is a
JapanJapan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese leading
developerA video game developer is a software developer that creates video games. A developer may specialize in a certain video game console, such as Nintendo's Wii, Microsoft's Xbox 360, Sony's PlayStation 3, or may develop for a variety of systems, including personal computers.Most developers also...
and
publisherA video game publisher is a company that publishes video games that they have either developed internally or have had developed by a video game developer....
of numerous popular and strong-selling toys,
trading cardA trading card is a small card, usually made out of paperboard or thick paper, which usually contains an image of a certain person, place or thing and a short description of the picture, along with other text...
s,
animeis the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
,
tokusatsuis a Japanese term that applies to any live-action film or television drama that usually features superheroes and makes considerable use of special effects ....
,
slot machineA slot machine , informally fruit machine , the slots , poker machine or "pokies" or simply slot is a casino gambling machine with three or more reels which spin when a button is pushed...
s,
arcade cabinets and video games. Konami is famous for games such as the
Metal GearMetal Gear is a series of video games.Metal Gear may also refer to:*Metal Gear , bipedal tanks appearing in the Metal Gear series-Metal Gear video game series:...
series,
Dance Dance RevolutionDance Dance Revolution, abbreviated DDR, and previously known as Dancing Stage in Europe and Australasia, is a music video game series produced by Konami. Introduced in Japan in 1998 as part of the Bemani series, and released in North America and Europe in 1999, Dance Dance Revolution is the...
series,
CastlevaniaCastlevania, known as in Japan, is a video game series created and developed by Konami. The series debuted in Japan on September 26, 1986, with the release of for the Family Computer Disk System , followed by an alternate version for the MSX 2 platform on October 30...
series,
Contra series,
Pro Evolution SoccerPro Evolution Soccer is a series of football video game developed and published by Konami...
series,
Yu-Gi-Oh!is a Japanese manga created by Kazuki Takahashi. It has produced a franchise that includes multiple anime shows, a trading card game and numerous video games...
series,
Silent Hillis a survival horror video game series consisting of seven installments published by Konami and its subsidiary Konami Digital Entertainment. The first four games in the series, Silent Hill, Silent Hill 2, 3 and 4, have been developed by an internal factor, Team Silent...
series,
GradiusThe Gradius games, first introduced in 1985, make up a series of scrolling shooter video games published by Konami for a variety of portable, console and arcade platforms. In many games in the series, the player controls a ship known as the Vic Viper...
series, and
FroggerFrogger is an arcade game introduced in 1981. It was developed by Konami, and licensed for worldwide distribution by Sega/Gremlin. The object of the game is to direct frogs to their homes one by one. To do this, each frog must avoid cars while crossing a busy road and navigate a river full of...
series.
The company was founded in 1969 as a
jukeboxA jukebox is a partially automated music-playing device, usually a coin-operated machine, that will play a patron's selection from self-contained media...
rental and repair business in
Osakais a city in the Kansai region of Japan's main island of Honshu, a designated city under the Local Autonomy Law, the capital city of Osaka Prefecture and also the biggest part of Keihanshin area, which is represented by three major cities of Japan, Kyoto, Osaka and Kobe...
,
JapanJapan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, by Kagemasa Kōzuki, the still-current chairman and
presidentA president is a leader of an organization, company, trade union, university, or country.Etymologically, a president is one who presides, who sits in leadership...
. The name "Konami" is a conjunction of the names Kagemasa
Kozuki (current chairman and president), Yoshinobu
Nakama, and Tatsuo
Miyasako.
Konami is currently headquartered in
Tokyo, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
and additionally operates health and
physical fitnessPhysical fitness comprises two related concepts: general fitness , and specific fitness...
clubs in Japan. Konami also operates United States activities in
El Segundo, CaliforniaEl Segundo is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Located on the Santa Monica Bay, it was incorporated on January 18, 1917, and is one of the Beach Cities of Los Angeles County and part of the South Bay Cities Council of Governments...
for video games and
Paradise, NevadaParadise is an unincorporated town in the Las Vegas metropolitan area in Clark County, Nevada, United States. The population was 223,167 at the 2010 census...
for the casino gaming industry. Its Australian gaming operations are located in
Sydney, AustraliaSydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
, and distribution of Konami's games in Australia is handled by
Mindscape AustraliaMindscape is an international software publishing company, previously part of The Learning Company. They are now affiliated with EA . As of 2004, the group has offices in Europe, Asia, Australia and South America. It has an annual turnover of €38 million and employs 150 people. Mindscape...
.
History
- March 21, 1969, Kagemasa Kozuki (current chairman of the board and Chief Executive Officer) founded a jukebox rental/repair business in Osaka.
- March 19, 1973, Kozuki transformed the business into Konami Industry Co., Ltd. and began work on manufacturing "amusement machines" for arcades
An amusement arcade or video arcade is a venue where people play arcade games such as video games, pinball machines, electro-mechanical games, redemption games, merchandisers , or coin-operated billiards or air hockey tables...
. Their first actual game machine was not created until 1978, and they began exporting products to the United States the following year. They began to achieve success with hit arcade games such as 1981's FroggerFrogger is an arcade game introduced in 1981. It was developed by Konami, and licensed for worldwide distribution by Sega/Gremlin. The object of the game is to direct frogs to their homes one by one. To do this, each frog must avoid cars while crossing a busy road and navigate a river full of...
, Scramble, and Super CobraSuper Cobra is a 1981 horizontally-scrolling shooter, arcade game. It was developed by Konami from the engine of the popular Scramble , and manufactured and distributed by Stern in the U.S..-Gameplay:...
, many of which were licensed to other companies for stateside release, including Stern Electronics and Gremlin IndustriesGremlin Industries was arcade game manufacturer active from the 1970s to early 1980s, and based San Diego, California, USA .Gremlin was founded in 1973 as a manufacturer of coin-operated wall games. Gremlin's first wall game, Play Ball, was fairly successful.- History :Gremlin joined the video game...
