Video Game Tycoon in Tokyo-Chapter 731: Acquisition?

In this parallel world, 2007 would later be hailed as the launch year of the smartphone industry.

And 2008? That was dubbed the year of the "Smartphone Warring States Era."

Smartphone models burst forth like bamboo shoots after the rain—unstoppable.It felt like every small company under the sun was ambitiously developing smartphones, each hoping to carve out a piece of the chaotic new market.

It mirrored the explosive growth of the video game industry in the mid-1990s.

In contrast, the video game industry—specifically handheld and home consoles—began showing signs of decline.

At the very start of 2008, video games hit a slump.

"The hottest thing right now is smartphones! What we should be doing is investing more in mobile, not in video games!"

Just a year ago, video games were the darlings of investors. Because, well... they raked in cash.

But this year was different. Venture capital flooded into the smartphone sector instead, leaving video games with a shrinking share of the pot.

Game studios, once flexing their budget with teams of hundreds, $10 million, even $100 million development costs, now found themselves reined in.

Just last year, Surei Electronics had invested over $100 million into two game titles.

To date, only one had barely broken even. The other—"Solar Knight", which won Game of the Year—had earned a small profit.

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But to investors, even "small profit" = loss. What they wanted was massive ROI.

And clearly, video games were no longer delivering that.

Meanwhile, the smartphone boom looked unstoppable—only a fool wouldn't know where to place their bets now.

Surei's game division had clearly lost its footing in this new competition.

Internally, its priority rating was downgraded, and soon after, employee salaries were cut across the board.

The mood was grim.

Even Gamestar Electronic Entertainment, the absolute pinnacle of the video game world, wasn't having the smoothest start to the year.

Their recently announced games—Bayonetta, NieR: Automata, and Crisis Core—generated buzz at first, but... it didn't last.

Game development takes time, after all. With nothing released yet, that hype was easily stolen by flashier, faster-moving tech products.

The hottest company now? Micksoft.

Once dismissed as a washed-up tech firm, its CEO Myron Case was back in the spotlight, hailed as the first truly successful entrepreneur of the 21st century.

Everyone wanted to be like him.

The MK2 smartphone sold like wildfire. It wasn't just popular—it became a fashion icon, driving trends in both tech and lifestyle.

And Myron Case?

He was thrilled. Everything was unfolding just as he had predicted.

He'd always said video games were just a fad.And now—look. Even his most troublesome competitor, Takayuki, was struggling.

"See? Games were never meant to blow up like that," he mused with a smug grin."People don't want that. People want cutting-edge, stylish tech. That's where the future lies."

"Games? They're headed for the graveyard."

He even had a soft spot for one title: Tetris.

But in his mind, Tetris didn't count as a video game. He saw it as a "standalone creation," separate from gaming entirely.

He liked Tetris. He just didn't like games.

The only problem? He couldn't get Tetris on his MK2.

...Or could he?

A thought started to form in his head. Slowly, he picked up the phone.

Meanwhile, at Gamestar's Tokyo HQ, Takayuki was doing what he always did: staying deep in the trenches of game development.

This time, he was hands-on with three flagship projects:

Bayonetta

NieR: Automata

Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII

Each one demanded serious attention.Other teams were hard at work on side titles—WarioWare, Luigi's Mansion, and so on.

Those, Takayuki was fine with leaving to his subordinates.

In fact, he actively encouraged them to be as creative as possible. Even if a project lost money, he didn't care—as long as it unleashed their potential.

Monster Hunter: World was also nearly complete. No more micromanaging—just prepping for launch, scheduled after the upcoming Gamestar Carnival.

"Zack has to die. It's unavoidable. That's the fixed ending."

"Mika, can we make Bayonetta even more seductive? I want her movements to be more graceful—more elegant."

"And 2B? You can lean into the sensuality. This isn't just fanservice—it's design excellence.This is why I always say: only women truly know how to create beautiful women."

Takayuki zipped around between departments like lightning. Despite being in his 30s, he was a machine—seemingly tireless.

Some staff swore he could go days without sleep. They were used to it, but that didn't mean they weren't concerned.

From time to time, someone would bring him tonics, energy drinks, or hearty homemade food—not out of brown-nosing, but genuine care.

To his team, Takayuki wasn't just a CEO. He was an inspirational leader.

Someone they hoped would stay strong and lead them forever.

"If anything ever happened to him," they whispered, "Gamestar would collapse overnight."

And so, Takayuki received a kind of affectionate loyalty most CEOs could only dream of.

Just as he was knee-deep in his usual chaos, his assistant approached—something rare during dev hours.

That meant it had to be important.

"President, someone's offered to buy the rights to one of our game IPs."

"Buy an IP?" Takayuki raised an eyebrow. "Who?"

"They didn't say. But... they're offering $100 million."

"Which game?"

"...Tetris."