View Full Version : Developer Obscura Vol. 1: Pony Canyon & Friends
What did Pony Canyon do for the NES? Did Pony Canyon develop Capcom's early NES games? These questions were discussed in this thread:
http://www.digitpress.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=58953
I decided to undertake a mini-investigation into NES fans' favorite developer. Here are the results so far:
GAMES KNOWN OR DETERMINED TO BE DEVELOPED OR WORKED ON BY PONY CANYON
1942
Tiger-Heli
Dr. Chaos
Phantom Fighter
Onyanko Town
Ghosts'n Goblins
Son Son
Exed Exes
Ikari Warriors
Winter Games
Super Pitfall
Break Time
Mike Ditka Big Play Football (Unreleased)
POSSIBLE PONY CANYON GAMES
Attack Animal Gakuen
Ikari Warriors II: Victory Road
Commando
Trojan
Thundercade
Ultima: Exodus
Ultima: Warriors of Destiny
The thing about Commando and Trojan is that while they are glitchy, they lack the blurry/choppy animation of most NES Pony Canyon games.
Lord Contaminous
10-05-2005, 08:23 PM
Zanac is another one.
Gamemaster_ca_2003
10-05-2005, 08:31 PM
Pony Canyon Aslo Did the NES/FC Ballblazer I beleve.
Leroy
10-05-2005, 09:56 PM
Well, that explains some of early Capcom crap-ware.
Dimitri
10-05-2005, 10:03 PM
Pony Canyon (like Asmik or Bandai if you follow the reasoning) was a Japanese publisher of music, movies, books, etc in addition to games. I think they're still around, actually. For one, they were instrumental (pun intended) in making game music soundtracks a huge deal in Japan. The vast majority of early game soundtracks were published by Pony Canyon. ;)
That said, another one you can add to the list is the Famicom port of Artdink's "Arctic". I don't believe it's mentioned in-game, but the box has the Pony Canyon logo on it...like most Artdink titles, it is also incredibly bizarre and mostly pointless...
Kim Possible
10-06-2005, 12:44 AM
far as I know Pony Canyon did the work on all of the Ultima games, maybe not Warriors of Destiny, but I know for sure they did the other two.
Mr. Smashy
10-06-2005, 12:51 AM
Add "Pool of Radiance" to the list.
Li Wang
10-06-2005, 01:00 AM
I believe it has also been speculated that the same team was responsible for Athena. BMF54123 was looking at it in a debugger awhile back and he was talking about how it had the same inefficient loading technique that gives all their other games load time.
The general theory is that all these terribly coded games came from an independant development studio that Pony Canyon contracted to code most of their Famicom/NES games. This would explain why so many different companies had stuff developed by them early on. I personally suspect they originally developed for computers and just couldn't get the hang of the Famicom hardware. Whether Pony Canyon actually contracted them to develop computer games is a mystery. None of the MSX or PC88 games published by the company I've played have had the same feel. Some are actually quite excellent, like the PC88 version of Super Pitfall.
Zanac is another one.
Developed by Compile
far as I know Pony Canyon did the work on all of the Ultima games, maybe not Warriors of Destiny, but I know for sure they did the other two.
According to Developer Table (http://www.review-site.net/developer/), a company called Infinity developed Ultima: Quest of the Avatar. They also did Battle of Olympus. If you compare the two, you'll see the similarities.
Add "Pool of Radiance" to the list.
According to Developer Table (http://www.review-site.net/developer/), it was done by Marionette.
The general theory is that all these terribly coded games came from an independant development studio that Pony Canyon contracted to code most of their Famicom/NES games. This would explain why so many different companies had stuff developed by them early on. I personally suspect they originally developed for computers and just couldn't get the hang of the Famicom hardware. Whether Pony Canyon actually contracted them to develop computer games is a mystery. None of the MSX or PC88 games published by the company I've played have had the same feel. Some are actually quite excellent, like the PC88 version of Super Pitfall.
Makes sense, but what studio? Hmmm...
Aussie2B
10-06-2005, 01:10 AM
As far as I know, Pony Canyon hasn't developed ANY games. They're a publisher. A lot of those games were developed by Capcom, while others are from SNK, and the rest are from other random companies. As Dimitri pointed out, Pony Canyon is also a huge publisher of albums. I think every SNK soundtrack I own was published by them.
As far as I know, Pony Canyon hasn't developed ANY games. They're a publisher. A lot of those games were developed by Capcom, while others are from SNK, and the rest are from other random companies. As Dimitri pointed out, Pony Canyon is also a huge publisher of albums. I think every SNK soundtrack I own was published by them.
PC does all kinds of stuff (as I mentioned in that earlier thread, they're part of the FCI empire):
http://www.ponycanyon.co.jp/
Anyway, if you play the games, there is no question they were done by the same company, whether it was Pony Canyon (which seems to be in doubt now) or some other studio (as Li Wang suggested).
Aussie2B
10-06-2005, 01:29 AM
Yes, I realize they are involved in a lot of things and have had a hand in the publishing of many games, but that doesn't mean they're MAKING them. The only evidence in game involvement I can tell from that site is the page about those PS2 "games" with Japanese idols, which makes sense since they're more like interactive videos than games, if I'm not mistaken.
At the very least, I can assure you that NO ONE but Capcom and SNK made their respective games, like Capcom with Ghost 'n' Goblins and SNK with Ikari Warriors and Athena.
At the very least, I can assure you that NO ONE but Capcom and SNK made their respective games, like Capcom with Ghost 'n' Goblins and SNK with Ikari Warriors and Athena.
