Chapter 380 Tank Battle
In early April, the computer industry became lively as Shirakawa Electric and Nintendo's home game consoles were officially launched.
In those days, people had no concept of microcomputers or personal computers. In the eyes of the public, computers in the office and machines that could be connected to a TV to play games were collectively called computers.
When promoting their products, the media and brand manufacturers also refer to game consoles as "computters".
So the discussion about game consoles is not just in the gaming industry, the computer industry is also making various professional comments.
Of course, among the three newly launched game consoles, Sega's SG-1000 has a slightly lower presence.
Because both in appearance and interior, it is somewhat different from the other two machines.
Despite its huge size, Sega's game console controller still uses the traditional joystick design, and a button on the side serves as a function key.
The reason for this design is that all the games on its home game consoles are ported from its own arcade games.
However, due to its hard feel and delay issues, the experience of using the controller is not very good.
It was only thanks to some well-known arcade IPs that the SG-1000 managed to have some sales.
Therefore, the title of "Big Three Gaming Companies" previously promoted by Sega is indeed suspected of being an attempt to flatter itself.
When it comes to home game consoles, we have to look at the performances of the other two companies.
One is called a "home computer" and the other is simply called a "home entertainment system."
The names are more impressive than each other, but in essence it is just a game console.
But many parents don’t know this. When they see the name, they have a sense of mystery and power.
The most important thing is that it is cheap, less than 15,000 yen, which is really not expensive for many people.
So at the request of their children, many parents happily took one home.
In fact, they also want to see what the so-called home computer or home entertainment system is.
This is how kids as young as eight or nine get their gaming consoles from their parents.
As for older middle school students or young people, they can buy it with their own pocket money.
Those extremely tempting advantages listed in the game magazines are really exciting.
Especially the one or two spy photos of the game screen that are occasionally leaked, which can instantly make the friends around you climax.
The eager students, those who were able, went to the stores and bought a game console they had longed for.
Once you have a game console, you naturally can't wait to experience all kinds of game cartridges.
Nintendo's "Donkey Kong" is of course the prequel to the prototype of "Mario".
It has a large number of fans, and the cassette sold more than 100,000 copies in just one week after it went on sale.
As the first game cartridge released together with the game console, this sales volume is already very good.
Similarly, Shirakawa Electric's "Raiden" and "Pac-Man" are also extremely popular. Both games have been launched on arcade and handheld platforms .
So in terms of fan base, they're even bigger than Nintendo's Donkey Kong.
However, just one week after the release of the three game consoles, Shirakawa Electric's other two games sparked heated discussions.
…
Hiroshi Nojima is one of the reporters of "Game Daily". Today he received a task from the editor-in-chief.
That is to experience the game cartridges of Nintendo and Shirakawa Electric, and then write a special report.
The topic of "Red vs. Blue" is so popular, there is no reason why "Game Daily" should not grab some of the traffic.
As a reporter for a gaming newspaper, Hiroshi Noda is also a gaming enthusiast himself and has played countless games.
He has already experienced Nintendo's "Donkey Kong" and Shirakawa Electric's "Raiden" and "Pac-Man".
As well-known game IPs, they are of course the first to be unboxed.
Overall, the experience of these games is pretty good and does not live up to their previous popularity.
However, since Nintendo only had three games for its first release, after experiencing them early on, Noda Hiroshi turned his attention to the remaining game cartridges from Shirakawa Electric.
First, Noda Hiroshi picked up the "Tank War" cassette with a military green cover and took a look at it.
Wow, the game stickers are quite beautifully made.
Just looking at the picture, one would think it was a fierce battlefield confrontation, but as a game reporter, he was well aware of the tactics of Japanese manufacturers.
Insert the cartridge and press the reset button, and soon the game interface will appear on the TV.
As a veteran of the game, Noda Hiroshi pressed a few buttons to start the game directly.
Hmm? The graphics actually look pretty good, and even the textures in many places are very detailed.
I don’t know if it was his illusion, but Noda Hiroshi always felt that the pictures of Shirakawa Electric’s game console were more colorful and clearer.
In particular, the game cartridges officially released by Shirakawa Electric are generally much better in terms of graphics performance than Nintendo, and even than its own third-party game cartridges.
Is it because the official design team understands the performance advantages of their own game consoles better?
Putting aside the doubts in his mind, Noda Hiroshi focused his attention on the game in front of him.
He pressed the direction keys and began to control his green tank to move left and right. Well, the blue squares represent rivers that cannot be crossed.
Noda Hiroshi turned and plunged into the green grass again. Hmm? Interesting.
The blue river and green grass, although they are simple textures, they have fully expressed the difference in terrain.
This design is quite clever, and at the same time, the profound meaning behind it can be immediately understood.
Noda Hiroshi's interest was piqued, and he controlled his tank to move to the side of the brown-red bricks.
A series of crisp sounds of "ding ding ding" were heard, and the brick wall in front of the green tank disappeared at a speed visible to the naked eye.
Hey, just as I was wondering, another white bullet flew straight towards me from above.
"Bang!" The green tank burst into flames and disappeared.
"Baga~" Noda Hiroshi blurted out a Chinese curse.
