Tecmo

Japan · Founded 1967 · Closed 2010 · 1967 – 2010

Founded in 1967 to make cleaning equipment, Tehkan became Tecmo in 1986 and created Bomb Jack, Rygar, Ninja Gaiden, Tecmo Bowl and Dead or Alive before merging with Koei.

The company that became Tecmo was founded on 31 July 1967 as Tehkan by Yoshihito Kakihara, with roots in two earlier businesses, Imperial Trustee Corporation and Nippon Yacht. Its original trade was cleaning equipment, and it moved into amusement machines and then video games in the following decade. Under the Tehkan name it released arcade games including Bomb Jack (1984), a single-screen platform game with a floating, gliding hero. On 8 January 1986 Tehkan changed its name to Tecmo. The late 1980s brought its best-known games: Rygar (1986), Ninja Gaiden — whose 1988 NES version was notable for its demanding action and extensive cinematic cut-scenes — and Tecmo Bowl, an American football game whose NES version became one of the console's most popular sports titles. In the 1990s Tecmo launched the fighting series Dead or Alive, and in the 2000s the survival horror series Fatal Frame. In 2009 Tecmo merged with Koei to form the holding company Tecmo Koei Holdings. Tecmo operated as a subsidiary until April 2010, when it was dissolved into the combined company, now Koei Tecmo.