ZAGE Tower — 12th Floor, "The Creator Room"
The twelfth floor of ZAGE Tower had always been different from almost every other part of the company. Floors ten and eleven already contained some of ZAGE's most advanced engineering workshops, filled with prototype boards, development hardware, testing stations, custom fabrication equipment, and things most ordinary employees would never have any reason to touch. But the twelfth floor was another matter entirely. Officially, it was simply Zanichi Renkonan's specialized hardware laboratory. Unofficially, employees had given it a much more fitting name: The Creator Room.
Getting inside was difficult even for senior executives. Only Zanichi's specialized hardware team and a small number of specifically approved engineers had unrestricted access. Even Zaboru, despite literally owning ZAGE and being the son of the man running the floor, could not simply wander around whenever he wanted. Zanichi had made that rule very clear years ago. Experimental hardware, confidential prototypes, unreleased components, manufacturing tests, and future ZAGE technology were everywhere. If Zaboru wanted inside, he asked first.
That restriction had become especially irritating during ZEPS 4 development.
The console itself had technically been usable for a long time. Development teams already possessed specialized ZEPS 4 Dev Mode units, machines designed specifically so the game teams could build, debug, profile, and optimize their projects without needing access to the final consumer hardware. Unreal Engine 4 had already been adapted heavily around the new platform, developer tools had matured, performance targets had stabilized, and most of ZAGE's planned launch-window projects were now somewhere around ninety-seven to one hundred percent complete.
Yet the final retail machine remained almost completely hidden.
Zanichi had refused to show it.
Every time Zaboru asked, his father gave practically the same answer: Not yet.
Every time Zaboru tried to casually visit the twelfth floor while pretending he had another reason, someone from Zanichi's team stopped him.
One time Zaboru had even attempted, "Dad, I literally own the building."
The engineer had nervously replied, "Zanichi-san said no."
And somehow that had been enough.
Zaboru had walked away.
Today, however, everything was different.
The final ZEPS 4 development was complete.
Completely.
No more "almost." No more eighty percent. No more final motherboard revision, cooling adjustment, firmware optimization, drive testing, controller latency tuning, or last-minute manufacturing concern. The hardware design, consumer shell, system firmware, launch interface, controllers, backward compatibility layers, media systems, wireless functionality, storage architecture, and production specification had all finally reached the state Zanichi considered finished.
Which was why Zaboru had arrived on the twelfth floor with the expression of a child who had been told Christmas morning had been delayed for three years and was finally allowed to open the box.
"So, Dad…" Zaboru grinned as he followed Zanichi deeper into the laboratory. "I can finally see it now?"
Zanichi stopped walking, slowly looked toward his son, and sighed with the exhaustion of a man who had heard the same question approximately ten thousand times. He reached into his pocket, pulled out a cigar, lit it, and took a slow inhale. Smoking inside ZAGE buildings was normally restricted, but the Creator Room had its own industrial ventilation system, specialized air filtration, and, more importantly, Zanichi. Nobody was stupid enough to argue.
"Okay, okay," Zanichi muttered. "I'm already damn tired of your whining. 'Dad, can I see it?' 'Dad, is it finished?' 'Dad, just five minutes.' 'Dad, I promise I won't touch anything.' You sound like Zenshin asking for another book."
Zaboru laughed again and slapped his father lightly on the shoulder. "Come on, Dad! Don't be like that. There are only two things in this world I can consider absolute certainty."
Zanichi raised an eyebrow. "Only two?"
"Mom's cooking is always delicious…" Zaboru lifted one finger, then another. "…and anything you make involving technology or coffee is probably going to be insane."
Zanichi stared at him for a moment before the corner of his mouth lifted slightly. "Well… to be fair, I did try damn hard on this one."
Zaboru's grin immediately widened.
"That's what I wanted to hear."
"Keep your expectations reasonable."
"No."
"Of course."
Zanichi exhaled smoke and continued walking. Zaboru followed until they reached a large testing area separated from the rest of the workshop by thick glass partitions. Several engineers were present nearby, but they deliberately gave father and son space. On a wide black table in the center of the room sat something covered by a dark cloth.
Zaboru stopped.
His heart genuinely accelerated.
He had seen the design countless times. Blueprints. CAD renders. industrial mock-ups. Internal structural diagrams. Early shells. Development machines. He already knew exactly what ZEPS 4 was supposed to look like.
But this was different.
This was the machine.
Zanichi noticed his expression and chuckled quietly. "You're acting like you didn't design half the concept yourself."
"Blueprints aren't the same thing, Dad."
"Fair."
Zanichi grabbed the cloth and pulled it away.
Zaboru went completely silent.
"Whoa…"
That was all he managed for several seconds.
The final ZEPS 4 sat horizontally on the table with the heavy, confident silhouette Zaboru had wanted from the beginning. Its broad rectangular body immediately reminded him of the original fat PlayStation 2 from his previous life: substantial, practical, powerful-looking, and unmistakably a dedicated game machine rather than some thin consumer DVD player. But ZEPS 4 was slightly larger and considerably more refined.
