Edge Rewrite
restyle Source code View original
// HTMLRewriter · presentation

This page was redesigned at the edge.

Cloudflare fetched the original article and streamed it through HTMLRewriter to apply an entirely new visual system without rebuilding the source page.

Jump to content

Famitsu

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
(Redirected from Weekly Famitsu)

Famitsu
Cover of Shūkan Famitsu for May 9–16, 2024 (#1847) issue, featuring Acheron and Aventurine of Honkai: Star Rail
CategoriesVideo game
FrequencyWeekly / Monthly
FormatPaper and online magazine
Circulation500,000 (Shūkan)
120,000 (Entamikusu)
80,000 (Connect! On)
40,000 (DS+Wii)[1]
PublisherASCII (1986–2000)
Enterbrain (2000–2013)
Kadokawa (2013–2017)
Gzbrain (2017–2019)
Kadokawa Game Linkage (2019–present)
First issueJune 1986; 40 years ago (1986-06) (as Famicom Tsūshin)
CountryJapan
Based inTokyo
LanguageJapanese
Websitefamitsu.com

Famitsu,[a] formerly Famicom Tsūshin,[b] is a line of Japanese video game magazines published by Kadokawa Game Linkage (previously known as Gzbrain), a subsidiary of Kadokawa. Famitsu is published in weekly and monthly formats, and in special issues devoted to particular themes. It was first published in 1986.

Shūkan Famitsū,[c] the original publication, is considered the most widely read and respected video game news magazine in Japan.[2][3][4] From October 28, 2011, the company began releasing the digital version on BookWalker weekly.[5][6]

The name Famitsu is a portmanteau abbreviation of Famicom Tsūshin; Famicom is itself an abbreviation of Family Computer, the dominant video game console in Japan when the magazine was first published.

History

[edit]
Cover art for the first issue of Famitsū magazine (then known as Famicom Tsūshin), June 1986. The joystick controller and the Family Computer controller can be seen on the cover.

LOGiN (ログイン), a computer game magazine, started in 1982 as an extra issue of ASCII, and later it became a periodic magazine. Famicom Tsūshin[d] was a column in Login, focused on the Famicom platform, and ran from March 1985 to December 1986 issue. It received a good reception, so the publisher decided to found the magazine specialized for it.[7][8]

The first issue of Famitsu was published on June 6, 1986, as Famicom Tsūshin.[9] It sold less than 200,000 copies, despite 700,000 copies printed. The major competitor was Family Computer Magazine launched in July 1985 by Tokuma Shoten. Famitsu's editor found many readers had multiple game consoles, and they thought it would be better if the magazine covered various platforms. Increasing contents and the page count gradually, the magazine was published three times per month instead of semimonthly publication. On July 19, 1991 (issue #136) the magazine was renamed to Shūkan Famicom Tsūshin[e] and issues were published weekly thereafter. Alongside the weekly magazine, a monthly version called Gekkan Famicom Tsūshin[f] was also published.

Hirokazu Hamamura, an editor-in-chief (1992–2002), felt the beginning of a new era when he saw a private demonstration of Final Fantasy VI in 1993. He thought the name Famicom Tsūshin should be refurbished. At the start of 1996 (with issue #369) the magazines underwent another name change, truncating their titles to Shūkan Famitsū[g] and Gekkan Famitsū.[h] The name Famitsu had already been in common use.[8]

The magazine was published by ASCII from its founding through March 2000 when it was sold to Enterbrain, which published it for 13 years, until their parent company Kadokawa published it from 2013 to 2017. Since 2017, Kadokawa's subsidiary Gzbrain has been publishing the magazine, while in 2019 the company changed its name to Kadokawa Game Linkage.[6]

Shūkan Famitsū and Gekkan Famitsū

[edit]

Famicom Tsūshin initially focused on the Famicom platform, but later it featured multi-platform coverage. Famicom Tsūshin was renamed to Famitsu in 1995. Shūkan Famitsū is a weekly publication concentrating on video game news and reviews, and is published every Thursday with a circulation of 500,000 per issue.[1] Gekkan Famitsū is published monthly.

Necky the Fox

[edit]

Famitsu covers alternately feature pop idols or actresses on even-numbered issues and the Famitsu mascot, Necky[i] the Fox[10] in odd-numbered issues.[11] 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.[12] 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, キツネ,[j] and his original connection to Famicom Tsūshin is intended to evoke the bark of the fox, the Japanese onomatopoeia of which is コンコン.[k][13] Necky makes a cameo appearance in Super Mario Maker.[14]

Special-topic Famitsu publications

[edit]

Over the course of its history, Famitsu has published numerous spin-off magazines devoted to particular gaming platforms, genres and areas of entertainment. Most have since been discontinued as coverage shifted toward Weekly Famitsu and Famitsu.com [ja].

General entertainment

[edit]
  • Entamix[l] (previously Otonafami[m]) was a monthly general entertainment magazine aimed at adult readers, covering films, television, manga, anime, games and other popular culture. It was launched in July 2006 as Otonafami, renamed Entamix in 2014, and discontinued with its May 2017 issue.