.
- May 1980, the headquarters was moved to Toyonaka, Osaka.
- March 1981, the Konami logo was established. A new logo with the name in italics was released in 1986. It was altered in 1998 from italics to Roman text. In 2003, Konami introduced a new logo on the company's 30th anniversary since its establishment. The company also introduced the new tagline "びっくり:Bikkuri", which means "Be Creative".
- October 1982, Konami began manufacturing and selling PC games.
- November 1982, Konami of America, Inc. (currently Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc.) was established in Torrance
Torrance is a city incorporated in 1921 and located in the South Bay region of Los Angeles County, California, United States. Torrance has of shore-front beaches on the Pacific Ocean, quieter and less well-known by tourists than others on the Santa Monica Bay, such as those of neighboring...
, CaliforniaCalifornia is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
. It relocated to Wood Dale, IllinoisWood Dale is a city in DuPage County, Illinois, United States. The population was 13,535 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Wood Dale is located at .According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all of it land.-Demographics:...
in 1984. In 1999 it relocated again to Redwood City, CaliforniaRedwood City is a California charter city located on the San Francisco Peninsula in Northern California, approximately 27 miles south of San Francisco, and 24 miles north of San Jose. Redwood City's history spans from its earliest inhabitation by the Ohlone people, to its tradition as a port for...
, leaving a location in Illinois open strictly for the manufacturing of Konami's arcade video games. In 2003, Konami of America closed down their arcade division due to heavy losses; the entire Buffalo Grove, Illinois location was shut down along with it. All machine inquiries and new machines would thereafter be handled by Betson Enterprises. As of 2007, Konami Corporation of America has moved its U.S head office once again from Redwood City to Konami Digital Entertainment's office in El Segundo, CaliforniaEl Segundo is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Located on the Santa Monica Bay, it was incorporated on January 18, 1917, and is one of the Beach Cities of Los Angeles County and part of the South Bay Cities Council of Governments...
.
- November 1983, Konami began manufacturing and selling MSX
MSX was the name of a standardized home computer architecture in the 1980s conceived by Kazuhiko Nishi, then Vice-president at Microsoft Japan and Director at ASCII Corporation...
games.
- May 1984, Konami Ltd. (currently Konami Digital Entertainment B.V.) was established in the U.K.
- October 1984, Konami was listed on the Second Section of the Osaka Securities Exchange (specially designated stocks in the second section). Subsequent stock listings include Second Section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange (2/1988), London Stock Exchange (9/1999), New York Stock Exchange (9/2002), and the Nikkei Stock Average (Nikkei 225)(10/2003).
- December 1984, Konami GmbH (currently Konami Digital Entertainment GmbH) was established in Germany.
- April 1985, Konami began manufacturing and selling Family Computer
The Nintendo Entertainment System is an 8-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America during 1985, in Europe during 1986 and Australia in 1987...
("Famicom") video games. This new business was, in addition to their arcade market, from which many games were later ported.
- December 1987, Konami Kosan Co., Ltd. (currently Konami Real Estate, Inc.) was established.
Konami began to achieve great success when the Famicom took off, being released in the United States as the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES). Many of the NES/Famicom's bestselling titles were produced by Konami, including
GradiusThe Gradius games, first introduced in 1985, make up a series of scrolling shooter video games published by Konami for a variety of portable, console and arcade platforms. In many games in the series, the player controls a ship known as the Vic Viper...
, the
CastlevaniaCastlevania, known as in Japan, is a video game series created and developed by Konami. The series debuted in Japan on September 26, 1986, with the release of for the Family Computer Disk System , followed by an alternate version for the MSX 2 platform on October 30...
series, the
Contra series, and
Metal GearMetal Gear is a series of video games.Metal Gear may also refer to:*Metal Gear , bipedal tanks appearing in the Metal Gear series-Metal Gear video game series:...
. Konami was one of the most active and prolific third party development studios for the NES, which led to conflict with
Nintendois a multinational corporation located in Kyoto, Japan. Founded on September 23, 1889 by Fusajiro Yamauchi, it produced handmade hanafuda cards. By 1963, the company had tried several small niche businesses, such as a cab company and a love hotel....
of America's licensing restrictions. During the heyday of the NES, Nintendo of America controlled the production of all licensed NES software titles, and limited third party developers to a maximum of five titles per year. Several companies found a way around this restriction by founding quasi-independent subsidiary corporations, effectively doubling the number of games that they could release during the year. In the case of Konami, this subsidiary was known as
Ultra GamesUltra Software Corporation was a spinoff company created in 1988 as a subsidiary of Konami of America, in an effort to get around Nintendo of America's strict licensing rules for the North American Konami release games for Nintendo consoles. One of these rules was that a third-party company could...
, and a large number of Konami titles were published in North America under their banner, including
Metal Gear,
Gyrussis a shoot 'em up video arcade game developed by Konami, and released in 1983. It was designed by Yoshiki Okamoto, who had earlier created Time Pilot for Konami. Gyruss was licensed to Centuri in the United States, and was ported to numerous games consoles and home computers...
,
Skate or Die!Not to be confused with the Law & Order episode "Skate or Die"Skate or Die! is a skateboarding game released by Electronic Arts in 1987 for the Sinclair ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64, Atari ST, Apple IIgs, Amstrad CPC, and IBM Compatibles running MS-DOS. It was ported to the Nintendo Entertainment...
, the first two
Teenage Mutant Ninja TurtlesThe Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are a fictional team of four teenage anthropomorphic turtles, who were trained by their anthropomorphic rat sensei in the art of ninjutsu and named after four Renaissance artists...
games and
Snake's RevengeSnake's Revenge is a stealth action game by Konami released for the Nintendo Entertainment System in 1990. The game was produced as a sequel to the NES version of the original Metal Gear, made specifically for the North American and PAL market following the success of the first NES game...
