Chapter 109: Chapter 109: This is Really Exciting! - Part 1
Borrowing the Stanford auditorium was actually quite simple because the support plan of Destiny Game Company was personally approved by President Fred Terman. With this relationship established, it was not a big deal to borrow the auditorium for a new product launch. Even if it involved blowing up the memorial tower dedicated to the former U.S. president, well, that might be a bit too much.
But that wasn't important. Ethan was not a malicious person, and under his application, Stanford willingly offered the school's oldest memorial chapel for his use. In the school's words, the names Memorial Chapel and Destiny Game were quite fitting together.
When Ethan received this proposal, he was a bit stunned. Stanford Memorial Chapel was built by Mrs. Stanford to commemorate her deceased husband. Although it was open to the public, it was rarely used for commercial purposes. At most, it hosted weddings, funerals for internal staff and students, or award and promotion ceremonies for those who made outstanding contributions in certain fields.
And now...
A game company's new product launch in a place like this?
Doesn't that sound a bit funny?
But Evelyn didn't see any issue with it. On the morning of April 11th, while tying Ethan's tie, she said, "I've submitted the game copy to Professor Winton and President Fred. They were pleasantly surprised by the game's AI performance and especially liked the concept of AI in games. So, having the launch event in the memorial chapel was their idea."
"Oh, is that so?" Ethan felt relieved.
At the same time, he looked at himself in the mirror. Dressed in a black suit with a red tie, he thought he looked even more handsome than Tom Cruise, but even so, he felt a bit uncomfortable. "Can I change into a checkered shirt and jeans?"
"I feel a bit awkward wearing formal attire today."
Ethan couldn't understand. Why should a game developer like him wear a suit for a product launch? Tech people are supposed to be carefree! Especially with a red tie around his neck! If he were in New York, wouldn't someone mistake him for a real estate guy?
However, his suggestion was met with a firm rejection. Evelyn held onto his tie and said, "No! You may crack jokes and be casual on other occasions, but today you must be serious!"
"Because besides our invited guests, many outsiders will be here to watch."
Evelyn wasn't lying. After submitting the game, the invitation list for the Pac-Man launch event resembled a mythical list of gods, with one distinguished name after another.
Initially, Ethan just wanted to invite some people around him, like Steven Spielberg, and his dad Arnold Spielberg, who had helped him. He wanted them to witness the birth of Pac-Man and tell them that their help was not in vain. Ethan Jones could indeed produce groundbreaking work. He also intended to invite some media for live coverage, and that would be the end of the launch event.
As for actual sales?
That would depend on the press releases he bought from the media! Once the news was out, curious buyers would come, and he would organize a team to promote the game. When they sold copies with the widely publicized media reports, the efficiency would be much higher than quietly releasing it independently.
And that would be the real negotiation opportunity.
But now?
As Ethan drove his beloved Dino 246 GTS, with Evelyn by his side, to Stanford's memorial chapel, he was just getting ready backstage when the company's administrative staff, Damian Dean, immediately handed him the latest attendee list.
With a quick glance, Ethan felt his head explode.
"Did Steven Spielberg's father bring an extra person today?" Ethan asked.
"Yeah," Damian Dean nodded. "That's his friend from the time he worked at General Electric and the head of the team that invented the first computer at General Electric, Homer Ray Oldfield Jr.. He's here because he's good friends with Mr. Spielberg and also a friend of President Fred Terman. He worked at Stanford Research Institute twenty years ago. Although it's been a long time, when he heard that his good friend had rescued a groundbreaking game, he decided to come and see what his friend had discovered."
"I see... He's a big shot..." Ethan muttered to himself.
"Professor Ralph H. Baer also brought additional people today?" he asked again.
"Yes, Professor Ralph H. Baer decided to bring his friends to witness history after listening to our game presentation. They are the inventors of the original brown box version of the Odyssey, Milo Hanoi Odyssey..." Damian Dean answered quickly.
"I see... They're all big shots..." Ethan mentally marked them.
"And, Steve Wozniak's father is here too?" He continued reading and found a new note.
"Yes! Mr. Woz's father is also here. Not only that, after arriving, he greeted President Fred Terman. I heard that Mr. Woz's father was involved in the research on missile propulsion systems at Stanford Research Institute in the past."
