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102-508: Universal Lease Co., Ltd was established in December 1969. It later changed its name to Universal Ltd in Japan. Universal Distributing Company opened as an american subsidiary to sell video games direct to operators, and was later named Universal USA. They initially earned success with arcade video games that cloned popular arcade games. Scratch (1977) was a Breakout clone that became

204-508: A golden age of arcade video games , the exact dates of which are debated but range from the late 1970s to the early 1980s. This golden age includes Space Invaders , Pac-Man , and Donkey Kong . The arcade industry had a resurgence from the early 1990s to mid-2000s, including Street Fighter II , Mortal Kombat , and Dance Dance Revolution , but ultimately declined in the Western world as competing home video game consoles such as

306-421: A "technological renaissance" driven by "audio-visual" EM novelty games, establishing the arcades as a suitable environment for the introduction of commercial video games in the early 1970s. In the late 1960s, college student Nolan Bushnell had a part-time job at an arcade where he became familiar with EM games such as Chicago Coin 's racing game Speedway (1969), watching customers play and helping to maintain

408-711: A co-founder of Atlus , where he worked on the Megami Tensei series. Ueda's work at Universal inspired the game design style of Tehkan's Michitaka Tsuruta, who went on to create Guzzler (1983), Bomb Jack (1984), Solomon's Key (1986), and the Captain Tsubasa game series. In January 2005, the company became a wholly owned subsidiary of Aruze. Aruze Corporation changed its company name to Universal Entertainment Corporation effective November 1, 2009. On February 2, 2023, Aruze announced that they had officially filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in

510-517: A combination of angled monitor positioning, one-way mirrors , and clear overlays to simulate colors and other graphics onto the gameplay field. Coin-operated arcade video games from the 1990s to the 2000s generally use custom hardware often with multiple CPUs , highly specialized sound and graphics chips , and the latest in expensive computer graphics display technology. This allows more complex graphics and sound than contemporary video game consoles or personal computers . Many arcade games since

612-510: A fixture in popular culture . Across North America and Japan, dedicated video-game arcades appeared and arcade-game cabinets appeared in many smaller storefronts. By 1981, the arcade video-game industry was worth US$ 8 billion in the US. The novelty of arcade games waned sharply after 1982 due to several factors, including market saturation of arcades and arcade games, a moral panic over video games (similar to fears raised over pinball machines in

714-470: A lack of available data for coin drop earnings which typically account for the majority of a hit arcade game's gross revenue. This list only includes arcade games that either sold more than 10,000 hardware units or generated a revenue of more than $ 10 million . Most of the games listed were released between the golden age of arcade video games (1978–1984) and the 1990s. These are the combined hardware sales of at least two or more arcade games that are part of

816-452: A large subterranean network of shopping arcades. Kita and nearby Nakanoshima contain a prominent portion of the city's skyscrapers and are often featured in photographs of Osaka's skyline. Minami, though meaning "south", is essentially in Chūō Ward ( 中央区 , Chūō-ku ) and geographically central within the city. Well known districts here include Namba and Shinsaibashi shopping areas,

918-551: A lively and important port. Daimyōs (feudal lords) received most of their income in the form of rice . Merchants in Osaka thus began to organize storehouses where they would store a daimyō ' s rice in exchange for a fee, trading it for either coin or a form of receipt; essentially a precursor to paper money . Many if not all of these rice brokers also made loans, and would actually become quite wealthy and powerful. Osaka merchants coalesced their shops around Dōjima , where

1020-502: A metropolis like Tokyo met with stiff opposition in some municipalities, particularly the highly populated Sakai . He then fell back on a project that included the suppression of the 24 wards of Osaka, thus dividing the city into 5 new special districts with a status similar to that of the 23 Special wards of Tokyo . It was introduced by former mayor Tōru Hashimoto , leader of the reform party Osaka Restoration Association which he founded. The referendum of May 17, 2015 called in Osaka for

1122-457: A new renaissance in the arcades. Another factor was realism, including the "3D Revolution" from 2D and pseudo-3D graphics to "true" real-time 3D polygon graphics . This was largely driven by a technological arms-race between Sega and Namco . During the early 1990s games such as Sega's Virtua Racing and Virtua Fighter popularized 3D-polygon technology in arcades. 3D graphics later became popular in console and computer games by

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1224-570: A new style in the construction of Shinto shrines, called Sumiyoshi-zukuri . The maritime panorama enjoyed from the shrine gardens inspired several artists, and nowadays the representations of that type of landscape are called Sumiyoshi drawings . Towards the end of the Yayoi period the Uemachi plateau-peninsula expanded further, transforming the Kawachi Lagoon into a lake (河内湖) connected to

1326-535: A pack-in game for the ColecoVision to challenge the VCS. Arcade conversions typically had to make concessions for the lower computational power and capabilities of the home console, such as limited graphics or alterations in gameplay. Such conversions had mixed results. The Atari VCS conversion of Space Invaders was considered the VCS's killer application , helping to quadruple the VCS sales in 1980. In contrast,

