Tokyo Video Game Tycoon.

He came home early today, and before entering the house, he glanced at the package box and found a package for his son inside.

Suspicious, he opened the package and found it contained a Famicom game with a note attached that read "Disclosure is strictly prohibited."

Then he realized that it was actually a Metarod game that Yusei Electronic Entertainment was about to release.

As an employee of Surui Electronics, and specifically in the video game division, he naturally knew about the strongest game company at the moment, as well as all the information about that company.

He was very curious as to why a game that hadn't even been released yet would be given to his child.

He had heard rumors about game cartridges being leaked, with some shops secretly selling small quantities of video games ahead of time at high prices.

However, once discovered by Youxing Electronic Entertainment, they will face lawyer's letters and contract termination. Nowadays, anyone who dares to risk leaking a game has to pay money far exceeding the game's value.

He was quite certain that his children didn't have enough money to do such a thing.

When he carefully checked the package's mailing address, he was astonished to find that it had been mailed directly from the headquarters of Youxing Electronic Entertainment.

He was quite puzzled as to why they were giving his child the latest game.

I haven't had a proper conversation with my child for a long time, and I never realized that my child would have some connection with Youxing Electronic Entertainment.

Out of curiosity, he removed the seal that prohibited disclosure and then inserted the game into the console to try playing it.

After he started playing, he couldn't help but marvel at how GameStar Entertainment had created a new genre of games.

This falls under the broad category of jumping adventure games, but it's not entirely comprised of jumping adventure games.

Just as he was having a great time, his son came home and rushed over to turn off the TV.

Murakami Kazuo's father was still somewhat dissatisfied.

"Dad, you can't play this game yet."

Murakami Kazuo quickly pulled the Metroid cartridge out of the Famicom, seemingly still somewhat shaken.

Chapter 118 Evaluation of Metrold

Murakami Kaito was clearly not particularly happy about his son Murakami Kazuo's behavior.

Even when I'm playing a game, my child stops me.

But he still patiently asked, "Why can't I play?"

"This... is still in the confidential stage. Before the official release, I must abide by the contract and absolutely cannot let anyone other than me play this game."

"Contract? What contract?"

Murakami Kaito suddenly discovers that his child seems to be doing something he never expected.

"Don't worry about that. Anyway, if I let you play this game now, I'll be facing a lawsuit."

After saying that, Murakami Kazuo quickly returned to his bedroom with the Metrorod, making sure to lock the door from the inside, as if he were guarding against his father.

"You brat, can't you stop saying half of what you mean?"

It's a disgrace to my child to act this way. I think I should find some time to properly educate him.

But then again, what exactly did my child sign with Youxing Electronic Entertainment? Why did he get the right to play the game ahead of time?

This is really something to worry about.

Murakami Kazuo, who had locked himself in his bedroom, took the Metroid cartridge and soon happily went to the TV in his bedroom to try out the latest game.

He aims to complete the game within three days and then write a compelling review.

People online have already started urging him to hurry up.

With excitement, he officially clicked to enter the game screen of Metrorod.

The opening scene introduces the game's world view: in the year 20X5 of the Universal Calendar, the Galactic Federation's scientific research vessel SR388 discovered a mysterious life form called Metrod.

After capturing it, scientists discovered that it was a completely new creature with very powerful energy. The detection methods on the scientific research ship were not enough to fully detect the potential of the Midrod, so the scientific team decided to take the Midrod back to the Galactic Federation headquarters for further detailed research.

Then, during this process, they were attacked by space pirates and Midrod was kidnapped.

When news of the abduction of Metrod reached the Galactic Federation, an ancient race, the Birdmen, suddenly appeared and warned the Galactic Federation that Metrod was a very powerful being and that if it were used by evil people, it could pose a threat to the entire universe.

The birdmen's warning made the Galactic Federation immediately realize the seriousness of the situation, and they began searching for people who could reach the space pirates' lair.

However, many of the people previously dispatched were all killed without exception. The space pirates were very powerful, and even the Galactic Federation could not easily eliminate them.

With space pirates poised to threaten the universe through Midrod, the Galactic Federation was forced to turn to a legendary figure.

A cosmic bounty hunter named Samus is known as the strongest bounty hunter.

At the same time, the birdmen also recognized this bounty hunter, believing that perhaps only this bounty hunter could truly complete this difficult task.

Kazuo Uemura had already watched the beginning many times before.

He had been following the Metrorod for some time and went to try it out as soon as the demo started.

However, a mere half-hour playtime is insufficient to fully experience the entire game; ultimately, one must play the complete game to truly appreciate it.

Having already become familiar with the gameplay, he moved extremely fast for the first half hour. He also remembered that some maps contained hidden elements that could help his character grow.

After a night, Murakami Kazuo reluctantly got out of bed, his eyes still a little red, clearly having stayed up a little late.

He had to admit that the games from Yuxing Electronic Entertainment were always so addictive, as if they possessed some kind of magic.