But don't worry, the little green tank will soon appear on the screen again.
With this experience, Hiroshi Noda quickly figured out how to play the game.
Squeezing the handle and looking forward, he acted like a real tank driver.
Cross the river, cross the jungle, and reach the enemy's lair.
With a soft "ding" sound, "bang!" the green tank exploded again.
"Baka~!" Noda Hiroshi was so angry that he almost threw the controller.
No, as a professional game journalist, how could I be stumped by a small tank game?
So he geared up again, and this time he was fully prepared. After using all kinds of dirty tricks, he quickly destroyed several enemy tanks.
However, as a few pieces of music played, the words "GAME OVER" suddenly .
Upon closer inspection, it turned out that the old home below had been stolen.
"Baga~" Veins bulged on Noda Hiroshi's neck.
"Baga!!" A sudden scream rang in his ear, and Noda Hiroshi was caught off guard and was so frightened that he almost dropped the handle in his hand.
He turned around and saw that his wife had opened the paper sliding door and was standing behind him.
"You guys are still awake in the middle of the night and shouting so loudly, do you want Mrs. Watanabe next door to know how powerful you are?"
"Boom!" Noda Hiroshi apologized with his neck shrunk like a quail.
After his wife turned away angrily, he carefully continued his tank battle.
Hiss~ I won’t believe in evil today and I must complete this game.
The task of being the editor-in-chief and his self-esteem made him feel like he was injected with chicken blood, and he was more focused than ever before.
In the following experience, Noda Hiroshi passed all the levels and quickly connected several levels.
While taking a break, he did not forget his job. He would pick up a pen from time to time and write something in the notebook beside him.
Finally, when it was getting light outside, Noda Hiroshi completed the last level of "Tank War".
Just as he put down the controller and prepared to end this experience, a somewhat special level popped up on the screen.
"Hey, why is it blank?"
Noda Hiroshi controlled his tank and moved around on the blank map.
At the same time, his finger subconsciously pressed the attack button on the right.
"Eh" Noda Hiroshi widened his eyes. He clearly pressed the attack button, so why was there an extra brick wall on the screen?
He raised his eyebrows, as if he understood something. Soon, a mess of terrain was left on the blank map.
Rivers, grass, brick walls, iron walls, etc., they fill the map wantonly along the routes of the tanks.
It turns out that you can edit the map yourself?!
This...? Noda Hiroshi was excited again. He seemed to have discovered a new world and immersed himself in the fun of "Tank Battle" again.
When he heard his wife's call, he woke up and realized that it was already breakfast time.
Although he didn't sleep all night, Noda Hiroshi was in good spirits.
He hurriedly finished his breakfast, picked up his briefcase and the green game cartridge, and rushed to the newspaper office excitedly.
Soon, on the next day, "Game Daily" published a review article of "Tank War".
“Its graphics may not be exquisite, but the cute pixel style gives people an inexplicable sense of familiarity.
The rules of the game are to defend the base from being destroyed and to destroy all enemy tanks to win.
The rules and operations are quite simple, but playing is tense and exciting. "
“I spent a whole night playing this game. Its interesting and exciting gameplay made me forget the passage of time.”
“What’s most commendable is that Tank Wars actually has an open map, and players can design maps based on their own creativity.
Yes, that's right, players can design their own levels! This is absolutely groundbreaking innovation in the history of games!"
“My evaluation of this game is: it is fun and interesting for all ages!”
At the end of the newspaper column, there is a star rating: Five stars! One of the must-play games!
With the publication of "Game Daily", people began to shift their attention away from games such as "Donkey Kong" and "Pac-Man " and turned their attention to the "Tank War" that was highlighted.
As a result, the "Tank War" copies on the shelves of stores selling game cartridges were quickly sold out.
For a while, the whole of Tokyo even gave people the illusion that "paper was in great demand in Luoyang".
However, the reason why some games become classics is that simplicity and fun are indispensable qualities.
Following the first flattery of "Tank War" by "Game Daily", magazines such as "Weekly Microcomputer" also made various comments on this game.
Of course, without exception, most of them were praises.
With so much media attention, the popularity of "Tank War" has also risen sharply.
Everyone in the school was discussing various ways to play the game, and those students who did not buy the Shirakawa Electric game console were all eager to listen.
If anyone on the street has a blue and white machine, he or she will be the envy of countless friends around.
For Shirakawa Electric's FES, young people prefer to call it the blue and white machine.
Influenced by the media, these game cartridges produced by Shirakawa Electric are not only popular among young people.
Even many adults have become addicted to these games, and it is not uncommon to see fathers and children sitting cross-legged on the floor in the house fighting side by side.
Taking advantage of this favorable situation, another treasure game of Shirakawa Electric, "Double Dragon", was also discovered by everyone.
During this era, Li Xiaolong was very popular in Southeast Asia, and the Japanese people's impression of Kung Fu reached its peak.
The smooth operation of "Double Dragon" has fascinated countless people.
On the other hand, Nintendo's FC is what students call the red and white console.
Those who bought the Famicom were all wondering about one thing.
That is how to play Shirakawa Electric's game cartridges on the Famicom.
