The Old Era and the New Generation

Chapter 20 The Old Era and the New Generation

The San Francisco Video Game Show?

Mr. Forbes' words left Ethan with countless question marks on his forehead.

Because in his memory, he didn't seem to have heard of such a gathering before?

"Mr. Fogel..."

Call me Frank!

"Okay, Frank." Ethan changed his tune very decisively. "Uh... I don't understand what you mean."

He pursed his lips and said seriously, "Can you explain this to me?"

"Hehe~" Ethan's curiosity made Frank laugh on the other end of the phone.

Although there was no face-to-face communication, Ethan had a feeling that the guy on the other end of the phone was already looking smug.

"I knew you wouldn't know!"

Frank's laughter reached Ethan's ears. "Actually, I didn't know at first either. I even thought it was a scam gathering, but after I found out, I realized this bullshit video game expo was actually just an old arcade expo!"

"Oh! Sxxt! These guys are so incredibly boring! Changing names like that!"

"When I asked them why they changed the name, they told me that nobody makes traditional arcade games anymore in the last two years; everyone has switched to making video games. So they just followed the times and changed the name of their trade show. In their words, a video game trade show sounds much more high-end than an arcade trade show!"

After Frank's explanation, Ethan finally understood what the San Francisco video game convention was all about.

For people living in the 21st century, the mention of arcade games might conjure up images of video games like Street Fighter and King of Fighters. Even Baidu Encyclopedia defines arcade games as video games.

But in fact, the concept of arcades already existed in the world before video games. Those machines placed on the streets and alleys that could provide entertainment for people were arcade machines.

For example, claw machines and coin machines.

Because the arcade industry emerged in an era of underdeveloped communication, everyone initially developed it in a niche market.

You sell machines in San Francisco, I pay protection money to Al Capone in Chicago, we keep to ourselves and have a bright future.

However, after dominating the local market, friction arose as each company expanded overseas.

then……

These companies fought each other over protecting their market share and encroaching on other companies' business territories.

In this commercial war, many weaker companies disappeared into the annals of history. Since the claw machines and coin machines they sold back then didn't have any special technological content, they had to resort to price reductions and promotions to gain market share. So, when many companies realized that fighting tooth and nail would only benefit consumers, they tacitly stopped fighting.

They then shifted their focus to research and development, attempting to crush all competitors through innovation.

Once they embarked on the path of research and development to achieve success, these businesses spontaneously organized trade shows to better promote and sell their new machines.

Of course, this trade show also has regional protections; shows covering Illinois are generally held in Chicago, while shows focusing on California are generally held in San Francisco.

These exhibitions were held successfully from the 1960s onwards, but...

When Nolan Bushnell burst onto the scene with Pong in 1972, old-school traditional arcade manufacturers were dragged to the brink of death overnight by video games.

Therefore, these traditional arcade manufacturers were forced to change their business, but they naturally did not give up their previous channels. So they put the old-fashioned name of arcade exhibitions on a new-era glamorous guise and transformed them into video game exhibitions.

When Mr. Foberle recounted this history, Ethan immediately understood why he had no recollection of the exhibition.

Because Mirova never makes arcade games and doesn't pay attention to this matter at all, he was unable to gather any relevant information from Mirova.

The video game industry has a relatively short history, and the popular companies on the market today are all newly established by various electronics engineers, and have no connection with traditional arcade companies.

Therefore, Ethan didn't initially suspect these guys.

But now...

Emerging companies are unwilling to cooperate, while traditional companies are eager to enter the market.

"That's a good idea."

Ethan's eyes lit up.

"When is the exhibition?" he asked.

"Hey bro! I knew you'd be interested!"

Mr. Foberle laughed and said, "The day after tomorrow, April 19th, are you coming or not?"

Ethan glanced at the calendar next to the phone; the 19th was a Saturday.

"Here's the address."

"Just come to my shop and find me." Mr. Foberle on the other end of the phone was very happy. "Then, see you on Saturday."

Just as Mr. Forbes was about to happily hang up the phone, Ethan shouted again, "Wait, wait, wait!"

"I'd like to ask if you can arrange a booth?"

"Huh?" Frank was asked that question.

The other end of the phone suddenly went silent, as if someone was thinking about something, but the rustling sounds suggested they were reaching for something. After a moment, he said again, "Milowa Marketing Manager... Ethan Jones..."

Upon hearing this sound, Ethan slapped his forehead!

He suddenly remembered that when Frank gave him his business card that day, he returned one without thinking!

And that one seems to be the one he used when he worked at Milroyal!

Sure enough, when Ethan explained to Frank that he had already left Milrova and that it was just a misunderstanding that day, a surprised shout came from the other end of the phone—

"What? You've already left Mirova?"

"Oh! Fxxk! Why didn't you say so sooner!"

"Damn it! I've already filled out the hazardous chemicals sales form!"

"..."

Ethan paused for only a second, then he understood why Mr. Foberle had called him!

I'd guess 99% of the reason is that they want to know if their number is real!

To avoid involving him in case of an accident!

"Damn it... I thought he was a good person..." Ethan cursed inwardly.

Ethan genuinely admired Mr. Forbes's caution.

Considering that the guy had actually been helpful, Ethan decided not to hold it against him.

He gave a few brief words of response, then hung up the phone. When he looked at his family again, a smile appeared on his face.

"Looks like I don't need to run around anymore."

Since traditional arcade manufacturers from California and the surrounding areas would be gathering in San Francisco, Ethan temporarily put aside his road-pushing plans. The next day, April 18th, he rested well at home. On the morning of the third day, the 19th, he set off directly, speeding towards San Francisco.

The hour-and-a-half drive brought him to the entrance of the San Francisco electronics supply company around 7:30 a.m., and the loud banging on the shutter door elicited a shout—

"They're here!"

In less than half a minute, Mr. Ford, who was always on high alert, appeared in front of Ethan. When he saw the machine wrapped in tarpaulin on the Ford pickup truck, a sense of relief flickered in his eyes.

"Is this the game console you were talking about yesterday?"

"Yeah."

"Yes, that's great."

Mr. Forbes gave Ethan a thumbs-up and then asked, "Hey buddy, have you had breakfast yet?"

"What do you think?" Ethan tilted his head slightly and pointed to the sky shrouded in smog.

"Haha~ So I made an extra sandwich and fried an extra egg this morning."

Mr. Fober smiled and stepped aside. "Come in, brother."

Note: ① Arcade games have three eras. The earliest was the mechanical era, with purely mechanical game machines, showcasing true engineering charm, dating back to 1920. Next was the circuit board era, where the allure of circuitry was introduced by Nolan Bushnell. The third era was the microcomputer era, characterized by the use of CPUs in arcade machines. Therefore, the statement on Baidu Baike that arcade games were officially born in 1971 is somewhat limited, as it abandons the mechanical era. And today, there are still companies still making arcade games that started in the mechanical era, such as Sega.

(End of this chapter)