Play Son Son (Capcom) and Onyanko Town (published by Pony Canyon) and tell me they're not by the same people. A lot of these games have similar graphical issues, musical styles, graphical styles, and have the same or similar pause tone(s) (like how many NES Konami games shared a pause tone).
Graham Mitchell
10-06-2005, 07:48 AM
The Ponycanyon "magic" touch is there in all these games people are mentinoning, Aussie2B. It really is. There's no way that Ghosts 'N' Goblins and Mega Man are developed by the same people. Mega Man is amazingly well made. G'N'G...well, it isn't.
I'm glad this topic resuraced. I'm absolutely fascinated with Ponycanyon. This is because, in a time when games like Super Mario Brothers, Castlevania, and many other good titles for the Famicom existed, how were these pieces of crap considered acceptable? Nintendo's QA was sort of inconsistent, wouldn't you think?
Aussie2B
10-06-2005, 11:23 AM
A lot of people love Ghosts 'N' Goblins, and a lot of people don't think the first Mega Man is so great, so meh on that.
Considering that a lot of these games discussed were originally arcade games, I could accept the theory that Pony Canyon had a role in the porting over of them to NES, but that's it, at the very most.
Oh, and my boyfriend suggested the theory that since, to many, Pony Canyon is synonymous with game music, they may have been responsible for the sound in the games. Obviously, the composition belongs to the respective composers from each company, but having the music use the hardware in similar ways could result in similar styles and this could also explain reused sound effects.
Mr. Smashy
10-06-2005, 01:02 PM
Add "Pool of Radiance" to the list.
According to Developer Table (http://www.review-site.net/developer/), it was done by Marionette.
What did Pony Canyon do for the NES?
*snip*
GAMES KNOWN OR DETERMINED TO BE DEVELOPED OR WORKED ON BY PONY CANYON
Here's what I see when I put Pool of Radiance in my NES.
http://www3.telus.net/smashy/pool%20of%20radiance.jpg
I can only assume that since Pony Canyon is shown right on the first screen, Pool of Radiance is something they "did" and possibly "worked on". If you are looking for games that were only developed by Pony Canyon, you may want to modify your first post.
Li Wang
10-06-2005, 02:18 PM
Ghostbusters is another possible suspect. It was published by Tokuma Shoten, who also published Exed Exes. It doesn't have the famous Pony Canyon load time but the game itself just has that feel. The music, graphics, and gameplay are vintage Pony Canyon. The game doesn't have the pause tone...because the music just sort of comes to a leisurely stop when you pause it. That's really the only way I can describe it. The current bleep or blip actually gets stuck for a couple seconds.
In the Famicom version you can actually get enough money to get into Zuul without ever leaving the shop. The ghost alarm costs $2000. The buyback value is $3000.
For extra fun, visit one building with ghosts, then return to "SHOP WORKSS". Buy and then sell back an anti-ghost suit. Enjoy your $9999999!
Of course, it could just be another crappy early Famicom game. The era from 1983-1986 had some really putrid third party garbage from all kinds of companies. It does feel like them, though.
Here's (http://www.gamefaqs.com/features/company/72542.html) the Pony Canyon listing on Gamefaqs, by the way. We'll have to go through and guess which of their published titles were from the crap dev house and which ones weren't. Shadow Brain is one of the ones that obviously wasn't.
Graham Mitchell
10-06-2005, 02:40 PM
Lunar Pool was confirmed to have been developed by Compile (that's why it's awesome) so scratch that off the list.
Sardius
10-06-2005, 04:19 PM
I believe it was confirmed awhile back that the company who developed these games is just an anonymous third-party developer, not Pony Canyon themselves.
They developed all the games you listed, along with Commando (not Trojan), Victory Road, Athena, and Kaiketsu Yanchamaru 3, among other games. They improved somewhat by Kaiketsu Yanchamaru 3, but their lack of programming skill is evident in pretty much everything they made.
It's a shame that the GBC port of Ghosts'n Goblins had to be based off of their terrible NES version. Yeech.
I believe it was confirmed awhile back that the company who developed these games is just an anonymous third-party developer, not Pony Canyon themselves.
But again, we don't know who it is. Ultima: Exodus mentions being produced by Newtopia Planning. Could this be anything?
I can only assume that since Pony Canyon is shown right on the first screen, Pool of Radiance is something they "did" and possibly "worked on". If you are looking for games that were only developed by Pony Canyon, you may want to modify your first post.
The screen says "presented by Pony Canyon," which can be done by simply publishing something.
And by "worked on," I mean the company in question might not have been the sole developer. They could have been a co-developer with another company or a support developer (maybe they only did the graphics or music).
ArnoldRimmer83
10-07-2005, 04:18 PM
One possible name for the company that produced all these early ports and games is "micronics". BMF once noticed it was mentioned on the title screen of the Snes port of "Raiden Traid", and that game seems to have some of their trademark coding. Unfortunately it isn't 100% proof that it is their name, but I nevertheless have been going by it since.
Not much else I can really add to this thread. Kaiketsu Yanchamaru 3 (aka Kid Niki 3) is by far their greatest Famicom game. Still a bit glitchy, but its actually pretty playable, making me think Irem was more strict and threatened beat downs if they didn't sit down and learn to code the Famicom properly.
Haoie
10-07-2005, 07:17 PM
They do something with anime too, I remember seeing in the credits of Steel Angel Kurumi their name.