1428-457: A peasant insurrection in response to the city's unwillingness to support the many poor and suffering families in the area. Approximately one-quarter of the city was razed before shogunal officials put down the rebellion, after which Ōshio killed himself. Osaka was opened to foreign trade by the government of the Bakufu at the same time as Hyogo Town (modern Kobe ) on January 1, 1868, just before

1530-404: A predominantly industrial center. The modern municipality was established in 1889 by government ordinance , with an initial area of 15 square kilometres (6 sq mi), overlapping today's Chuo and Nishi wards. Later, the city went through three major expansions to reach its current size of 223 square kilometres (86 sq mi). Osaka was the industrial center most clearly defined in

1632-558: A prominent bay area which serves as its main port as well as a tourist destination with attractions such as Kyocera Dome , Universal Studios Japan and the Tempozan Harbor Village . Higashiosaka is zoned as a separate city, although the east side of Osaka city proper contains numerous residential neighborhoods including Tsuruhashi KoreaTown, as well as the Osaka Castle Park , Osaka Business Park and

1734-449: A second referendum to merge Osaka's 24 wards into 4 semi-autonomous wards was narrowly voted down. There were 692,996 (50.6%) votes against and 675,829 (49.4%) votes supported it. Osaka mayor and Osaka Ishin co-leader Ichiro Matsui said he would resign when his term ends in 2023. On February 27, 2012, three Kansai cities, Kyoto , Osaka, and Kobe , jointly asked Kansai Electric Power Company to break its dependence on nuclear power. In

1836-656: A simplified physics engine , and short learning time when compared with more realistic racing simulations . Cars can turn sharply without braking or understeer, and the AI rivals are sometimes programmed so they are always near the player with a rubberband effect . Other types of arcade-style games include music games (particularly rhythm games ), and mobile and casual games with intuitive controls and short sessions. The term "arcade game" can refer to an action video game designed to play similarly to an arcade game with frantic, addictive gameplay. The focus of arcade action games

1938-545: A successful arcade video game is "easy to learn, difficult to master" along with a "multiple life , progressively difficult level " paradigm. This is due to the environment of the arcade, where the player is essentially renting the game for as long as their in-game avatar can stay alive or until they run out of tokens . Games on consoles or PCs can be referred to as "arcade games" if they share these qualities, or are direct ports of arcade games. Arcade racing games often have sophisticated motion simulator arcade cabinets ,

2040-511: Is abundant, with winter being the driest season, while monthly rainfall peaks in June with the "tsuyu" rainy season, which typically ends in mid to late July. From late July through the end of August, summer's heat and humidity peaks, and rainfall decreases somewhat. Osaka experiences a second rainy period in September and early October, when tropical weather systems, including typhoons, coming from

2142-641: Is an application that translates foreign software onto a modern system, in real-time. Emulated games appeared legally and commercially on the Macintosh in 1994 with Williams floppy disks, Sony PlayStation in 1996, and Sega Saturn in 1997 with CD-ROM compilations such as Williams Arcade's Greatest Hits and Arcade's Greatest Hits: The Atari Collection 1 , and on the PlayStation 2 and GameCube with DVD-ROM compilations such as Midway Arcade Treasures . Arcade games are downloaded and emulated through

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2244-460: Is an international center of research and development and is represented by several major universities, notably Osaka University , Osaka Metropolitan University , and Kansai University . Famous landmarks in the city include Osaka Castle , Osaka Aquarium Kaiyukan , Dōtonbori , Tsūtenkaku in Shinsekai , Tennōji Park , Abeno Harukas , Sumiyoshi Taisha Grand Shrine , and Shitennō-ji , one of

2346-616: Is expanded by the popularity of conversions of arcade games for home-based platforms. In 1997, WMS Industries (parent company of Midway Games ) reported that if more than 5,000 arcade units are sold, at least 100,000 home version units will be sold. The American Amusement Machine Association (AAMA) is a trade association established in 1981 that represents the American coin-operated amusement machine industry, including 120 arcade game distributors and manufacturers. The Japan Amusement Machine and Marketing Association (JAMMA) represents

2448-531: Is located in the humid subtropical climate zone ( Köppen Cfa ), with four distinct seasons. Its winters are generally mild, with January being the coldest month having an average high of 9.7 °C (49 °F). The city rarely sees snowfall during the winter. Spring in Osaka starts off mild, but ends up being hot and humid. It also tends to be Osaka's wettest season, with the tsuyu ( 梅雨 , tsuyu , "plum rain") —the rainy season—occurring between early June and late July. The average starting and ending dates of

2550-523: Is now Osaka, making it the capital of Japan. The city now known as Osaka was at this time referred to as Naniwa, and this name and derivations of it are still in use for districts in central Osaka such as Naniwa ( 浪速 ) and Namba ( 難波 ). Although the capital was moved to Asuka (in Nara Prefecture today) in 655, Naniwa remained a vital connection, by land and sea, between Yamato (modern day Nara Prefecture ), Korea , and China. Naniwa

