The Alpha and the 486 Gift
“The Giant Killer is still going on about money, so he must still be deep in the broker game.”
“It’s not ‘money,’ it’s ‘boss.’ I happen to be a respectable salaried employee.”
“A salaried employee?”
“Hwang Jae-hong, field manager at ID Investment.”
“Field manager? What kind of ridiculous title is that?”
“It exists. Even if it sounds unfamiliar, it comes with the treatment of a department manager at a major corporation. I even have my own company car. Anyway, what do you want?”
At the mention of a car, Chae Mu-seong peered out the teahouse window with suspicion. A sturdy Toyota Crown sat prominently outside. He hadn’t seen the toad-like man get out, but only one car was parked there. Besides, he had heard rumors that the big shot drove a Japanese Crown. It seemed that really was the toad’s car.
“Whoa. You really hit the jackpot. So let’s make a big score this time. Your boss seems very interested in Bundang land. I’ll bring you some proper merchandise.”
In broker slang, “proper merchandise” meant land with no real monetary value but easy to dress up. The brokers’ profit mechanism was buying worthless land for pennies, slapping on layers of paint, and selling it at a premium. In other words, the man was suggesting they team up to fleece the boss.
“Good grief. Don’t underestimate our company just because you’re using me as an agent. We have lawyers by the truckload. Every contract goes through full verification.”
“Is that so? But who are we? With your help, we could still pull it off easily.”
“Ugh. I’m not interested. Brother, you’d better get out of this before you cause a real disaster. It’ll be better for your health.”
“What? What do you know? If you don’t want to, just say so. Why the bad omen? Then at least give me one piece of information. You’ve been sniffing around Bundang nonstop. There must be something solid, right?”
“I don’t know.”
“You don’t know? Then how are you throwing around hundreds of millions? If you don’t cooperate, things could get unpleasant. This is my territory. My hometown. Even if I don’t know anything else, I can sweet-talk the ignorant villagers and jack up the prices.”
Now it was empty threats?
“Go ahead. At best, you’ll raise the price by a thousand won per pyeong. That won’t even scratch my boss. On the contrary, if land prices rise, won’t it only make things harder for brokers like you? Anyway, I think we’re done here. I’ll be going.”
Hwang Jae-hong stood up immediately after speaking. A shout of “Hey!” came from behind, but he didn’t stop. He had left because he hated dealing with sharks like that, and now they wanted to work together again? There was a golden road the boss had opened for him. Why would he ever step back into that cesspool he had barely escaped? Even in his dreams, he refused. At the same time, Hwang Jae-hong renewed his resolve. If that man truly tried to interfere with the boss’s business, he would make him pay several times over.
Bang! Bang! Kraaak!
The screen inside Yoo Jae-won’s monitor was as dazzling as the sound effects were loud. Texas’s ID Software had finally completed the alpha version of Wolfenstein and uploaded it to ID Technology’s FTP server. Upon receiving John Carmack’s message, Jae-won had immediately started the download, which took half a day over the painfully slow 2,400 bps modem. Even in alpha, the game was a hefty 2 MB. It inherited the Keyboard Warrior engine, which John Carmack had refined for FPS gameplay. By actively using the Glide X library, graphics processing power was maximized, allowing high-resolution images and high-quality sound files as resources. High-resolution, high-fidelity assets naturally increased file size, so the bulk was an unavoidable trade-off. The final version, once all seven stages were complete, was expected to reach 5–6 MB. With nearly twenty 2D image sheets, it would likely need to be released on 2HD floppies or 3.5-inch HD disks.
Still, the visuals were spectacular and the audio was thunderous. Shotgun blasts echoed with visceral impact, and Nazi soldiers hit by fire turned into bloody messes. The violence was too graphic to recommend to children, yet that very intensity was what drew players in.
“Excellent.”
The three-dimensionally rendered dungeons of Wolfenstein Castle felt truly three-dimensional. Thanks to the image interpolation technique Jae-won had provided, the pixels remained sharp even when viewed up close. The frame rate dropped slightly in scenes crowded with enemies, revealing that even a 386 processor was being pushed to its limits. It was a drawback. Yet John Carmack had transformed that limitation into a feature. He implemented it as the player's special ability, “Bullet Time.” Whenever danger arose, time would slow down, making it easier to aim and reducing the game's difficulty. However, a single mistake still meant instant death, preserving the game's tension.