FurinkanianFrood
10-07-2005, 08:05 PM
PostPosted: Fri Oct 07, 2005 6:17 pm Post subject:
They do something with anime too
Of course they do. And they have been for a long time. They are a broadly involved JP media publishing company. I don't know how they would avoid dealing with anime related stuff.
I've seen them in loads of anime credits from the 80's forward. (I watch very little anime from before the late 70's or so).
They aren't the only broad based media company like that either.
A lot of people love Ghosts 'N' Goblins, and a lot of people don't think the first Mega Man is so great, so meh on that.
People love the GnG port on NES? As if they couldn't just play one of the better versions? I admit I didn't hate some of the games listed above as much as some do though.
FCI definitely published NES Ultima 4 here. You know that emblem with the red dot in the middle? All over the packaging. And I think they published 3 (Exodus) in both US and Japan.
I personally suspect some funky third party developed NES U4, but I would guess it was a different dev than U3 (exodus).
At the very least, I can assure you that NO ONE but Capcom and SNK made their respective games, like Capcom with Ghost 'n' Goblins and SNK with Ikari Warriors and Athena.
Eh, none of us were there LOL. Could Capcom and SNK have had a couple crappy dev teams making stuff of that kind?
Of course.
Could they have had someone else do it? I think that's more likely, but unless you can find someone who actually was directly involved and can remember dumb little crap after 20 years it's hard to see. I think I would remember, but I wan't there.
they may have been responsible for the sound in the games
Hmmm. I don't know, but there are instances of companies just doing the sound work for a game.
I swear I have heard some of the music tracks in multiple (seemingly) unrelated RPGs. I can't remember where for instance, but I think the Meribia tune from Lunar:SSSC was used elsewhere..... Not that I am saying anyone did anything wrong necessarily. It may just be legit reuse.
Somewhere (I can't remember where) someone claimed that Compile is only associated with Sylphia (PCE game) because a related company did something with the music, and thus technically it is included in the exhaustive JP release lists as a Compile work.
Which brings me to another question.
I care enough to bother, but maybe someone could check out complete JP release lists (you know, on JP language sites...) for the above mention PonyCanyon-ish feeling games.
The general theory is that all these terribly coded games came from an independant development studio that Pony Canyon contracted to code most of their Famicom/NES games. This would explain why so many different companies had stuff developed by them early on.
Seems likely.
inefficient loading technique
Doesn't necessarily mean they were the same dev company. Never underestimate the laziness of programmers. Often someone just goes with the first functional code that they write or come across.
GarrettCRW
10-08-2005, 12:58 AM
I care enough to bother, but maybe someone could check out complete JP release lists (you know, on JP language sites...) for the above mention PonyCanyon-ish feeling games.
This needs to be done as a general rule with Japanese systems and/or games. Let's face it: we ugly Americans have next to no contact with gamers in Japan, even when it comes to those of us who know the language. It's a bit annoying to me that a really fascinating subject like this is relegated to mere speculation because there's next to no communication with our (potential) friends in Japan.
This needs to be done as a general rule with Japanese systems and/or games. Let's face it: we ugly Americans have next to no contact with gamers in Japan, even when it comes to those of us who know the language. It's a bit annoying to me that a really fascinating subject like this is relegated to mere speculation because there's next to no communication with our (potential) friends in Japan.
Unfortunately, it probably is the language barrier that's the biggest problem. Also, there's the chance some just don't want to deal with foreigners.
Developer Table (http://www.review-site.net/developer/) is one Japanese site that should be translated. I've run a lot of it myself through the Animelab.com translator.
Wavelflack
10-08-2005, 01:26 AM
I care enough to bother, but maybe someone could check out complete JP release lists (you know, on JP language sites...) for the above mention PonyCanyon-ish feeling games.
This needs to be done as a general rule with Japanese systems and/or games. Let's face it: we ugly Americans have next to no contact with gamers in Japan, even when it comes to those of us who know the language. It's a bit annoying to me that a really fascinating subject like this is relegated to mere speculation because there's next to no communication with our (potential) friends in Japan.
Why would a superior, nuclear-armed American such as myself need to communicate with such a backward group of people?
Also, why do you "know the language"? Certainly there are more productive secondary languages you could concentrate on...
Update: We may be on to something. I was just looking at the in-game credits for Dr. Chaos and Phantom Fighter. Both say Marionette computer designed/produced them (with SRS doing game design/consulting). So, how do you think this bodes for the other games in question? Did Marionette do those other games, too? Anybody happen to have credits to any of those games?
idrougge
12-19-2005, 06:00 PM
Ghostbusters is another possible suspect. It was published by Tokuma Shoten, who also published Exed Exes. It doesn't have the famous Pony Canyon load time but the game itself just has that feel. The music, graphics, and gameplay are vintage Pony Canyon. The game doesn't have the pause tone...because the music just sort of comes to a leisurely stop when you pause it. That's really the only way I can describe it. The current bleep or blip actually gets stuck for a couple seconds.
Running "strings" on the Japanese Ghostbusters ROM dump reveals this: ORIGINAL PROGRAM AND
CONCEPT @1984
ACTIVISION INC.
CODE FOR NINTENDO FAMILY
COMPUTER @1986 TOKUMA
SHOTEN PUBLISHING
CO.,LTD.
PROGRAMMED BY
WORKSS 1986
So, this game is by Workss. Hence the "SHOP WORKSS" cheat.
I should add that I also am in support of the Pony as publisher theory.
