Sega Corporation's software development executives also tested the Persona Engine.
Their impressions were similar to Nintendo's. The engine had a high floor and an even higher ceiling. If the developers were skilled, they could create an outstanding game; otherwise, the result would be a mediocre title.
Facing the expectant gazes of his colleagues, Nakayama Shūo turned to the Sega board of directors.
"I believe Sega Corporation must immediately acquire a license for the Persona Engine and grant Atlus permission to port its games to Sega's various platforms, including our arcade systems. On one hand, this will allow us to rapidly expand our game library and increase our appeal to consumers. On the other hand, if everyone else adopts it while we do not, we will fall behind the competition."
Of course, this also gave Nakayama Hayao an idea: Sega could also start developing its own game engine as soon as possible. Atlus's move had effectively lit a beacon for them.
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So, games could be developed this way! If an engine is successfully developed, it will play a huge role at least during the console's lifespan!
However, the board members' attitudes were divided.
Someone like Sato Hideki, the General Manager of the Hardware Department, chose to agree.
As for Kobayashi Kentaro's attitude, it went without saying—he would also choose to agree.
But there was still a portion of people who actually chose to refuse.
In the office, a board member with a slightly rounded belly, resembling a crescent moon, leaned back in his chair and looked at Nakayama Hayao.
"How can we guarantee that this won't become the next Atari Shock?" he asked. "If we use this kind of thing to develop games, a huge number of poorly made games will definitely appear in the end. At that time, Sega will become the laughingstock of all Japan."
Nakayama Hayao took a deep breath, nearly blurting out a "Baka!"
The fact that this director could even ask such a question meant he had been away from the front lines for too long. His brain must be completely filled with miso paste!
"The Atari Shock happened because Atari, acting as both publisher and developer, actively created and encouraged the production of a massive amount of shovelware. Over a hundred thousand games were released within a single year! Of course consumers lost confidence!"
"But Sega is the platform holder! Even if developers use the Persona Engine to make garbage games, they still have to be released on our platform! Are you telling me Sega wouldn't know how to filter them out before publishing?!"
The director seemed to understand, but then pressed further: "Then how can we guarantee that Nintendo will stay in step with us?"
Nakayama Hayao took another deep breath.
He really wanted to smash this idiot's head in and see what was actually inside!
Do you think Hiroshi Yamauchi is as brain-dead as you are?!
Nakayama Hayao wanted to say that, but in the end, he chose a more diplomatic approach: "Nintendo has its own formidable development and publishing capabilities. Ever since they proposed and established the licensing fee system, they've ensured they won't repeat Atari's mistakes."
He looked at everyone.
"We will now vote on whether to begin purchasing the Persona Engine and negotiate the licensing agreement with Atlas!"
After a brief silence, the board's vote finally ended with a majority in favor.
Nakayama Hayao let out a long sigh.
He truly envied Atlas and Nintendo.
Atlas was a one-man company; whatever Kobayashi Tetsu said was an imperial decree. Even if Kobayashi Tetsu sought to go public and change the company's operational nature in the future, at least for the next dozen or so years, the people sitting in the senior management positions would all be his own men, who would still obey him.
As for Nintendo, it was even more of a family-run company; Hiroshi Yamauchi had the final say on everything.
If anyone dared to disobey, Hiroshi Yamauchi would send Vietnamese assassins to run them over with a dump truck.
It was nothing like Sega! Even saying a word required a board vote!
Within a single day, Atlas received licensing applications from multiple companies.
For individual developers, the Persona Engine adopted a retail system. For development companies, however, it was a monthly subscription model—meaning they had to pay every month, as buying the software outright was simply impossible.
Kobayashi Tetsu gave Iwata Satoru a stern warning.
"Nintendo can have the license if they want it, but you are not to go to Kyoto! I'm afraid if you go, you'll never come back. I'll be staying in Tokyo myself for the time being, refusing to go anywhere else, just to prevent Hiroshi Yamauchi from forcibly keeping me there."
Iwata Satoru nodded quickly and gave a brief report on the licensing status of the Persona Engine.
"Currently, Sega's development department and Nintendo have both purchased licenses. Among other third-party companies, Konami has also chosen to purchase a license. We haven't received any applications from Namco or Taito yet. As for smaller companies, we've had similar requests from the likes of SNK and Sunsoft."
"As for individual developers, there have been many inquiries, but not many actual purchases. It seems the price is still a bit too steep for them."
Iwata Satoru felt it was indeed very expensive!
After all, a Super Famicom cost only 14,800 yen, yet the retail price for the Persona Engine was 26,800 yen! That was almost enough to buy two Super Famicoms, but Kobayashi Tetsu didn't seem to care at all.
"We aren't selling a game, so our sales will never explode. Dreaming of tens or hundreds of thousands of copies is just that—a dream. This is a tool, not a game, so only developers will buy it. It won't become a massive hit like a game would. Our primary focus is providing value-added services through a mix of paid and free assets. As for sales... I'm afraid we won't see a real surge until the first wave of games developed with the Persona Engine is released!"
For now, simply sending shockwaves through Japan's game development companies was enough.
Kobayashi Tetsu wasn't the least bit worried about the possibility of them developing competing engines. The Persona Engine's technical complexity was roughly on par with RMMAKER; for the major companies, replicating it wouldn't be a difficult task. But having the first-mover advantage and releasing the first wave of games to attract users would be enough.
Later, developers would have to weigh the costs of building their own engines against the development cycle and other factors. If the development cycle was too long, the platform might be replaced by a new one before their engine was even finished. In that case, they might as well just buy an existing one!
There are so many game engines in the world, but the most famous one is still Unreal Engine. Ultimately, this is because Unreal Engine has captured a larger market share, not because it is the best. Rockstar Games uses its self-developed RAGE Engine for the GTA series, and EA uses its self-developed Frostbite Engine for the Battlefield series, but developers and users won't reject Unreal Engine games because of this.
Kobayashi Tetsu tapped his finger lightly on the desk and casually asked Iwata Satoru, "So, what's the current retail market share?"
Iwata Satoru replied, "We don't have news from other game stores and convenience stores yet. Based only on Atlas's offline experience stores, we have sold approximately 233 copies so far. The number is precise."
Kobayashi Tetsu nodded.
That was quite a lot!
Two hundred and thirty copies of a game engine could potentially mean two hundred and thirty games? If even one of those two hundred games sold well, Atlas would make a profit!
An engine is not a game, and a developer is not a gamer. If the engine were to sell tens of thousands of copies, Kobayashi Tetsu would have to fly to the United States overnight.
Staying in Japan might even get him assassinated by Hiroshi Yamauchi!
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