Famitsu

File:Famitsu - Issue 1.jpg Cover art for the very first issue of Famitsū magazine (then known as Famicom Tsūshin), June 1986.
Categories	Video game
Weekly / Monthly / Quarterly
Circulation	500,000 (Weekly) 150,000 (PS) 120,000 (Xbox) 105,000 (DS+Wii) 100,000 (WaveDVD)[1]
Publisher	Enterbrain, Inc., Tokuma
First issue	June 1986
Country	Japan
Language	Japanese
Website	www.famitsu.com

Famitsu (ファミ通, Famitsū^?, formerly Famicom Tsūshin) is a line of Japanese video game magazines published by Enterbrain, Inc. and Tokuma. Currently, there are five Famitsū magazines: Shūkan Famitsū, Famitsū PS3 + PSP, Famitsū Xbox 360, Famitsū Wii+DS, and Famitsū Wave DVD. Shūkan Famitsū (週刊ファミ通^?, lit. "Weekly Famitsū"), the original Famitsū publication, is considered the most widely read and respected video game news magazine in Japan.^[2][3][4]

[edit] Shūkan Famitsū

Shūkan Famitsū concentrates on video game news, as well as video game reviews. The name Famitsū was originally an abbreviation of Famicom Tsūshin (ファミコン通信^?, officially translated as the Famicom Journal); the magazine's original name came from the Family Computer, the Japanese name for the Nintendo Entertainment System, which was the dominant video game console in Japan during the 1980s. The first issue was published on June 6, 1986. Today, Shūkan Famitsū features multi-platform coverage. Shūkan Famitsū is published every Thursday with a circulation of 500,000 per issue.^[1]

Necky the Fox[link]

Famitsū magazine covers alternately feature pop idols or actresses on even-numbered issues and the Famitsū mascot, Necky (ネッキー, Nekkī^?) the Fox^[5] in odd-numbered issues.^[6] Year-end and special editions all feature Necky dressed as popular contemporary video game characters. Necky is the cartoon creation of artist, Susumu Matsushita, and he takes the form of a costumed fox.^[7] The costumes worn by Necky reflect current popular video games. Necky's name was chosen according to a reader poll, and it derives from a complex Japanese pun: "Necky" is actually the reverse of the Japanese word for fox, kitsune (キツネ^?), and his original connection to Famicom Tsūshin is intended to evoke the bark of the fox, the Japanese onomatopoeia of which is "kon kon" (コンコン^?).^[8]

Others[link]

Famitsū publishes other magazines dedicated to particular consoles. Currently in circulation are:

• Famitsū PS (ファミ通PS^?) (formerly PlayStation Tsūshin), which reports on Sony platforms news (currently the PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Portable).
• Famitsū DS+Wii (ファミ通DS+Wii^?), which report on Nintendo platforms (currently the Nintendo DS and Wii). The magazine was formerly known as Famitsū 64 and then Famitsū Cube (among other variations of those two names) based on whatever platforms Nintendo was producing games for at the time.
• Famitsū Xbox (ファミ通Xbox^?), which reports on Xbox and Xbox 360 news.
• Famitsū Wave DVD (ファミ通WaveDVD^?) (ファミ通 Wave DVD) is published monthly. Each magazine includes a DVD disc (NTSC Region 2) with video game footage. The magazine was originally called GameWave DVD.

Famitsū spin-offs that are no longer in circulation include:

• Famitsū Bros. (ファミ通ブロス, Famitsū Burosu^?) (which concentrated on video game hints and strategy rather than actual news)
• Satellaview Tsūshin (サテラビュー通信, Saterabyū Tsūshin^?) (which covered the Satellaview)
• Famitsū Sister (ファミ通Sister^?) (which covered bishōjo games)
• Famitsū DC (ファミ通DC^?) (which covered the Dreamcast)
• Virtual Boy Tsūshin (バーチャルボーイ通信, Bācharu Bōi Tsūshin^?) (which covered the Virtual Boy)

Scoring[link]

Video games are graded in Famitsū by a panel of four video game reviewers. Each reviewer gives a score from zero to ten (ten being best). The scores of the four reviewers are then added up with a possible score of forty. From the nineteen games awarded with the perfect score so far, three are for the Nintendo DS and five are for the Wii. The Playstation 3 and the Xbox 360 have three games with perfect score, including two games which attained forty in both platforms, the Playstation Portable have two titles and the others are all for different platforms with only one title each. Franchises with multiple perfect score winners include The Legend of Zelda with three titles, Metal Gear and Final Fantasy with two titles each.

Every game but one with a perfect score so far is from a Japanese company, eight of them being published/developed by Nintendo, four by Square Enix, two by Sega and two by Konami. The only completely foreign game to achieve a perfect score so far is The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim by Bethesda Softworks. Other foreign games that have achieved near-perfect scores are L.A. Noire, Red Dead Redemption and Grand Theft Auto IV - all three of which came from Rockstar Games; Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, Call of Duty: Black Ops, and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 - all from Activision; and Gears of War 3 from Epic Games. (Kingdom Hearts II is a joint effort between Square Enix and the U.S.-based Buena Vista Games.) Famitsū Wave DVD does not grade video games.