If you further want to investigate Ponyca, I suggest you turn to the MSX world, where they were also a big player.
Edit:
As for Tokuma Shoten, I believe that they had an in-house developer of sorts, called Technopolis Soft.
Running "strings" on the Japanese Ghostbusters ROM dump reveals this: ORIGINAL PROGRAM AND
CONCEPT @1984
ACTIVISION INC.
CODE FOR NINTENDO FAMILY
COMPUTER @1986 TOKUMA
SHOTEN PUBLISHING
CO.,LTD.
PROGRAMMED BY
WORKSS 1986
Interesting find. The US version says it was programmed by Bits. Since it was done in Japan, this must be Bits Laboratory (not Bits Studios, a British company). I wonder if there was a company name change.
idrougge
12-19-2005, 07:20 PM
Isn't Breaktime by Opera house?
Isn't Breaktime by Opera house?
I says "Produced by Pony Canyon & Opera House." I've never heard of Opera House.
idrougge
12-19-2005, 08:36 PM
I believe it was confirmed awhile back that the company who developed these games is just an anonymous third-party developer, not Pony Canyon themselves.
They developed all the games you listed, along with Commando (not Trojan), Victory Road, Athena, and Kaiketsu Yanchamaru 3, among other games. They improved somewhat by Kaiketsu Yanchamaru 3, but their lack of programming skill is evident in pretty much everything they made.
Here is what I have found out:
The programmer of Commando is Masamitsu Kobayashi. In the program code, he reveals that his next game is going to be "Captain Higemaru", which turns out to be Higemaru Makaijima. Only the NES version is seemingly programmed by Mr. Kobayashi, whereas the MSX version is done by "Lunarian", which just might be Lunarian Shintani (of Compile and Lunarball fame) doing some extra work. All the other staff is the same between the two platforms.
As for Mr. Kobayashi, he is credited with Mr. Do's wildride for MSX, which in turn is developed by Angel, which in turn is a Bandai company. The name Masamitsu Kobayashi shows up nearly twenty years later in Resident evil zero, which is yet another Capcom game.
http://www.mobygames.com/developer/sheet/view/developerId,107442/
Allow me to throw another kink in things...Both Ultima: Exodus and Attack Animal Gakuen say they were produced by Newtopia Planning.
- I came across some credits for the Mega CD version of Wing Commander. Bits Laboratory was involved with it and the names match up with the Ghostbusters credits. Was Workss some early name of the company or was it a pseudonym? And were they involved with those other questionable games? IMO, Ghostbusters doesn't have the resemblance to Ikari Warriors or Super Pitfall I hoped it would.
idrougge
12-20-2005, 05:10 PM
I also suspect that the NES version of Thexder could be by Bits lab. Both the programmers (Shôji Satô and Motoyuki Kanayama) are credited the aforementioned Ghostbusters, and Kanayama is also the programmer of Afterburner for PC Engine.
idrougge
12-20-2005, 05:57 PM
There is a lot of correlation between the staff lists of Break time on the NES and Heroes of the lance on MSX. And even a little with Master of monsters for Megadrive, which is supposedly developed by ISCO.
There is a lot of correlation between the staff lists of Break time on the NES and Heroes of the lance on MSX. And even a little with Master of monsters for Megadrive, which is supposedly developed by ISCO.
It's why I think Pony Canyon had at least some sort of internal development team that might have worked mainly on personal computers like the MSX.
You mention Master of Monsters. The two names that stick out are Satoru Miki and Hiroyuki Fujiwara. They programmed a number of Pony Canyon games. It's my opinion that they left Pony Canyon (or whatever group this was) and joined ISCO.
I also suspect that the NES version of Thexder could be by Bits lab. Both the programmers (Shôji Satô and Motoyuki Kanayama) are credited the aforementioned Ghostbusters, and Kanayama is also the programmer of Afterburner for PC Engine.
Well then, they probably did it.
After looking at FC Thexder and Ghostbusters, I think they're out of the running for being the company responsible for Super Pitfall and Tiger-Heli. Neither have glitches, choppy animation, or that trademark pause tone.
adaml
12-21-2005, 02:28 PM
I also suspect that the NES version of Thexder could be by Bits lab. Both the programmers (Shôji Satô and Motoyuki Kanayama) are credited the aforementioned Ghostbusters, and Kanayama is also the programmer of Afterburner for PC Engine.
Well then, they probably did it.
After looking at FC Thexder and Ghostbusters, I think they're out of the running for being the company responsible for Super Pitfall and Tiger-Heli. Neither have glitches, choppy animation, or that trademark pause tone.
I would tend to agree, but they do still have that Pony Canyon feel.
On a side note, am I the only one who thinks of Pony Canyon as some magical place where the ponies run free? I thought so.
idrougge
12-21-2005, 06:43 PM
Ultima: Warriors of destiny was developed in the UK, so strike that one.
Ultima: Quest of the avatar and Ultima: Exodus are both Newtopia games, though.
However, Newtopia is not mentioned in the US version of Quest of the avatar. Instead, a company called Atelier Double (http://www.double.co.jp/sitemap.html) is credited with "NES translation". Since Double is still in business, it is somewhat easier to find some info.
Double was founded in May 1986 when it was handed a Famicom development job by Ponyca. At the end of the year, it was turned into a real company and given its current name. They start developing for "Sega MSX2" by June 1988 and for Gameboy in July 1989. In June 1993 they start SFC development and PSX development starts in March 1995. Saturn development follows in April 1996. Unfortunately, their list of works cannot be reached, but there is one at Developer table.