Before going to school, he turned on his computer, went to his webpage, and posted a preview message.

"Friends, I've finally got my hands on the full version of Metroid! Stay tuned for my review after playing it! I've played for over ten hours, and all I can say is that this game is definitely worth playing! I'll give it four stars for now!"

After sending the message, Murakami Kazuo got dressed, left his bedroom, quickly washed up, grabbed his prepared lunchbox, and went to school.

Meanwhile, Murakami Kaito looked thoughtfully at the doorway.

In the afternoon, after school, Murakami Kazuo ran home without stopping. His father didn't come home as early as yesterday, but he was already used to it. He first ran to the kitchen, opened the refrigerator, grabbed a can of soda, and then hummed a song as he ran into his bedroom.

Upon entering the bedroom, he was slightly puzzled, as the layout of the bedroom seemed to have changed somewhat.

Hmm, maybe I remembered it wrong.

Murakami Kazuo didn't think too much about it, picked up the controller and entered the world of Metroid once again.

He explored the area much faster today than he did yesterday.

He spent yesterday collecting and exploring everywhere.

This might be a form of obsessive-compulsive disorder; he feels unsatisfied until he has thoroughly explored everything in a certain area.

He didn't need to spend as much time exploring today, since he needed to clear the game quickly and complete his review task. He also checked the replies on his homepage earlier and saw that there were already hundreds of messages urging him to update the review news soon, so he sped up his pace today.

If you really speed up the first game of Metroid, a skilled player can finish it in just two or three hours; even Kazuo Murakami is playing it rather slowly.

He finally completed his first playthrough around 8 p.m.

He was still somewhat unsatisfied at this point.

Metrorod was a completely new type of game; he remembered that the cartridge box said: Metroidvania game.

Although I don't quite understand why it's called that, it's a category defined by Yuxing Electronic Entertainment after all, and they have the right to name the types they create.

I really want to play it again.

No, I shouldn't play anymore; I need to update today's review article.

Despite his reluctance, Kazuo Murakami put down the controller, went to his computer, and opened the editing page for his website.

Hmm... what title should I use?

Kazuo Murakami pondered for a moment, seriously considering how to come up with a catchy title.

Before long, his eyes lit up, and he immediately started typing on the keyboard. Soon, a series of titles appeared on the computer screen.

'Another game innovation from Yuxing Electronic Entertainment: Metroid, a Metroid-like game'

Well, it's pretty standard. I can't think of a better title yet, so I'll leave it at that.

Chapter 119: The Hidden Ending?

Kazuo Murakami had already written many articles about video game reviews, so he was quite adept at it. He quickly posted some screenshots of the games he had taken, along with carefully crafted articles, on his homepage.

He then casually browsed the forum section on his homepage, where a discussion area for Metroid had been established, and many people were already discussing Metroid's worldview.

So far, most players have only played the first half hour of the demo game, so they certainly can't know the whole story.

But Kazuo Murakami knows this now.

Watching the heated discussion among the people, with almost no one able to guess the detailed structure of the entire worldview, he felt a surge of pride.

I'm the first person in the world, besides Yusei Electronic Entertainment, to know the story of Metrorod. Looks like I'm definitely more impressive after all.

Just then, a private message popped up in his chat box. It was from an old friend he knew: Nintendo is the damn world ruler.

Nintendo is the damn world ruler: "Have you played Metroid yet? How's it going?"

Super Game Elite: "Of course I played it. I received the game yesterday, and I just finished it and I'm already publishing a review. By the way, why haven't you wanted to publish a review? It would be really great if we published one together."

Nintendo is the damn world ruler: "Me? I'm just a player, and I'll always be a player. I don't want to mix anything else in; I just want to play."

Super Gaming Elite: "You really are a person who sticks to your principles. People like you are truly worthy of respect."

Nintendo is the damn world ruler: "People always need to have some principles, right? I read your review article, and I think it's pretty good. Would you rate it four stars?"

Super Gaming Elite: "Yeah, as expected, it's another expansion into new game genres, but it feels like something's missing. Maybe, like you said before, the Famicom's capabilities have reached their limit, and we need a better console."

Nintendo is the damn world ruler: "Surprise? What kind of surprise do you want?"

Super Game Elite: "I can't really explain it. It's quite fun to play, but the story doesn't feel very original. I think the story of this game should also be given more attention."

Nintendo is the damn world ruler: "Hmm, that makes sense, but by the way, did you see the ending animation?"

Super Game Elite: "Yeah, I even read through the credits. What's wrong?"

Nintendo is the damn world ruler: "Weren't you surprised by the ending?"

Super Gaming Elite: "Huh?"

Kazuo Murakami completely failed to understand what the other person meant, so what's so surprising about the ending?

He began to recall, and felt that the ending was not a big deal. The final animation showed a character in armor standing on a plain, with a shooting star streaking across the distance and a gentle breeze blowing in the sky.

It does have a certain charm, but it's actually quite ordinary.