Platform-specific magazines

[edit]
  • Famitsū DC[n] was dedicated to the Dreamcast and served as Sega's official magazine while Enterbrain was a subsidiary of CSK Holdings and Sega. It succeeded earlier Sega-focused titles, including Sega Saturn Tsūshin.
  • Famitsū PSP+PS3[o] was devoted to the PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Portable. It originated as PlayStation Tsūshin, before being renamed Famitsū PS, Famitsū PS2, Famitsū PLAYSTATION+, and finally Famitsū PSP+PS3 in 2008. Its final issue was published in May 2010.
  • Famitsū DS+Wii[p] covered Nintendo platforms. It was originally published under several titles, including Famitsū 64 and Famitsū Cube, with its name changing to reflect Nintendo's current hardware. It adopted the DS branding in 2006, became Famitsū DS+Wii later that year, and ceased publication with the March 2016 issue.
  • Famitsū Xbox[q] (later Famitsū Xbox 360[r]) was Japan's only magazine dedicated exclusively to the Xbox platform. Founded primarily by former Famitsū DC staff, it entered indefinite hiatus in 2013.

Genre-specific magazines

[edit]
  • Famitsū Connect! On[s] was a monthly magazine dedicated to online games. It ran from 2006 until entering indefinite hiatus in 2015.
  • Famitsū Mobage[t] and Famitsū GREE[u] were companion magazines devoted to social games on the Mobage and GREE platforms, respectively. Both were launched in 2011 and entered indefinite hiatus following their August 2013 issues.
  • Famitsū Sister.[v] was a special magazine devoted to bishōjo games, published as special issues in 1995 and 1997. Its editorial focus later evolved into DearMy..., which was subsequently succeeded by Famitsū Characters DVD.

Comics and manga

[edit]
  • Famitsū Bros.[w] began publication in 1993 as Bessatsu Famicom Tsūshin: Strategy Special, a strategy guide magazine aimed at younger readers. It later became a comic magazine for elementary and junior high school students before ceasing publication in September 2002.
  • Famitsū Comic[x] was a manga magazine first published around 1992. It is unrelated to the later Fami2 Comic supplement included with Famitsū DS+Wii.
  • Famicomi[y] was a quarterly manga anthology first published in 1994. Following its discontinuation in 1995, its editorial line was succeeded by Comic Beam.

Other publications

[edit]
  • Satellaview Tsūshin[z] was a monthly magazine dedicated to the Satellaview. It published twelve issues between 1995 and 1996 and combined game coverage with satellite broadcasting schedules and radio programme listings.
  • Virtual Boy Tsūshin[aa] was a special issue devoted to the Virtual Boy, published in 1995.
  • Famitsū Wave DVD[ab] (previously GameWave DVD) was a video game magazine packaged with a DVD containing trailers, gameplay footage, interviews and coverage of Famitsū events. It ceased publication with the May 2011 issue.

Scoring

[edit]

Video games are graded in Famitsu via a review system of having four critics each assign the game a score from 0 to 10, with 10 being the highest score. The scores are then added together. As of 2024, thirty games have received perfect scores of 40 from Famitsu. The console with the highest number of perfect-scoring games is the PlayStation 3, with seven total. Four of the perfect-scoring games on PlayStation 3 were also released on the Xbox 360, which is tied with the Wii for the second-highest number of perfect scores at five total. Franchises with multiple perfect score winners include The Legend of Zelda with five titles, Metal Gear with three titles, and Final Fantasy with two titles. The most recent game to receive a perfect score is Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth.[15]

As of 2023, all but three games with perfect scores are from Japanese companies, ten being published/developed by Nintendo, four by Square Enix, three by Sega, three by Konami and one by Capcom. As of 2023, the only three completely foreign games to achieve a perfect score are The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim by Bethesda Softworks, Grand Theft Auto V by Rockstar Games, and Ghost of Tsushima by Sucker Punch Productions. Other foreign games that have achieved near-perfect scores are Grand Theft Auto IV, Red Dead Redemption, L.A. Noire, and Red Dead Redemption 2, all by Rockstar Games; Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, Call of Duty: Black Ops, and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, all by Activision (but published by Square Enix in Japan); Gears of War 3 by Epic Games; and The Last of Us Part II and Uncharted 4: A Thief's End by Naughty Dog. Kingdom Hearts II, another game with a near-perfect score, was a joint effort between Japanese developer Square Enix and American developer Disney Interactive Studios.

Awards

[edit]

Famitsu administers the Famitsu awards. Video games receive a number of different awards in categories like Innovation, Biggest Hit, Rookie Award, Highest Quality, etc. One or two "Game of the Year" awards are granted as the top prize. Top prize winners are determined by a combination of critical and fan review scores as well as sales figures.

