Kobayashi Tetsu still frequently visited Koei to "mooch meals," but Yoichi Koei was utterly exasperated.
Thank goodness Atlas doesn't make strategy games, or I'd have nowhere left to go!
With Romance of the Three Kingdoms II nearly complete, Kobayashi Tetsu stopped visiting so often to offer his "guidance."
Afterward, Atlas would act as the console publisher for Romance of the Three Kingdoms, and they would all make money together.
In the afternoon, Kobayashi Tetsu arrived at the site he had set his sights on in the suburbs of Yokohama.
Yokohama was undergoing continuous development, not all at once. This area was called "Negishi Bay," and it was currently still awaiting development. Although there was a straight road, the sides were still relatively desolate and bordered the coast.
However, the Yokohama area was continuously reclaiming land from the sea. Years later, as Negishi Bay continued to expand southward through land reclamation, this area would become one of the most important parts of Japan's "Keihin Industrial Zone."
The Keihin Industrial Zone, as its name suggests, specifically refers to the industrial area between Tokyo and Yokohama. Because of its prime location and convenient transportation, it could concentrate Japan's various chemical and petroleum products, among others.
Game cartridges were a curious case, as their production relied on both semiconductor chips and plastic shells.
And as everyone knows, plastic is a petrochemical product.
Establishing the factory in this location was, one could say, a stroke of genius.
I'm not sure exactly when the land reclamation at Negishi Bay began, Kobayashi Tetsu thought, but even so, I'm still not going to invest in real estate.
He had always been clear on one point: never venture into a business you don't understand.
The idea of making a fortune through land speculation was fine in theory, but if that were the real goal, the story should have been retitled 1983: Flipping Land in Tokyo.
Here, Kobayashi Tetsu met the manager of the idle factory, a man named Matsumoto. Hearing that someone wanted to buy the land, the man was so ecstatic he could barely speak.
As Kobayashi Tetsu and Koyakawa walked around inspecting the site, Matsumoto chattered incessantly beside them.
"You have an incredible eye, sir! Everyone knows Yokohama is the most important port surrounding Tokyo. Buying this land is a guaranteed win!"
Kobayashi Tetsu raised an eyebrow.
"If it's so profitable, why are you in such a hurry to sell?"
"Uh—"
Matsumoto hesitated, unable to find the words.
I'm only saying this because you're looking to buy! I'm just trying to sweeten the deal and drive up the price!
But Kobayashi Tetsu wasn't about to let him off easy.
"Let's be blunt. I'm buying this land to build a factory. Right now, it's a bit far from the port, but not so far that transportation is a problem. However, the surrounding area is completely undeveloped. If it's going to take five or eight years for this place to take off, do you expect me to wait that long?"
Matsumoto grew anxious. "It's coming soon! Yokohama is aggressively developing its industries. Negishi Bay will be booming in no time!"
Kobayashi Tetsu just shook his head.
"I can't wait that long. There's no shortage of cheap land in Japan right now. As long as it's not in Tokyo, I can buy land anywhere to start my factory. If you insist on this price, I'd rather put my money into stocks. At least that's a guaranteed return!"
Kobayashi Tetsu tapped his fingers emphatically. "Who even runs a physical business these days? Buying stocks is far more important than doing this kind of thing!"
Matsumoto was finally at his breaking point.
He hadn't even intended to build a factory when he acquired the land. His plan had been to make some minor improvements and then flip it for a profit.
But then Yokohama prioritized the development of its port and road networks, shelving the planned projects for the Negishi Bay area. The land's value plummeted overnight.
Of course, Matsumoto had bought the plot early on, so he was still in the black. But rather than tying up his capital in a worthless piece of land no one wanted, he'd be better off pouring it into the stock market.
Everyone in Japan is trading stocks right now! The market's booming—it's a guaranteed win!
"Alright, Mr. Kobayashi," Matsumoto said solemnly. "We can negotiate the price, but I can't possibly sell it for less than what I originally paid."
Kobayashi Tetsu smiled, a look of satisfaction finally crossing his face.
That's more like it.