“Aang! Now I want to try!”
At Soo-kyung’s urging after watching Jae-won play, he reluctantly gave up his seat. He wanted to tinker more, but her patience had run out, so he passed the baton. Even while playing, she hunted for bugs, wandering through stages for nearly an hour. That was quite patient for Soo-kyung.
The reason Soo-kyung was beside him was simple: Wolfenstein’s minimum requirement was a 386. The computer at home was a 286. With the money that had been pouring in since last year, he could have upgraded long ago, but it was the meaningful machine his parents had bought him. Disassembling it on a whim felt wrong. If he preserved it and donated it to the future ID Group history museum, how meaningful that would be. Besides, for programming work—debugging only the critical functions needed for office software—the 286 had been sufficient, so there had been little urgency to upgrade.
But when he tried to run the alpha, a message appeared saying it wouldn’t work on a 286. Only then did Jae-won realize he needed a 386. In truth, he hadn’t decided against upgrading the home computer. He had planned to buy a ready-made 486 as soon as it launched. Considering domestic partners, Samsung would be the likely choice. This mismatch wasn’t due to any lack of preparation on Jae-won’s part. In the original development schedule, Wolfenstein’s alpha completion had been timed to coincide with the 486’s release. Once the 486 arrived, he could buy one and test the alpha at home. ID Software’s development team, however, had moved at an insane pace—as if on stimpacks—creating the mismatch. Fortunately, the city office already had a 386 installed. His first thought had been to go there, but the bus schedule was inconvenient and taxis weren’t running that day. In his impatience, Jae-won chose the alternative: visiting Soo-kyung, who owned the best computer in Deokjin-ri. Though he had appeared suddenly, Soo-kyung had graciously opened the door. Thanks to that, he could now run Wolfenstein’s alpha on her 386.
After pushing Jae-won aside and sitting at the computer, Soo-kyung didn’t even ask for controls. Already familiar with computers, she had watched him play and memorized everything.
“Die! Die!”
The screen, far more intense than Keyboard Warrior, completely captivated her. She grabbed the Vulcan cannon and poured bullets without restraint, painting the world red. The Vulcan was meant to be saved for tough enemies; wasting it like that would get her killed quickly. Watching a girl play a game a million light-years from typical feminine tastes, Jae-won couldn’t decide whether to feel pleased or concerned.
“Have some fruit while you play.”
Soo-kyung’s mother arrived with sliced fruit as a snack.
“Thank you.”
Every week she prepared something, and though it had once felt burdensome, Jae-won had grown accustomed to the generosity.
“Oh my, what game is this? Did Jae-won make it?”
“No, I didn’t make it myself, but it’s a game from my company.”
After receiving the answer, Soo-kyung’s mother watched for several minutes as her daughter slaughtered Nazis and monsters on screen. Jae-won felt tension rise, unsure what reaction to expect.
“They made it quite entertaining. I think this one will be a huge success too.”
Her reaction was the opposite of what he had feared. Instead of scolding him for creating a violent game, she offered encouragement.
“Thank you. This is just a test version right now, but it was originally made for adults only. I’ll delete it before I leave.”
Jae-won still felt the need to explain. He couldn’t risk her thinking he had strange tastes.
“Huh? It’s fun. Why delete it?”
Soo-kyung, who had been playing, looked startled at the mention of deletion.
“It’s fine. Soo-kyung’s father will like it too.”
Even her mother approved. Soo-kyung must have inherited her mother’s tastes. In any case, even though Wolfenstein in alpha had only a single stage, its quality was already at a level that could not be improved further.
Back home, Jae-won sent a short fax to ID Software: “PERFECT!” and “KEEP GOING.” He also contacted Remington and asked him to show the alpha to Electronic Arts president Hawkins. Meanwhile, a small concern had arisen. The upcoming office software would also require a 386 at minimum. Yet with the 486 about to launch, upgrading felt awkward. He regretted not upgrading earlier instead of sentimentalizing the computer his parents had given him.
Then an unexpected gift solved the problem as if by magic.