To recap...
Bits Laboratory:
Ghostbusters
Thexder
Infinity:
Ultima: Quest of the Avatar
Marionette:
AD&D: Pool of Radiance
Dr. Chaos
Phantom Fighter
Newtopia Planning???:
Attack Animal Gakuen
Ultima: Exodus
idrougge
12-21-2005, 07:24 PM
This just in:
I put Atelier Double through archive.org and found their works list.
Here are the relevant titles in chronological order:
Winter games (Acclaim) NES
Winter games (Ponyca) Famicom Disk
Dandy (Ponyca) Famicom Disk
Kujakuô 2 (Ponyca) Famicom
Tamura Mitsuteru (?) mahjong seminar (Ponyca) Famicom
Bard's tale (Ponyca) Famicom
Ultima - Quest of the avatar (FCI America) NES
A-ressha de ikô/A-train (Ponyca) Famicom
Bard's tale (FCI America) NES
Bard's tale 2 (Ponyca) Famicom
AD & D: Dragon of flame (Ponyca) Famicom
Double moon densetsu (Messiah) Famicom
This just in:
I put Atelier Double through archive.org and found their works list.
Here are the relevant titles in chronological order:
Winter games (Acclaim) NES
Winter games (Ponyca) Famicom Disk
Dandy (Ponyca) Famicom Disk
Kujakuô 2 (Ponyca) Famicom
Tamura Mitsuteru (?) mahjong seminar (Ponyca) Famicom
Bard's tale (Ponyca) Famicom
Ultima - Quest of the avatar (FCI America) NES
A-ressha de ikô/A-train (Ponyca) Famicom
Bard's tale (FCI America) NES
Bard's tale 2 (Ponyca) Famicom
AD & D: Dragon of flame (Ponyca) Famicom
Double moon densetsu (Messiah) Famicom
Do you have a link?
I read elsewhere that Infinity did Quest of the Avatar. It even resembles Battle of Olympus, which they also did. I also read that Group SNE did Dragon of Flame.
idrougge
12-21-2005, 08:15 PM
I put Atelier Double through archive.org and found their works list.
Do you have a link?
http://web.archive.org/web/20040515083120/www.double.co.jp/works/fc.html
I read elsewhere that Infinity did Quest of the Avatar. It even resembles Battle of Olympus, which they also did. I also read that Group SNE did Dragon of Flame.
Do you have a link?
Anyway, I think I've managed to identify some real Pony staff, i e people who work for Pony and not for the individual subcontractors.
One is Kunihiko Kagawa, credited on Phantom fighter, Ultima Exodus and Ultima Quest for avatar. Another one is Kunihiko Kagawa, credited on Ultima Quest for avatar, Dr. Chaos, Phantom fighter and Ultima Exodus.
Do you have a link?
Group SNE:
http://review-site.net/developer/ku.html#%83O%83%8B%81[%83v%82r%82m%82d
http://web.archive.org/web/20030821041707/www.groupsne.co.jp/htm/htm/list/list1/13computer.htm
Infinity:
http://review-site.net/developer/xi.html#%83C%83%93%83t%83B%83j%83e%83B%81[
http://www.infinity-soft.co.jp
Do you happen to have the credits for Exodus and Quest for the Avatar?
idrougge
12-22-2005, 04:32 PM
Do you happen to have the credits for Exodus and Quest for the Avatar?
Exodus:
ORIGINAL DESIGNED BY
RICHARD A. GARRIOTT
PRODUCER
MASAICHIRO HIRANO
YASUO HATTORI
DIRECTOR
KUNIHIKO KAGAWA
JUNICHI ISHII
COORDINATOR
KOJI ICHIKAWA
MASUKO MORI
SALES & PROMOTION
MUTSUKO ARATA
CHIEF PROGRAMMER
TAKAAKI USHIKI
PROGRAMMER
YOSHIHIKO NAKAZAWA
TOMOHIRO HORI
NAOKI KOGA
SAEKO SUDA
CHARACTER DESIGNER
ATSUSHI FUJIMORI
WORDS ARRANGEMENT
YASUSHI AKIMOTO
MUSIC
TSUGUTOSHI GOTO
ILLUSTRATOR
TADASHI TSUKADA
SPECIAL THANKS
NISHITANI SABURO
YAMADA YASUHIRO
KAWASHIMA KONO
PRODUCED BY
NEWTOPIA PLANNING
Quest of the avatar:
ORIGINAL DESIGNED BY
RICHARD A. GARRIOTT
PROJECT MANAGER
KUNIHIKO KAGAWA
NES VER. DESIGNED BY
YASUHIRO KAWASHIMA
COORDINATOR
KOJI ICHIKAWA
CHARACTER DESIGNER
REIKO OSHIDA
MUSIC
SEIJI TODA
ILLUSTRATED BY
JC STAFF
NES TRANSLATED BY
ATELIER DOUBLE CORP
ORIGINAL VERSION
ORIGIN SYSTEMS INC
NES VERSION
PONYCANYON
Seisha e no michi:
ORIGINAL DESIGNED BY
RICHARD A. GARRIOTT
PRODUCER
YASUO HATTORI
DIRECTOR
KUNIHIKO KAGAWA
FAMICON VER. DESIGNED BY
YASUHIRO KAWASHIMA
COORDINATOR
KOJI ICHIKAWA
CHARACTER DESIGNER
REIKO OSHIDA
MUSIC
SEIJI TODA
ILLUSTRATED BY
J.C. STAFF
ORIGINAL VERSION
ORIGIN SYSTEMS INC
PRODUCED BY
NEWTOPIA PLANNING
PRESENTED
PONYCANYON
Note the difference between Avatar and Seisha. Note also that Atelier Double is only mentioned in the credits for Avatar and that they only mention the NES release on their page, not the FC one.