The main body was deep matte black, broken by silvery metallic side sections and trim that caught the laboratory lighting with a premium sheen reminiscent of the expensive technological confidence he remembered from the PlayStation 3 era. The metallic sections did not dominate the design; they framed it, giving the otherwise dark machine just enough elegance to feel futuristic.
Across the top sat cartridge slots, integrated cleanly into the shell for ZEPS 1 and ZEPS 2 games. They did not look like awkward adapters glued onto a modern console. They belonged there. On the front, the ZAGE Blue-Ray Disc drive was set toward the right side of the landscape-oriented body, while the opposite section housed the USB ports and Memory Card EX connections. Thin horizontal ventilation lines reinforced the almost industrial PS2-like appearance.
And running along the lower edge was a narrow blue lighting strip.
Currently dark.
Zaboru slowly stepped closer.
"Look at that…"
He ran his eyes across the machine without touching it.
The finished object felt different from the render. More solid. More expensive. More real.
"Damn…"
Zanichi smiled faintly. "Satisfied?"
Zaboru looked toward him like the question itself was insulting. "Satisfied? Dad, this is beautiful."
Zanichi chuckled and reached toward another part of the table. "Here."
He tossed something toward him.
Zaboru caught it instinctively.
The standard controller.
His expression immediately changed again.
"Oh, shit."
It was familiar.
Very familiar.
The silhouette clearly carried the spirit of the ZEPS 3 controller, but the proportions had been refined. The grips were slightly larger and more comfortable, the analog sticks felt tighter beneath his thumbs, the triggers had more travel, and the overall black-and-silver palette matched the console perfectly. In Zaboru's hands, however, the comparison that immediately entered his mind was unavoidable.
This feels like a PS3 controller grew up properly.
It was slightly larger than the DualShock-style design he remembered, enough to sit more naturally inside adult hands without losing the familiar symmetrical analog-stick layout. The central Z button rested between the controls, surrounded by a subtle ring.
Zaboru grinned.
"So this is the final wireless model."
"Bluetooth," Zanichi replied. "Latency is low enough that if someone complains, they're probably blaming the controller because they suck."
Zaboru Grinned then He pressed the Z.
Beep.
The console awakened.
The blue LED line beneath the system suddenly illuminated, sweeping gently across the lower edge while smaller blue accents appeared near the drive and side of the machine. Against the black body and silver metallic trim, the light looked almost absurdly good.
Zaboru's eyes widened.
"Ohhhh…"
Then the television went black.
Silence.
A single note sounded.
Then another.
A strange sequence of broken, echoing piano tones emerged while abstract shapes appeared in darkness, gradually moving inward as though the system were descending through some impossible digital space. The sound was eerie, almost mysterious, but also strangely majestic. The shapes accelerated toward the center.
Then—
ZAGE.
The silver ZAGE logo appeared.
Zaboru stared at the screen with a stupidly enormous grin.
He knew exactly where the inspiration came from.
The PlayStation 2 startup.
To Zaboru, very few console boot sequences had ever created the same feeling. That sound had somehow made turning on a game machine feel mysterious. Powerful. Almost sacred. Even after decades, simply remembering it could awaken nostalgia immediately.
So naturally, when ZEPS 4 needed its own startup identity, Zaboru had insisted on pursuing that same emotional direction.
Zanichi took another inhale from his cigar and watched the screen. "I still think this intro is weird."
Zaboru stared at him in disbelief. "Weird?"
"Yeah."
"This is art."
"It sounds like someone dropped a piano into a cave."
"That's why it's good!"
Zanichi looked toward him.
Zaboru pointed emphatically at the screen. "Trust me, Dad. Years from now people will hear the first three notes and suddenly remember sitting in front of their television at two in the morning."
Zanichi frowned. "You sound so sure..?" Zaboru shrugs.
The startup sequence faded smoothly into the login screen. Zaboru immediately became attentive again. Several options appeared: standard ZAGE ID login, existing ZAGE Forum account integration, or identity synchronization through supported AKAI Black Berry devices. A new user could also create a profile directly from the console.
Zaboru selected his ZAGE Forum account.
His profile appeared almost immediately.
Then the main interface loaded.
Zaboru's grin returned.
"Now this…"
The layout was clearly descended from several concepts he remembered from later systems in his previous life, but it had become something distinctly ZEPS. The primary navigation moved horizontally across broad categories while contextual options descended vertically beneath each selection. Games, ZAGE Network, friends, messages, media, Z-Store, internet, system settings, and profile functions all existed within one smooth interface rather than being separated into clumsy independent menus.
There was some of the elegant simplicity Zaboru remembered from the PS3's XMB, but he had deliberately softened its more rigid aspects with ideas resembling the accessibility of Xbox interfaces. Important functions were easier to reach, friend activity was more visible, and players were never more than a few movements away from games, communication, media, or online features.
Transitions were quick.
No ugly loading screen appeared every time he changed categories.
The interface felt like one continuous environment.