2652-761: Is on the user's reflexes, and many feature very little puzzle-solving, complex thinking, or strategy skills. These include fighting games often played with an arcade controller , beat 'em up games including fast-paced hack and slash games, and light gun rail shooters and " bullet hell " shooters with intuitive controls and rapidly increasing difficulty. Many arcade combat flight simulation games have sophisticated hydraulic motion simulator cabinets, and simplified physics and handling. Arcade flight games are meant to have an easy learning curve , in order to preserve their action component. Increasing numbers of console flight video games, such as Crimson Skies , Ace Combat , and Secret Weapons Over Normandy indicate

2754-477: Is the current and 104th president since May 2008. The mayor of the city is directly elected by the citizens every four years as well, in accordance with the Local Autonomy Law. Tōru Hashimoto , former governor of Osaka Prefecture is the 19th mayor of Osaka since 2011. The mayor is supported by two vice mayors, currently Akira Morishita and Takashi Kashiwagi, who are appointed by him in accordance with

2856-409: Is the headquarters of Daihatsu , one of Japan's oldest automobile manufacturers. Like its European and American counterparts, Osaka displayed slums, unemployment, and poverty. In Japan it was here that municipal government first introduced a comprehensive system of poverty relief, copied in part from British models. Osaka policymakers stressed the importance of family formation and mutual assistance as

2958-448: Is usually judged by either the number of arcade hardware units sold to operators, or the amount of revenue generated. The revenue can include the coin drop earnings from coins (such as quarters , dollars , or 100 yen coins ) inserted into machines, and/or the earnings from hardware sales with each unit costing thousands of dollars. Most of the revenue figures listed below are incomplete as they only include hardware sales revenue, due to

3060-468: The Dōtonbori canal entertainment area, Nipponbashi Den Den Town, as well as arts and fashion culture-oriented areas such as Amerikamura and Horie. The 300-meter tall Abeno Harukas was the tallest skyscraper in the country from 2014 until 2023. The business districts between Kita and Minami such as Honmachi  [ ja ] and Yodoyabashi  [ ja ] , called Semba ( 船場 ) , house

3162-531: The Meiji Restoration , Osaka greatly expanded in size and underwent rapid industrialization. In 1889, Osaka was officially established as a municipality. The construction boom accelerated population growth throughout the following decades, and by the 1900s, Osaka was the industrial hub in the Meiji and Taishō periods. Osaka made noted contributions to redevelopment, urban planning and zoning standards in

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3264-612: The Nintendo Wii Virtual Console service starting in 2009. Using emulation, companies like Arcade1Up have produced at-scale or reduced-scale recreations of arcade cabinets using modern technology, such as LCD monitors and lightweight construction. These cabinets are typically designed to resemble the original arcade game cabinets, but may also support multiple related games. These cabinets can be offered in diverse and miniaturized styles, such as table-mounted and wall-mounted versions. For arcade games, success

3366-605: The Osaka District Court on October 30, 2001 and all of its assets went up for bidding. Kawasaki's Playmore stepped in and bought up most of the auctioned assets and set itself up to re-enter the video game market as the successor to SNK. Playmore also acquired some of the companies formed by ex-SNK employees, namely Brezzasoft and Noise Factory, to jumpstart development of more titles for the Neo Geo arcade system. Playmore quickly went about re-establishing themselves in

3468-528: The Rice Exchange was established in 1697 and where the world's first futures market would come to exist to sell rice that was not yet harvested. The popular culture of Osaka was closely related to ukiyo-e depictions of life in Edo . By 1780, Osaka had cultivated a vibrant arts culture, as typified by its famous Kabuki and Bunraku theaters. In 1837, Ōshio Heihachirō , a low-ranking samurai , led

3570-579: The Sony PlayStation and Microsoft Xbox increased in their graphics and gameplay capability and decreased in cost. Nevertheless, Japan, China, and South Korea retain a strong arcade industry in the present day. Games of skill were popular amusement-park midway attractions from the 19th century on. With the introduction of electricity and coin-operated machines, they facilitated a viable business . When pinball machines with electric lights and displays were introduced in 1933 (but without

3672-409: The kanji 坂 was abhorred because it "returns to the earth," and then 阪 was used. The kanji 土 (earth) is also similar to the word 士 (knight), and 反 means against, so 坂 can be understood as "samurai rebellion," then 阪 was official name in 1868 after the Meiji Restoration . The older kanji (坂) is still in very limited use, usually only in historical contexts. As an abbreviation,

3774-475: The 10th- largest urban area in the world with more than 19 million inhabitants. Ōsaka was traditionally considered Japan's economic hub. By the Kofun period (300–538) it had developed into an important regional port, and in the 7th and 8th centuries, it served briefly as the imperial capital. Osaka continued to flourish during the Edo period (1603–1867) and became known as a center of Japanese culture. Following

3876-476: The 1960s when large-scale prefectural suburbanization began and doubled to six million by the 1990s. The factories were rebuilt and trade revived, the city were developed rapidly it became a major multicultural and financial center in the postwar period between the 1950s and the 1980s , it is known as the " Chicago and Toronto of the Orient". Osaka Prefecture was chosen as the venue for the prestigious Expo '70 ,