(a sequel to the original
Metal Gear made specifically for the western market). In
EuropeEurope is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, faced with a similar restriction placed by Nintendo's European branch, Konami established Palcom Software Ltd. to the same end. By the
early 1990sIn the history of computer and video games, the fourth generation began on October 30, 1987 with the Japanese release of Nippon Electric Company's PC Engine...
, Nintendo of America had relaxed many of its licensing restrictions, and, no longer needed, Ultra was reabsorbed into Konami's official American branch in 1992.
- May 1991, Konami Technology Development Center (currently Amusement Content Business's Kobe Office) opened in Kobe.
- June 1991, Konami Industries Co., Ltd., was renamed to Konami Co., Ltd.
- November 1991, Konami entered the PC Engine game business.
- June 1992, Konami set up Tokyo headquarter.
- December 1992, Konami entered the Sega Mega Drive/Genesis game business.
- 1992-?, members of Konami left to form Treasure Co. Ltd, which, like Konami, is well-known in the video gaming community for creating high caliber shooters and action games.
- April 1993, Headquarter functions were moved from Kobe Headquarters to Tokyo Headquarters.
- September 1994, Konami (Hong Kong) Limited (currently Konami Digital Entertainment Limited) was established in Hong Kong.
- December 1994, Konami entered the PlayStation video game business.
- April 1995, Konami Computer Entertainment Osaka Co., Ltd. (currently Konami Computer Entertainment Osaka, Inc.) and Konami Computer Entertainment Tokyo Co., Ltd. (currently Konami Computer Entertainment Tokyo, Inc.) were established.
- December 1995, Konami Music Entertainment Co., Ltd. (current Konami Music Entertainment, Inc.) was established.
- April 1996, Konami Computer Entertainment Japan Co., Ltd. (current Konami Computer Entertainment Japan, Inc.) and Konami Service Co., Ltd.
(current Konami Service, Inc.) were established.
- May 1996, Konami shifted to a business divisional organization.
- October 1996, Konami Finance Co., Ltd. (current Konami Capital, Inc.) was established.
- November 1996, U.S. holding company Konami Corporation of America was established in the U.S.
Konami Australia Pty Ltd was established in Australia.
- January 1997, Konami Gaming, Inc. was established in the U.S.
- March 1997, Amusement Content Business plant was constructed in Kobe. Konami Computer Entertainment School Co., Ltd. (currently Konami School, Inc.) was established.
- October 1997, Konami entered the gaming machine market in Australia.
- November 1997, Konami was listed on the Singapore Exchange. European holding company, Konami Europe B.V. (currently Konami Digital Entertainment B.V.) was established in the Netherlands.
- 1998, Konami released Dance Dance Revolution
Dance Dance Revolution, abbreviated DDR, and previously known as Dancing Stage in Europe and Australasia, is a music video game series produced by Konami. Introduced in Japan in 1998 as part of the Bemani series, and released in North America and Europe in 1999, Dance Dance Revolution is the...
, a Dance Simulation game that revolutionized the music game industry.
- December 1999, the official registered address of Konami's headquarters was changed from Kobe to Tokyo.
- January 2000, Konami received a licence of manufacturing and sales of gaming machines from the U.S. state of Nevada.
- June 2000, Konami Software Shanghai, Inc. was established.
- July 2000, Konami Co., Ltd. was renamed to Konami Corporation.
- August 2000, Konami Computer Entertainment Sapporo, Inc. merged with Konami Computer Entertainment Yokohama, Inc., and the new company was named Konami Computer Entertainment Studios, Inc.
- September 21, 2000, Konami and Universal Studios
Universal Pictures , a subsidiary of NBCUniversal, is one of the six major movie studios....
announced that they had entered an agreement that would enable Konami to publish a Crash Bandicoot game for next-generation game systems, with Universal InteractiveVivendi Games, formerly known as Vivendi Universal Games, was the holdings company for Sierra Entertainment and Blizzard Entertainment. Vivendi Games was founded as Vivendi Universal Games after Vivendi bought Universal Studios in the early 2000s...
handling the production of the games.
- October 2000, Konami Marketing, Inc., was established and began operations.
- February 2001, People Co., Ltd. became Konami's subsidiary through a friendly TOB takeover bid and Konami entered the Health & Fitness business. The company was later named Konami Sports & Life Co., Ltd.
- May 14, 2001, Konami made a deal with Universal Interactive
Vivendi Games, formerly known as Vivendi Universal Games, was the holdings company for Sierra Entertainment and Blizzard Entertainment. Vivendi Games was founded as Vivendi Universal Games after Vivendi bought Universal Studios in the early 2000s...
to team up by producing and distributing some more titles, rather than just the Crash Bandicoot titles.
- August 2001, Konami invested in Hudson Soft Co., Ltd. and made it an affiliated company.
- October 2001, Konami entered the toy candy business.
- February 2002, Konami entered the Xbox game business. Konami Sports Corporation acquired the shares of Daiei Olympic Sports Club, Inc. (currently Konami Olympic Sports Club Corporation, which would be merged by Konami Sports Corporation in October 2002.) and became Konami's subsidiary.
- August 2002, Konami's headquarters was moved from Minato, Tokyo to Chiyoda, Tokyo.
- 2003, Konami teamed up with the Japanese film production company, Toho Company, Ltd.
is a Japanese film, theater production, and distribution company. It is headquartered in Yūrakuchō, Chiyoda, Tokyo, and is one of the core companies of the Hankyu Hanshin Toho Group...
in creating their own genre of tokusatsuis a Japanese term that applies to any live-action film or television drama that usually features superheroes and makes considerable use of special effects ....