"Okay... You all have impressive dads..." Ethan felt a bit emotional.
Then he scanned further down and found, "William Hewlett? David Packard? They're here too?"
These two were the founders of Hewlett-Packard.
"Yes, Professors Hewlett and Packard are currently in California. The Terman Engineering Center under construction at our school is their donation, and they came to check the engineering audit report from last year because the timing was right."
Damian Dean explained, "Because the timing is quite coincidental, they decided to come and see. At the same time, they also wanted to know which company President Fred Terman chose after so many years."
"..." Ethan really had nothing to say now.
'What kind of people are these?'
'Ah, damn it...'
'What kind of big shots are these? Why are they showing up at a game launch event?'
Ethan was both crying and laughing.
But at the same time, he knew these people probably wanted to see what kind of AI current civilian technology could produce. Although the concept of AI was not unfamiliar to them, Ethan believed that if they wanted to code AI, they would definitely be better than Evelyn and Woz. But alas, the era is a cruel meat grinder.
In the same era, with countless tech-savvy individuals, at the same moment, the same inspiration could emerge on this vast Earth. However, only when inspiration and technology truly collided could it produce the most dazzling fireworks!
And whoever could first combine technology and inspiration would stand at the pinnacle of the wave!
'Oh well... Looks like choosing "Space Invaders" was the right call.'
'When the gears of destiny reach this point, it's my own fault if I don't show off.'
Ethan suppressed his laughter, trying hard to control his inner joy.
However, just when he felt everything was going smoothly, and all he needed to do was introduce the game to the big shots present, as he reached the entrance of the venue, ready to step on stage on time, the external discussions made him a bit dry-mouthed and uneasy.
Even after living two lives, he seemed to have never experienced such things.
He had never spoken publicly before, let alone given a speech in front of a group of big shots.
This unfamiliarity made him nervous.
'How the heck did Steve Jobs have such good psychological endurance?'
Ethan suddenly thought of that hippie.
Because he vividly remembered that the last time this
guy promoted "Snake" in front of hundreds of people.
Not only was he not afraid, but he also interacted with the audience below.
That kind of ease made him a bit...
"Hei! Hei! Hei!"
In a trance, a voice interrupted his thoughts.
Ethan turned to look, and lo and behold, the usually energetic guy now looked decent in a suit.
"Wow~ Ethan~ You look so handsome today~" Jobs, wearing a suit with his long hair down, spoke first.
"Why are you here?" Ethan was quite surprised.
"I just came to take a look!" Jobs replied naturally. "You'll be on stage soon, so I came to see you."
"WTF? You're not here to see me make a fool of myself, right?" Ethan suddenly felt something was off.
"..."
"Oh! Damn! Am I that bad? I just thought you might be nervous, that's why I came!" Jobs rolled his eyes, then casually draped his arm over Ethan's shoulder, saying, "Don't worry, brother. Speaking is actually a very simple art..."
"When you stand on the stage, you are the center of attention, and at that moment, you may be afraid, afraid of saying the wrong things, messing up words, afraid of making a fool of yourself in front of people, because you want to present the perfect version of yourself to everyone, and that's where many people's nervousness comes from."
"To overcome this, it's actually simple. I won't tell you to calm down and speak slowly. I'll tell you it's okay to be nervous because you just need to say short sentences. You don't have to speak like those speeches at large gatherings, saying long paragraphs. Even if the audience is full of elites, you just need to describe what you want to say with the simplest words."
"For example, if you designed the welcome message as 'Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the Magnavox Destiny game's new product launch event,' you can completely change it, say 'Good morning, gentlemen and ladies...' Break one sentence into three, even use short pauses between phrases. Does that make you less nervous?"
'???'
Ethan tried it briefly and then realized, "Hey, this actually makes sense!"
However, when he asked Jobs how he knew about this wording and pausing, Jobs suddenly spread his hands and said, "I made it up..."
"Because I never get nervous in these situations..."
"Oh! Damn! Get lost, you!" Ethan's eyes went dark, almost kicking Jobs.
'What the heck!'
'You deceived me!'
However, after this playful banter with Jobs, Ethan suddenly felt much more relaxed.
And before Jobs rolled away, he actually said some useful things.
