ctnovel Chapter 160 PC-priced game consoles
Chapter 160 PC-priced game consoles
Chapter 160 PC-priced game consoles
Inside a game store in California.
"Hello, I would like to pre-order three copies of GAMENOVA's new game, Civilization."
Frank finally finished the long line that led all the way to the parking lot outside the store and stood in front of the counter where he had been waiting for a long time.
He came today with a mission.
Faced with a groundbreaking masterpiece like Civilization, Frank naturally wouldn't miss the precious opportunity to pre-order.
His roommate at UCLA was the same.
"Damn it, if I had rolled a 3 that round I could have turned the game around. Now I have to wait in line for them."
Frank thought to himself.
Who doesn't know how long the queues are to buy a Gamenova game?
In order to choose an unlucky person, Frank and his two friends decided to use Gamenova's Monopoly game to decide.
This was definitely the most regrettable decision Frank ever made.
"Okay, sir, please pay here."
The clerk nodded and began entering the new pre-order information.
Immediately, she looked up at Frank in front of her and, as per protocol, gave him a reminder;
"By the way, sir, Civilization is played on Gamenova's next-generation console."
"A new console?" Frank was taken aback.
This news itself is far more explosive than the opening of pre-orders for Civilization.
The topic of game console upgrades has always been a hot topic of discussion in the gaming community.
From NovaBo to NovaPocket, countless gamers are eagerly awaiting the arrival of new hardware.
According to unreliable rumors, both Sega and Nintendo are planning to develop next-generation consoles.
There has been very little news about GAMENOVA.
Although paparazzi have also uncovered information that GAMENOVA is poaching IC studios everywhere and has reached strategic partnerships with multiple PC manufacturers.
But when they actually got to the host itself, they couldn't extract any useful information.
Although Sega, Nintendo, SNK and NEC are in similar situations, at least there is information to prove that the next generation of 16-bit consoles is indeed under development.
But now they've opened pre-orders right away?
Frank blinked. He hadn't paid attention to this kind of news for at most half a month, and this was such a big gap.
"Yes, the new generation 16-bit home console NovaXeno, pre-order deposit $80, sir."
"A small amount? 80 yuan? What about the full amount?"
"$339.99, sir."
A game console costs approximately $340.
Frank's hand, which was reaching for his credit card, trembled and froze on the spot.
The original NovaBo was already incredibly expensive at $250, and now it's almost $100 more expensive.
This is practically robbery!
This price is enough to barely build a low-spec PC.
Frank had considered that the new machine would be very expensive, but the problem was—
That's way too expensive!
Seemingly noticing Frank's hesitation, the saleswoman smiled sweetly and patiently explained, "Sir, this is the price for the deluxe version. You can also choose to pre-order the standard version for $259.99."
"Deluxe version? What's the difference?"
Frank scratched his head in confusion. This was a price difference of a full $80; it certainly wasn't some meaningless premium like a difference in appearance.
"The deluxe version has a built-in CD-ROM drive, which can read all future GAMENOVA first-party titles. The standard version can only read floppy disks."
The salesperson pushed a brochure forward on the table and pointed to a concept image. "Sir, as you can see, the configuration is exactly the same except for this. Even if you buy the standard version, you can also purchase an external optical drive."
"ha----"
Frank carefully examined the configuration lists of the two models on the diagram and confirmed that there was indeed no difference between them.
"A 16+8 processor?! And 256KB of RAM! F**k, no wonder it's so expensive."
The configuration described here is simply unbelievable.
Keep in mind that the Famicom only has 2KB of memory.
That's a whopping 128 times!
It's a completely different model from the previous generation.
Surprised, Frank's gaze fell on the external CD player.
Hundreds of megabytes of capacity —
This powerful storage medium, capable of sending bricks flying, combined with GAMENOVA's production capabilities—
Frank shuddered before continuing, "May I ask, what is the storage medium for Civilization—?"
"CD, sir."
It's obvious!
This means that to play this new game, you have to buy the version with a disc drive.
This is really going to be the death of me.
"Then—let's pre-order a deluxe version."
Frank can no longer make this decision on his own.
If my roommate doesn't like this thing, then I'll probably have to pay for it myself.
A CD-ROM version of NX would at least allow them to witness the true level of Civilization.
What sales volume is considered acceptable for a next-generation device?
There is no definitive answer.
However, the NovaXeno's first-week pre-order sales were 23 units.
Lin Lixin looked at the report submitted by Sam and fell silent for a moment upon seeing the staggering figure.
Keep in mind that they haven't done any promotion for NX yet; they've only aired a segment of "Civilization" on television.
These 23 units can be said to be mostly brought in by Civilization.
There are still 4 months until the official release.
It's hard to imagine how staggering the final pre-sale figures will be once the discussion intensifies.
This achievement is undoubtedly a success.
-
"That's right, we should invest in marketing and promotion; we can recoup that money quickly."
Lin Lixin calculated the price in his mind.
Like NovaBo, NovaXeno is actually operating at a loss even with its CD-ROM version priced as high as $340.
However, thanks to the maturity of OEM manufacturing and in-house design during this period, the cost of chips has become much lower than in the past.
It can only be said that although there is still a loss, the loss is less.
Lin Lixin's gaze moved up and down the report, landing on the line showing the pre-sale results of "Civilization".
25.3 sets.
"It actually outsold more than NX?"
Lin Lixin was taken aback, but then he understood.
Players who experienced the Black Friday shopping frenzy last year know very well that GAMENOVA games can be considered as investment products.
It's no exaggeration to say that if someone had managed to snag a Pokémon game during the Christmas season and then sold it after completing the game to recoup some of the cost, the final selling price would likely have been higher than the original purchase price.
In other words, you can play Pokémon for free without spending a penny, and even make a profit.
This alone makes GAMENOVA games extremely cost-effective to snag a first release or pre-order.
"A lot of that sales figure is inflated by dog reselling."
Shaking his head, Lin Lixin decided not to dwell on it.
Anyway, once it's sold, it's sold. Let Hayek's big hand handle the market's affairs.
Even if he wanted to develop a more modern online distribution model or a technology like a pass, it would be completely impossible given the current network environment.
The fact that the multiplayer mode for Civilization was made possible is the result of the entire development team working tirelessly together.
Now, let time tell.
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