Perfect scores[link]

Nineteen games have received perfect scores from Famitsu. They are listed in chronological order:

1. The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (1998, Nintendo, for Nintendo 64)^[9]
2. Soulcalibur (1999, Namco, for Dreamcast)^[10]
3. Vagrant Story (2000, Square Co., for PlayStation)^[10]
4. The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker (2003, Nintendo, for Nintendo GameCube)^[10]
5. Nintendogs (2005, Nintendo, for Nintendo DS)^[10]
6. Final Fantasy XII (2006, Square Enix, for PlayStation 2)^[10]
7. Super Smash Bros. Brawl (2008, Nintendo, for Wii)^[11]
8. Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots (2008, Konami, for PlayStation 3)^[12]
9. 428: Fūsa Sareta Shibuya de (2008, Sega, for Wii)^[13]
10. Dragon Quest IX: Sentinels of the Starry Skies (2009, Square Enix, for Nintendo DS)^[14]
11. Monster Hunter Tri (2009, Capcom, for Wii)^[15]
12. Bayonetta (2009, Sega, for Xbox 360)^[16]
13. New Super Mario Bros. Wii (2009, Nintendo, for Wii)^[17]
14. Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker (2010, Konami, for PlayStation Portable)^[18]
15. Pokémon Black and White (2010, Nintendo, for Nintendo DS)^[19]
16. The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword (2011, Nintendo, for Wii)^[20]
17. The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (2011, Bethesda Softworks, for Xbox 360 & PlayStation 3) - the first non-Japanese game to receive a perfect score.^[21]
18. Final Fantasy XIII-2 (2011, Square Enix, for Xbox 360 & PlayStation 3)^[22]
19. Kid Icarus: Uprising (2012, Nintendo, for Nintendo 3DS)^[23]

Games that received a near-perfect score of 39 (in which one of four reviewers gives the game a "9" while the other three give "10s") include:

1. The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past (1991, Nintendo, for Super Famicom)^[24]
2. Virtua Fighter 2 (1995, Sega, for Sega Saturn)^[24]
3. Ridge Racer Revolution (1995, Namco, for PlayStation)^[24]
4. Super Mario 64 (1996, Nintendo, for Nintendo 64)^[24]
5. Tekken 3 (1998, Namco, for PlayStation)^[24]
6. Cyber Troopers Virtual-On Oratorio Tangram (1999, Sega, for Dreamcast)^[24]
7. Final Fantasy X (2001, Square Co., for PlayStation 2)^[24]
8. Gran Turismo 3: A-Spec (2001, Sony Computer Entertainment, for PlayStation 2)^[24]
9. Resident Evil (2002, Capcom, for Nintendo GameCube)^[24]
10. Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King (2004, Square Enix, for PlayStation 2)^[25]
11. Gran Turismo 4 (2004, Sony Computer Entertainment, for PlayStation 2)^[24]
12. Kingdom Hearts II (2005, Square Enix, for PlayStation 2)^[26]
13. Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence (2005, Konami, for PlayStation 2)^[24]
14. Dead or Alive 4 (2005, Tecmo, for Xbox 360)^[27]
15. Ōkami (2006, Capcom, for PlayStation 2)^[28]
16. The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass (2007, Nintendo, for Nintendo DS)^[29]
17. Grand Theft Auto IV (2008, Rockstar Games, for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3)^[30]
18. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (2009, Activision, for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3)^[31]
19. Final Fantasy XIII (2009, Square Enix, for PlayStation 3)^[32]
20. Red Dead Redemption (2010, Rockstar Games, for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3)^[33]
21. Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 2 (2010, Namco Bandai Games, for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3)^[34]
22. Call of Duty: Black Ops (2010, Activision, for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3)^[35]
23. Monster Hunter Portable 3rd (2010, Capcom, for PlayStation Portable)^[36]
24. L.A. Noire (2011, Rockstar Games, for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3)^[37]
25. Tales of Xillia (2011, Namco Bandai, for PlayStation 3)^[38]
26. Gears of War 3 (2011, Epic Games, for Xbox 360)^[39]
27. FIFA 12 (2011, EA Canada, for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3)^[40]
28. Final Fantasy Type-0 (2011, Square Enix, for PSP)^[41]
29. Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker HD Collection (2011, Kojima Productions, for PS3)^[42]
30. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 (2011, Infinity Ward, Sledgehammer Games, for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3)^[43]
31. Resident Evil Revelations (2012, Capcom, for Nintendo 3DS)^[44]

Relationship with other magazines[link]

UK trade magazine MCV and Famitsu have an exclusive partnership which sees news and content from each magazine appear in the other.^[45]

See also[link]

• Enterbrain

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official website (Japanese)
• Famitsu Scores Archive (via The Internet Archive)

Hideki Kamiya (神谷 英樹, Kamiya Hideki^?, born December 19, 1970) is a video game designer formerly employed by Capcom and Clover Studio. He is currently working with former Clover Studio members at Platinum Games.^[1]

Career[link]

After graduating from college, Kamiya applied for jobs at various game developers. He was turned down by Sega and had an application accepted by Namco. However, Namco wanted him to be an artist rather than his desire to be a game designer.^[2] Kamiya joined Capcom as a designer in 1994. His early works included planner of the original Resident Evil and director of Resident Evil 2. He was later the director of both Devil May Cry and the original Viewtiful Joe. In 2006, Kamiya worked as the director for the PlayStation 2 version of Clover Studio's Ōkami.

He joined former Capcom colleagues, including Atsushi Inaba and Shinji Mikami, to create a new company, shortly before Clover Studio was closed by Capcom in late 2006.^[1] This new company, later named Platinum Games, announced a four game deal with publisher Sega.^[3] Included in the deal was an original game by Kamiya titled Bayonetta.

As a game designer, Kamiya states that he has been most inspired by the games The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past and Gradius. His favorite action game is the original Castlevania.^[4] Kamiya has stated to be interested in making a new Star Fox game.

Works[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Hideki Kamiya blog at Platinum Games

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