Timeline: Japanese contributions to video games (2/5)
- September 21, 2007 12:55 PM PST
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1973 - Hudson Soft is formed getting its start in personal computers. Though one of the smallest Japanese publishers on our timeline, Hudson has built a recognizable lineup of games and peripherals. Bomberman, their most successful game, will be pivotal in the development of more than two player party games.
1975 - Under the direction of Hiroshi Yamauchi, Nintendo begins its modern day entrance into video games. The company will hire Shigeru Miyamoto to start work on Donkey Kong. It will soon transform into the largest video game company in the world -- something it wouldn't forfeit until later in the Nineties to future-partner, later rival Sony Computer Entertainment.
1978 - Taito, a small vending machine company founded in 1953, releases Space Invaders, the game that started the Golden Age of Arcade Games. The shooter will rank as one of the most influential video games ever created and go on to be Taito's most popular game of all time. The company will be acquired by Square Enix in 2005.
1978 - SNK is formed and soon falls head over heals for versus fighting games. The company is most notable for creating the Neo-Geo arcade system, and several franchise games including King Of Fighters, Metal Slug, Samurai Showdown, and Fatal Fury.
1979 - Namco releases Galaxian, a fixed shooter arcade game that expanded the formula pioneered by Space Invaders. Unlike Taito's game, however, Galaxian enemies fought back with periodic kamikaze-like dives on the player's ship. Additionally, Galaxian featured multi-colored animations and explosions, enhanced audio, different colored fonts (it was a big deal back then), and a scrolling starfield. These elements combined will create a the standard for 80s arcade games such as Pac-Man.
1979 - Japan Capsule Computers is formed, later abbreviated to Capcom. It will soon become one of the world's largest and most famous third-party publishers. Early successes will include the side-scrolling shooter 1942 followed by Mega Man, Street Fighter, Resident Evil, and Devil May Cry to name a few.
1980 - Namco releases Pac-Man and video games infiltrate pop-culture for the first time. The game (which is still Namco's biggest-seller) will be universally considered as a classic and virtually synonymous with video games by creating a new (read: non-shooter) genre that appealed to both males and females. The pellet-munching yellow blob will later grace the cover of Time magazine due to his popularity.
1981 - Nintendo releases Donkey Kong and introduces the world to an Italian protagonist later named Mario. While initially the mascot for Nintendo, DK will get demoted as Mario takes over.
1982 - Namco releases Pole Position in arcades which will popularize driving games for the first time.
1984 - Though Nintendo would later universalize the side-scrolling platform genre, Namco was the one to invent the genre with the launch of Pac-Land in 1984.
