【データイースト27年史】ヘンなゲームならまかせとけ ヘラクレスIIIに野島一成・メタルマックスに宮岡寛 開発者の足跡で読み解く奇ゲーの帝国

This video explains the 27-year history of Data East Corporation, known for its catchphrase, "Leave weird games to us!" Founded on April 20, 1976, by Tetsuo Fukuda in Ogikubo, Suginami-ku, Tokyo, the company created the world's first full-fledged interchangeable arcade board, the DECO Cassette System. From quirky games like BurgerTime, Karate-do, Karnov, and Trio the Punch to hardcore RPGs, Data East has released a wide range of titles within its free-spirited corporate culture. This video particularly shines a light on the developers behind Data East's creations. The scenario for "Hercules no Eikou III: Kamigami no Chinmoku," considered the masterpiece of the series, was written by Kazushige Nojima, who would later write "Final Fantasy VII." Hiroshi Miyaoka, the creator of "Metal Max," left the production staff of the Dragon Quest Loto trilogy to establish Createch, releasing a tank RPG with the catchphrase, "I'm tired of slaying dragons!" The character designs for the first installment of "Detective Jinguji Saburo" were created by Katsuya Terada, the illustrator who later produced masterpieces such as Zeiram. Data East was a place where many future big-name creators honed their skills. The company was founded in 1976 by Tetsuo Fukuda, who graduated from Tokai University's Faculty of Engineering and joined a measuring instrument manufacturer. His involvement in the development of light gun-type electromechanical games sparked his interest in arcade games. The company name, DECO, was chosen to rival Data West, meaning "the data company of the East." The DECO cassette system, released in September 1980, was an innovative system that stored encrypted programs on inexpensive cassette tapes and supplied games to arcade boards. It is considered the first complete general-purpose system board in Japan, and released over 40 titles. His representative works are diverse, ranging from bizarre games to masterpieces, including BurgerTime (1982) (a surreal action game where Peter Pepper stomps on hamburger ingredients), Karate-do (1984) (the world's first full-fledged fighting game developed by Technos Japan and published by Data East), Karnov (1987) (a game featuring a fat man in mambo pants as the protagonist), Trio the Punch (1990) (a representative silly game described as a chaotic mess), Metal Max (1991) (a tank RPG), Fighters History (1993) (a game with a weakness system; later sued by Capcom for being similar to Street Fighter II, but the court ruled it was not infringing, and a settlement was reached in 1994), and Magical Drop (1995) (a representative work from his later period). From a business perspective, Data East withdrew from the arcade business in 1998, filed for bankruptcy protection in November 1999 with debts of 3.3 billion yen, and the protection was approved in July 2000. However, its attempts to rebuild, such as the shiitake mushroom cultivation business (sold with the Data East logo on the packaging) and the negative ion generator business, both failed. In late April 2003, it filed for bankruptcy, and on June 25 of the same year, it was declared bankrupt, bringing its 27-year history to an end. However, Data East's IP did not die. In February 2004, G-Mode acquired the rights to over 100 titles, and currently, under the leadership of IP Business Division Manager Gensuke Matsuoka, they continue to develop remakes and new titles with the policy that "we won't accept them unless you love Data East." The series continues to thrive, with titles like BurgerTime Party (Nintendo Switch, 2019) and Magical Drop VI (developed by Forever Entertainment in Poland, 2023) being released. Detective Jinguji Saburo is developed by Arc System Works, and Metal Max by Cygames. 🔔Subscribe here Packed with content that retro game lovers absolutely can't miss! Don't forget to click the notification bell!    / @yukkuri-retro   *This video respects the copyrights of each game and uses footage only within the scope of review and explanation. *We strive to provide the most accurate information possible based on publicly available primary sources. [Character Voices] Kotonoha Akane (A.I.VOICE) Kotonoha Aoi (A.I.VOICE) Zundamon (VOICEVOX) Tsukuyomi-chan (COEIROINK) #DataEast #RetroGames