The land in Negishi Bay was already cheap, but building a cartridge factory from the ground up would still be a massive investment. Kobayashi Tetsu estimated the startup cost at around one billion yen—roughly eight or nine million US dollars—covering the land, construction, and the subsequent transport of equipment.
Building a cartridge factory in Yokohama was a signal of investment in real industry. In truth, Kobayashi Tetsu preferred to build his factories in China's Yangtze River Delta Region.
In the nineties, only a fool wouldn't build factories in China!
In Japan, labor costs remained stubbornly high. But in China, the demographic dividend was being fully exploited.
After years of training and education, the early reform and opening-up period of the nineties produced the highest-quality batch of workers in China. They were educated to a middle-school level, hardworking, and disciplined. Moreover, local governments often offered preferential policies to foreign investment.
"What the hell is 'Industrial Cthulhu'? It's all just built on the demographic dividend," Kobayashi Tetsu shook his head secretly. He decided to drop the matter.
After returning from Yokohama, the preliminary factory site had already been selected. Kobayashi Tetsu also brought back the cartridge entrusted to him by Koei.
Romance of the Three Kingdoms II had been completed. Its console cartridge would be distributed by Atlas.
Kobayashi Tetsu took this news and went to Bandai.
"Kobayashi-kun, long time no see!" Yamashina Makoto spread his arms wide, ready to give Kobayashi Tetsu a hug.
Kobayashi Tetsu's face filled with surprise. "What? You know I sold several million cartridges in the U.S.?"
Yamashina Makoto stared. "Who asked you?"
Kobayashi Tetsu chuckled and casually mentioned the outsourcing agreement with Koei for cartridge manufacturing.
Yamashina Makoto nodded. "No problem. Bandai still has enough production capacity."
Kobayashi Tetsu said, "Speaking of capacity, I've been thinking about something lately. I heard Bandai has been building a lot of factories over there. Atlas is also considering investing in a few factories for cartridge production."
Yamashina Makoto looked up sharply. "Is that so? Atlas is planning to invest in its own cartridge factories?"
Though he felt a twinge of regret, Yamashina Makoto wasn't surprised. It was only a matter of time. After all, relying on Bandai for outsourcing meant their production capacity was controlled by Bandai. No one with ambitions to expand would do that.
Since he couldn't stop it, Yamashina Makoto decided not to.
"The environment over there is quite good, and it's fairly friendly to investors like us. If you're interested, I can take you with me next time I go."
Kobayashi Tetsu waved his hand. "No need to take me. If there's a suitable factory site over there, Big Brother Yamashina, just help me develop it."
Yamashina Makoto agreed.
This kind of thing was no problem at all.
"Speaking of which, I have an idea," Yamashina Makoto suddenly said. "The game console market has been very hot lately. Bandai is planning to launch its own handheld game console. I wonder if Atlas would be interested in developing games for Bandai's handheld?"
Kobayashi Tetsu's expression was exactly the same as Yamashina Makoto's just moments ago.
Here it comes.
The side quest to the console wars—the handheld console wars!
In the early nineties, the console wars in Japan had a side quest: the handheld console wars. Companies including Bandai and Namco were all launching their own handhelds. Beneath the main console wars, there was also a handheld console war!
Of course, without a doubt, only Nintendo won in the end. Even Sega couldn't save the Game Gear, let alone other companies.
Kobayashi Tetsu thought for a moment and then offered a tactful warning.
"Atlas can certainly help Bandai release games, but the success or failure of a console doesn't depend on a single company. No matter how good the games are, you need more companies to build up the game library. Big Brother Yamashina, I'll be blunt: I don't recommend Bandai invest in game consoles. You'd be better off spending that money investing in the gaming industry or acquiring a few smaller companies to develop supporting games. But whatever you do, don't make a handheld console!"
Bandai would lose their shirts trying to make a handheld! They'd nearly be acquired by Sega! If Tamagotchi hadn't saved Bandai's life, they would have had to change their name to Sega-Bandai.
After all, they were friends who had known each other for years, and Atlas had collaborated with Bandai many times. If possible, Kobayashi Tetsu still hoped to help his old friend Yamashina Makoto.