TV series, known as the Chouseishin SeriesThe , translated as Ultra Star God or Super Star God Series, is the name of a tokusatsu superhero TV franchise which debuted in Japan from 2003 through 2006. The Chouseishin Series were produced by Toho Company, Ltd., in association with Konami, in attempt to emulate and rival the success of Toei's...
, in attempt to emulate and rival the success of Toeiis a Japanese film, television production, and distribution corporation. Based in Tokyo, Toei owns and operates thirty-four movie theaters across Japan, a modest vertically-integrated studio system by the standards of the 1930s United States; operates studios at Tokyo and Kyoto; and is a...
's Super SentaiThe is the name given to the long-running Japanese superhero team genre of shows produced by Toei Co., Ltd., Toei Agency and Bandai, and aired by TV Asahi...
genre.
- April 2005, Konami accepted new third-party shares issued by Hudson Soft
, formally known as , is a majority-owned subsidiary of Konami Corporation is a Japanese electronic entertainment publisher headquartered in the Midtown Tower in Tokyo Midtown, Akasaka, Minato, Tokyo, Japan, with an additional office in the Hudson Building in Sapporo. It was founded on May 18, 1973...
Co., Ltd. and made it a consolidated subsidiary.
- June 2005, Konami has an office and gaming production facility in Paradise, Nevada
Paradise is an unincorporated town in the Las Vegas metropolitan area in Clark County, Nevada, United States. The population was 223,167 at the 2010 census...
for its casinoIn modern English, a casino is a facility which houses and accommodates certain types of gambling activities. Casinos are most commonly built near or combined with hotels, restaurants, retail shopping, cruise ships or other tourist attractions...
gaming equipment subsidiary, Konami Gaming.
- October 2005, Konami Logistics and Service, Inc. (currently Konami Manufacturing and Service, Inc.) was established.
- 2005, Konami was the sixth largest game developer in Japan after Nintendo
is a multinational corporation located in Kyoto, Japan. Founded on September 23, 1889 by Fusajiro Yamauchi, it produced handmade hanafuda cards. By 1963, the company had tried several small niche businesses, such as a cab company and a love hotel....
, Square Enixis a Japanese video game and publishing company best known for its console role-playing game franchises, which include the Final Fantasy series, the Dragon Quest series, and the action-RPG Kingdom Hearts series...
, Capcomis a Japanese developer and publisher of video games, known for creating multi-million-selling franchises such as Devil May Cry, Chaos Legion, Street Fighter, Mega Man and Resident Evil. Capcom developed and published Bionic Commando, Lost Planet and Dark Void too, but they are less known. Its...
, Sega Sammyis a Japanese holding company formed from a merger of Sega and Sammy. They were both very involved in the arcade business , and Sega's main fame comes from their console systems.-Background:...
, and Namco Bandai.
- February 2006, Internet Revolution, Inc. was established as a joint venture company with Internet Initiative Japan Inc.
- March 2006, Konami acquired capital in Resort Solution Co., Ltd. (equity method affiliate) and business alliance. Konami Digital Entertainment Co., Ltd. was newly established to take over Konami’s digital entertainment business and Konami became a pure holding company.
- May 2006, Konami acquired entire stake in Combi Wellness Corporation and made it a subsidiary.
- August 2006, Konami entered the pachinko slot machine market.
- April 2007, Konami's headquarter was moved to Minato, Tokyo. The offices of Konami group in Tokyo were moved to Tokyo Midtown.
- March 2008, Konami transformed Sportsplex Japan Co., Ltd. into a consolidated subsidiary through a share purchase.
Japan
- Konami Corporation
- Konami Digital Entertainment Co., Ltd.
- Konami Sports & Life Co., Ltd.
- Konami Real Estate, Inc.
- KPE, Inc.
- Konami Manufacturing and Service, Inc.
- Konami Facility Service, Inc.
- KME Co., Ltd.
- Takasago Electric Industry Co., Ltd.
- Hudson Soft Company, Limited: On 2011-01-20, Konami Corporation announced turning Hudson Soft Co., Ltd. as its wholly subsidiary via share exchange. The exchange became effective on 2011-04-01.
- DIGITAL GOLF Inc.: On 2011-01-20, Konami Corporation announced the acquisition of DIGITAL GOLF Inc. via share exchange. DIGITAL GOLF would become a wholly owned subsidiary of Konami Corporation. The exchange became effective on 2011-03-01.
- Internet Revolution, Inc.
- Biz Share Corporation
- Combi Wellness Corporation
- THE CLUB AT YEBISU GARDEN CO., LTD.
America
- Konami Corporation of America: Current U.S.-based Holding company
A holding company is a company or firm that owns other companies' outstanding stock. It usually refers to a company which does not produce goods or services itself; rather, its purpose is to own shares of other companies. Holding companies allow the reduction of risk for the owners and can allow...
.
- Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc.: Former American Holding company
A holding company is a company or firm that owns other companies' outstanding stock. It usually refers to a company which does not produce goods or services itself; rather, its purpose is to own shares of other companies. Holding companies allow the reduction of risk for the owners and can allow...
, formerly Konami of America Inc., Konami Corporation of America. On October 13, 2003, Konami Corporation of Redwood City, CaliforniaRedwood City is a California charter city located on the San Francisco Peninsula in Northern California, approximately 27 miles south of San Francisco, and 24 miles north of San Jose. Redwood City's history spans from its earliest inhabitation by the Ohlone people, to its tradition as a port for...
announced it was expanding its operations to El Segundo, California under the new name of Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc. The Redwood City operations have since been consolidated to El Segundo in 2007.
- Konami Gaming, Inc. in Paradise, Nevada
Paradise is an unincorporated town in the Las Vegas metropolitan area in Clark County, Nevada, United States. The population was 223,167 at the 2010 census...
near Las Vegas.
Europe
- Konami Digital Entertainment B.V.: Current European-based holding company.
