Chapter 190: The King of Big Mouth
It was just shortly after entering August when a major event occurred in the video game industry.
Namco, the famous arcade game manufacturer, sued Nintendo, another giant in the arcade industry, for infringement and plagiarism!
Japan's video games were in their infancy when suddenly this big news broke out.
Moreover, the incident involved two major players in the arcade industry, and immediately the entertainment media turned their cameras to this place.
According to the "Game Console Daily", Nintendo produced the game "Thunder Hail" without permission, which has gameplay and materials that are extremely similar to Shirakawa Electric's "Raiden".
The arcade copyright of the "Raiden" game has been licensed to Namco by Shirakawa Electric.
This led to the scene where Namco sued Nintendo for copyright infringement.
It is said that in order to cooperate with Namco's lawsuit, Shirakawa Electric provided detailed gameplay data and production materials of the "Raiden" game.
He even made a detailed comparison of the various similarities between "Thunder and Lightning" and "Thunder and Hail".
Currently, these data have been submitted to the Tokyo District Court along with a lawsuit filed by Namco.
As expected, Nintendo immediately denied that its games did not infringe or plagiarize anything.
The sudden fight between the two sides also left passers-by stunned.
Everything was going fine, why did they suddenly end up in court?
There have been cases of them accusing each other , but that was just a verbal battle at most.
It’s time to do business, so let’s continue doing business.
Although the competitors are a little bit harsh in their daily lives, there are not many serious things that happen.
In fact, Namco had the same idea before, and Masaya Nakamura first contacted Yamauchi Hiroshi privately.
Let's sit down and talk about it. If Nintendo is sensible, it will give compensation and stop the sales of the relevant arcade machines.
Then this matter will be over. After all, we are all in the same industry and we will see each other sooner or later. There is no need to make it so awkward.
But who is Yamauchi Hiroshi, the person who can say something like "The gameplay is not a patent, so if you want to copy it, just copy it", can you expect him to admit to plagiarism?
So he didn't even agree to Nakamura Masaya's request to meet, and directly denied the other party's claim of plagiarism over the phone.
"Bang" Masaya Nakamura was so angry when the call was hung up. If it was any other time, it would be fine.
Everyone's plagiarism is just following the trend after the other party launched a related game first.
This actually causes relatively little harm to the original creator, who can at most take advantage of the former.
But this time Namco is different. My own authentic arcade machine has not been launched yet, and your copycat has taken the first bite. That’s a big loss.
Plus the trouble maker Baichuan... bah, plus the upright Baichuan Feng supporting him from behind.
Masaya Nakamura immediately filed a lawsuit against Nintendo. Since they couldn't sit down and talk, they might as well talk it out in court.
Not only that, Namco also posted in detail the various similarities between Nintendo's "Thunder Hail" game in the newspaper.
Even along with the newspaper was the official authorization letter from Shirakawa Electric for "Raiden".
The truly upright Shirakawa Denki also personally confirmed the news to reporters and media.
Then the onlookers who had come to their senses came to their senses and flocked into the game hall out of curiosity.
They wanted to see what was so magical about the two games, or what similarities they had.
Then a magical scene happened. Both Namco's game hall and Nintendo's game hall were packed every day.
People lined up to experience Namco's "Raiden" and Nintendo's "Thunderbolt".
Even Shirakawa Electric's first handheld game console, GAME BOY, has enjoyed a second spring.
this……
To be honest, neither the plaintiff Namco, nor the defendant Nintendo, nor Shirakawa Electric, which was secretly fanning the flames, expected this to happen.
We are really fighting with bayonets, why do you passers-by who are just watching the fun?
The three idiots in the gaming industry all had question marks on their faces...
And this phenomenon seems to have lasted for more than just one or two days. Since the first day they started arguing in the newspaper, the game hall has been packed with customers every day.
It seems that both games are popular?
The two big bosses in the arcade world who were fighting each other at this moment finally reacted.
As a result, the two companies worked overtime to produce their own themed arcade machines, while continuing their verbal battle in the newspapers.
They can make money and fight at the same time, and everyone is a versatile expert.
In response, Baichuan Feng said, "Fight! Keep fighting! Beat them until they lose their brains."
If the two sides don't become enemies, how can Nangong Meng honestly make games for Shirakawa Electric in the future?
Only if you give up on it, will it follow Shirakawa Electric wholeheartedly.
Baichuan Feng's wishful thinking was going on smoothly.
However, just as he was hiding aside and secretly watching the show, and occasionally adding fuel to the fire, the fire finally burned his own family.
Just when Namco and Nintendo were verbally attacking each other, Nintendo, the defendant, suddenly changed direction and accused Shirakawa Electric's handheld game console of plagiarizing its own GAME WATCH!
Whether it was Shirakawa Electric, Namco, or just bystanders, they were all shocked by Nintendo's accusations.
What does this have to do with Shirakawa Electric? Didn't Nintendo copy Shirakawa Electric's games? Why is it the other way around?
The reason why Nintendo did this was because Yamauchi Hiroshi was also annoyed.
Everyone did this before , why are you suing me?
On the left, one person accuses me of plagiarism; on the right, another accuses me of infringement. They point at my face and scold me. But I still have some dignity to protect.