3978-953: The 2000s run on modified video game console hardware (such as the Sega NAOMI or Triforce) or gaming PC components (such as the Taito Type X ). Many arcade games have more immersive and realistic game controls than PC or console games . This includes specialized ambiance or control accessories such as fully enclosed dynamic cabinets with force feedback controls, dedicated lightguns , rear-projection displays, reproductions of automobile or airplane cockpits, motorcycle or horse-shaped controllers, or highly dedicated controllers such as dancing mats and fishing rods . These accessories are usually too bulky, expensive, and specialized to be used with typical home PCs and consoles. Arcade makers experiment with virtual reality technology. Arcades have progressed from using coins as credits to smart cards that hold

4080-711: The 300-meter tall Abeno Harukas opened, which is the tallest skyscraper in Japan surpassing the Yokohama Landmark Tower in Yokohama , until it was surpassed by the 330-meter tall Azabudai Hills Main Tower in Tokyo since 2022. The city's west side is open to Osaka Bay , and is otherwise completely surrounded by more than ten satellite cities, all of them in Osaka Prefecture , with one exception:

4182-482: The Japanese arcade industry. Arcade machines may have standardized connectors or interfaces such as JAMMA, or JVS, that help with quick replacement of game systems or boards in arcade cabinets. The game boards or arcade boards may themselves allow for games to be replaced via game cartridges or discs. Prior to the 2000s, successful video games were often converted to a home video game console or home computer. Many of

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4284-550: The Jomon period. In addition to the remains of consumed food, there were arrow heads, stone tools, fishing hooks and crockery with remains from rice processing. It is estimated that the ruins contain 2,000-year-old debris between the Jomon and Yayoi period . The findings of the archeological sites are exhibited in an adjacent building. In the years between the end of the Jōmon period and

4386-598: The Neo Geo arcade platform and selling off warehoused inventory. By 2001 it was clear to many SNK's employees that Aruze was not planning to preserve SNK and was simply going to let the company implode after liquidating most of its useful assets. So Eikichi Kawasaki and many other executives from SNK left to form Playmore in August 1, 2001. Over this period many rank and file employees left to join other arcade developers or form their own companies. In November 1, 2001, Aruze announced that its subsidiary, SNK to file for bankruptcy by

4488-400: The Osaka region in terms of calculation, shrewdness, lack of civic spirit, and the vulgarity of Osaka dialect. Edo writers aspired to samurai culture, and saw themselves as poor but generous, chaste, and public spirited. Edo writers by contrast saw "zeeroku" as obsequious apprentices, stingy, greedy, gluttonous, and lewd. To some degree, Osaka residents are still stigmatized by Tokyo observers in

4590-573: The United States, arcades have become niche markets as they compete with the home-console market, and they have adapted other business models, such as providing other entertainment options or adding prize redemptions. In Japan, where arcades continue to flourish, games like Dance Dance Revolution and The House of the Dead aim to deliver tailored experiences that players cannot easily have at home. Virtually all modern arcade games (other than

4692-695: The United States. In 2000, Aruze bought out SNK Corporation , maker of the Neo Geo . In exchange for the use of SNK's popular characters on their pachinko and slot machines, and a few games for the Neo-Geo, Aruze promised financial backing for the failing SNK. Instead Aruze instituted a program to liquidate SNK's assets and cut costs. This included licensing out popular IP to other companies (such as Metal Slug series, The King of Fighters series and Sengoku series), closing underperforming divisions, discontinuing distribution outside Japan, ending support for

4794-469: The VCS conversion of Pac-Man in 1982 was highly criticized for technical flaws due to VCS limitations such as flickering ghosts and simplified gameplay. Though Pac-Man was the best-selling game on the VCS, it eroded consumer confidence in Atari's games and partially contributed to the 1983 crash. The need for arcade conversions began to wane as arcade game manufacturers like Nintendo, Sega, and SNK entered

4896-468: The advent of Space Invaders and the golden era, microprocessor-based games became typical. Early arcade games were also designed around raster graphics displayed on a cathode-ray tube (CRT) display. Many games of the late 1970s and early 1980s use special displays that rendered vector graphics , though these waned by the mid-1980s as display technology on CRTs improved. Prior to the availability of color CRT or vector displays, some arcade cabinets have

4998-601: The advent of the Boshin War and the Meiji Restoration . The Kawaguchi foreign settlement , now the Kawaguchi subdistrict, is a legacy of the foreign presence in Osaka. Osaka residents were stereotyped in Edo literature from at least the 18th century. Jippensha Ikku in 1802 depicted Osakans as stingy almost beyond belief. In 1809, the derogatory term "Kamigata zeeroku" was used by Edo residents to characterize inhabitants of

5100-433: The air raid took almost the entire night and destroyed 25 square miles (65 km ) of the city. The U.S. bombed the city again twice in June 1945 and again on August 14, a day before Japan's surrender . In the decades after World War II, the reconstruction plan and the industriousness of its inhabitants ensured Osaka even greater prosperity than it had before the war. Osaka's population regrew to more than three million in