- Konami Digital Entertainment GmbH: Former holding company Europe, formerly Konami Limited, Konami Corporation of Europe B.V.. On March 31, 2003, Konami of Europe announced it would be renamed as Konami Digital Entertainment GmbH at the start of Konami’s new financial year (2003-04-01).
Asia
- Konami Digital Entertainment Limited (科樂美數碼娛樂有限公司): Established in 1994-09-? as Konami (Hong Kong) Limited. Korea and Singapore divisions were established in 2000-10-?. In 2001-06-?, the company changed name to Konami Marketing (ASIA) Ltd. (科樂美行銷(亞洲)有限公司). In 2006-03-?, the company was renamed Konami Digital Entertainment Limited.
- Konami Software Shanghai, Inc. (科乐美软件（上海）有限公司): Established in 2000-06-?.
- Konami Digital Entertainment Co. (주식회사 코나미 디지털 엔터테인먼트): South Korea-based game producer and distributor, originally established as the Korea branch of Konami Digital Entertainment Limited. In 2008-05-01, it became a separate company, and inherited the existing operations of the former Korea branch in 2008-06-?.
On November 7, 2005, Konami Corporation announced restructuring Konami Corporation into a holding company, by moving its Japanese Digital Entertainment Business segment under Konami Corporation. The Digital Entertainment Business would became Konami Digital Entertainment Co., Ltd. The newly established Konami Corporation was expected to begin operation on March 31, 2006.
Konami Digital Entertainment
is Konami Corporation's Japanese video game development and publishing division. Before Konami Corporation had formally changed to a holding company in 2006, various forms of Konami Digital Entertainment companies had been established either as holding company or publisher. The last of the company, the Japan-based Konami Digital Entertainment Co., Ltd., was split from Konami Corporation during the holding company restructuring process.
Divisions
- Konami Digital Entertainment Co., Ltd.: Japan division, established in 2006-03-31.
- Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc.: North American division, established in 2003-10-13.
- Konami Digital Entertainment GmbH: European division, established in 2003-04-01.
- Konami Digital Entertainment Limited: Hong Kong division. Established in 1994-09-? as Konami (Hong Kong) Limited. In 2003-03, it was renamed to Konami Digital Entertainment Limited.
Former subsidiaries
Konami Computer Entertainment Nagoya, Inc. (KCEN), originally founded October 1, 1996, was dissolved along with Konami Computer Entertainment Kobe, Inc. (KCEK) in December 2002.
On December 16, 2004, Konami Corporation announced Konami Online, Inc., Konami Computer Entertainment Studios, Inc., Konami Computer Entertainment Tokyo, Inc., Konami Computer Entertainment Japan, Inc. would merge into Konami Corporation, effective on March 1, 2005.
On February 22, 2005, Konami Corporation announced Konami Media Entertainment, Inc. would merge into Konami Corporation, effective on March 1, 2005.
On March 11, 2005, Konami Corporation announced Konami Traumer, Inc would be merged back into Konami Corporation, effective on June 1, 2005.
On January 5, 2006, Konami Corporation announced the merger of Konami Sports Corporation merged with its parent company, Konami Sports Life Corporation. The parent would be dissolved under the merger, and Konami Sports would become the wholly owned subsidiary of Konami Corporation after share exchange between KC and KS. After the share exchange, KS would be renamed Konami Sports & Life Co.,Ltd. On February 28, 2006, Konami Sports Corporation merged with its parent company, Konami Sports Life Corporation, and became Konami Sports Corporation.
On 2010-09-21, Konami Corporation announced it has signed an agreement to acquire with Abilit Corporation via share exchange. After the transaction, Abilit Corporation became a wholly owned subsidiary of Konami Corporation, effective January 1, 2011.. On 2011-01-1, Abilit Corporation was renamed to Takasago Electric Industry Co.,Ltd. As part of the acquisition, Biz Share Corporation also became a subsidiary of Konami Corporation.
Konami Computer Entertainment Tokyo
Konami Computer Entertainment Tokyo, (
aka KCET, KCE Tokyo, Konami TYO, and Konami Computer Entertainment Tokyo Co., Ltd.) is a former
subsidiaryA subsidiary company, subsidiary, or daughter company is a company that is completely or partly owned and wholly controlled by another company that owns more than half of the subsidiary's stock. The subsidiary can be a company, corporation, or limited liability company. In some cases it is a...
of Konami Corporation. Konami absorbed KCET along with several of its other subsidiaries in 2005. KCET was a Tokyo-based game developer responsible for many of Konami's most notable franchises, including
Winning ElevenPro Evolution Soccer is a series of football video game developed and published by Konami...
,
Castlevania,
Dance Dance RevolutionDance Dance Revolution, abbreviated DDR, and previously known as Dancing Stage in Europe and Australasia, is a music video game series produced by Konami. Introduced in Japan in 1998 as part of the Bemani series, and released in North America and Europe in 1999, Dance Dance Revolution is the...
,
Gradius, and
Silent Hillis a survival horror video game series consisting of seven installments published by Konami and its subsidiary Konami Digital Entertainment. The first four games in the series, Silent Hill, Silent Hill 2, 3 and 4, have been developed by an internal factor, Team Silent...
.
Konami Computer Entertainment Japan
Konami JPN Ltd., formerly Konami Computer Entertainment Japan (KCEJ), is a
video game developerA video game developer is a software developer that creates video games. A developer may specialize in a certain video game console, such as Nintendo's Wii, Microsoft's Xbox 360, Sony's PlayStation 3, or may develop for a variety of systems, including personal computers.Most developers also...
and
subsidiaryA subsidiary company, subsidiary, or daughter company is a company that is completely or partly owned and wholly controlled by another company that owns more than half of the subsidiary's stock. The subsidiary can be a company, corporation, or limited liability company. In some cases it is a...
of Konami Corporation, located in
Tokyo, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
,
JapanJapan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
.
