America: The Godfather of Game Development

Chapter 345 When 32-bit technology is transferred to 8-bit machines

Over 100 million units—what does that mean?

If we simply pull up a table, according to last year's statistics, the current population of the United States is approximately 2.44 million.

Assuming all 100 million+ NPs are located in the United States, then on average, one NP is owned by every two and a half people.

If they were all sent to France, each person would get an average of two units!

In terms of influence, NovaPocket is undoubtedly the world's number one game in the entire history of gaming.

It's likely that no one will be able to surpass this achievement in the future.

If it really exists, then the person who breaks the record might be GAMENOVA itself.

It has made history.

But it is indeed getting a bit old.

Hardware technology is advancing rapidly; a lot can happen in just a few years.

"This configuration is actually quite tricky."

Gerald murmured.

He was the one who created the NovaPocket, and he knew the specifications of this precious handheld device better than anyone else.

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Faced with this new model that has been delayed for several years: NP's performance is as cute as a little baby.

"Although their resolution is not as high as ours, their screen size is larger and their color depth is also far superior."

With 4096 colors, it can already dominate the 8-bit market.

In addition, there's that 16-bit coprocessor that was specifically designed to counter Gamenova; its specifications are even better than those of home consoles.

In some ways, this thing is basically a handheld version of the PC-E.

Calling it the world's most powerful 8-bit handheld console is no exaggeration.

"It's no wonder they prepared for so long; they really have a reason for it."

Lin Lixin nodded. This was indeed a pleasant surprise. "It seems that Warner Bros. also has its own interests involved, and it's not just the Tramir family's idea."

Warner has already prepared for both ends.

If Atari wins this gamble, Warner Bros. will regain a respectable platform and might have a chance to use it as a springboard to return to the gaming industry.

Even if they lose the bet, they can still cling to GAMENOVA's coattails, since DC has already invested, and now the two companies are in the same boat.

One-track mind, neither end blocked.

"Hey, they really didn't waste that 25% stake they reserved for themselves."

Atari sold off some parts but not all of them, keeping the other half in their own hands. Isn't that just hoping for a chance to make a comeback someday?

"So what do we do? Is it necessary to interfere with them?"

Vivian looked at the price of $109 listed on the GG website and asked.

This price point is basically positioned between the NP and NS, perfectly filling the niche between high-end and low-end devices.

They focus on the mid-range market.

This clever choice effectively avoids direct competition with GAMENOVA, yet it significantly impacts NP's long-tail performance.

"Atari doesn't have its own game development capabilities, and NP has absolute dominance in this respect."

Lin Lixin rubbed his chin, pondering whether it was necessary to get involved in this matter.

Although NP performance is indeed inferior to it, and its parameters are already outdated.

However, it has a unique advantage that Atari can't match.

There are two prized possessions on the NP.

Tetris and Pokémon.

With these two pillars of stability, no matter how powerful Atari becomes, it will never be able to shake the absolute position of this machine.

Not to mention that Lin Lixin was very clear about the shortcomings of the AtariLyn machine.

"It's too big and too heavy. As for battery life—I haven't tested it yet, but I estimate it should be about the same as the NS."

Powered by 6 AA batteries, it can only run for a few hours.

This level of performance might be acceptable to players on the Nintendo Switch.

After all, the NS is definitely worth spending so much battery to enjoy.

But Atari doesn't have any masterpieces that people can't put down once they pick them up.

In the original timeline, AtariLyn was a machine designed to challenge the Game Boy's dominance.

However, it was too advanced for its time and was quite expensive, selling for a staggering $149.

This time, Atari seems to have been spurred on by the GAMENOVA's outrageous pricing, and surprisingly, they reduced the price to $109.

Even so, AtariLyn will find it difficult to succeed.

They don't even need to do anything; the machine will kill itself.

Ultimately, the answer remains the same.

If you don't have games, what kind of game console are you going to sell?

"While we don't need to waste our energy on it, it does remind me of something."

Lin Lixin pulled out a NovaPocket, "It's about time we got an enhanced refurbished version of it."

More color support, a smoother gaming experience, and longer battery life are all areas where NovaPocket can be improved.

Another point is the compatibility of NAND flash memory chips.

Since NAND technology was not even a possibility when the machine was first designed, Lin Lixin completely abandoned the idea at the time.

This results in the machine having very poor compatibility with NAND flash memory on its cartridges.

If you really want to use it, you need a dedicated conversion chip for bridging.

Although everyone is now making great strides into the 16-bit era, the 8-bit battlefield has not yet been fully explored.

Of course, more importantly, compared to the original GAMENOVA, they now have a terrifying product.

ATHENA.