Plus, Shirakawa Electric's handheld game consoles and Nintendo's handheld game consoles do have some similarities.
And Nintendo is the first company in Japan to launch a handheld game console, so isn't that the reason?
In response to Nintendo's accusations, Shirakawa Kaede simply spat, calling them shameless guys.
It’s as if this handheld game console was invented by your family.
So, at the instruction of Shirakawa Kaede, Shirakawa Electric directly published a rebuttal in the newspaper.
Shirakawa Electric's handheld game console pays tribute to Mattel, the pioneer in the handheld game console industry!
Who is Mattel?
Mattel is your American father's game console manufacturer, and the world's first handheld game console came from it.
So Shirakawa Electric used the newspaper to popularize information about Mattel to everyone.
They even published photos of Mattel's handheld game console. Look, it has a screen, buttons, and gameplay. It's the pioneer of handheld game consoles.
Even Shirakawa Electric produced Mattel's so-called authorization letter, well, this authorization letter was almost free.
Because Mattel was not developing well at that time, it was about to withdraw from the electronic game industry and concentrate on its old business, the toy industry.
The last time Shirakawa Kaede went to the United States, he visited Mattel and got this without much effort.
To be honest, this authorization letter is not very useful, but the concept is indeed that of a handheld game console.
It’s just that it’s a little different from the handheld game consoles they make now, but it’s enough to fool the ignorant public and Nintendo.
Now that the facts are in front of us, Nintendo is silent.
Nintendo obviously knows that it is not the inventor of the handheld game console concept, so it is just talking big.
Otherwise, with irrefutable evidence, Baichuan Feng didn't believe the other party would be so generous, and directly suing was its style.
However, Nintendo has stopped the plan, but Shirakawa Kaede doesn't intend to just let it go.
So Shirakawa Electric again called on everyone to respect intellectual property rights in the newspaper.
Video games are also a form of artistic creation, and their original content deserves protection.
This was the first time that Shirakawa Electric shouted the slogan, "Video games are also a kind of art."
Regardless of others, people in the gaming industry are really attracted to Shirakawa Electric.
Because they feel respected and recognized, playing video games is not a waste of time.
That’s right, in Japan now, video games are generally considered by adults to be a waste of time.
The situation was actually almost the same as in China later on.
In addition to shouting slogans, Shirakawa Electric also hinted at its competitors to speak out.
We are all game content creators, and now is the time to show our respect. Why don’t you express your appreciation?
I'm talking about you, Taidong!
As the boss of the arcade industry, shouldn't you be extremely disgusted with copycats and plagiarists?
Don't forget who copied your Space Invaders!
Look, that's him! Lao Ren!
Their game "Space Fanatics" is very similar to your game.
This is a repeat offender!
So Taito President Cohen, who had been hinted at many times, finally spoke out.
This is a kind-hearted man with great righteousness. This is not irony, it is true!
Cohen is actually very famous in the Japanese business world, and his character is even more famous than his company.
The legendary story of this Jewish man who traveled thousands of miles to find bones in order to repay a "favor" once shocked the entire business community.
He advocated that everyone respect each other's original content, and suggested that Namco and Nintendo sit down and resolve their disputes.
Everyone still gave Cohen some face, so Nintendo stopped talking and Namco didn't pursue the matter.
This matter has been shelved for the time being. As to whether it will be brought up again in the future, that is unknown.
However, it is common for such disputes and lawsuits to last for several years.
Seeing that there was no result for the time being, Baichuan Feng put aside his thoughts and planned to do something else.
He was planning to go to the United States again, not only to promote the launch of a new Walkman, but also to promote his own handheld game console.
The channels are already there, and if I don't take advantage of the opportunity to sell some handheld game consoles, it would be a betrayal of my determination to be a street lamp.
In addition, he also has to visit a big boss.
As usual, he invited classmate Kobayashi to go with him on this trip to the United States.
However, when he opened his mouth, Kobayashi declined.
"Eh?" Bai Chuanfeng looked at her in surprise, "Are you too tired recently? It would be good to take a rest."
Asuka Kobayashi first nodded, then shook her head.
"I haven't been home for a long time. I want to go home and visit before the summer vacation ends."
Baichuan Feng then realized that he was so busy ordering people around that he forgot that she was still a student.
“It’s good this way, it’s also a pleasant thing to go home and relax.
Also, please apologize to my uncle and aunt for me. It's Shirakawa's fault that their daughter came home just now because she was so tired."
Asuka Kobayashi listened to his charming talk with a smile on her face, and nodded from time to time, agreeing, "I'm glad to know."
Looking at Asuka Kobayashi's departing back, Shirakawa Kaede sighed dryly.
Alas, it’s so boring without Xiaolin.
But I don’t know if it’s his illusion, Shirakawa Kaede always feels that Asuka Kobayashi is very disgusted with the United States.
He had a vague feeling about this when he went there for the first time.
Although he said he wanted to go home this time, Baichuan Feng always felt that there might be more reasons than that.
It seems that next time I go to the United States, I should try not to force her .
At this moment, Shirakawa Feng suddenly remembered that he still didn't seem to understand Asuka Kobayashi thoroughly enough.