Relationship with other magazines

[edit]

UK trade magazine MCV and Famitsu have an exclusive partnership which sees news and content from each magazine appear in the other.[16]

See also

[edit]

Notes

[edit]
  1. ↑ Japanese: ファミ通, Hepburn: Famitsū
  2. ↑ Japanese: ファミコン通信; officially translated as Famicom Journal
  3. ↑ Japanese: 週刊ファミ通; lit. "Weekly Famitsū"
  4. ↑ Japanese: ファミコン通信; lit. "Famicom News"
  5. ↑ Japanese: 週刊ファミコン通信; lit. "Weekly Famicom News"
  6. ↑ Japanese: 月刊ファミコン通信; lit. "Monthly Famicom News"
  7. ↑ Japanese: 週刊ファミ通; lit. "Weekly Famitsū"
  8. ↑ Japanese: 月刊ファミ通
  9. ↑ Japanese: ネッキー, Hepburn: Nekkī
  10. ↑ Japanese: kitsune
  11. ↑ Japanese: "kon kon"
  12. ↑ Japanese: エンタミクス
  13. ↑ Japanese: オトナファミ
  14. ↑ Japanese: ファミ通DC
  15. ↑ Japanese: ファミ通PSP+PS3
  16. ↑ Japanese: ファミ通DS+Wii
  17. ↑ Japanese: ファミ通Xbox
  18. ↑ ファミ通Xbox360
  19. ↑ Japanese: ファミ通コネクト!オン
  20. ↑ Japanese: ファミ通Mobage
  21. ↑ Japanese: ファミ通GREE
  22. ↑ Japanese: ファミ通Sister.
  23. ↑ Japanese: ファミ通ブロス
  24. ↑ Japanese: ファミ通コミック
  25. ↑ Japanese: ファミコミ
  26. ↑ Japanese: サテラビュー通信
  27. ↑ Japanese: バーチャルボーイ通信
  28. ↑ Japanese: ファミ通WaveDVD

References

[edit]
  1. 1 2 "Enterbrain Brand Information" (in Japanese). Enterbrain. Archived from the original on January 15, 2013. Retrieved May 1, 2015.
  2. ↑ Tor Thorsen (March 8, 2006). "FFXII gets perfect score from Famitsu". GameSpot. Archived from the original on October 23, 2012. Retrieved June 9, 2006.
  3. ↑ Steve Kalpaxidis (July 1, 2005). "PS3 To Come Without Bundled HDD?". Advanced Media Network. Archived from the original on October 11, 2007. Retrieved June 9, 2006.
  4. ↑ Rodney Quinn (March 9, 2006). "Final Fantasy XII scores perfect 40/40 in Famitsu reviews". Ars Technica. Archived from the original on June 7, 2011. Retrieved June 9, 2006.
  5. ↑ "週刊ファミ通（電子版）が10月28日から販売スタート！ - ファミ通App". www.famitsu.com (in Japanese). Archived from the original on December 11, 2015. Retrieved December 10, 2015.
  6. 1 2 "KADOKAWA、電撃ゲームメディア編集部を吸収分割で連結子会社Gzブレインに10月1日付で承継へ 「ファミ通」ブランドと「電撃」ブランドが融合 | gamebiz".
  7. ↑ Gifford, Kevin (November 16, 2008). "GameSetWatch COLUMN: 'Game Mag Weaseling': Whoops, I Was Logged Out". www.gamesetwatch.com. UBM Technology Group. Archived from the original on June 7, 2019. Retrieved June 6, 2019.
  8. 1 2 "ゲームメディア30年史" [30 Year History of Game Media]. Shūkan Famitsū. 31 (24): 120–127. 2016.
  9. ↑ Martin Picard (December 2013). "The Foundation of Geemu: A Brief History of Early Japanese video games". International Journal of Computer Game Research. 13 (2). Archived from the original on 24 June 2015. Retrieved 19 November 2016.
  10. ↑ Ashcraft, Brian. Gaming Magazine Totally Snubs Xbox 360!? Archived 2009-05-05 at the Wayback Machine. Kotaku. 4 February 2008.
  11. ↑ Gifford, Kevin. 'Game Mag Weaseling': Japan Mag Roundup 2008 Archived 2012-10-11 at the Wayback Machine. GameSetWatch. 27 April 2008.
  12. ↑ 'Necky the Fox' 今も尚輝き続ける松下進の代表的キャラクター Archived 2011-07-24 at the Wayback Machine. SusumuMatsushita.net. 10 July 2004.
  13. ↑ Gifford, Kevin. Weekend Factyard: Famitsu/Famicom Tsushin Archived 2010-01-03 at the Wayback Machine MagWeasel. 19 September 2009.
  14. ↑ Calvert, Darren (10 September 2015). "Super Mario Maker DLC Confirmed, Famitsu's Mascot Necky The Fox Coming Soon". Nintendo Life. Gamer Network. Archived from the original on 14 September 2016. Retrieved 9 September 2016.
  15. ↑ Romano, Sal (January 31, 2024). "Famitsu Review Scores: Issue 135". Gematsu. Retrieved February 22, 2024.
  16. ↑ "MCV launches daily service". Intent Media. February 26, 2007. Archived from the original on August 6, 2010. Retrieved March 14, 2007.
[edit]
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Famitsu&oldid=1366618184#Shūkan_Famitsū_and_Gekkan_Famitsū"