Chapter 31: We are the Winners!

In fact, when Steve Jobs mentioned that all the arcade machines on the market had uncontrollable timing issues, Ethan Jones already knew that today's ordering event would be wild.

Because whether a game is fun is the player's concern; whether a game makes money is the concern of the businesses.

Why have claw machines been popular for a hundred years?

Well, that's because the money-making model of this machine is quick and easy! Insert a coin, and the game can end in a maximum of thirty seconds.

That controllable thrill makes the business owners feel satisfied.

In this era, electronic games not only lack precise control of time but even fuzzy control is impossible.

So, when Steve Jobs stated that the maximum playing time for "Snake" could be controlled within 90 seconds, for businesses, shorter services at the same price were like giving away money!

From that moment on, Ethan knew that those who wanted to make money would definitely try their luck with the machines.

And as he looked at the heated sales scene...

Full of joy, he approached the stage and gestured towards Steve Jobs.

The other party understood and turned off the microphone.

"Your presentation was excellent; I was really captivated by it," Ethan handed him an unopened bottle of spring water.

"Thank you," Jobs took it and took a big gulp.

Unfortunately, no matter how refreshing the spring water was, it couldn't extinguish the happiness on his face.

"Do you know, Ethan, before I went on stage, I was actually very nervous. Because when I volunteered, I never thought that so many people would come today. At that time, I thought it would be great if half the seats were filled, even though we scheduled it for ten o'clock, these guys do nighttime entertainment business, so whether they can get up in the morning is a problem."

Jobs smiled and said, "But I don't know why, after opening the microphone, I suddenly calmed down. The sound of the test tones made me feel like this is my world. Although they were impatient with me from the beginning, I still introduced everything at my own pace."

"Oh, that means you're great! You're a born speaker!" Ethan smiled with hands behind his back.

However, his words made Steve Jobs shake his head, saying, "Born? No, not born."

"About today's presentation, I actually wrote a script in advance."

"Really?" Ethan turned his head, a hint of surprise in his eyes. "The explanation just now wasn't Nolan's idea?"

"Of course not!"

Jobs raised his voice and vigorously shook his head, "I'm the main speaker, so I naturally won't let others write words for me! Everything I said just now, I wrote it myself! I don't know if you like it or not, but I like it myself!"

"Because I think the most important thing in promoting a product to customers is to let them understand the selling points of the product. Perhaps for us, the selling point of 'Snake Game' is that it's fun, but for our customers, its advantage is the ability to make money quickly!"

"Do you know, Ethan? When I was selling games with Nolan before, these damn Golan guys' favorite questions were what? They always liked to ask 'Can your game make money?' and 'How long will it take for me to recover the cost?' Damn it! We're selling games, not gambling devices!"

"So, when preparing for today's presentation, I focused on explaining the profit potential they care about the most because they don't care at all whether the game is fun! They just want to know if the game will attract people to play!"

"Haha," Ethan Jones burst into laughter.

Jobs' resentful appearance was really cute.

Of course, Ethan also had to admit that this guy did grasp the pain points that bosses cared about the most. So, he raised his hand and patted Jobs on the shoulder, praising, "Oh, Steve, you will definitely be a very successful product manager in the future."

As soon as the words were spoken, Ethan felt something was wrong. So, he quickly corrected himself, "No, no, no, I misspoke. You are already one now."

"Thank you."

Jobs obviously didn't take Ethan's words seriously, raised the mineral water to gesture, and showed no intention of further inquiry.

Just as they were about to chat again, they found that customers who couldn't get into the office for orders were rushing over.

"Steve, it's too slow over there! Can you help me register?"

"I've been supporting you since 'Pong.' This time, you must leave me a machine!"

"Oh, Steve! You should recognize me, right? John! I'm John! From the pool hall in San Jose! I want two! Give me two!"

"Alright, alright, everyone please wait. I'll register them for you right away."

With business already at their doorstep, he naturally couldn't refuse.

Initially, they had surrounded Steve Jobs, but later on, they didn't spare Ethan Jones, who couldn't wait either.

Well, he did look somewhat like a staff member, after all.

Facing the frenzied demands of these patrons, Ethan naturally did his best to accommodate. By noon, as he sent off the last person, soaked through, he felt his legs go weak, not a drop of energy left.

But when he arrived at Nolan Bushnell's office, the mountain of orders rejuvenated him.

"Three hundred and thirteen units! Three hundred and thirteen units! We sold three hundred and thirteen units just this morning!"

Nolan Bushnell waved his calculator, shouting, "One thousand two hundred per unit! That's a whopping three hundred and seventy thousand! I've never sold so many machines in one go in my entire life!"

"More importantly, these eighty-something merchants are only concentrated in the San Francisco and San Jose areas!"

"To the north, there's Sacramento! To the south, there's Los Angeles and San Diego! We haven't even sold to those places yet!"

"We're hitting the jackpot! We're really hitting the jackpot this time!"

Nolan Bushnell threw his calculator high in the air, not caring if it smashed on the ground.

Simultaneously, he leaped onto his desk, like a green giant, fists clenched, neck thrown back, laughing uproariously, "Hahaha! Even if Magnavox sanctions us, so what?"

"We can still make money!"

"As for the reason..."

At this point, he extended his right hand towards Ethan.

Equally joyous, Ethan stepped onto a chair and onto the table.

With his entrance, Nolan Bushnell laughed and shouted, "Because the idiot Magnavox brought Ethan Jones to our doorstep!"

"Ethan! - Jones! -"

"He! Is our biggest winner today!"

Nolan grabbed Ethan's wrist and lifted it high.

In that moment, feeling the excitement, Ethan also shouted, "We are the winners!!!"

The scene erupted in cheers.

"Wow~~~~"

"Yeah!!!"

"We are the winners! -"

The next second, there was a muffled "bang!"

Nolan's office was showered with a champagne celebration, started by some fool who popped open a bottle.