idrougge
12-22-2005, 05:10 PM
I looked through Battle of Olympus. There is some text I can't decode, but one of the staffers is to be found in several of the games discussed here, namely Reiko (Y)oshida. Seen in:
Break time (graphics, as Rieko "Anny" Yoshida (sic))
Quest of the avatar/Seisha e no michi (graphics)
Battle of Olympus (scenario, graphics, as R. Oshida)
Master of monsters (Megadrive graphics, as Rieko Yoshida)
Also, Seiji Toda who made music for Quest for avatar did the music on Heroes of the lance on MSX. Once again we find that connection.
Why does Seisha say "Produced by Newtopia Planning" and Avatar does not? I have a feeling "produced" doesn't mean developed. And I guess "Translated" means translating it to English?
Let's break down the credits...
Ultima Exodus:
- Masaichiro Hirano was Producer on Pony Canyon's Super Runner on the MSX2.
- Yasuo Hattori was Director on Attack Animal Gakuen (Produced by Newtopia Planning).
- We've seen Kunihiko Kagawa mentioned in many Ponyca games. He was also mentioned in Decap Attack on the MD, which led me to jump to the conclusion over at the SMS Power forums that VIC Tokai games may have been done by Marionette. I've since dropped that whole mess.
- Junichi Ishii was Director on Super Runner on the MSX2.
- Koji Ichikawa was later Coordinator on Avatar.
- Masuko Mori was Coordinator on MSX Heroes of the Lance.
- Takaaki Ushiki was later Coordinator on Ultima VI on the SNES.
- Naoki Koga later went to work for Nintendo.
- Atsushi Fujimori did Visual Design on Attack Animal Gakuen.
- I thought Reiko Oshida might be from Infinity, but she's probably just a freelance graphic artist.
- Yasuhiro Kawashima is Editor on SNES Ultima IV, which I believe was programmed by Infinity (shares credits with SNES Populous, which explicitly says was done by Infinity). Doesn't mean he was an Infinity staffer.
Seisha/Avatar doesn't mention any programmers, as luck would have it.
Super Runner (MSX 2) Credits
PRODUCER
MASAICHIRO HIRANO
SHIRO OHTA
DIRECTOR
JUNICHI ISHII
KAZUHIKO ARIMOTO
PROGRAMMER
HIROYUKI FUJIWARA
SATORU MIKI
MUSIC
KAZUYOSHI YAMANE
SATORU MIKI
PHOTO DESIGNER
SHIGERU IWABUCHI
PACKAGE DESIGNER
YOSHITAKE TSUCHIDA
PROMOTER
MUTSUKO ARATA
ASSISTANT
YASUHIRO TAKASHIMA
AKIKO MOMOSE
SPECIAL THANKS TO
KUNIHIKO KAGAWA
MATSUHIRO JINNO
idrougge
12-23-2005, 06:27 PM
Heroes of the lance, MSX version: (http://www.mobygames.com/game/msx/heroes-of-the-lance/credits) (I couldn't find NES credits)
Programmed by
Satoru Miki (http://www.mobygames.com/developer/sheet/view/developerId,200084/)
Hiroyuki Fujiwara (http://www.mobygames.com/developer/sheet/view/developerId,150562/)
Hirofumi Ino
Supervisor
Hitoshi Yasuda (http://www.mobygames.com/developer/sheet/view/developerId,200086/)
Music by
Seiji Toda (http://www.mobygames.com/developer/sheet/view/developerId,200087/)
Co?ordinator
Kazuhiko Arimoto (http://www.mobygames.com/developer/sheet/view/developerId,200088/)
Masuko Mori
Presented by
Pony Canyon Inc.
Game developed by
U.S. Gold Ltd.
Strategic Simulations Inc.
Break time - the national pool tour (NES):
TOTAL PLANNING
MASAAKI'BUNBUN'FURUYA
GRAPHIC DESIGN
MASAAKI'BUNBUN'FURUYA
ATSUHIRO'ALBERT'GUNJI
RIEKO'ANNY'YOSHIDA
MUSIC COMPOSED AND DIRECTION
TAKESHI'HONAMI'YASUDA (http://www.mobygames.com/developer/sheet/view/developerId,131210/)
PROGRAMMING
HIROFUMI'KNOTTY DREAD'INO (http://www.mobygames.com/developer/sheet/view/developerId,200085/)
PROJECT MANAGER
KAZUHIKO'TONY'ARIMOTO
SPECIAL THANKS TO
ASUKA AND IWASAKI
NARRATOR
SHINICHI NAKAYA
PRODUCED BY
PONYCANYON AND OPERA HOUSE
Graham Mitchell
12-31-2005, 01:38 AM
Wow, much progress has been made since I went on vacation. This is exciting! (Okay, that was full on admission of what a nerd I am).
While I was in Seattle, I had an idea--tell me what you guys think of this. Nintendo customer service has been really cool to me in the past about answering goofy questions. They sent me copies of technical documents and manuals for tons of Vs. system units and chipsets once. Has anyone just considered calling them up and asking about this issue? They may have some kind of documentation that may give us some insight into what's going on here, even if it just confirms what you guys already found out. I know this would probably be the wacko question of the year for the phone operators in Redmond, but they get excited when people ask questions like this. They may be able to help us out.