"Ethan! The so-called speech is about telling people what they want to hear!"
"If you don't know what to say, showcase the product. When your product is powerful enough, it can cover up all the flaws in your speech!"
"Finally, one more thing..."
"Today is not just the new product launch for your game but also a celebration of their achievements, okay?"
These words made Ethan slightly stunned, then he smiled and said, "Okay."
He admitted that Jobs was right about the last point.
And when the time came at ten in the morning, guided by another employee, Eulise Noble, Ethan walked into the auditorium.
When the 17th-century Spanish-style relief appeared in front of him, the more than forty dark figures below were actually friends, right?
"Ladies and gentlemen, good morning, welcome to the Magnavox Destiny game's new product launch event..."
Ethan raised the microphone, and at the same time, he let go of the anxiety in his heart. Although he had written a script, he now felt that he could go off-script.
Just as Jobs said, speeches, after all, were just a few points.
First, gratitude—
"Thanks to the support of Stanford University, thanks to the help of President Fred Terman. It is because of your kindness that our company can have the excellent R&D environment we have now..."
Stanford's president, who Ethan had never met, nodded slightly after hearing this, showing a slightly appreciative smile on his chubby cheeks. Although Ethan didn't comprehend his meaning, he also understood that the president was not surprised.
"Thanks to Professor Ralph Bell's generosity, thanks to Mr. Arnold Spielberg's selflessness. Without you, our company would not be able to continue making games..."
The two named old men smiled and raised their hands in acknowledgment, then looked around, accepting the friendly smiles from the people around them. Their joyful appearance seemed to come from the heart.
"Thanks to Mr. Chuck Peddle and his MOS 6502 team's persistence and effort. Without the CPU you provided, we couldn't have completed this game..."
Chuck Peddle, the most face-giving person present, stood up directly, clasped his hands together, and shouted at Ethan, "I also want to thank you, Ethan! Thank you for your help! Thank you for using my chip!"
With these words, applause broke out in the audience.
Because everyone present knew exactly what this statement meant.
Although the sales volume of personal microcomputers still did not show explosive growth, after half a year of dissemination, the entire scientific community already knew that the MOS 6502 was the cheapest and most user-friendly chip on the market.
And the person who made the chip truly affordable was Ethan Jones.
Nodding with a smile, accepting the praise, Ethan continued, "Thanks to Professor Vinton Cerf. Under your guidance, my sister has learned many computer skills. Without your guidance, we would have encountered countless difficult problems in game development..."
"Thanks to Steve Wozniak. Without your help, the development of this game would have taken much more time. Also, thanks to his companion Steve Jobs because the APPLE computer they developed is an important tool for our R&D..."
When Ethan mentioned these names, he could clearly feel the people below continually smiling at him, offering appreciative glances to the mentioned professors and gentlemen. Although many people didn't know Ethan personally, it didn't matter, right? Because most of the attendees were brought by friends, and in front of friends, reputation is more important than familiarity.
As for why?
Very simple!
Who sitting here hasn't achieved financial freedom?
Oh, there is...
Steve Jobs.
Damn, I slipped up, no escape.
After the gratitude, it was time to introduce the new product.
Although today's environment was not as noisy as it was at Atari, the people below would not cooperate with him in some interactions unless truly shocked. But that was even less important because Ethan had confidence in his product—
"The product we are launching today is called 'Pac-Man,' inspired by 'Snake.'"
"When 'Snake' was released, we received feedback from some players. Some felt that a lone snake eating on a flat plane looked very lonely."
"So, I improved it by turning the snake into a person and the empty map into a maze."
"And what he has to do is to eat the food in the maze."
"When this little person eats all the food in a maze, it can move on to the next level."
"Then, it will continue to eat."
"If we use the words of the Los Angeles Times, I have retained the greed in human nature in this game."
"But there's nothing I can do. Who made me greedy?"
"I hope all my works can become a hit."
"Oh, by the way, there's someone even more greedy in the audience, and that person is Steven Spielberg. When I called him the other day, he told me that his next movie will definitely be a hit because he will use his work to educate those who look down on him, telling them what a real movie is!"
With that, Ethan paused for a moment.
"Hahaha..."
As he expected, laughter erupted from the audience.
"Splashing..."
At the same time, approving applause followed.
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