Mid-April. Naeo Village, the first to begin its improvement project, was nearly finished. Running water had arrived as scheduled, bringing a revolution to the kitchen, and streetlights had been installed, transforming the village’s nighttime scenery, when an international parcel arrived for Jae-won. After school, he found a notice from the post office instructing him to pick up the package. When he collected it in town, he was startled by its size and weight. He called the ID Technology Yeoju office to send a porter, and they loaded it into the car. Upon opening it at home, he discovered a big-tower computer case inside. The Intel logo was clearly visible on the side of the case.
“Whoa! What is this?”
He had never ordered such a computer from America. Checking inside the box, he found a well-sealed document envelope. Jae-won opened it immediately.
—To the esteemed owner of ID Technology, Yoo Jae-won,
We at Intel are sending you our recently completed latest CPU. We hope it proves useful in your development work.
Intel is always ready to listen to your valuable feedback. Should any issues arise, please inform us immediately. Our top engineers will respond and resolve any problems swiftly.
—Intel CEO, Andy Grove
The gift was Intel’s newest CPU.
“It’s a 486!”
The 486, theoretically ten times faster than the 386, had crossed the Pacific and landed in front of Jae-won. When he visited Silicon Valley in January, he had been surprised by the parts piled in Remington’s office. Among them, however, there had been no Intel products, leading him to think the number-one company wasn’t very aggressive in marketing. That wasn’t the case. The fact that they had sent a 486 system before its official release showed tremendous boldness. Truly worthy of the top company.
Upon closer inspection, the computer wasn’t just a board and CPU. There were eight memory slots, all filled with 512 KB modules, totaling a massive 4 MB of RAM. The hard drive was a high-capacity 80 MB, and it featured both 5.25-inch and 3.5-inch HD floppy drives. The VGA card was ATI’s latest model with a 32-bit interface. At this level, it was the fastest personal computer in Korea.
The 486 would become widespread in Korea around 1992–93 and enjoy its prime until the Pentium arrived. With this machine, he wouldn’t need to upgrade for years. Yet Jae-won didn’t power it on right away. He checked the time. It was just past 3:30 p.m. California’s branch office hours had long since ended. In the end, Jae-won faxed Remington, asking him to confirm whether Intel’s 486 shipment came with any conditions attached.
The next morning, Remington’s reply had arrived.
“Yes!”
The answer was simple. During Intel’s closed beta testing ahead of new product launches, they sent samples to prominent software companies. For A-tier firms, there were no mandatory conditions. ID Technology was classified as A-tier. The only request was not to leak the product to the market until its official release in roughly a month.
Before heading to school, Jae-won savored the joy of setting up the computer. When it was time to leave, he was practically pushed out the door. Thanks to that, he skipped classes that day. The excitement of using the 486 caused plenty of small mistakes.
After school.
“Wow.”
Seeing the POST screen appear after completing setup and a successful boot brought a gasp of admiration. The differences from the 286 were the appearance of “486” in the CPU field and the longer memory test due to the increased RAM. Yet the sheer difference in numbers was moving. The operating system was DOS, so once booting finished, only a blinking cursor remained—the same as on an XT. Still, with programs like Wolfenstein, he could truly feel the 486’s performance. Especially when hordes of enemies appeared, the frame rate didn’t drop, making the activation of Bullet Time feel far more dramatic.
Starting with Intel’s gift, good news kept arriving. Hwang Jae-hong, who had practically lived in Bundang, reported that he had finally spent all 4.5 billion won on land purchases. Next came welcome news from KETEL, which Jae-won frequented: Hangul 0.9 beta had been uploaded to the public archive, albeit a little later than expected, with a request for feedback. Though it ran in graphics mode with a somewhat crude, text-mode-like interface, WYSIWYG was properly implemented. It supported combination-type Hangul capable of expressing every character and even allowed input of ancient Korean. It was clearly a generational leap beyond previous word processors like Jewel Word. Watching Korea’s first-generation venture entrepreneurs finally shine filled Jae-won with excitement.
The final piece of news was the one he had been most anxiously awaiting.
—To resolve Seoul’s oversaturated housing shortage, the government has announced the Second Housing Development Plan. The newly designated new towns are Bundang with 105,000 households and Ilsan with 71,000 households. New housing units will go on sale via bond bidding this November. Move-in is targeted for 1991, and the subway connecting Bundang and Jamsil is promised for completion by 1992. The government plans to exercise preemptive purchase rights on land in the designated development areas of Bundang and Ilsan…
Hearing the breaking news on the radio, Yoo Jae-won clenched his fist.