If you guys want, I can muster up the courage to call and ask about this, but we should discuss just what it is we want to ask so I don't ask something stupid or redundant.
So, I don't know, what do you guys think?
If you guys want, I can muster up the courage to call and ask about this, but we should discuss just what it is we want to ask so I don't ask something stupid or redundant.
So, I don't know, what do you guys think?
I guess it wouldn't hurt, but I'm not sure what NOA would know about Japanese game developers.
Here's another Famicom game that was obviously done by the same developer as Ghosts 'n Goblins, et al.
Mottomo Abunai Deka
Executive Producer Miki Hirao
Producer Shoichiro Ide
Assistant Producer Yoshihiko Takeda
Programmer Kazzo
CG Designer Kabe Kun
Music Composer Kimio Nomura
Assistant Yuichi, Kageyabu 20, Miporin
Kazzo also programmed NES G'nG.
ArnoldRimmer83 brought Micronics up earlier in this thread, but it wasn't until today that I realized they were an actual developer (for some reason I was thinking it was "Toei Micronics"). They were the guys behind the following:
1942 (FC)
Tiger-Heli (FC)
Onyanko Town (FC)
Ghosts'n Goblins (FC)
Athena (FC)
Exed Exes (FC)
Son Son (FC)
Super Pitfall (FC)
Ikari Warriors II: Victory Road (FC)
Commando (FC)
Thundercade (FC)
Kaiketsu Yanchamaru 3: Taiketsu! Zouringen (FC)
Bloody Warriors: Shan-Go no Gyakushuu (FC)
Mottomo Abunai Deka (FC)
Shin Satomi Hakkenden: Hikari to Yami no Tatakai (FC)
Raiden Trad (SFC)
I still think NES Trojan was one of theirs, but someone earlier in this thread vehemently disagreed.
So how did I figure this out? Today, I was researching Shouei System, who developed many games for Toei Animation. If you look at the games they did under Toei, you'll see their name prominently on the title screen.
http://img137.imageshack.us/img137/2886/187bj.th.png (http://img137.imageshack.us/my.php?image=187bj.png)
Now, if you look at games Micronics did for Toei, you'll see their name in roughly the same position.
http://img137.imageshack.us/img137/846/192vu.th.png (http://img137.imageshack.us/my.php?image=192vu.png)
And that's it.
In case you're curious, here's the games Shouei System did:
Hokuto no Ken / FC
Hokuto no Ken 2: Seikimatsu Kyuuseishu Densetsu / FC
Hokuto no Ken 3: Shinseiki Souzou Seiken Retsuden / FC
Hokuto no Ken 4: Shichisei Hakenden: Hokuto Shinken no Kanata e / FC
Hokuto no Ken 5 / SFC
Hokuto no Ken 6 / SFC
Hokuto no Ken 7 / SFC
Hokuto no Ken: Seijetsu Juuban Shoubu / GB
SWAT: Special Weapons and Tactics / FC
Sukeban Deka III / FC
Kamen no Ninja: Akakage / FC
Nagagutsu wo Haita Neko: Sekai Isshuu 80 Nichi Dai Bouken / FC
Baltron / FC
Scotland Yard / GB
Final Reverse / GB
Idea no Hi / SFC
Matsumura Kunihiro Den: Saikyo no Rekishi wo Kumikaero! / SFC
Wizardry Nemesis / SS
Digital Keiba Shinbun: My Trackman / DC
Heiwa Pachinko World 64 / N64
Shikinjou / GB
Graham Mitchell
06-26-2006, 12:10 AM
Hmm.. there's some N64 and DC games listed there. What I want to know is whether this design team maintained their usual level of quality throughout the years. How do their DC games compare to Shenmue? Do they still take 10 minutes to load?
Hmm.. there's some N64 and DC games listed there. What I want to know is whether this design team maintained their usual level of quality throughout the years. How do their DC games compare to Shenmue? Do they still take 10 minutes to load?
You may be getting Micronics and Shouei System mixed up here. At any rate, I don't know if anybody wants to play a horse racing game to find out.
Graham Mitchell
06-26-2006, 07:47 AM
Hmm.. there's some N64 and DC games listed there. What I want to know is whether this design team maintained their usual level of quality throughout the years. How do their DC games compare to Shenmue? Do they still take 10 minutes to load?
You may be getting Micronics and Shouei System mixed up here. At any rate, I don't know if anybody wants to play a horse racing game to find out.
Oops, you're right, I am getting them confused. But the pachinko game might be kind of cool...
idrougge
06-26-2006, 02:38 PM
Very interesting, but how did you come to that conclusion? Through triangulation? I've not been able to find credits for many of the games you attribute to Micronics...
blissfulnoise
06-26-2006, 04:16 PM
I have nothing really to add other than this is a great thread. I'll be keeping up with it and help if I can.
Regarding the Nintendo Customer Service hotline we actually called this weekend to ask about why only the top part of the SNES shell was so prone to yellowing when all other parts of the case tended to stay their original color. The person we talked to was very polite but their answer, instead of something like oxidation, was just that the system was 15 years old.
Very interesting, but how did you come to that conclusion? Through triangulation?
I suppose so (points to the whole title screen thing...how nice of Toei to allow that). I'm not sure what else Micronics would be.
