eyes.
Sleep crust still clung to the corners of his eyes, and he yawned nonstop.
"Ethan, weren't you supposed to wake me up? We're going to be late for class today!"
As the other man spoke English with a faint French accent, a flood of unfamiliar memories surged into Ethan's mind.
The person before him was apparently his roommate, Sam, a fellow computer science student.
The two rented an apartment together in a residential area not far from USC.
"Sorry, Sam. I was watching the news." Ethan put on a relaxed smile. "The Atari situation is really blowing up, huh?"
The moment gaming was mentioned, Sam forgot all about being late and spat angrily.
"F**K! Ethan, I heard those animals hauled all the unsold copies of E.T. to New Mexico and buried them! When it was released I even got up at dawn to grab a few copies but it's useless."
Thinking about all the money he had wasted made Sam's blood pressure rise.
Damn it.
How had the gaming industry ended up like this?
Wasn't the reason he'd chosen computer science in the first place because he wanted to join the great video game industry?
Who could have imagined that before he even graduated, the industry itself would disappear?
Ethan chuckled and patted him on the shoulder, putting on a brave face.
"Come on. I don't want to be late for class today. Oh, right, you forgot to put on your pants."
......
Although today's class started early, it wasn't very long.
The entire morning passed in the blink of an eye.
BASIC looked like an incomprehensible script compared to the elegant C# of the future, but compared to the even more obscure 6502 assembly language, it was already relatively easy to understand.
There were no afternoon classes. After grabbing a simple meal at the cafeteria, the two dragged their feet on the way home.
Their pace slowed as they passed the closed arcade at the street corner.
"Ethan, do you think video games are really dead?"
"Of course not."
Ethan shook his head decisively.
No one understood this better than he did, as he knew what kind of terrifying giant the gaming industry would eventually become.
Even during the absolute lowest point of the American gaming industry, Nintendo remained strong across the Pacific in Japan.
Famicom and Super Mario who would soon become famous worldwide were already prepared to inherit the throne.
"Atari doesn't represent the gaming industry," Ethan said as he resumed walking toward their apartment.
"They treated games as assembly line products. They thought they could win through sheer volume like a factory, and in the process lost respect for players, technology, and developers."
Sam quickly caught up.
Listening to Ethan's unusually philosophical remarks today, he fell into thought.
"So when do you think the gaming industry will recover?"
Ethan glanced at him, a smile on his lips.
"This year."
He was ready.
Ready to embrace this perfect stage.
"Sam, you've played Atari's late era games, so I don't think I need to explain much. As long as a truly new game appears, something worthy of being called a game, the industry will naturally recover."
Video games were more than a novel technological curiosity.
They were art.
"Sam."
Ethan stopped in front of their apartment door and looked at Sam, who was still nodding thoughtfully while reflecting on his earlier words.
Then he slowly spoke.
"I'm planning to develop a game."