For Sayuri, this matter was not difficult at all. She easily contacted several martial arts dojos in Japan, some of which were fairly well-known.
They were quite interested in being hired as consultants, especially since Takayuki was willing to pay a fee.
Even some of the moderately famous dojos were struggling financially due to the overall economic downturn in Japan. They were eager for extra income.
However, they had their own request: they wanted their dojo's name to be added to the list of credits in the game after it was completed. This would help boost their reputation.
Takayuki readily agreed to this arrangement. It was a mutually beneficial agreement. Adding their names to the end credits of the game was a small price to pay, which was actually less significant than in traditional movies and TV shows.
Only players who successfully completed the game would have the chance to see the end credits. Typically, achieving a completion rate of 30% in a game was considered quite good. Whether this 30% of players would patiently watch the end credits was another matter altogether.
Several dojos agreed to send their most skilled disciples to teach at their company over the coming months. This saved the programmers a lot of time and effort, as they didn't have to attend training sessions themselves. Of course, this service came at an additional cost.
However, Takayuki didn't hesitate to spend money when it came to saving time. It was slightly disappointing that motion capture technology was still at a rudimentary stage, with inadequate precision. Fine-tuning in the program was still necessary for detailed movements. Takayuki even considered setting up an entire motion capture system.
For now, 2D animation was still preferable for action fighting games. The industry needed to mature further before true 3D motion capture games could be considered.
Thus, the members of Team Four spent about a month exclusively recording various combat data for Street Fighter. This included popular fighting styles from around the world.
Thinking back, the success of Street Fighter probably stemmed from this diverse mix of martial arts techniques. People worldwide shared a similar curiosity about seeing different martial arts styles battle against each other.
After Sayuri finished contacting the dojos, she once again immersed herself in the development of the game console. Takayuki began reviewing and inspecting the games developed by Teams Two, Three, and Four one by one.
The games developed by Teams Two and Three were relatively simple, but there was no room for complacency. Takayuki's expectation was perfection, with no room for error, in order to attract as many players as possible.
Meanwhile, in the Silicon Valley area of the San Francisco Bay Area, Matsuhashi Miho led her team into a newly built office building.
The company in the United States currently had only a dozen employees. This number was sufficient for the initial stage. After all, the United States was not the main area for game development; the focus was still concentrated in Japan.
Matsuhashi Miho quickly adjusted to the time difference and immediately got to work, more dedicated than anyone else. She cherished this job and hoped to establish herself firmly here.
Before the company's location was finalized, she had been running around trying to find cooperative automotive manufacturers. Unfortunately, they all replied with a resounding "NO." These automotive manufacturers didn't see any value in electronic games.
This was understandable. The overall size of the gaming market in the United States was still relatively small, with only a few hundred thousand players. Despite its efforts, SuRui Electronics had not achieved significant success in the United States. According to Takayuki, the games developed by SuRui Electronics had leaned more toward Asian-Pacific culture, making them slower to be accepted by Western audiences.
SuRui Electronics hadn't anticipated this, so it hadn't shifted its focus to the Western market. Currently, only racing and basketball games were selling well.
However, since each game in the United States could be sold for over $120, with profits seven to eight times higher, SuRui Electronics was still making a considerable amount of money despite the small player base.
Many young people in the United States were quick to invest in such lucrative opportunities. Overall, American programmers were generally more skilled. With better game effects, they easily attracted many players, earning substantial profits.
From Takayuki's perspective, the entire American region was still a gold mine waiting to be tapped. The few hundred thousand players were simply not enough compared to the total player base in the United States.
After settling the office location, Matsuhashi Miho immediately began contacting advertisers and major retailers in the United States.
Selling products in the United States was not as simple as in Japan. Since it was a foreign product, negotiations with retailers were necessary.
The primary focus was on electronics and toy retailers.
In front of the headquarters of Woodson Department Store Ltd., Matsuhashi Miho adjusted her clothes and took a deep breath before stepping into the premises of one of the retail giants in the United States.
Approaching the front desk, Matsuhashi Miho politely said, "Hello, I'm here to see Sales Manager David."
The receptionist raised her head and asked, "Do you have an appointment?"
Matsuhashi Miho shook her head. "No, I've contacted your company several times, but there hasn't been a direct response. We urgently need to discuss the sales of a new product with your company."
With a tone of apology, the receptionist said, "I'm sorry, ma'am. Our company has been very busy recently, especially as the year-end approaches. Both middle and senior management have little spare time. If you have a product to sell, you might consider coming after Christmas."
"Can I speak directly to Manager David?"
"I'm sorry, ma'am. That's not possible without an appointment. Without one, we can't guarantee when you'll be able to meet with Manager David."
Matsuhashi Miho felt somewhat unwilling. "I'm willing to wait. Just give me two minutes to introduce our company's gaming console to you. I believe you'll be interested."
"Well, ma'am, you can wait in the lounge over there."
The receptionist gestured toward a room labeled "Lounge" on the side of the lobby.
Typically, people without appointments would wait there. However, once people entered the lounge, they tended to stay there all day, especially during the two months leading up to Christmas, when retail giants were busiest.
Matsuhashi Miho understood this but still felt compelled to try her luck.