The development house has worked on titles for a wide variety of platforms, ranging from
Game BoyThe , is an 8-bit handheld video game device developed and manufactured by Nintendo. It was released in Japan on , in North America in , and in Europe on...
to
PlayStationThe is a 32-bit fifth-generation video game console first released by Sony Computer Entertainment in Japan on December 3, .The PlayStation was the first of the PlayStation series of consoles and handheld game devices. The PlayStation 2 was the console's successor in 2000...
. KCEJ is split into two different development teams, located in two offices in Tokyo. KCEJ East has worked on the
PlayStation 2The PlayStation 2 is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Sony as part of the PlayStation series. Its development was announced in March 1999 and it was first released on March 4, 2000, in Japan...
's
Reiselied and
7 Blades as well as a number of dating sims for the PlayStation,
Sega SaturnThe is a 32-bit fifth-generation video game console that was first released by Sega on November 22, 1994 in Japan, May 11, 1995 in North America, and July 8, 1995 in Europe...
, and Game Boy. KCEJ West is known for the best-selling
Metal Gear Solid series, and the
Beatmaniais a rhythm video game developed and distributed by Japanese game developer Konami and first released in 1997. It contributed largely to the boom of music games in 1998, and the series expanded not only with arcade sequels, but also moved to home consoles and other portable devices, achieving a...
and
GuitarFreaksis a music video game series produced by Konami. The player uses a controller to simulate the playing of an electric guitar. The game consists of music predominantly from rock and roll and J-Pop genres, and is now in its 19th version, GuitarFreaks V8, which was released in March 28, 2011...
series.
On April 1, 2005, KCEJ (along with KCET and KCES) merged with its parent company.
Hideo Kojimais a Japanese game director originally employed at Konami. He is currently the director of Kojima Productions and was promoted to Vice President of Konami Digital Entertainment in early 2011...
(the company's former vice president) has formed his own subsidiary,
Kojima Productionsis a Japanese video game development studio under the guidance of game designer Hideo Kojima. The company is a subsidiary of Konami, and is located in Roppongi Hills in Roppongi, Tokyo. The studio had just under 100 employees in 2005 but has since grown to over 200 people for the development of...
.
Megacyber Corporation
On 2006-10-02, Konami Corporation announced it had completed the acquisition of mobile phone content developer Megacyber Corporation.
On 2007-02-06, Konami Corporation announced Megacyber Corporation to be merged into Konami Digital Entertainment Co., Ltd., with Konami Digital Entertainment Co., Ltd. being the surviving company, effective on 2007-04-01.
Distribution of Konami's games in Australia
Since the
NESThe Nintendo Entertainment System is an 8-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America during 1985, in Europe during 1986 and Australia in 1987...
was released in Australia in 1987, Konami's games were distributed by
MattelMattel, Inc. is the world's largest toy company based on revenue. The products it produces include Fisher Price, Barbie dolls, Hot Wheels and Matchbox toys, Masters of the Universe, American Girl dolls, board games, and, in the early 1980s, video game consoles. The company's name is derived from...
Australia, just like the NES was. In 1994 when Nintendo Co., Ltd opened
Nintendo AustraliaNintendo Australia Pty. Ltd. established in 1994, located in Victoria is Australia's local head office, sales, licensing and distribution centre for products and other Intellectual Properties created by Nintendo Co., Ltd of Kyoto, Japan and is owned by Nintendo Co., Ltd in Japan. Prior distribution...
Pty Ltd, Konami's products were distributed by Nintendo Australia until GT Interactive (Infogrames) Australia was opened when they took over the distribution. GT Interactive then turned into Infogrames Australia and then Atari Australia. In early November, it was announced that Konami of Europe had granted exclusive distribution of its games in Australia to
Red Ant EnterprisesRed Ant Enterprises Pty Ltd was an Australian owned video game, anime, home video and PC software distributor. Red Ant is the largest such company in the country, as well as the local distributor for over 30 publishers that are based overseas, including 505 Games and Oxygen Games and previously...
and was to commence distribution with them in February 2009. In early January 2009, Red Ant Enterprises went into receivership and closed down completely in May 2009, and Konami of Europe was quick to re-sign with Atari Australia after the announcement of their closure in January 2009.
Games
Konami has created and produced some of the biggest and most memorable video games over the past 25 years.
Genre-defining titles attributed to Konami include the vampire-hunting side scroller
CastlevaniaCastlevania, known as in Japan, is a video game series created and developed by Konami. The series debuted in Japan on September 26, 1986, with the release of for the Family Computer Disk System , followed by an alternate version for the MSX 2 platform on October 30...
series, the survival horror
Silent Hillis a survival horror video game series consisting of seven installments published by Konami and its subsidiary Konami Digital Entertainment. The first four games in the series, Silent Hill, Silent Hill 2, 3 and 4, have been developed by an internal factor, Team Silent...
series, the action/shooter
Contra series, the platform/adventure
Ganbare Goemon series, the espionage action
Metal GearMetal Gear is a series of video games.Metal Gear may also refer to:*Metal Gear , bipedal tanks appearing in the Metal Gear series-Metal Gear video game series:...
series, the console role-playing
Suikodenis a role-playing game series originally created by Yoshitaka Murayama. The game series is loosely based on the classical Chinese novel, Shui Hu Zhuan by Shi Naian and Luo Guanzhong. Shui Hu Zhuan is rendered as 水滸伝 in Japanese, and read as Suikoden...
series, the music-oriented
Bemani series (which includes
Dance Dance RevolutionDance Dance Revolution, abbreviated DDR, and previously known as Dancing Stage in Europe and Australasia, is a music video game series produced by Konami. Introduced in Japan in 1998 as part of the Bemani series, and released in North America and Europe in 1999, Dance Dance Revolution is the...