5202-514: The approval of this project saw the narrow victory of no, and consequently Hashimoto announced his withdrawal from politics. A second referendum for a merger into 4 semi-autonomous wards was narrowly voted down by 692,996 (50.6%). According to the Forbes list of The World's Most Expensive Places To Live 2009 , Osaka was the second most expensive in the world after Tokyo . By 2020 it slipped to 5th rank of most expensive cities. On March 7, 2014,

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5304-551: The beginning of the Yayoi period, the sediments that were deposited north of the Uemachi peninsula / plateau transformed Kawachi Bay into a lagoon. During the Yayoi period (300 BCE-250 CE), permanent habitation on the plains grew as rice farming became popular. At the beginning of the third century CE the grand shrine of Sumiyoshi-taisha was inaugurated near the harbor, commissioned by consort Empress Jingū . This Shinto shrine structure survived historical events, which inaugurated

5406-482: The best way to combat poverty. This minimized the cost of welfare programs. During World War II , Osaka came under air raids in 1945 by the United States Army Air Forces as part of the air raids on Japan . On March 13, 1945, a total of 329 Boeing B-29 Superfortress heavy bombers took part in the raid against Osaka. According to an American prisoner of war who was held in the city,

5508-915: The city bylaw. Osaka also houses several agencies of the Japanese government. Below is a list of governmental offices housed in Osaka. In July 2012, a joint multi-party bill was submitted to the Diet that would allow for implementation of the Osaka Metropolis plan as pursued by the mayor of Osaka city, the governor of Osaka and their party . If implemented, Osaka City, neighboring Sakai City and possibly other surrounding municipalities would dissolve and be reorganized as four special wards of Osaka prefecture – similar to former Tokyo City 's successor wards within Tokyo prefecture. Special wards are municipal-level administrative units that leave some otherwise municipal administrative responsibilities and revenues to

5610-565: The city of Amagasaki , belonging to Hyōgo Prefecture , in the northwest. The city occupies a larger area (about 13%) than any other city or village within Osaka Prefecture. When the city was established in 1889, it occupied roughly the area known today as the Chuo and Nishi wards, only 15.27 square kilometres (6 sq mi) that would eventually grow into today's 222.30 square kilometres (86 sq mi) via incremental expansions,

5712-439: The company stopped producing arcade games in 1985, and Super Don Quix-ote ended up being the only game released for the system. Universal Distributing of Nevada (UDN) was established to begin selling Universal's first slot machines direct to the gaming industry. Several Universal titles were designed by Kazutoshi Ueda, most notably Mr. Do! (1982). He later left Universal and went on to work at Tehkan (now Tecmo), then became

5814-491: The copula ya instead of da , and the suffix -hen instead of -nai in negative verb forms. The Osaka City Council is the city's local government formed under the Local Autonomy Law . The council has eighty-nine seats, allocated to the twenty-four wards proportional to their population and re-elected by the citizens every four years. The council elects its president and Vice President. Toshifumi Tagaya ( LDP )

5916-448: The decades prior), and the 1983 video game crash as the home-console market impacted arcades. The arcade market had recovered by 1986, with the help of software-conversion kits, the arrival of popular beat 'em up games (such as Kung-Fu Master (1984) and Renegade (1986-1987)), and advanced motion simulator games (such as Sega's "taikan" games including Hang-On (1985), Space Harrier (1985), and Out Run (1986)). However,

6018-451: The development of capitalism in Japan. It became known as the " Manchester and Melbourne of the Orient". In 1925, it was the largest and most populous city in Japan and sixth in the world. The rapid industrialization attracted many Asian immigrants (Indians, Chinese, and Koreans), who set up a life apart for themselves. The political system was pluralistic, with a strong emphasis on promoting industrialization and modernization. Literacy

6120-420: The early 2000s, arcade video games were the largest and most technologically advanced segment of the video game industry . Early prototypical entries Galaxy Game and Computer Space in 1971 established the principle operations for arcade games, and Atari 's Pong in 1972 is recognized as the first successful commercial arcade video game. Improvements in computer technology and gameplay design led to

6222-486: The eventual Mr. Do series : Mr. Do's Castle , Mr. Do's Wild Ride and Do Run Run . Cashing-in on the success of laserdisc video games , Universal released Super Don Quix-ote in 1984, on a new standardized laserdisc video game system they called the Universal System 1. A new game was planned every six months for the Universal System 1, including an unreleased laserdisc adventure game based on Mr. Do! , but

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6324-802: The falling of manual-heavy flight sim popularity in favor of instant arcade flight action. A modern subgenre of action games called " hack and slash " or "character action games" represent an evolution of traditional arcade action games, and are sometimes considered a subgenre of beat 'em up brawlers. This subgenre of games was largely defined by Hideki Kamiya , creator of the Devil May Cry and Bayonetta franchises. Arcade games are found in restaurants, bowling alleys, college campuses, video rental shops, dormitories, laundromats, movie theaters, supermarkets, shopping malls, airports, and other retail environments. They are popular in public places where people are likely to have free time. Their profitability

