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Natsume Atari Co., Ltd. (Japanese: ナツメアタリ株式会社), formerly Natsume Co., Ltd. (Japanese: ナツメ株式会社) from 1987 to 2013, is a Japanese video game developer and publisher. Natsume Atari is based in Shinjuku, Tokyo, Japan and is known for developing licensed titles and mobile games.
 | |
| Company type | Private K.K. |
|---|---|
| Industry | Video game |
| Founded | 20 October 1987 |
| Headquarters | Shinjuku, Tokyo, Japan[1] |
Key people | Takashi Matsumoto (CEO, Natsume-Atari) |
| Products | Lufia Pocky & Rocky Wild Guns |
| Revenue | 719,000,000 yen  |
Number of employees | 150[1] |
| Website | www |
The company was founded as Natsume Co., Ltd. in 1987. In 1995, its American division Natsume Inc. split to become an independent company. The name "Natsume" was retained by both companies in their respective countries. In 2013, Natsume Co., Ltd. renamed itself Natsume Atari following a merger with its subsidiary Atari Inc. (a pachinko company, not to be confused with the American game company) that year.[2] Since 2016, Natsume Atari's division Tengo Project has developed modern remakes to classic video games.
Products
editDuring the NES and SNES era, Natsume Atari developed numerous titles, often licensed, such as Power Rangers. Natsume Inc published a wide range of titles, including those developed by Natsume Co. Ltd., such as S.C.A.T., Wild Guns and Shadow of the Ninja. Natsume Atari also released the SNES game Pocky & Rocky as well as Lufia II: Rise of the Sinistrals. Natsume Atari had also developed the Medarot games up until the end of the GBA era, and Natsume Inc. published some of them outside of Japan.
A sizeable amount of Natsume Atari's products were video games it developed for other publishers. Some of its biggest clients over the years included Imagineer, Bandai, THQ and Taito. Most of Natsume Atari's video games, as a sub-contractor, were original titles, but it occasionally developed some ports as well. Taito, in particular, outsourced the development of three of its Master System ports to Natsume Co., Ltd.: Sagaia, Renegade and Special Criminal Investigation.[3]
Corporate divisions
editNatsume Co., Ltd. was founded in Japan on October 20, 1987.[1] It became the parent company of Natsume Inc., founded in May 1988. Natsume Inc. started publishing video games in 1990.[4] By 1995, Natsume Inc. had broken away into its own company and is separately owned and operated.[5]
In October 2002, Natsume Co., Ltd. founded the pachinko company Atari Inc. (not to be confused with the American game company) in Osaka, which specialized in developing slot and pinball machines. On May 6, 2005, Natsume Solution began operation in Shinjuku. This division specializes on web site development, providing mobile solutions/services and developing web systems. On March 1, 2006, Natsume Solution was merged with Evolve.
Natsume Co., Ltd. changed its name to Natsume Atari in October 2013, and it is not directly connected to Natsume Inc. or its subsidiary Natsume Inc. Japan.[6] Despite their corporate split off, Natsume Atari and Natsume Inc. have continued to collaborate on a number of occasions.[7][8]
Within Natsume Atari exists Tengo Project, an internal development team established as early as 2008 for the production of Omega Five, which has shifted its focus to modern revivals of classic video games.[9] Composed of veteran developers with an average age of 54 (as of 2022), its permanent members are composer Hiroyuki Iwatsuki, designer Shunichi Taniguchi, and programmer Toshiyasu Miyabe.[10] Its works include Wild Guns Reloaded, The Ninja Saviors: Return of the Warriors and Pocky & Rocky Reshrined.
Works
editPre-split Natsume
editThese are games produced while Natsume Inc., was still operating as a subsidiary of Natsume Co., Ltd. Natsume Inc. would publish only Natsume Co., Ltd.'s games until becoming independent in the mid-90s.