Zanichi watched Zaboru navigate for several moments before smiling around his cigar. "To be honest, Boss… I'm impressed."
Zaboru glanced toward him. "Hm?"
"The interface."
Zanichi gestured toward the television. "When you first explained all of this, I thought you were trying to cram too much into one machine. Games, online accounts, messaging, media, store, browser, videos, profiles… normally that becomes a mess. Those old multimedia machines always end up looking like DVD menus with extra buttons."
Zaboru nodded.
"But this doesn't."
Zanichi's expression became more thoughtful. "It feels like something else. Not just a game console menu. Not a DVD player. Not a computer desktop either. It feels like its own category of technology."
Zaboru smiled proudly.
"That was the idea."
Zanichi nodded. "You really thought this part through."
"Hehehe."
"I had fun building it too, surprisingly. Still think your startup is weird."
"PS—" Zaboru stopped himself immediately.
Zanichi raised an eyebrow.
Zaboru coughed. "Perfectly styled startup."
"…Right."
Zaboru quickly returned his attention toward the menus before he accidentally explained the PlayStation 2 to a man born in the wrong universe.
Zanichi leaned against the workbench. "And this is only the normal interface. ZAGE Network is already integrated at system level. BBM account contacts can be connected where permitted, ZAGE Forum can be accessed directly, YouTube uploads are already supported, and the media services are functioning. YaDo Anime Channel works, Nickelodion works, Z-Pad synchronization works, music playback works, movies work."
Zaboru grinned. "Overkill?"
"Completely."
"Good."
"I knew you'd say that."
Zanichi pointed toward the console. "And backward compatibility passed final validation. ZEPS 1 cartridges. ZEPS 2 cartridges. ZEPS 3 through the compatibility layer. With the right adapters, ZGB and ZGBA too."
Zaboru slowly nodded, looking genuinely satisfied. "That part matters a lot."
"I know."
"I don't want someone buying ZEPS 4 and feeling like everything they already own suddenly became useless."
"That's why I spent too many nights making sure your stupid compatibility request actually worked."
Zaboru smiled. "I love you too, Dad."
Zanichi snorted.
Then he reached toward another section of the table and picked up the second controller.
Unlike the standard gamepad, this one had an elongated rectangular body, a wrist strap, a directional pad, several face buttons, and a clean black-and-silver design matching the rest of the ZEPS 4 ecosystem. It was immediately recognizable to Zaboru as the result of his Wii Remote-inspired concept, though naturally much of the technology inside had been redesigned around ZAGE hardware.
Zanichi lightly swung it once. "And then there's this ridiculous thing."
Zaboru grinned. "The motion controller."
"Gyroscope. Accelerometer. Pointer sensor. Wireless connection. Wrist strap because apparently people cannot be trusted not to throw expensive electronics through their televisions."
Zaboru burst out laughing. "Trust me. That strap is extremely important."
Zanichi stared at him.
"You sound suspiciously certain."
"Human nature, Dad."
Zanichi chuckled and placed the motion controller back down. "Between this and the normal controller, developers can choose whatever actually fits their game. We finalized the input APIs too, so Unreal Engine 4 recognizes both properly."
Zaboru looked at the entire setup again.
The machine.
The two controller styles.
The blue lighting.
The cartridge slots.
The Blue-Ray drive.
The enormous backward-compatible library.
The integrated online services.
Movies.
Music.
YouTube.
ZAGE Forum.
BBM connectivity.
Z-Pod synchronization.
YaDo.
Nickelodion.
Digital games.
Physical games.
ZEPS 1.
ZEPS 2.
ZEPS 3.
ZGBA.
Even ZGB with the proper adapter.
The machine really did feel ridiculous.
In the best possible way.
Zaboru crossed his arms and smiled broadly. "This does little bit of everything."
Zanichi looked toward him. "That slogan still sounds arrogant."
Zanichi shook his head before checking something on a nearby development terminal. Zaboru, meanwhile, continued exploring the interface. He opened the friends section and saw presence information. Messages. Profile avatars. Then Z-Store. Then YouTube. Then the Media Player. Everything transitioned smoothly, and every few seconds his grin somehow became wider.
This was the kind of machine Zaboru had dreamed about in his previous life when game consoles were gradually transforming from simple boxes that accepted discs into complete entertainment ecosystems.
Except this was 2002.
That fact still occasionally felt insane.
Zaboru finally looked toward his father again. "Anyway, Dad… do you already have some of our games installed?"
Zanichi chuckled. "Not the launch games yet. Those builds are still being handled separately."
Zaboru looked mildly disappointed.
"But there is one thing."
His expression immediately brightened.
Zanichi navigated toward the game category and selected a small colorful icon.
"The default game you made."
Zaboru stared at the title.
Then grinned.
"Ah."
ASTRO PLAYROOM.
Zanichi looked toward him. "That one."
Zaboru tightened his grip around the controller, his excitement returning instantly.
"Well…"
He dropped comfortably into the nearby testing chair and looked at the screen with a huge smile.
"Let's play that, shall we?"
To be continued.
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