,
Beatmaniais a rhythm video game developed and distributed by Japanese game developer Konami and first released in 1997. It contributed largely to the boom of music games in 1998, and the series expanded not only with arcade sequels, but also moved to home consoles and other portable devices, achieving a...
,
GuitarFreaksis a music video game series produced by Konami. The player uses a controller to simulate the playing of an electric guitar. The game consists of music predominantly from rock and roll and J-Pop genres, and is now in its 19th version, GuitarFreaks V8, which was released in March 28, 2011...
,
DrumManiais a music video game series produced by Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc., where colored notes travel down the screen which correspond with color coded parts of an electronic drum set...
, and
Pop'n Music, commonly abbreviated as Pop'n, PM or PNM, is a music video game in the Bemani series made by the Konami Corporation. This game is known for its bright colors, upbeat songs, and cartoon character graphics...
, among others) and the dating simulation
Tokimeki Memorialis a popular dating simulation series by Konami. It consists of 6 main games in addition to a large number of spin-offs. The games are notable in the dating sim genre for being highly nonlinear. Their nickname amongst their fans is the contraction TokiMemo....
series.
Konami is particularly notable for its arcade
shoot 'em upShoot 'em up is a subgenre of shooter video games. In a shoot 'em up, the player controls a lone character, often in a spacecraft or aircraft, shooting large numbers of enemies while dodging their attacks. The genre in turn encompasses various types or subgenres and critics differ on exactly what...
games such as
GradiusThe Gradius games, first introduced in 1985, make up a series of scrolling shooter video games published by Konami for a variety of portable, console and arcade platforms. In many games in the series, the player controls a ship known as the Vic Viper...
,
Life Force,
Time PilotTime Pilot is a multi-directional scrolling shooter and free-roaming aerial combat arcade game designed by Yoshiki Okamoto, released by Konami in 1982, and distributed in the United States by Centuri...
,
Gyrussis a shoot 'em up video arcade game developed by Konami, and released in 1983. It was designed by Yoshiki Okamoto, who had earlier created Time Pilot for Konami. Gyruss was licensed to Centuri in the United States, and was ported to numerous games consoles and home computers...
,
Parodius,
AxelayAxelay is a scrolling shooter video game developed by Konami of Japan for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System. It was released on September 11, 1992 in Japan, later in that month in North America, and the following year in Europe...
, and
TwinBeeis a video game series composed primarily of cartoon-themed vertical-scrolling shoot-'em-up games produced by Konami that were released primarily in Japan. The series originated as a coin-operated video game simply titled TwinBee in , which was followed by several home versions and sequels...
. Konami's games based on cartoon licenses, especially the
Batman: The Animated SeriesBatman: The Animated Series is an American animated series based on the DC Comics character Batman. The series featured an ensemble cast of many voice-actors including Kevin Conroy, Mark Hamill, Efrem Zimbalist, Jr., Arleen Sorkin, and Loren Lester. The series won four Emmy Awards and was nominated...
,
Teenage Mutant Ninja TurtlesThe Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are a fictional team of four teenage anthropomorphic turtles, who were trained by their anthropomorphic rat sensei in the art of ninjutsu and named after four Renaissance artists...
and
Tiny Toon AdventuresSteven Spielberg Presents Tiny Toon Adventures, usually referred to as Tiny Toon Adventures or simply Tiny Toons, is an American animated television series created by Tom Ruegger and produced by Amblin Entertainment and Warner Bros. Animation. It began production as a result of Warner Bros....
series, but other American productions like
The SimpsonsThe Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...
,
Bucky O'HareBucky O'Hare is a fictional character and the hero of an eponymous comic book series as well as spin-off media including an animated TV series and various toys and video games...
,
G.I. JoeG.I. Joe is a line of action figures produced by the toy company Hasbro. The initial product offering represented four of the branches of the U.S. armed forces with the Action Soldier , Action Sailor , Action Pilot , Action Marine and later on, the Action Nurse...
and
The GooniesThe Goonies is a 1985 American adventure-comedy film directed by Richard Donner. The screenplay was written by Chris Columbus from a story by executive producer Steven Spielberg. The premise surrounds a band of pre-teens who live in the "Goon Docks" neighborhood of Astoria, Oregon hoping to save...
and French production (
AsterixAsterix or The Adventures of Asterix is a series of French comic books written by René Goscinny and illustrated by Albert Uderzo . The series first appeared in French in the magazine Pilote on October 29, 1959...
) all have seen release at some point in the past by Konami either on arcades and/or video game consoles.
Recent cinematically styled franchises from Konami are the continuing
Silent Hillis a survival horror video game series consisting of seven installments published by Konami and its subsidiary Konami Digital Entertainment. The first four games in the series, Silent Hill, Silent Hill 2, 3 and 4, have been developed by an internal factor, Team Silent...
survival horror franchise, and the
Metal Gear series, which underwent a public renaissance with
Metal Gear Solidis a videogame by Hideo Kojima. The game was developed by Konami Computer Entertainment Japan and first published by Konami in 1998 for the PlayStation video game console. It is the sequel to Kojimas early MSX2 computer games Metal Gear and Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake...
. Another successful franchise is
Winning ElevenPro Evolution Soccer is a series of football video game developed and published by Konami...
, the spiritual sequel to
International Superstar SoccerInternational Superstar Soccer is the name of a series of football video games developed by Japanese company Konami, mostly by their Osaka branch, Konami Computer Entertainment Osaka . It should not be confused with Konami Computer Entertainment Tokyo's Pro Evolution Soccer series , which was...
, which is extremely popular in
AsiaAsia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
,
Latin AmericaLatin America is a region of the Americas where Romance languages – particularly Spanish and Portuguese, and variably French – are primarily spoken. Latin America has an area of approximately 21,069,500 km² , almost 3.9% of the Earth's surface or 14.1% of its land surface area...