| Year | Title | Publisher(s) | Platform(s) | Details | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 | Tōhōken Bunroku | Natsume | NES | Japan only | [11] |
| 1989 | Idol Hakkenden | Towa Chiki | NES | Japan only | |
| Mitsume ga Tooru: The Three-Eyed One Comes Here | Natsume | MSX | Japan only | ||
| Dungeon Magic: Sword of the Elements | Natsume/Taito | NES | |||
| Abadox: The Deadly Inner War | Natsume/Milton Bradley | NES | |||
| 1990 | Amazing Penguin | Natsume | Game Boy | ||
| Power Blade | Taito | NES | Co-developed with Taito | ||
| Dragon Fighter | Towa Chiki/SOFEL | NES | |||
| S.C.A.T.: Special Cybernetic Attack Team | Natsume/Infogrames | NES | |||
| Shadow of the Ninja | Natsume/Taito | NES | |||
| 1991 | Chōjin Sentai Jetman | Angel | NES | Japan only | |
| Ninja Gaiden Shadow | Tecmo | Game Boy | |||
| Spanky's Quest | Taito (GB), Natsume (SNES) | Game Boy, SNES | |||
| Tail 'Gator | VAP/Natsume | Game Boy | |||
| Advanced Dungeons & Dragons: Heroes of the Lance | Pony Canyon | NES | |||
| Shatterhand | Angel/Jaleco | NES | |||
| Chaos World | Natsume | NES | Japan only | ||
| 1992 | The Jetsons: Cogswell's Caper! | Taito/Mattel | NES | ||
| Mitsume ga Tōru | Tomy | NES | Japan only | ||
| Pocky & Rocky | Natsume | SNES | |||
| Power Blade 2 | Taito | NES | Co-developed with Taito | ||
| Sagaia | Sega[a] | Master System | Europe and Brazil only; based on the Sega Genesis port | ||
| Special Criminal Investigation | Sega[a] | Master System | Europe and Brazil only | ||
| 1993 | Renegade | Sega[a] | Master System | Europe, Brazil and Australia only | |
| Zen-Nippon Pro Wrestling | Masaya | SNES | Japan only | ||
| Zen-Nippon Pro Wrestling Dash: Sekai Saikyō Tag | Masaya | SNES | Updated version; Japan only | ||
| Ghost Sweeper Mikami: Joreishi wa Nice Body | Banalex | SNES | Japan only | ||
| 1994 | Pocky & Rocky 2 | Natsume/Ocean Software | SNES | ||
| Wild Guns | Natsume/Titus Software | SNES | |||
| Natsume Championship Wrestling | Natsume | SNES | Heavily based on Zen-Nippon Wrestling Dash | ||
| The Ninja Warriors | Taito/Titus | SNES | |||
| Mighty Morphin Power Rangers | Bandai | SNES |
Natsume Atari / Natsume Co., Ltd.
editNatsume Atari, formerly Natsume Co., Ltd, has mostly acted as a developer since splitting from Natsume Inc. - although it has also published some games, notably in the Medarot series.
Tengo Project
edit| Year | Title | Publisher(s) | Platform(s) | Details | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Omega Five | Hudson Soft | Xbox 360 | ||
| 2016 | Wild Guns Reloaded | Natsume Co. (JP), Natsume Inc. (WW) | PlayStation 4, Windows, Nintendo Switch | Based on Wild Guns (1994) | |
| 2019 | The Ninja Saviors: Return of the Warriors | Taito (JP and PC), ININ Games (WW) | Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Windows | Based on The Ninja Warriors (1994) | |
| 2022 | Pocky & Rocky Reshrined | Taito (JP), Natsume Inc. (WW), Natsume Atari (PC), ININ Games (Xbox) | Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Windows, Xbox Series X/S | Based on Pocky & Rocky (1992) | |
| 2024 | Shadow of the Ninja Reborn | Natsume Atari (JP), ININ Games (WW) | Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows, Xbox Series X/S | Based on Shadow of the Ninja (1990) |
Note
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c INC., NATSUME ATARI (December 18, 2017). "ゲーム遊技機開発のナツメアタリ株式会社｜ナツメアタリ株式会社". ナツメアタリ株式会社.
- ^ INC., NATSUME ATARI (December 18, 2017). "ゲーム遊技機開発のナツメアタリ株式会社｜ナツメアタリ株式会社". ナツメアタリ株式会社.
- ^ "サービス終了のお知らせ".
- ^ "Natsume - Serious Fun!". March 3, 2005. Archived from the original on March 3, 2005.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) - ^ "Fragments of Silicon - Live & Recorded Episodes". www.talkshoe.com. Archived from the original on May 25, 2018. Retrieved July 8, 2015.
- ^ "WIKIPEDIA: BAD SOURCE OF INFO". CeeCee's Musings. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016.
- ^ "[Industry Interviews] Taka Maekawa from Natsume Inc". November 22, 2017.
- ^ The Classic SNES Shooter Comes to PlayStation 4 This Fall
- ^ "Tengo Project". Gematsu. October 18, 2021. Retrieved December 4, 2023.
- ^ "TENGO PROJECT - About". Natsume Atari. Retrieved December 4, 2023.
- ^ "Touhou Kenbun Roku - The Cutting Room Floor". tcrf.net.
- ^ "Dragon Dance". IGN. Retrieved September 25, 2022.
- ^ Romano, Sal (April 12, 2022). "Eiyuden Chronicle: Rising launches May 10". Gematsu. Retrieved October 9, 2024.
- ^ Romano, Sal (February 21, 2024). "FuRyu and Natsume Atari announce Shibuya-set action RPG REYNATIS for PS5, PS4, and Switch". Gematsu. Retrieved September 16, 2024.
External links
edit- Natsume Atari homepage (Japanese)
- Natsume Co., Ltd. homepage (Japanese, old)
- Natsume Solution/evolve Co., Ltd. homepage (Japanese)