6426-539: The favorable geological conditions, rich in fresh water and lush vegetation, and because its position was defensible against military attack. The earliest evidence of settlements in the Osaka area are the Morinomiya ruins ( 森ノ宮遺跡 , Morinomiya iseki ) which is located in the central Chuo-ku district. Buried human skeletons and a kaizuka (a mound containing remains), were found as well as shell mounds, oysters, and other interesting archeological discoveries from

6528-514: The first world's fair ever held in an Asian country. Since then, numerous international events have been held in Osaka, including the 1995 APEC Summit . The modern municipality, which when it was established in 1889 occupied an area of just 15 km including the districts of Chūō and Nishi, following three successive expansions has reached an area of 222 km . It was one of the first cities in Japan to obtain designated city status in 1956. The plan to reorganize Osaka and its province into

6630-581: The growth of home video-game systems such as the Nintendo Entertainment System led to another brief arcade decline toward the end of the 1980s. Arcade games continued to improve with the development of technology and of gameplay. In the early 1990s, the release of Capcom 's Street Fighter II established the modern style of fighting games and led to a number of similar games such as Mortal Kombat , Fatal Fury , Killer Instinct , Virtua Fighter , and Tekken , creating

6732-576: The home console market and used similar technology within their home consoles as found at the arcade, negating the need to simplify the game. Concessions still may be made for a home release; notably, the Super Nintendo Entertainment System conversion of Mortal Kombat removed much of the gore from the arcade version to meet Nintendo's quality control standards. Exact copies of arcade video games can be run through emulators such as MAME on modern devices. An emulator

6834-410: The hub Kyōbashi Station . Osaka contains numerous urban canals and bridges, many of which serve as the namesake for their surrounding neighborhoods. The phrase "808 bridges of Naniwa" was an expression in old Japan used to indicate impressiveness and the "uncountable". Osaka numbered roughly 200 bridges by the Edo period and 1,629 bridges by 1925. As many of the city's canals were gradually filled in,

6936-468: The initial Atari VCS games, for example, were conversions of Atari's success arcade games. Arcade game manufacturers that were not in the home console or computer business found licensing of their games to console manufacturers to be a successful business model, as console manufacturer competitors would vie for rights to more popular games. Coleco famously bested Atari to secure the rights to convert Nintendo's Donkey Kong , which it subsequently included as

7038-581: The largest of which being a single 126.01-square-kilometre (49 sq mi) expansion in 1925. Osaka's highest point is 37.5 metres (123.0 ft) Tokyo Peil in Tsurumi-ku , and the lowest point is in Nishiyodogawa-ku at −2.2 metres (−7.2 ft) Tokyo Peil. Osaka has a latitude of 34.67 (near the 35th parallel north ), which makes it more southern than Rome (41.90), Madrid (40.41), San Francisco (37.77) and Seoul (37.53). Osaka

7140-541: The machinery, while learning the game business. The early mainframe game Spacewar! (1962) inspired the first commercial arcade video game, Computer Space (1971), created by Nolan Bushnell and Ted Dabney and released by Nutting Associates . It was demonstrated at the Amusement & Music Operators Association (AMOA) show in October 1971. Another Spacewar -inspired coin-operated video game, Galaxy Game ,

7242-514: The market; they opened new branches in North America and Europe, announced development of new titles for the Neo Geo arcade system, started developing games for console and portable systems for the first time in years and re-established distribution channels to sell inventory for the Neo Geo home and pocket systems. To further establish themselves as a reborn SNK they officially changed their name to SNK Playmore in 2003. In October 2002, Aruze

7344-443: The mid-1970s, starting with Gun Fight in 1975. The arcade industry entered a "Golden Age" in 1978 with the release of Taito 's Space Invaders , which introduced many novel gameplay features - including a scoreboard . From 1978 to 1982, several other major arcade-games from Namco, Atari, Williams Electronics, Stern Electronics, and Nintendo were all considered blockbusters , particularly Namco's Pac-Man (1980), which became

7446-483: The mid-1990s, though arcade systems such as the Sega Model 3 remained considerably more advanced than home systems in the late 1990s. Until about 1996, arcade video-games had remained the largest segment of the global video-game industry . Arcades declined in the late 1990s, surpassed by the console market for the first time around 1997–1998. Since the 2000s, arcade games have taken different routes globally. In

7548-588: The modern kanji 阪 han refers to Osaka City or Osaka Prefecture . During the Jōmon period (7,000 BCE), present-day Osaka was mostly submerged, and the Uemachi Plateau ( 上町台地 , Uemachi Daichi ) formed a 12 km long and 2.5 km wide peninsula separating Kawachi Bay from the Seto Inland Sea . It is considered one of the first places where inhabitants of Japan settled, both for

7650-519: The mouth of the Yodo River , which had widened to the south. By the Kofun period , Osaka developed into a hub port connecting the region to the western part of Japan. The port of Naniwa-tsu was established and became the most important in Japan. Trade with other areas of the country and the Asian continent intensified. The large numbers of increasingly larger keyhole-shaped Kofun mounds found in

7752-501: The number dropped to 872, of which 760 are currently managed by Osaka City. There are currently 24 wards in Osaka: per km Population numbers have been recorded in Osaka since as early as 1873, in the early Meiji era . According to the census in 2005, there were 2,628,811 residents in Osaka, an increase of 30,037 or 1.2% from 2000. There were 1,280,325 households with approximately 2.1 persons per household. The population density

