Monday, January 27, 1992 - Night
Sakaki was beyond excited. Tonight was the very first ZEPS Players Community Gathering, and he had worked hard to make it happen! The event was taking place at Bakudan Arcade, where Sakaki worked part-time. The arcade's owner, Toki, had noticed a trend—while the arcade machines were still played, the ZEPS rental consoles were overwhelmingly popular. Seeing this, Toki had sold off many of the less-used arcade machines, freeing up space for home console rentals and gaming events.
Sakaki had been handing out flyers to spread the word. Now, as the clock hit 7:00 PM, he was eager to see who would show up.
"Ohh, I can't wait! Our first official community gathering, right, Toki-san?"
Toki chuckled. "Heh, let's just hope they buy something while they're here."
The first guest arrived—a young office worker in his early twenties. He approached the counter, looking around.
"Excuse me, is this the place for the ZEPS Players Gathering?"
Sakaki grinned. "Yep! You're in the right place. I'm Sakaki, by the way."
The man nodded. "Nice to meet you. I'm Rikki Kiwashi, just call me Rikki."
As Rikki sat down, he looked around in amazement. "I didn't even know places existed..."
Toki, overhearing this, grinned. "Well, we might be the first arcade to focus on ZEPS rentals! Hahaha! Anyway, I'm the owner, Toki. Nice to meet you."
Soon, more attendees arrived—Kumogi, Sawada, highschooler Endo and Wataru, and even a middle schooler named Nagi. In total, eleven players gathered, making the event a great success. ʀᴇᴀᴅ ʟᴀᴛᴇsᴛ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀᴛ 𝓷𝓸𝓿𝓮𝓵⚑𝓯𝓲𝓻𝓮⚑𝓷𝓮𝓽
Sawada, a middle-aged man, made an announcement. "Well, I'll be damned. I just got hired by ZAGE! I nailed the interview today, and now I'm waiting for my one-month notice to finish at my current job."
Everyone congratulated him.
Then, Sakaki stood up. "Alright, everyone! Let's start this gathering properly! Have you all played Z-Man yet?"
Sawada shook his head. "Not yet. I was too busy playing SpongeBob: Adventure of Bikini Bottom. And let me tell you, it's fantastic! The game is fun, full of hidden content—I had an absolute blast."
Endo nodded enthusiastically. "Oh yeah! SpongeBob was amazing. Did you find the hidden stuff?"
Sakaki and Sawada exchanged looks. "You mean Zabo-man? Isn't he just a cameo in the game?"
Endo shook his head. "Nope! There's actually a hidden Mario reference in SpongeBob."
Those who had beaten or were still playing the game were shocked. "Mario!? Where!?" Sawada asked in disbelief.
Endo grinned. "In the **Beat 'em Up Dream stage **, there's a hidden message: 'If you will become muscular, input this: Left, Left, Down, Right, O.' If you use this code in the final stage, when King Neptune buffs SpongeBob's body, instead of turning into Muscular SpongeBob, he transforms into GIGA CHAD MARIO from Punch-Out's hidden boss!"
The room exploded in excitement.
"WHAT!?" Wataru yelled. "I must try this!"
Everyone was buzzing with energy, eager to test it out later.
Kumogi then chimed in, "By the way, I beat Gun-Nac already, but man, it was brutally difficult. I wonder... is there any secret hidden in it? I mean, we know you can beat bosses just by dodging for four minutes. What if we do that for every boss?"
Endo smirked. "Something does happen. I already tried it."
Kumogi's eyes widened. "WHAT!? What happens!?"
Endo leaned forward. "A hidden boss appears—Starscream! And trust me, it's hard. But honestly? Embodiment of Pain from Ninja Gaiden was even worse."
Sakaki's jaw dropped. "Wait. You beat Jashin in Ninja Gaiden without taking damage!?"
Endo grinned. "Of course , you need to do that to fight EOP."
Everyone was impressed, and Wataru laughed. "Endo, you're crazy good at games, huh?"
Endo smirked. "Obviously i'm good, haha!."
The discussion continued, and then Kumogi brought up another surprise. "Did you guys know Samus Aran is a girl?"
Most of the group who had finished Metroid nodded, but Rikki, who hadn't played it yet, was stunned. "WHAT!? The MC is a girl!? Is she hot!?"
Kumogi laughed. "Hehehe, obviously!"
Nagi, the middle schooler, suddenly spoke up. "I'm new to ZEPS, but I already beat Z-Man with all the starting Sentai! Has anyone unlocked the extra characters yet!? My mom won't let me play on weekdays—only weekends. It sucks!"
Endo smirked. "Oh, I beat it yesterday. Let me tell you, the five unlockable Sentai are incredible!"
Nagi's eyes lit up. "No way! I can't wait till the weekend to unlock them!"
The discussion continued, with players excitedly sharing secrets, strategies, and Easter eggs. The first-ever ZEPS Players Community Gathering was a massive success!
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