TheRedEye
06-26-2006, 07:33 PM
This is one of my favorite Digital Press threads ever, it's like the subject matter is so obscure that the only people posting are intelligent and can contribute something worthwhile.
Unlike myself.
GarrettCRW
06-26-2006, 08:02 PM
It's an off-the-wall idea, but what's the possibility that rival developers have "helped out" each other by providing coding/advice/whatever, much like what the various Japanese animation studios do for one another when when one studio falls behind on a series? If the developers in Japan did this, it might explain why so many early FC & NES games have the Pony Canyon "feel".
idrougge
06-26-2006, 08:07 PM
It's an off-the-wall idea, but what's the possibility that rival developers have "helped out" each other by providing coding/advice/whatever, much like what the various Japanese animation studios do for one another when when one studio falls behind on a series? If the developers in Japan did this, it might explain why so many early FC & NES games have the Pony Canyon "feel".
I think that's a common practice in Japan's industry. Smaller companies get by by jumping in on projects when they're too close to the deadline.
Add NES Twin Cobra to the list of Micronics games.
To make extra sure, let's compare some credits.
Ghosts 'n Goblins (FC)
PLANNING
HASSE AND FUJI
MUSIC
HAL AND WOOD
DESIGN
BLACK AND HASSE
PROGRAM
KAZZO
PRESENTED BY
CAPCOM
Mottomo Abunai Deka (FC)
Executive Producer Miki Hirao
Producer Shoichiro Ide
Assistant Producer Yoshihiko Takeda
Programmer Kazzo
CG Designer Kabe Kun
Music Composer Kimio Nomura
Assistant Yuichi, Kageyabu 20, Miporin
Twin Cobra (FC)
PRODUCER
S. TAKAHASHI
P. M. D. C
ASSIST
YUICHIRO. K
PROGRAMMER
T. NAGAYA
CHARACTER
T. KURODA
SOUND
T. NAGAYA
SPECIAL THANKS
YUICHI
19 KUBOTA
Y. KAZZO
M. TSUKADA
Raiden Trad (SFC)
Producer Shigeyoshi Ikeda
Program T. Nagaya
Map Edit Y. Yamada
Sound Copya System, Ltd.
Special Thanks K. Ishida, Mrs. Nagaya, Eclos
Ikari Warriors II: Victory Road (FC)
Staff
Tama, Kita, Hamach, Tuka, Keiko
rbudrick
06-28-2006, 10:01 AM
I thought of something that's never been done before...an online database of people in game credits....what an undertaking that would be. Sure would solve a lot though. You'd definitely have to look for aliases, though, since half of them didn't go by their real names, or used different pronunciations of their kanji to mask their real name.
-Rob
idrougge
06-28-2006, 07:27 PM
I thought of something that's never been done before...an online database of people in game credits....what an undertaking that would be.
http://www.mobygames.com/
Add NES Elevator Action to the Micronics list (has that ol' familiar pause tone).
I think Irem's Daiku no Gen San 2: Akage no Dan noGyakushuu (Hammerin' Harry 2) for the FC may be from Micronics. Somebody else might want to check it out.
I'm "pretty" sure Ninja Kun: Ashura no Shou and Miracle Ropit's Adventure in 2100 for the FC were done by Micronics. Again, I'd appreciate it if someone else could look at them and see if you agree with me.
rbudrick
07-05-2006, 01:47 PM
http://www.mobygames.com/
Wow, someone listened to me and acted fast. ;)
Very cool. I like a lot of things they did, but I think a database dedicated strictly to the the staff themselves could be much further-reaching, as the Moby database is a little tough to use for certain things.
-Rob
I'm just gonna go ahead and say Miracle Ropit is a Micronics game. I've also gone and changed the thread title to reflect a new series of threads I hope to start here.
- I was looking Ultima: Exodus for the MSX2 tonight. While it says "Produced by Newtopia Planning," if you look in the ROM, it says "Ultima Msx2 version by Miki & Fujiwara Production."
Conclusions: Newtopia Planning probably wasn't what we'd call a developer. And "Miki & Fujiwara Production" must have been the group/company Satoru Miki and Hiroyuki Fujiwara headed up that did a number of games for Pony Canyon (mainly on the computer side). Presumably, the two of them left to work for ISCO. What was left of the group went on to do Break Time for the NES. Maybe they became Opera House. I don't know. That's kinda sketchy.
- I am now going back to saying Ultima: Quest for the Avatar for the NES was by Infinity. That's what I've put in the Video Game Rebirth database.
Ed Oscuro
07-23-2006, 04:15 AM
On the subject of Ultima: Quest of the Avatar for the NES - does anybody else get terrible flashing edges on the screen when moving about, and does this happen in another games by the developer (Infinity)?
On the subject of Ultima: Quest of the Avatar for the NES - does anybody else get terrible flashing edges on the screen when moving about, and does this happen in another games by the developer (Infinity)?
Does it happen in Battle of Olympus? If not, then no.
Graham Mitchell
07-23-2006, 01:34 PM
On the subject of Ultima: Quest of the Avatar for the NES - does anybody else get terrible flashing edges on the screen when moving about, and does this happen in another games by the developer (Infinity)?
Does it happen in Battle of Olympus? If not, then no.
I've never experienced anything like that in BoO. That's a quality game, unlike most of what we're discussing in this thread.
Ed Oscuro
07-23-2006, 02:29 PM
Oh! It's a poison status indicator. Quality design! LOL
Kind of odd considering that Ultima came out the year after Battle of Olympus...but it is based on a rather simple program, I guess.