"Gerard, please compile and analyze all the GenesisNE0 data. It will be of great reference value to us."

Lin Lixin gave Gerald a word of advice, then looked at Vivian and said, "What if we used Athena's technology and reduced the process level to 0.8 or even 1μm to fabricate an 8-bit chip?"

Sorry Zilog, we really need this thing.

Upon hearing this, Vivian's pupils contracted slightly.

Based on her understanding of Lin Lixin, it wasn't difficult for her to guess what he planned to do next.

Compared to traditional older processor models, ATHENA features a remarkably advanced new technology in power management.

Gated clock and multi-voltage domain.

All of this is recorded in Lin Lixin’s monumental work on chip design, “Read This Before You Build: A Preliminary Understanding of Low-Power Chip Design (Volume 1, Section 1),” which he wrote specifically for her.

Simply put, the idea of ​​multi-voltage domain is to divide the original single processor into different small modules.

Dynamically reduce the voltage of modules that are not currently in use based on demand, significantly reducing unnecessary power consumption.

A gated clock adds a switch to the clock, allowing it to be dynamically turned off when not in use.

These two technologies are arguably the most powerful power-saving innovations on ATHENA.

The resulting improvement in energy efficiency is even more significant than simply reducing the instruction set.

According to laboratory data, the 32-bit ATHENA can reduce power consumption to 2 GHz at 80MHz, and even under extreme conditions.

The level is 2W.

In standby mode, the power consumption can be further reduced to only a few tens of milliwatts.

If you put this setup on an 8-bit handheld console—

That really saves on batteries.

"I understand, but there's no need to make the line width so wide."

Vivian nodded. "After the new factory is built, a batch of 0.5μm lithography machines is currently idle. We're basically doing some outsourced manufacturing now."

Higher processing precision results in stronger performance, smaller area, and lower power consumption.

The only problem is that costs will definitely increase to some extent.

However, compared to the price of a handheld console, the price of about one or two dollars per piece is indeed negligible.

Choosing the relatively compact 0.5μm solution is actually more suitable for Lin Lixin's layout.

"Hmm—you make a good point, then it's settled."

"Gerald, once you've finished analyzing the data, you should start preparing. This will also help us accumulate technical expertise for our next generation of new models."

GenesisNE0 was not just something Lin Lixin gave to Sega to recoup losses; it was also a perfect experimental machine.

ATHENA has just been launched from the laboratory to the market, and many details still need further adjustments.

Although Lin Lixin has acquired a great deal of knowledge, without market validation, he is unable to come up with a truly perfect solution.

Sega was the best pioneer in game nova.

With ATHENA support, the new NovaPocket simplifies many coprocessors, achieving compatibility with Genesis NEO.

A similarly concise architecture.

This is the most important point, and it's the path that Gamenova is destined to take in the future.

"There's no need to rush. We can wait until Atari destroys itself before we land, so that people outside won't say we're chasing after them."

After saying that, Lin Lixin realized that he had forgotten the most important thing.

Something that is crucial to a host —

name!

"Let me think... Since it's a successor to NP, let's call it...!"

Lin Lixin reached out and wrote a line of letters on the whiteboard.

[NPC]

NovaPocketCompact (NP Compact Version)

"Hmm—that sounds a bit ominous, but whatever, let's leave it at that."

Smaller and more portable, mini motherboards without independent PPUs and APUs or other coprocessors.

The word "compact" is perhaps the most fitting for it.

Regardless of how Gamenova reacted to Atari's move, EA Chairman Tripp, upon receiving the news, also noticed something unusual about the matter.

"AtariLyn's architecture design... looks familiar."

Its architecture is very mature and very unique.

In an era where every multi-purpose device has its own unique features, Tripp recognized the origins of this thing at a glance.

Amiga dual-purpose PC, a top-of-the-line PC.

It seems that Atari has poached some very capable engineers.

However—

"If Atari could excavate them, so can we."

Engineers with a PC background are exactly the kind of qualified personnel Tripp has been searching for.

This seems like a good opportunity to take down GAMENOVA in one fell swoop.

However, EA is still too weak right now, and it's not enough for them to win on their own.

"regular army----"

A name suddenly flashed through Tripp's mind.

If we're talking about who the true pioneer of the digital entertainment industry is—

The answer must be Bell Telephone Company.

To be precise, it was AT&T that was spun off from Bell Telephone Company.

AT&T.

"Not enough—"

Tripp gritted his teeth, slammed his hand on the table, and stood up abruptly.

If you're going to do it, then go all the way.

He immediately looked at his deputy beside him.

"Contact AT&T, Time Inc., Universal Pictures—and Panasonic."

To win this battle, they must go to any lengths, assemble the world's best partners, and establish a base in California.

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