Konami

History of the Company

In the early 80's, Konami made arcade games and sold software for computers, including the Atari 2600 and Nintendo's Famicom system (NES). It quickly made a name for itself in the video game industry. The company developed and published best-selling titles such as Contra, Gradius and the Castlevania series. Business went so well that in 1982, Konami of America was established; two years later, the U.K. branch opened as Konami Limited.

Nintendo of America's early policy toward third-party developers limited them to five games per year. Konami had the resources and creativity to produce many more than that. So, as many developers did at the time, they established a quasi-independent subsidiary to release more games per year while complying with Nintendo's limitations. Ultra Games was established and released well-known games such as Metal Gear and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

A similar situation occurred in Europe, forcing Konami to establish Palcom Software Ltd. It wasn't until the early 1990's that Nintendo relaxed its licensing restrictions and Konami absorbed its subsidiaries into its main branch.

Konami of America closed their arcade division in 2003 due to low profits. Betson Enterprises now handles servicing and sales of all Konami machines.

Famous Games

Konami is well-known for many classic games and franchise names. Here are just a few:

• Ganbare Goemon - The series, known outside of Japan as Legend of the Mystical Ninja, is set in medieval Japan and is a platform/adventure game similar to The Legend of Zelda. The series is immensely popular in Japan but has only a small following elsewhere. Ganbare Goemon is known for its creative gameplay mechanics, sense of humor and loads of secrets.

• Contra - One of the defining side-scrolling shooter series in early video game history, Contra featured fast action and a plethora of weapons to dispose of invading aliens.

• Castlevania - The classic side-scrolling vampire hunting game has evolved over the years to include RPG-like items and character development. Still, the dark-themed Castlevania sets the standard for explorative (and gothic) games.

• Gradius and Parodius - Konami is well-known for their side-scrolling shoot-em-ups (SHMUPS). These two early contenders wowed the gaming world and have been some of the most copied game types ever since.

• Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Batman, Metal Gear - Konami licensed and produced all of these games mainly during the 80's for the NES. The Metal Gear series continues to this day and is one of the most highly praised games of the current generation.

The Konami Code

Gamers from the days of the NES will always remember the Konami code. Many of Konami's games incorporated the same code that would have different effects, usually rewarding the player with a host of power-ups. There are slight variations in different games, but the classic code rings familiar in so many gamer's ears:

Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, B, A, Start.