7854-409: The oldest Buddhist temples in Japan. Ōsaka means "large hill" or "large slope". It is unclear when this name gained prominence over Naniwa, but the oldest written evidence for the name dates back to 1496. By the Edo period , 大坂 ( Ōsaka ) and 大阪 ( Ōsaka ) were mixed use, and the writer Hamamatsu Utakuni  [ ja ] , in his book Setsuyo Ochiboshu published in 1808, states that

7956-455: The plains of Osaka are evidence of political-power concentration, leading to the formation of a state. The findings in the neighboring plains, including the mausoleum of Emperor Nintoku was discovered nearby in Sakai testify to the status of imperial city that Osaka had reached. Four of these mounds can be seen in Osaka, in which important members of the nobility are buried. They are located in

8058-414: The port of Naniwa-tsu increased in such a way that huge warehouses were built to stow material arriving and departing. The Kojiki records that during 390–430 CE, there was an imperial palace located at Osumi, in what is present day Higashiyodogawa ward , but it may have been a secondary imperial residence rather than a capital. In 645, Emperor Kōtoku built his Naniwa Nagara-Toyosaki Palace in what

8160-561: The postwar period, and the city developed rapidly as one of the major financial centers in the Keihanshin Metropolitan Area. Osaka is a major financial center of Japan, and it is recognized as one of the most multicultural and cosmopolitan cities in Japan. The city is home to the Osaka Exchange as well as the headquarters of multinational electronics corporations such as Panasonic and Sharp . Osaka

8262-457: The prefectural administration. In October 2018, the city of Osaka officially ended its sister city relationship with San Francisco in the United States after the latter permitted a monument memorializing "comfort women" to remain on a city-owned property, circulating in the process a 10-page, 3,800-word letter in English addressed to San Francisco mayor London Breed . On November 1, 2020,

8364-427: The rainy season are June 7 and July 21 respectively. Summers are very hot and humid. In August, the hottest month, the average daily high temperature reaches 33.7 °C (93 °F), while average nighttime low temperatures typically hover around 25.8 °C (78 °F). Fall in Osaka sees a cooling trend, with the early part of the season resembling summer while the latter part of fall resembles winter. Precipitation

8466-457: The regional headquarters of many large-scale banks and corporations. The Midōsuji boulevard runs through Semba and connects Kita and Minami. Further south of Minami are neighborhoods such as Shinsekai (with its Tsūtenkaku tower), Tennoji and Abeno (with Tennoji Zoo , Shitennō-ji and Abeno Harukas ), and the Kamagasaki slums, the largest slum in Japan. The city's west side is

8568-508: The same franchise. This list only includes franchises that have sold at least 5,000 hardware units or grossed at least $ 10 million revenues. Osaka Osaka ( Japanese : 大阪市 , Hepburn : Ōsaka-shi , pronounced [oːsakaɕi] ; commonly just 大阪 , Ōsaka [oːsaka] ) is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan , and one of

8670-431: The same way today, especially in terms of gluttony, evidenced in the phrase, "Residents of Osaka devour their food until they collapse" ( 大阪は食倒れ , "Ōsaka wa kuidaore" ) . With the enormous changes that characterized the country after the Meiji Restoration (1868), and the relocation of the capital from Kyoto to Tokyo , Osaka entered a period of decline. From being the capital of the economy and finance, it became

8772-513: The south or southwest are possible. Osaka's sprawling cityscape has been described as "only surpassed by Tokyo as a showcase of the Japanese urban phenomenon". Central Osaka is roughly divided into downtown and uptown areas known as Kita ( キタ , "north") and Minami ( ミナミ , "south") . Kita is home to the Umeda district and its immediate surrounding neighborhoods, a major business and retail hub that plays host to Osaka Station City and

8874-526: The southern districts of the city and date back to the 5th century. A group of megalithic tombs called Mozu Tombs are located in Sakai , Osaka Prefecture. Important works of the Kofun period is the excavation that diverted the course of the Yamato River , whose floods caused extensive damage, and the construction of important roads in the direction of Sakai and Nara . Maritime traffic connected to

8976-557: The surrender of the monks and subsequent razing of the temple. Toyotomi Hideyoshi constructed Osaka Castle in its place in 1583. Osaka Castle played a pivotal role in the Siege of Osaka (1614–1615). Osaka was long considered Japan's primary economic center, with a large percentage of the population belonging to the merchant class (see Four divisions of society ). Over the course of the Edo period (1603–1867), Osaka grew into one of Japan's major cities and returned to its ancient role as

9078-427: The third highest-earning arcade video game of 1977 in Japan, just below Speed Race DX and Breakout . Scratch was again Japan's fourth highest-earning arcade video game of 1978 . Cosmic Monsters (1978) was a Space Invaders clone that became Japan's sixth highest-earning arcade video game the same year. Universal eventually moved away from clones and began producing original arcade games. Get A Way (1978)

