Chapter 1: Reincarnated

'Oh my god! I've been reincarnated into a parallel world where there's no Nintendo or other video game powerhouses from the 80s? And even though it's already 1991, video games haven't bounced back from Atari's failure!' Zaboru's thoughts raced as he sat on his bed, his heart pounding with excitement.

'I can recreate the games I played as a kid in my previous life! And with this Deep Dive ability, I can recall events and details from my old life in vivid detail!' Suddenly, another thought struck him like lightning.

'Wait! If it's 1991, that means my parents are still alive!'

Without hesitation, Zaboru jumped off his bed and ran out of his room, shouting, "Mom! Dad!"

His mother's voice called back, "What's wrong, dear?"

Then his father chimed in, "What happened, Zaboru?"

Zaboru froze at the sight of his parents. His eyes widened as he took in their familiar faces—his mother, Keiko Ren, and his father, Zanichi Ren, alive and well, and not yet aged like in his previous life. Overwhelmed with emotion, he rushed forward and hugged his mom tightly, tears streaming down his face.

He couldn't hold back his emotions. In his previous life, his parents had passed away from old age, leaving him with only memories of their love. But now, he could feel their warmth again, and it filled him with joy.

Keiko, confused but concerned, gently caressed her son's head. "What's wrong, dear? Did you have a nightmare?"

Realizing he was crying like a child, Zaboru's face flushed with embarrassment. He coughed awkwardly and stammered, "Y-yes, Mom. I'm sorry."

His father laughed heartily. "Haha! You just woke up and you're already crying!"

Blushing even more, Zaboru retorted, "I'm sorry, okay, Dad?"

After kissing his mom on the cheek, Zaboru began thinking about his family in this parallel world. Their situation seemed similar to his previous life, but with one key difference: his parents were slightly wealthier here. His father, Zanichi, worked as the head engineer at a tech company called Sonay. It seemed to be this world's version of Sony, focusing on cameras, televisions, radios, and other electronics.

Grinning to himself, Zaboru quickly returned to his room. 'If Sonay is this world's Sony, then maybe I can partner with them someday. But first, I need to focus on creating my own console.'

Zaboru surveyed the scattered electronics in his room, all remnants of this world's Zaboru's experiments. With his newfound fusion of memories and skills, his abilities soared to new heights. He dove into the components, tinkering and testing. After a few attempts, he managed to get a prototype working—it could display simple images on a television.

'This is it! With some tweaks and enhancements, I can create an NES-style 8-bit console! The same console that saved the video game industry in my old world!'

Excited, he realized he needed more components to complete his prototype. Time flew by as he worked, and before he knew it, four hours had passed.

As Zaboru stepped out of his room, ready to head to the electronics store, his parents intercepted him.

"Zaboru, where are you going, son?" his father asked.

His mother added, "You've been locked in your room for hours. Is everything okay, honey?"

Startled, Zaboru glanced at the clock. 'Four hours?! I didn't even notice!'

Laughing nervously, he replied, "Umm, Mom, Dad, I'm fine. I was just working on a little electronics project."

His father sighed. "Let me guess, it's those video game devices again, huh? Like I said before, it's a tough market, son."

Zaboru grinned confidently. "It might be tough, Dad, but I think I can do it. You'll see soon enough."

Zanichi chuckled. "Alright then, champ. Let's see what you've got. Anyway, where are you off to? The electronics store?"

"Yeah, I need to pick up some parts for my project," Zaboru confirmed.

To his surprise, his dad handed him $200—a hefty amount in 1991. "Here, buy what you need."

"Wow! Thanks, Dad!" Zaboru beamed.

His mom, Keiko, patted his head affectionately. "Be careful, okay, hon?"

Pride shone in her eyes as she watched her son. Zaboru nodded and left the house, his excitement bubbling over.

'Heh, I can't believe Dad just gave me more budget. With this, I can finish my first playable NES prototype! And I can start working on Super Mario!'

As he hurried off to the electronics store, Zaboru felt a fire ignite within him. His journey to revolutionize the gaming industry in this parallel world had truly begun.

To be continued…