ctnovel Chapter 25 Even exorbitantly priced arcade machines sell out quickly
Chapter 25 Even exorbitantly priced arcade machines sell out quickly
Schwarzenegger was well aware of the situation.
The situation has completely reversed.
It's not that Lin Lixin needs him to endorse the game; it's that he needs to fight for the endorsement opportunity.
He returned to the main screen, his gaze fixed on the 'Rambo' who was playing the role of player 2.
Compared to Sylvester Stallone, a global superstar, I was just an unknown nobody.
While the Conan the Barbarian series certainly allowed him to showcase his unique style on screen, that's about it.
Although James Cameron, who was also a newcomer at the time, played the important role of T-800 in "The Terminator," it remains to be seen whether this film will become a turning point in his acting career.
If you want to become a superstar like Sylvester Stallone, transitioning to action films is clearly an essential step.
"call--"
He let out a long breath and slowly released the control panel.
"It's like a fantastic sci-fi action movie, but I can control everything."
"Thank you, Mr. Schwarzenegger."
Lin Lixin smiled; he had already guessed that they would react this way.
Even if Contra were released in 87, it would still be considered a phenomenal next-generation game.
For today's gamers, the shock of seeing Contra is no less than when they first saw Los Santos in the future.
"Mr. Schwarzenegger, we hope this work can save the game industry from its precarious state, just like the protagonist in a game saves the world."
"It can definitely do it, Mr. Lin." Schwarzenegger had no doubt about it. "Dave, we need to have a serious talk with Mr. Lin."
Agent Dave nodded slightly; he understood what Arnold meant.
They have already arranged a business meeting with 20th Century Fox later today.
It seems Schwarzenegger intends to postpone this matter and discuss this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity first.
"Okay, I'll contact Fox and the others..."
"Mr. Schwarzenegger," Lin Lixin stopped him, "we can exchange contact information. I don't want my relationship to affect your other businesses."
Lin Lixin removed the circuit board from the projector and began packing up.
"Our studio is in Los Angeles, so we can meet anytime. Also... I need some time to raise the endorsement fee."
Lin Lixin wisely showed weakness, placing himself in a subservient position, leaving Schwarzenegger and his agent looking at each other in bewilderment.
On this day, an urban legend began to circulate on the streets of Los Angeles.
Legend has it that a legendary game called "CONTRA" will be released in the near future.
Its graphics are as exquisite as a movie, and its gameplay surpasses the recent hit "1942".
Even Hollywood newcomer Arnold Schwarzenegger praised it highly.
No matter how much the reporters pressed him for answers, the young "tough guy" insisted that he knew nothing about it.
It's as if this is really just a boring urban anecdote.
……
"Mr. Lin, can you give me a clue? Is that 'Contra' thing that's all over the place right now related to you?"
On the other end of the phone, Meyer's voice sounded urgent.
Not only him, but almost all arcade operators in California have been extremely busy these past two days, inquiring everywhere about the legendary "Contra".
"Why all this fuss?"
Even Lin Lixin did not expect that this matter would spread so widely.
In the era before the rise of the Internet, the efficiency of information transmission was not fast.
Unexpectedly, the gossip of the audience members who watched the whole thing in the theater was enough to spread the story all over the West Coast.
This saves me the trouble of doing publicity myself.
"So this really is your new work?"
Meyer immediately perked up.
During this period, the person who made the most money from video games, besides Lin Lixin, the developer, was Mayer, the distributor.
A machine bought for $2,500 can be resold for $3,000 or even more, and demand still exceeds supply.
The price Lin Lixin quoted himself back then would be considered a huge discount by today's standards.
Of course, the fact that he uniformly installed coin-operated machines at $1 per use also played a role.
The price per game quadrupled, but it had absolutely no impact on players' enthusiasm.
Arcades that were once declining are now seeing long queues every day, and the arcade managers are frantically searching for sources of merchandise.
However, after searching all over the United States, only Silicon Oasis had it in stock, and you had to make an appointment!
Lin Lixin yawned, continued optimizing the computer, and casually replied, "That's right, we'll be preparing to go into production in the next couple of days."
"Mr. Lin!" Meyer's voice suddenly rose, and the already distorted receiver crackled with a series of popping sounds. "You absolutely must sign an exclusive sales agreement with us!"
Meyer finally figured it out: stick close to Brother Lin, and he'll be able to enjoy his retirement in a few years.
Arcades across the US are now eyeing them; new batches of machines are being snatched up before they even arrive at the warehouse.
What does this mean?
This means he can raise prices recklessly, even double them, and there will be plenty of people rushing to buy them.
Unfortunately, Lin Lixin's agreement did not allow him to raise it any higher.
"Of course, Mr. Meyer, it's a pleasure doing business with you," Lin Lixin replied, casually taking the price list Sam handed him. "The current estimate for each unit is $4,000, with a 30% prepayment. Is that alright?"
"?"
Meyer was clearly taken aback by the shocking offer.
What does a purchase price of four thousand US dollars per unit mean?
This means that the price of one of these machines is enough to buy three or four Pac-Man games.
The price of two machines is enough to equip a small arcade.
Unless this new game is truly worth the price and can actually recoup the arcade's hefty investment.
Otherwise, this price point would be suicidal.
"Mr. Lin, do you have a prototype now? I... I still think I need to do some research."
"Of course, the same old place."
Lin Lixin hung up the phone and focused his attention on the price list in his hand.
It wasn't that he wanted to set such a high price, but rather that he simply couldn't reduce the costs.
When developing the prototype substrate, Gerald Lawson selected the best components almost without regard to cost.
Even now that they have completed the subsequent optimizations and reduced some unnecessary configurations, they haven't saved much.
The cost of just 256KB of storage media is already several hundred dollars.
Add in all the miscellaneous one-time engineering expenses, and it would take several thousand dollars to break even on this bill.
"By the way, Sam, is there any progress on the company setup I asked you to handle?"
Lin Lixin put the bill aside and remembered another important matter.
Today, their arcade machines are sold all over the country, with a large amount of revenue flowing between the OEM factory and the Silicon Oasis every day.
Their small arcade was clearly no longer able to keep up with the demand.
Sam chuckled and took out a file.
This is a document related to GAMENOVA Entertainment.