America: My Time

Chapter 16 Game
Chapter Sixteen Games
The explosive growth of Neon Phoenix Comics has drawn the family's attention. While surprised by Phoenix Comics' success, it also puts them on edge. One software company has already attracted Wall Street's attention, and although the game company hasn't opened yet, based on the family's understanding, it shouldn't have major problems and is a promising business. Now, even Neon Comics, which everyone else underestimated, is showing amazing potential, with even European and American distributors making moves. At this point, the family must be vigilant to prevent anyone from sabotaging them.

"Now it seems no one is worried that John can't repay the ten million dollars in support from the family foundation, right? From now on, everyone forget about everything in Japan and don't let this news spread. What John needs now is not fame, but time. He needs time to mature, and we also need time to ensure that no one dares to break the rules and do anything underhanded!"

At the patriarch's command, no one dared disobey. Those who didn't want to be abandoned by the family had to obey his orders. It wasn't just his family who were watching John's growth across the United States; other conglomerates and industry leaders were also secretly observing. They were particularly interested in Dream World Software Company, believing that this high-tech industry held more potential than traditional industries.

The longer I delay, the more time I can accumulate. Although the comic book market is insignificant in the eyes of Wall Street bigwigs, the longer Wall Street finds out, the more time I can spend making plans!

Each success brings not only joy, but also distress and pressure! Going to university is a must; at Stanford, I can learn more knowledge and accumulate more experience.

However, success has come too quickly. The success of one company after another has forced the boss to work hard, since he was the one who planned all the companies under his name.

The success of Neon Phoenix Comics forced John to focus on accelerating animation production, and with toys about to be released, preparations needed to be made. His game, which he had been very focused on, was also progressing well; final adjustments were underway. In a capitalist society, money is power—money means hiring enough programmers to speed up game development!

Building its own production facilities would be too costly for game companies, and the US is not a suitable country for manufacturing, especially for producing large quantities of game consoles. Employees and guilds wouldn't care about the company's development; they'd only care about their own profits. Establishing factories would only hinder the growth of the game industry. The only solution is OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer), which requires companies to choose their partners.

All sorts of problems piled up, forcing John, who had been studying at Stanford, to reconsider his own position.

At this time, John's parents also felt pressured and confused, not knowing how to arrange John's future. They had thought that John would succeed, but they did not expect that success would come so quickly and so fiercely.

Local record labels and novels from publishing houses all sold very well, software companies were also very popular, and there was an explosion of Japanese comics. The success of the comics company alone was enough to recoup all previous investments. This investment was the industry they were most worried about and least fond of.

The manga's current success far surpasses that of the local Legendary Entertainment, with weekly sales reaching 600 million copies—an astonishing figure. All of this was achieved in just one month, from nothing to something, directly making it the leader in the Japanese manga industry and sweeping the entire manga market.

Who could mentor such a prodigy? This was the dilemma facing John's parents. Continuing his education would inevitably mean relinquishing control of their businesses, and it was uncertain whether these companies could continue their rapid growth under someone else's management. All the creative ideas originated from John, and more importantly, as owners, they couldn't be completely ignorant of their companies' potential; these companies possessed limitless possibilities, and no one was willing to give them up.

“Darling, we’re in big trouble now. The family’s stance is simple: everything is up to us, John must decide for himself, the family won’t interfere. This is a miracle John created himself, and no one in the family can interfere—that’s the rule. But the good news is the family will handle external pressure and won’t let anyone break the rules!” Anna sighed softly, “We can’t make that decision. Our child is grown up and has his own ideas. If it were just a small success, we could let him continue his studies and let professional managers handle the company’s issues. But John’s success is too astonishing; he needs to decide his future path, and only he can control the company’s direction!”

"Alright, let John decide for himself. I've been under immense pressure lately because of these things. The companies he controls all have amazing potential, and only he can perfectly integrate them. It's difficult for others to integrate them, and they'll only end up splitting them up. To connect all the companies, you need a clear understanding of the overall development, and right now only John understands everything. The success of Neon Phoenix Comics alone proves it. Sweeping the entire Japanese comic book market in a month is amazing. Luckily, this news didn't reach the United States, otherwise John wouldn't be so relaxed now, and many people would be eyeing him."

Smith was overthinking it. Although Phoenix Comics was developing remarkably, it wouldn't attract much attention right now, and even if it were exposed, it wouldn't cause much trouble. In the eyes of Wall Street bigwigs, comics and entertainment were insignificant little things, not worth paying attention to, unless Phoenix Comics could generate amazing profits. At present, comics couldn't generate such profits, and Phoenix Comics hadn't even started advertising sales yet. The situation would be very different in six months!

What Wall Street bigwigs value is Dreamworld Software Company, owned by John. After a series of analyses by Wall Street analysts, almost all Wall Street elites believe that Dreamworld will become the next Apple, and its profits will exceed those of Apple today. Pursuing such high-tech companies is the focus of Wall Street elites; comics and entertainment are not worth mentioning!
Soon, John appeared before his father and mother. He now possessed the air of a successful man, no longer the naive youth he once was. Although only a few months had passed, he had gradually adapted to the changes within himself and to the times.

"John, Neon Phoenix Comics has been a huge success, and your entertainment group is taking shape. Although the family's assistance has played a part, it is inseparable from your own efforts. However, from now on, you need to take control of everything yourself. The family will no longer interfere with your development. Now is the time for you to decide whether you want to continue on the path of entertainment, whether you will give up and devote yourself to your studies, or continue to persevere!"

John wasn't surprised by his father's words. Phoenix Comics' success was within his expectations, and the family's decision was understandable; they couldn't possibly invest all their resources in him. He had already received a great deal of support when he was starting out, so it was only right that he take on all the responsibility now. Giving up was impossible; he had invested so much effort to achieve what he had, how could he possibly give it up?

John smiled calmly and said, "Father, giving up is impossible. I've put in so much effort, and we've just opened the door to development. How could I just let go like that? As for corporatization, it's not the right time yet. Sharing resources would be difficult, since I don't have a true media giant as the main entity! But I can wait. I believe it won't be long before I have that opportunity. In my eyes, the gaming world is the main focus. We should use this time to finalize the work. I've been waiting for their good news!"

Smith paid no attention to the media giants John mentioned; in his view, it was just John's fantasy! Although John was a genius, none of the media giants were within his reach. Funding was the biggest problem, not to mention the disadvantage of age. Which media giant would be willing to be acquired by an eighteen-year-old?

The media industry is different from other industries. It's not something you can do just because you have the ability. Even if John has the funds, it's not easy to acquire a media giant. It's very difficult to get the approval of the management!

Smith has always handled the game company's affairs and is the most knowledgeable about the gaming world. He nodded and said, "You're right. The final testing has passed, and mass production is ready. Arcade, home console, and handheld consoles are all finalized; only production is needed. The few games are also fine. However, a few games alone won't expand console sales. You need more games, but production is a major problem. Manufacturing them yourself is almost impossible; the investment is too large, and any unexpected events could result in enormous losses. Your consoles aren't compatible with other manufacturers' games. Furthermore, once your games are released, you'll inevitably face pressure from Atari, and even Warner Bros. You need to prepare in advance to avoid being caught off guard!"

(End of this chapter)