Columns is a match-three puzzle video game released by Sega in 1990. Designed by Jay Geertsen, it was released by Sega for arcades and then ported to several Sega consoles. The game was subsequently ported to home computer platforms, including the Atari ST.
Final Fight is a side-scrolling beat-'em-up video game produced by Capcom. Originally released as an arcade game in 1989, it was the seventh title released for the CP System hardware. Set in the fictional Metro City, the game lets the player control one of three street fighters: former pro wrestler and city mayor Mike Haggar, expert brawler Cody Travers, and modern-day ninja Guy. The trio set out to rescue Jessica when she is kidnapped by the Mad Gear Gang.
Ultra Software Corporation was a shell corporation and publishing label created in 1988 as a subsidiary of Konami of America, in an effort to get around Nintendo of America's strict licensing rules in place at the time for the North American market. One of these rules was that a third-party company could only publish up to five games per year for the Nintendo Entertainment System in the US. This was hardly convenient for Konami, which had begun releasing more than ten games a year for both the Famicom and its Disk System add-on in Japan. With a greater library than it was allowed to localize, Konami formed the Ultra Games brand to extend its annual library to ten games a year.
Jaleco Ltd. was a corporate brand name that was used by two previously connected video game developers and publishers based in Japan. The original Jaleco company was founded in 1974 as Japan Leisure Company, founded by Yoshiaki Kanazawa, before being renamed to simply Jaleco in the early 1980s. This company was later acquired in 2000 by PCCW, who rebranded it as their Japanese game division, PCCW Japan, before reverting it to Jaleco in 2002. In 2006, Jaleco became independent from PCCW and renamed to Jaleco Holding, having their video game operations spun off into a new company, also called Jaleco. This new spin-off company was sold to mobile developer Game Yarou in 2009, with Jaleco Holding renaming itself to Encom Holdings shortly after.
Technōs Japan Corp. was a Japanese video game developer, best known for the Double Dragon and Kunio-kun franchises as well as Karate Champ, The Combatribes and Voltage Fighter Gowcaizer. As of June 2015, Arc System Works owns the intellectual properties of Technōs Japan.
Raiden is a 1990 vertically scrolling shooter arcade video game developed by Seibu Kaihatsu and published by Tecmo in Japan. The game's story takes place in the year 2090, when an alien species known as the Crystals invaded Earth. Players assume the roles of the Vanquish Crystal Defense pilot duo, taking control of two state of the art Fighting Thunders aircraft to defeat the Crystals and save the Earth.
Ocean Software Ltd was a British software development company that became one of the biggest European video game developers and publishers of the 1980s and 1990s.
1991 saw many sequels and prequels in video games, such as Street Fighter II, Final Fantasy IV, Super Castlevania IV, Mega Man 4, Super Ghouls 'n Ghosts, and The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, along with new titles such as Sonic the Hedgehog, Battletoads, Lemmings, Sunset Riders, Duke Nukem, Fatal Fury: King of Fighters, and Streets of Rage. The year's highest-grossing video game worldwide was Capcom's arcade fighting game Street Fighter II. The year's best-selling home system was the Game Boy for the second year in a row, while the year's best-selling home video game was Sega's Sonic the Hedgehog, which was also the year's top video game rental in the United States.
Seibu Kaihatsu Inc. was a Japanese manufacturer of arcade games. The company was founded in 1982 at Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo, Japan as Seibu Denshi Inc. (有限会社セイブ電子), but changed to its current name sometime in 1984. It is currently owned by Hitoshi Hamada.
Fatal Fury 2, known as Garō Densetsu 2: Aratanaru Tatakai in Japan, is a 1992 fighting video game released by SNK for the Neo Geo arcade and home platforms, and later ported to several other home systems. It is the sequel to Fatal Fury: King of Fighters (1991) and the second game in the Fatal Fury franchise. Its updated version, Fatal Fury Special, was released in 1993.
Romstar Inc. was a video game distribution company based in Torrance, California that started operations in 1984. They originally started as the first American distribution arm for SNK. They were known for licensing arcade games from major makers for distribution. Among Romstar's clients include Taito, Capcom, SNK, Toaplan, and Seta. They also made games for the Nintendo Entertainment System, the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, and Game Boy. The ultimate fate of the company is not known. Games continued to be released using the Romstar name until at least 1994. It is also partnered with Capcom in 1993 to form Game Star, an electromechanical factory in Arlington Heights, Illinois that Romstar had a 30% stake in. In 1995, Capcom would later fully take over Game Star to form Capcom Coin-Op, a pinball manufacturer.
Culture Brain Inc. is a Japanese video game developer and publisher founded on October 5, 1980. In 2016, it was renamed Culture Brain Excel.
Raiden Fighters 2: Operation Hell Dive is a 1997 scrolling shooter arcade game by Seibu Kaihatsu. It is the direct sequel to Raiden Fighters, which is a spin-off of the Raiden scrolling shooter video game franchise. This game shares the same game mechanics as its predecessor while expanding on the concepts that defined it. It is followed by Raiden Fighters Jet, the third game in the series.
Athena Co. Ltd. was a Japanese video game developer, founded in July 1987.
Viper Phase 1 is a 1995 scrolling shooter arcade game by Seibu Kaihatsu. It is a spin-off in the Raiden series set in space.
Raiden is a series of arcade games by Seibu Kaihatsu initially available in arcades in Japan and later distributed to other countries by Fabtek and other arcade game manufacturers.
UFO Interactive Games, based in City of Industry, California, is an American publisher of interactive video game content, developing on multiple platforms with a focus on original and mass-market gaming software. As an official third party licensee of Nintendo of America and Sony Computer Entertainment of America, UFO Interactive Games has published numerous titles for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Nintendo DS, Wii, PlayStation 2 and PlayStation Portable consoles.
TAD Corporation was a Japanese manufacturer of video arcade games that was founded and headquartered in Mitaka-shi, Tokyo, Japan. It was founded by former employees of the company Data East and was named after its founder and owner name Tadashi "TAD" Yokoyama. They are best known for their first video arcade game, the 1988 shooting gallery-type Cabal, as well as their second one, the 1989 run 'n' gun-style platformer Toki. In Japan, Taito, Tecmo and Sammy assisted TAD in distributing their arcade titles, while Fabtek distributed every arcade title of TAD's internationally with permission. TAD Corporation also licensed its titles for arcade-to-console conversions to other companies such as Ocean Software, Milton Bradley, Rare, Taito and Sega; however, only Cabal and Toki received home conversions. After the release of their last two arcade titles both in 1992: the beat 'em up Legionnaire, and the run 'n gun Heated Barrel; TAD Corporation quietly abandoned its production on February 5, 1993. After ending its business, members were traded to Mitchell Corporation.
