After reaching an agreement with Suzuki Masao, the head of the Marketing Department, on the key strategy for the copyright battle over "first super robot wars," Takuya Nakayama immediately shifted his focus, as time was his most valuable resource.
While copyright negotiations were crucial, relying on a single game was far from enough to shake Nintendo's dominant position in the industry.
Sega needed to establish a strong third-party developer alliance, which would not only bring more high-quality games to the new console but also fundamentally weaken Nintendo's moat.
This strategy held a central position in Takuya's plan.
His next target was already locked—Square, located in Tokyo's Ueno district.
He went to the underground parking lot, got into his RX7, and drove towards Square.
Outside the car window, Tokyo's streetscape flashed by, but Takuya's thoughts had already flown to the game company that was deeply mired in difficulties.
At this time, Square was, as in his memory from his previous life, deeply mired in a quagmire.
Their previous games launched on PC and FC platforms had received mediocre market responses, with sales so dismal they were chilling.
Not only did they fail to recover R&D costs, but the company's capital chain was stretched to its limit.
Even paying employee salaries on time had become a challenge.
The RX7 stopped in front of an unremarkable office building.
Takuya looked up; Square's signboard on the third-floor window appeared somewhat dim, and even a few letters on the sign were crooked, clearly not having been maintained for a long time.
He turned off the engine, adjusted his suit, and walked into the building.
Inside Square's office, the atmosphere was suffocatingly oppressive.
Several employees sat at their desks, their eyes filled with confusion and unease.
Someone was buried in code revision, but the frequency of their fingers tapping the keyboard clearly lacked rhythm.
A printer in the corner made intermittent noises, seemingly protesting the working environment as well.
When the receptionist at the company's front desk saw Takuya, a flicker of surprise crossed her eyes—few outsiders proactively visited Square at such a time, let alone a well-dressed businessman.
She subconsciously tidied her uniform, afraid of embarrassing the company.
"Who are you looking for, please?" Her voice was a bit nervous.
"I am Takuya Nakayama from Sega, and I would like to see President Miyamoto.
I had an appointment yesterday."
The receptionist's expression instantly became complex.
Sega?
What were they doing here now?
Various possibilities flashed through her mind, but she quickly regained her professional demeanor, displaying a standard service smile.
"Please wait a moment, I will inform President Miyamoto immediately." She got up and walked towards the internal office area, her footsteps exceptionally clear in the quiet office.
Takuya was led into a simple reception room.
The coffee table in the room was a bit old, and a few game posters hung on the wall, but their colors had faded somewhat.
The receptionist brewed him tea; the quality of the tea leaves was clearly not superior, but given the current economic situation, this was the best treatment Square could offer.
A few minutes later, Takuya was led into Miyamoto Masashi's office.
This office was much smaller than he had imagined; the desk was piled high with various documents and reports, some of which had yellowed edges.
There were also several cardboard boxes in the corner, containing samples of game cartridges, with the writing on their labels somewhat blurred.
Miyamoto Masashi was a middle-aged man in his forties, wearing black-rimmed glasses with some scratches on the lenses.
His shirt collar was a bit loose, and his cuffs were slightly frayed, clearly indicating he hadn't bought new clothes in a long time.
The fatigue on his face was not just from work, but more from his worry about the company's future.
Seeing Takuya enter, he forced a smile, but it appeared somewhat stiff.
"Executive Director Takayama, I didn't expect you to visit in person." His voice was a bit hoarse as he led Takuya to the reception area inside the president's office.
Takuya sat opposite Miyamoto Masashi, his gaze sweeping over the scene in the office.
The few game screenshots on the wall had faded, and one of them was even curled at the edges.
He could feel the immense pressure this company was under, a pressure that was almost tangible, making the entire space feel heavy.
"President Miyamoto, I'm here today to discuss a business deal with you." Takuya got straight to the point, without any pleasantries.
In this situation, polite words would only seem insincere.
"Sega is willing to invest 1 million US dollars to acquire 15% of Square's shares."
The teacup in Miyamoto Masashi's hand trembled slightly, and tea almost spilled out.
1 million US dollars?
For Square now, this was an astronomical sum.
This amount of money would be enough to support the company's operations for over a year, and even allow them to restart several shelved projects.
But he quickly calmed down; his business instincts kept him vigilant.
There was no such thing as a free lunch, especially in the business world.
A glimmer of caution flashed in his eyes.
"Executive Director Takayama, what are your conditions?" His voice became more cautious.
Takuya smiled slightly, leaning forward, his tone becoming more sincere.
"Our conditions are extremely generous.
Sega will only provide strategic advice and necessary support, and will never interfere with Square's internal management decisions and freedom in game creation."
These words caused a ripple in Miyamoto Masashi's eyes.
No interference in management decisions?
This was almost impossible in the Japanese business world.
Most investors would demand control, or at least participation in major decisions.
Some investors would even directly dispatch managers to the company.
But Takuya's words sounded too good to be true, making him doubt their authenticity.
Miyamoto Masashi had been in the business world for so many years and knew that no one would invest unconditionally.
Miyamoto Masashi was silent for a moment, his fingers unconsciously tapping the table, his hesitation and uncertainty clearly visible in his eyes.
He quickly calculated various possibilities and risks in his mind.
Takuya keenly sensed this change in emotion.
He calmly glanced at the other Square executives participating in the meeting, then looked at Miyamoto Masashi.
"President Miyamoto, could you please dismiss the others?
I have something more important to discuss with you alone."
Miyamoto Masashi nodded and said to the others in the office, "Everyone, please step out for a moment."
The few people were puzzled but prepared to leave.
Just then, Takuya suddenly spoke.
"Wait."
His gaze fell on a young man, "Mr. Sakaguchi, please stay."
Hironobu Sakaguchi was a core developer at Square and one of the main people in charge of the "final fantasy" project.
He was a young man in his early thirties, wearing a slightly faded plaid shirt, his eyes still holding the passion for game development, although this passion seemed somewhat dimmed by the company's difficulties.
Hearing Takuya call his name, he stopped, a little surprised.
Soon, only three people remained in the office.
The tension in the air became even thicker.
Takuya took a photograph from his briefcase and solemnly placed it in front of the two men.
"President Miyamoto, Mr. Sakaguchi, this is our Sega's sincerity in hoping for deep cooperation with your company, and also where our confidence in the future lies."
Miyamoto Masashi and Hironobu Sakaguchi simultaneously looked down at the photograph.
The next second, both of their expressions froze at the same time.