Although the idea of Pac-Man serving as free advertising for the APPLE
1 still felt outrageous no matter how he looked at it, Ethan didn't
dwell on it for long.
After all, outrageous or not --- the money was already in his pocket.
What was he supposed to do, take it out and give it back?
All he could do now was feel a bit sorry for the other computer
manufacturers. Those poor guys hadn't lifted a finger, yet they were
suddenly kicked in the backside by market demand. After a moment of
silent laughter, Ethan changed the subject.
"Hey, Steve, there's something I want to ask you."
"Say it," Jobs replied cheerfully. "I'm in a good mood --- no need to be
polite, brother"
"It's like this," Ethan said. "Before the Pac-Man press conference,
some of my employees mentioned that Atari plans to release a new game
this summer --- after the agreement with Magnavox banning new games
expires. The game's called Brick Breaker. Do you know anything about
it?"
"Yeah, I've heard about it," Jobs said casually. Then he paused,
suspicious. "Why? Is there a problem?"
That question made Ethan purse his lips. He reorganized his thoughts
before speaking.
"I'm very interested in that game. Just the name sounds fascinating. But
you know my relationship with Nolan... so I wanted to ask if you know
any details about it."
Back in early April, after finishing Pac-Man, Ethan had returned to
the company and overheard Julis Noble talking about Atari's plans. Ever
since then, a nagging doubt had lingered in his mind.
Because as far as he knew, he had never once mentioned Arkanoid to
anyone.
But in his previous life, Arkanoid was famously the creation of Jobs
and Woz --- a game that earned them a footnote in video game history.
Yet here, in this life, he had witnessed the birth of the APPLE 1 with
his own eyes. He and Jobs were practically joined at the hip.
So how on earth was Atari launching Arkanoid? When had Steve Jobs ---
decided to betray him?!
Ethan hadn't asked about it earlier because he'd been too busy with
Pac-Man's launch to worry.
But now? If this guy really sold the game to Atari behind his back...
Then he was dead! However, Jobs's reaction was nothing like what Ethan
had imagined.
"Ethan," Jobs said blankly, "I'm not a prophet. How would I know
anything about a game called Arkanoid?"
"You don't know?" Did Steve Jobs seriously not know about Arkanoid?
What kind of upside-down world was this?! Jobs, now curious, asked,
"Why would I know about it? I didn't make that game."
If you want to know what Arkanoid is about, I really can't help you.
But if you want to know when it was conceived, I can tell you this: in
my memory, it was Nolan's idea.
The concept existed long before the Magnavox lawsuit, but since the
market was already saturated with ball-and-paddle games back then, he
had no intention of releasing it.
"Later, after Atari signed the out-of-court settlement with Magnavox,
Nolan still didn't want to give up the game's copyright --- so he
shelved it."
Jobs's words suddenly solved the mystery in Ethan's heart.
"So Arkanoid was originally Nolan Bushnell's idea?" That guy... still
had some real skill!
At the same time, Ethan's mental "filter" of Jobs shattered into tiny
pieces.
He had always assumed Jobs was the inspirational genius behind
Arkanoid. But it turned out... This guy was just a middleman!
Nolan Bushnell had come up with the idea, asked Steve Jobs to make it,
Jobs found an outsourcer, handed all the work to Steve Wozniak --- and
then pocketed the entire bonus himself?
He could only smile and shake his head, not knowing what to say. On the
other end of the line, Jobs added cheerfully:
"Oh, Ethan, I think you're worrying for nothing. Right now, plenty of
game companies can't even sell their products.
Pac-Man's success hit them hard --- and I think Nolan is going to feel
that pain too."
Ethan thought about it for a moment, nodded to himself, and decided to
stop obsessing over small details.
\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\--
Meanwhile, over at Atari headquarters, Nolan Bushnell's office was heavy
with gloom.
When a knock came at the door, his voice sounded weak as he called for
the visitor to enter.
Seeing a young subordinate step in holding a document, Nolan gave a
tired smile and shook his head.
"No one's coming to our product launch, are they?"
The young man in plain clothes said nothing, just nodded silently. That
was all Nolan needed to know.
"Oh---"
He let out a long, miserable sigh, pressed his hands to his temples, and
began rubbing.
In a few moments, his slightly wavy hairstyle was slicked back. Then,
unsatisfied, his hands ruffled his hair again until it resembled a
bird's nest.
"Alright. Put the papers down and get back to work," Nolan said, waving
the young man away.
When the door closed, the office was silent except for Nolan's slow
breathing.
He picked up the document, scanned it twice, then let out a bitter
chuckle.
"Businessmen. Always so... realistic."
He tossed the paper aside, leaned back in his chair, and stared at the
ceiling.
In its blank whiteness, he saw a scene from six months ago --- the day
he went to Warner after hearing Ralph Bear had joined Kismet Game.
He could still remember Warner's CEO greeting him warmly, saying:
"Nolan, we know you can't control which company Ralph Bear joins, so
today's matter has nothing to do with you.
The reason we acquired Atari is that we want to enter the electronic
entertainment industry --- and you and your team are the most
experienced in the field.
So don't worry. We're not here to hold you accountable. We hope you
reset your mindset, keep moving forward, and create even greater glory
for Atari..."
"Greater glory?" Nolan gave a bitter smile.
"No one's buying games anymore. How am I supposed to create glory like
this?"
Unless...He suddenly opened a desk drawer. Inside was a worn document
with curled edges.
The cover read in bold letters:
"Atari Home Video Game Console Planning Case."
Nolan carefully lifted it and set it on the desk.
"Looks like you're the only one who can save me now."
He gently stroked the cover, murmuring to himself:
"Ethan Jones... I lost in the arcade battlefield, but that doesn't
matter. The home console market is just as big.
"If I can't beat you in arcades --- I'll beat Magnavox at home console
market."
Yes! Even though Pac-Man had dealt him a devastating blow, even though
it had driven away the businessmen who once supported him, Nolan
Bushnell still had the confidence to stake his claim in the gaming
industry!
"Can't we just switch tracks? After all, Ethan Jones --- you don't make
home consoles!"
Nolan Bushnell felt a rare spark of satisfaction at the thought. If he
did this, maybe he could finally put an end to Magnavox's momentum\...
But the moment he flipped to the first page of the plan, his expression
froze.
Right there, under the CPU specifications for the home console, it
read:
"This plan prioritizes the MOS 6502 chip."
"Ohhh---Ethan---why are you everywhere?!"
Nolan nearly fall onto the desk. Right now, there was only one thought
in his mind: call Magnavox and see if they had developed a terminal
case of "ethan-phobia."
As for Magnavox... To be honest, that old man's situation was still far
better than Nolan Bushnell's.
Note: ① Arkanoid was indeed inspired by Nolan Bushnell but produced by Jobs
and Woz. There's also an amusing bit of history about this game:
although it was officially released in 1976, its copyright wasn't
registered until 1992.
Why? Because the geniuses at the U.S. Copyright Office initially ruled
that neither individuals nor companies could claim copyright over
"computer-generated graphics and images." Nolan Bushnell's registration
was denied.
An outraged Bushnell sued them, and the legal battle dragged on for
years --- eventually landing in the hands of Judge Ginsburg of the D.C.
Circuit Court of Appeals.
This was one of the last major cases she handled before becoming a
Supreme Court Justice, and her ruling ultimately allowed abstract game
concepts like Brick Breaker to receive copyright protection.