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At the end of November, the smoke of the Thanksgiving shopping season had just cleared.
Inside North American Nintendo Headquarters, located in Redmond, a nearly boiling joy permeated the offices.
Minoru Arakawa gripped the transatlantic phone receiver, the muscles in his face twitching slightly from overexcitement as he tried to suppress the tremor in his voice.
On the other end of the line was his father-in-law, Hiroshi Yamauchi, at Nintendo Headquarters in Kyoto.
"Yes, Father! The NES sales momentum is very strong!"
Minoru Arakawa's voice was filled with irrepressible confidence, as if every word was proclaiming victory.
"Based on current channel feedback and sales data statistics, we are very confident that we will easily break the one million unit sales mark before the end of the year!"
One million units.
This number, in the North American market that had just experienced the Atari crash and was shying away from video games, was simply a mythical milestone.
It announced that Nintendo, or more precisely, North American Nintendo under Minoru Arakawa's leadership, had successfully invited video games back into American living rooms.
He, Minoru Arakawa, was the legitimate chairman of North American Nintendo, with tangible achievements, and not just holding this position by virtue of being President Hiroshi Yamauchi's son-in-law.
There was a brief silence on the other end of the line.
Hiroshi Yamauchi's deep and authoritative voice came through, showing little emotional fluctuation.
"Very good."
"What about Sega? Do they have any notable moves in North America?"
This question itself represented Hiroshi Yamauchi's unceasing vigilance towards this old rival.
Minoru Arakawa was well-prepared for this, his tone relaxed, even carrying a hint of imperceptible disdain.
"Sega?"
"They're still the same. Besides their tetris handheld that's still selling, and the arcade game Hang-On, nothing else is worth mentioning."
"Hmm."
Hiroshi Yamauchi responded, seemingly unsurprised by the answer.
"Then focus on our own business. We'll deal with whatever comes our way. They can't stir up any trouble."
"Just like tetris, no matter how good their new game is, it's still just one game. One game alone can't change the overall situation."
-----------------
Meanwhile, at the Iron Fortress Building in Tokyo, Japan.
The atmosphere at Namco Headquarters was somewhat oppressive.
Masaya Nakamura looked at the sales data reports of his other games on the FC platform.
The numbers themselves weren't bad.
But the blank schedule left by the delayed release of pac-man FC version next to it was like a thorn, deeply embedded in his heart.
Nintendo's strength and dominance, like a dark cloud hanging over the industry, made him feel suffocated, yet helpless.
Hiroshi Yamauchi's strategy of "securing the core home console stronghold," while making great strides in North America, was also ruthlessly squeezing the survival space of competitors in Japan itself.
The market has never been friendly to challengers.
Time quietly slipped into mid-December.
Just when Nintendo, and even many within Sega, thought that the animation promotion for "Project K" would have to wait until next spring's schedule to make a move.
A bombshell announcement, without warning, ignited Japan's youth population.
The fatal fury anime was officially scheduled for the January new anime season.
And, the first animated preview (PV) was released.
This was not some hastily produced concept short film.
The one responsible for the editing was Masami Obari, who was "drafted" by Takuya Nakayama from Tatsunoko Production.
This animator, who would later become famous in the industry for his unique style, was currently at a peak of creative desire.
With the support of the project's ample budget, he was able to use a large amount of already completed high-quality key animation segments.
Through his highly personal editing, a preview filled with a sense of power and speed was born.
Sharp lines cut across the screen.
Extremely fast camera cuts.
Close-ups of explosive character actions.
Exaggerated perspective effects.
Unique body shaping.
The prototype of "Obari's One-Sword Style" was fully revealed in this preview, perfectly interpreting the violent aesthetics of street fighting and the characters' wild and unrestrained charm.
This preview was precisely targeted at the late-night TV animation slots, which had the highest viewing frequency among the youth, as well as the promotional pages of major animation and game information magazines.
In 1985, when production budgets were generally limited, and anime previews often only displayed a few static images and a few lines of introductory text.
This high-spec, high-impact, information-packed preview was like a depth charge dropped into a calm lake.
It instantly captured the attention of all viewers.
"Holy cow! What kind of anime is this? The animation is too strong!"
"That blonde foreigner is so cool! His moves are so fierce!"
"Is it adapted from that manga called fatal fury? It feels even more exciting than the manga!"
"It's a game, adapted from a game!"
"Can games also achieve such action?"
"Must watch in January!"
The discussion heated up like a wildfire, spreading rapidly.
Far exceeding everyone's expectations.
The mysterious veil of "Project K" was suddenly lifted a corner, and its popularity began to spread from the core gaming circle to the broader community of young anime enthusiasts.
Inside the Sega Development Team 3 office.
The balance adjustments for the fatal fury game itself had also entered their final stages.
After the initial fierce debates, clashes, and Takuya Nakayama's subtle guidance.
Team Leader Shimizu and Suzuki Yu's understanding of fighting game design was no longer limited to simply increasing or decreasing numerical values.
They began to consider every detail from the perspective of overall strategic depth, distinct character features, and even the psychological interplay between players.
The performance parameters and move sets of most characters were largely finalized.
Reaching a level where internal stable testing and external demonstrations could be conducted.
The development team members looked at the smoothly running character animations on the screen, all smiling with relief.
Suzuki Yu, in particular, felt that he had gained a lot during this period. The concepts about "player experience," "strategic counterplay," and "easy to learn, difficult to master" that Takuya Nakayama occasionally threw out were like opening a door to a new world, elevating his understanding of game design by several levels.
Takuya Nakayama was satisfied with the development team's growth.
After confidently entrusting the specific finishing work to Team Leader Shimizu and Suzuki Yu, his own work focus quietly shifted.
He closely monitored the market chain reaction triggered by the anime preview.
Collecting information from magazine reader feedback, TV viewership reports, and even discussions among teenagers on the streets.
The first step of the plan, igniting public enthusiasm, was successfully achieved.
This was within his expectations.
But this was just the beginning.