,
Middle EastThe Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
and
EuropeEurope is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, where it is sold by the name
Pro Evolution SoccerPro Evolution Soccer is a series of football video game developed and published by Konami...
. And in Japan, it is known for the extremely popular Jikkyō Powerful Pro Yakyū series (or Power Pro) baseball series. Zone of the Enders 1 & 2. The company has also recently picked up "Saw" from Brash Entertainment when the game's production had been suspended due to financial issues.
Konami is also known for its password, the
Konami CodeThe Konami Code, known in Japan as the , is a cheat code that appears in many Konami video games, although the code also appears in some non-Konami games...
, which traditionally gives many
power-upIn computer and video games, power-ups are objects that instantly benefit or add extra abilities to the game character as a game mechanic. This is in contrast to an item, which may or may not have a benefit and can be used at a time chosen by the player...
s in its games. Although variants also exist, as in the
Parodius, or just Parodius, is a scrolling shooter video game developed by Konami for the MSX computer and was released in Japan. The game is notable for being the first title in the Parodius series, although it is often confused with its sequel Parodius Da! －Shinwa kara Owarai e－ in that respect, which...
series, and button naming can differ depending on the controller used, the classic Famicom or NES combination is: Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, B, A. Although use of this code in more recent Konami productions has been sparse.
Marketing
Konami is represented by the
goroawase number "573". "Five" in Japanese is
go, changed to the voiceless form
ko; "7" in Japanese is
nana shortened to
na; "3" in Japanese is
mittsu, shortened to
mi; "573" =
ko-na-mi.
This number appears in many Konami
telephoneThe telephone , colloquially referred to as a phone, is a telecommunications device that transmits and receives sounds, usually the human voice. Telephones are a point-to-point communication system whose most basic function is to allow two people separated by large distances to talk to each other...
numbers and as a
high scoreIn games, score refers to an abstract quantity associated with a player or team. Score is usually measured in the abstract unit of points, and events in the game can raise or lower the score of different parties...
in Konami games like
Dance Dance RevolutionDance Dance Revolution, abbreviated DDR, and previously known as Dancing Stage in Europe and Australasia, is a music video game series produced by Konami. Introduced in Japan in 1998 as part of the Bemani series, and released in North America and Europe in 1999, Dance Dance Revolution is the...
(which also featured songs with a max combo of the number) as an example; in some other games like
Castlevania: Dawn of SorrowCastlevania: Dawn of Sorrow, known in Japan as , is an action-adventure game developed and published by Konami. It is part of Konami's Castlevania video game series and the first Castlevania game to be released on the Nintendo DS. The game is the sequel to Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow and...
, the number is occasionally used as minor self-reference to the company.
Movie production
In 2006, Konami started producing movies based on their popular franchises. Konami produced the
Silent Hill movieSilent Hill is a 2006 horror film directed by Christophe Gans and written by Roger Avary. The story is an adaptation of the Silent Hill series of survival horror video games created by Konami. The film, particularly its emotional, religious and aesthetic content as well as its creature design,...
(released in 2006) and has announced that they will produce a
Metal Gear Solid movie. A Castlevania movie is also in the works.
Slot machine games
Konami produces a variety of slot machines including:
- Rocky slots (They hold the license for the slot machine rights to the movie franchise.)
- Money in the Bank
- Solstice Gold
- African Treasure
- Atlantic Treasure
- Aloha Gold
- Cash Inferno
- Coinopolis
- Big Payoff
- Billionaires
- Lucky dice
See also
- Hudson Soft
, formally known as , is a majority-owned subsidiary of Konami Corporation is a Japanese electronic entertainment publisher headquartered in the Midtown Tower in Tokyo Midtown, Akasaka, Minato, Tokyo, Japan, with an additional office in the Hudson Building in Sapporo. It was founded on May 18, 1973...
- Owned by Konami Corporation
- Ultra Games
Ultra Software Corporation was a spinoff company created in 1988 as a subsidiary of Konami of America, in an effort to get around Nintendo of America's strict licensing rules for the North American Konami release games for Nintendo consoles. One of these rules was that a third-party company could...
- Kojima Productions
is a Japanese video game development studio under the guidance of game designer Hideo Kojima. The company is a subsidiary of Konami, and is located in Roppongi Hills in Roppongi, Tokyo. The studio had just under 100 employees in 2005 but has since grown to over 200 people for the development of...
- a subsidiary owned by Konami that now makes Metal Gear games.
- Treasure - an independent video game company founded by former Konami employees.
External links
- Konami portals: Global, America, Europe, Asia, Australia, Japan, China
- Konami Corporation (Japan)
- Konami Digital Entertainment Co., Ltd.
- Konami Sports & Life Co., Ltd.
- Konami Real Estate, Inc.
- KPE, Inc.
- Konami Manufacturing and Service, Inc.
- Konami Facility Service, Inc.
- KME Co., Ltd.
- TAKASAGO ELECTRIC INDUSTRY CO., LTD.
- Hudson Soft Company, Limited
- DIGITAL GOLF Inc.
- Internet Revolution, Inc.
- Biz Share Corporation
- Combi Wellness Corporation
- THE CLUB AT YEBISU GARDEN CO., LTD.
- Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc.
- Konami Gaming, Inc.
- Konami Digital Entertainment GmbH
- Konami Digital Entertainment B.V.
- Konami Digital Entertainment Limited
- Konami Software Shanghai, Inc.
- Konami Digital Entertainment Co.
- Konami Australia Pty Ltd.
- The History of Konami at Jap-Sai.com
- Gamespot's KCET company profile
- The History of Konami (1978–1998) at GameSpot
GameSpot is a video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information. The site was launched in May 1, 1996 by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. It was purchased by ZDNet, a brand which was later purchased by CNET Networks. CBS Interactive, which...