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History Of Konami

History Of Companies - 35

By TheNaethPublished about a year ago 4 min read

It was on March 21, 1969 when Koga Masa Kazuki laid the groundwork for what would eventually become known as Konami, a company that specialized in the maintenance and retail sale of cassette players. 1973 was the year that it was ultimately awarded the name Konami Industry Co., which marked the beginning of its official establishment. Beginning in the 1970s, the company transitioned from producing arcade machines to designing its own games and then began manufacturing arcade machines. This development occurred at the beginning of the decade. In spite of the fact that their first game, "Maze," was launched in 1976, it was the publication of "Frogger" in 1981 that marked the beginning of Konami's first significant success in the gaming industry. Both the game's playability and its pioneering use of dual central processing units (CPUs) made "Frogger" a remarkable game. 

 

In the 1980s, Konami went through a phase in which it saw rapid expansion and diversification of its commercial operations. In 1981, Konami produced "Scramble," the first multi-level side-scrolling shooter, along with its sequel, "Super Cobra." Both games were released within the same year. Alongside the introduction of "Frogger," "Scramble" was also shown for the first time. These games had a vital role in establishing the foundation for subsequent contributions to the shooter genre with their inclusion. As an additional point of interest, Konami established Konami of America by the year 1981, which made it easier for the corporation to enter the fast growing markets for personal computers and consoles. The company made the decision to rename itself in 1986, when it had already established itself as a significant player in the video game industry. A new logo was selected by the firm as a part of this implementation process. This time period seen the introduction of well-known video games like as "Contra," "Metal Gear," and "Castlevania," each of which would go on to spawn a number of sequels and serve as the foundation of the company's library of titles.

Throughout the 1990s, Konami not only worked on developing its own unique intellectual properties (IPs), but the business also experimented with games that were licensed from other companies. That was notably true with regard to the "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" brand, in addition to other franchises such as "The Simpsons" and "X-Men," both of which achieved a great degree of success in the United States of America. It is important to note that not all licensed games were met with favorable reviews, and some of them were considered to be of a poor quality. Konami joined the health and fitness sector in Japan, as well as the pachinko and slot machine businesses, both of which turned out to be lucrative side projects alongside the video game firm. In addition to its video game companies, Konami also entered the market for slot machines because of their popularity. 

 

In 1999, Konami made a substantial breakthrough into the trading card market with the publishing of "Yu-Gi-Oh," which was a great success all over the globe. This was the beginning of our relationship with trading card companies. The release of "Metal Gear Solid," a video game that not only brought the series back to life but also had a significant influence on the stealth genre, took place during this time period as well. The beginning of the twenty-first century was defined by Konami's continuous success across a range of gaming platforms, including mobile games, which, despite garnering mixed reviews from gamers who are committed to the genre, proved to be economically successful. 

 

Since the beginning of the 2010s, Konami's relationship with the gaming community has been experiencing increasing levels of tension. The year 2015 saw the emergence of rumors stating that the working conditions were appalling, and the firm was exposed to criticism for the way in which it handled its employees. The departure of Hideo Kojima, a well-known game designer, was another heated topic that arose around this time. This same time period also saw the cancellation of projects that had been eagerly anticipated, such as the television show "Silent Hills." The choice made by Konami to change its focus away from traditional video games and toward mobile gaming and gambling technologies has proved to be a move that has proven to be profitable for the firm, despite the fact that it has been received with controversy among gaming enthusiasts. Nevertheless, in spite of the fact that the organization continues to report a rise in revenue, the reputation of the company within the gaming industry is still being scrutinized. 

 

It is hard to dispute the impact that Konami has had on the video game industry, despite the fact that there have been recent problems. In addition to being a pioneer in a wide variety of game genres, the company also contributed concepts that have had a considerable influence on the gaming industry. The "Konami Code," a cheat code that was first made available to the public in the 1980s, continues to be one of the most well-known components of the culture that surrounds video games. A number of the games that Konami has created, such as "Metal Gear Solid," "Castlevania," and "Contra," continue to be praised for the enormous contributions that they have made to the narrative of gaming history.

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