9180-495: The three major cities of Japan ( Tokyo -Osaka- Nagoya ). It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture , and the third-most populous city in Japan, following the special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama . With a population of 2.7 million in the 2020 census, it is also the largest component of the Keihanshin Metropolitan Area , which is the second-largest metropolitan area in Japan and

9282-422: The two largest groups being Korean (60,110) and Chinese (39,551) 2021 years. Ikuno , with its Tsuruhashi district, is the home to one of the largest population of Korean residents in Japan, with 20,397 registered Zainichi Koreans . The commonly spoken dialect of this area is Osaka-ben , a typical sub-dialect of Kansai-ben . Of the many other particularities that characterize Osaka-ben, examples include using

9384-414: The user-controller flippers which would not be invented until 1947) these machines were seen as games of luck . Numerous states and cities treated them as amoral playthings for rebellious young people, and banned them into the 1960s and 1970s. Electro-mechanical games (EM games) appeared in arcades in the mid-20th century. Following Sega 's EM game Periscope (1966), the arcade industry experienced

9486-454: The very traditional fair midway ) make extensive use of solid state electronics , integrated circuits , and monitor screens, all installed inside an arcade cabinet . With the exception of Galaxy Game and Computer Space , which were built around small form-factor mainframe computers , the first arcade games are based on combinations of multiple discrete logic chips, such as transistor–transistor logic (TTL) chips. Designing an arcade game

9588-461: The virtual currency of credits. Modern arcade cabinets use flat panel displays instead of cathode-ray tubes. Internet services such as ALL.Net , NESiCAxLive , e-Amusement and NESYS , allow the cabinets to download updates or new games, do online multiplayer gameplay, save progress, unlock content, or earn credits. Many arcade games have short levels, simple and intuitive control schemes, and rapidly increasing difficulty . The classic formula for

9690-448: Was 11,836 persons per km . The Great Kantō earthquake caused a mass migration to Osaka between 1920 and 1930, and the city became Japan's largest city in 1930 with 2,453,573 people, outnumbering even Tokyo, which had a population of 2,070,913. The population peaked at 3,252,340 in 1940, and had a post-war peak of 3,156,222 in 1965, but has declined since, as the residents moved out to the suburbs. There were 144,123 registered foreigners,

9792-441: Was a sit-down arcade racing game that used a 16-bit central processing unit (CPU), for which it was advertised as the world's first 16-bit game; it was among Japan's top twenty highest-earning arcade video games of 1978. Universal followed with the hugely influential platform game Space Panic (1980) and the maze game Lady Bug (1981). Universal's greatest hit game was Mr. Do! (1982), which spawned three sequels in

9894-543: Was declared the capital again in 744 by order of Emperor Shōmu , and remained so until 745, when the Imperial Court moved back to Heijō-kyō (now Nara ). By the end of the Nara period, Naniwa's seaport roles had been gradually taken over by neighboring areas, but it remained a lively center of river, channel, and land transportation between Heian-kyō (Kyoto today) and other destinations. Sumiyoshi Taisha Grand Shrine

9996-484: Was demonstrated at Stanford University in November 1971. Bushnell and Dabney followed their Computer Space success to create - with the help of Allan Alcorn - a table-tennis game, Pong , released in 1972. Pong became a commercial success, leading numerous other coin-op manufacturers to enter the market. The video game industry transitioned from discrete integrated circuitry to programmable microprocessors in

10098-408: Was founded by Tamomi no Sukune in 211 CE. Shitennō-ji was first built in 593 CE and the oldest Buddhist temple in Japan. In 1496, Jōdo Shinshū Buddhists established their headquarters in the heavily fortified Ishiyama Hongan-ji , located directly on the site of the old Naniwa Imperial Palace. Oda Nobunaga began a decade-long siege campaign on the temple in 1570 which ultimately resulted in

10200-419: Was high and the educational system expanded rapidly, producing a middle class with a taste for literature and a willingness to support the arts. In 1927, General Motors operated a factory called Osaka Assembly until 1941, manufacturing Chevrolet , Cadillac , Pontiac , Oldsmobile , and Buick vehicles, operated and staffed by Japanese workers and managers. In the nearby city of Ikeda in Osaka Prefecture

10302-435: Was more about the combination of these TTL chips and other electronic components to achieve the desired effect on screen. More complex gameplay required significantly more TTL components to achieve this result. By the mid-1970s, the first inexpensive programmable microprocessors had arrived on the market. The first microprocessor-based video game is Midway's Gun Fight in 1975 (a conversion of Taito's Western Gun ), and with

10404-831: Was sued by Playmore founder Eikichi Kawasaki for copyright infringement over SNK's intellectual properties, claiming their use was unauthorized by Playmore. In January 2004, a preliminary decision was handed down by the Osaka District Court favoring SNK Playmore and was awarded 5.64 billion yen (US$ 57,627,468) in damages. Arcade video game An arcade video game is an arcade game that takes player input from its controls, processes it through electrical or computerized components, and displays output to an electronic monitor or similar display. All arcade video games are coin-operated or accept other means of payment, housed in an arcade cabinet , and located in amusement arcades alongside other kinds of arcade games . Until

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