FromSoftware
FromSoftware
Jump to navigation
Jump to search
Native name | 株式会社フロム・ソフトウェア |
---|---|
Romanized name | Kabushiki gaisha furomu sofutowea |
Type |
|
Industry | Video game industry |
Founded | November 1, 1986 (1986-11-01) |
Headquarters | Tokyo , Japan |
Key people |
|
Products |
|
Number of employees | 283 (2017[1]) |
Parent | Kadokawa Corporation |
Website | fromsoftware.jp/ww/ |
FromSoftware, Inc. is a Japanese video game development company founded in November 1986. The company is known primarily outside Japan for being the developers of the Armored Core and Souls series, as well as Bloodborne.
Contents
1 History
2 Games
3 References
4 External links
History[edit]
FromSoftware was founded on November 1, 1986, and developed productivity software for the first several years of their existence. They released their first video game, titled King's Field, as a launch title for the PlayStation in 1994.[2] The initial King's Field did not see a release in North America, although a 1995 sequel would later be released in North America bearing the same title, which was released as King's Field II in Japan. After releasing a third title in that series, FromSoftware moved on to release Echo Night as well as Shadow Tower in 1998. IGN would later note that the latter was "effectively a King's Field follow-up" as it shared many of the gameplay conventions of its brethren. Also during this time FromSoftware would release Armored Core, the first in a mech game series which would go on to spawn many sequels.[3]
When the PlayStation 2 was launched in 2000, FromSoftware supported the system with two RPGs Eternal Ring, which like the King's Field series is a first person RPG, and Evergrace, a more conventional action RPG viewed from a third person perspective.[3] The company also released a pair of sequels to their PlayStation 1 offerings with King's Field IV and Shadow Tower Abyss.[3] FromSoftware also released the Lost Kingdom titles for the Gamecube, a competing sixth generation console.[3] IGN would note however that during this generation FromSoftware's focus would shift from RPG's to mech games due in part to the success of the Armored Core series. In addition to Armored Core titles, FromSoftware would also release Frame Gride for the Dreamcast as well as a pair of Xbox games Murakumo: Armored Mech Pursuit and Metal Wolf Chaos. In addition to original mecha games FromSoftware would also produce a series of licensed games based on the various anime properties under the banner Another Century's Episode.[3]
In April 2014, Kadokawa Corporation announced its intention to purchase the company from former shareholder Transcosmos. The deal was finalized on May 21, 2014.[4] FromSoftware expanded into a new studio in Fukuoka in January 2016, which focuses on creating computer-generated imagery (CGI) assets for the games made by the main studio.[5][6]
In December 2015, FromSoftware was nominated for developer of the year at The Game Awards 2015, but lost to CD Projekt Red.[7]
Games[edit]
FromSoftware have developed for a wide range of platforms, including the Dreamcast, Nintendo DS, GameCube, PlayStation, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox, Xbox 360, Xbox One, PlayStation Portable, Wii, Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch, and various mobile devices.
With fifteen titles developed, the Armored Core series is the studio's longest running franchise. The most recent title, Armored Core: Verdict Day, was released worldwide in September 2013 for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. Earlier, less notable outside Japan, titles include the Enchanted Arms, King's Field, Chromehounds, Otogi, and Tenchu series, all of which have been met with mostly favorable reviews.
In 2009, they released Demon's Souls for the PlayStation 3, which brought them international exposure. Its spiritual successor, Dark Souls, was released in 2011. In March 2014, Dark Souls II, was released, while Dark Souls III was released in 2016.[8] A title inspired by the Souls series, Bloodborne, was released in March 2015. The Souls series, along with Bloodborne, received widespread critical acclaim, as well as strong sales domestically and internationally.[9][10][11] They have also received a number of awards, primarily those for the role-playing genre, including multiple "RPG of the Year" and Game of the Year awards.[12][13][14][15] Since release, Dark Souls and Bloodborne have been cited by many publications to be among the greatest games of all time.[16][17][18]
In April 2016, FromSoftware revealed that they were working on a new intellectual property, as well as stating their intent to return to the Armored Core series.[19] Two games, the PlayStation VR exclusive Déraciné and the multiplatform Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, were announced at E3 2018.[20][21]
Title | System | Original release | JP | NA | EU | AUS |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
King's Field | PlayStation | December 16, 1994 | Yes | No | No | No |
King's Field II | July 21, 1995 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
King's Field III | June 21, 1996 | Yes | Yes | No | No | |
Armored Core | July 10, 1997 | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | |
Armored Core: Project Phantasma | December 4, 1997 | Yes | Yes | No | No | |
Shadow Tower | June 25, 1998 | Yes | Yes | No | No | |
Echo Night | August 13, 1998 | Yes | Yes | No | No | |
Armored Core: Master of Arena | February 4, 1999 | Yes | Yes | No | No | |
Spriggan: Lunar Verse | June 16, 1999 | Yes | No | No | No | |
Frame Gride | Dreamcast | July 15, 1999 | Yes | No | No | No |
Echo Night 2: The Lord of Nightmares | PlayStation | August 5, 1999 | Yes | No | No | No |
Eternal Ring | PlayStation 2 | March 4, 2000 | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
Evergrace | April 27, 2000 | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | |
Armored Core 2 | August 3, 2000 | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | |
The Adventures of Cookie & Cream | December 7, 2000 | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | |
Armored Core 2: Another Age | April 12, 2001 | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | |
Forever Kingdom | June 21, 2001 | Yes | Yes | No | No | |
King's Field IV | October 4, 2001 | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | |
Armored Core 3 | April 1, 2002 | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | |
Lost Kingdoms | GameCube | April 25, 2002 | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
Otogi: Myth of Demons | Xbox | December 12, 2002 | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
Armored Core: Silent Line | PlayStation 2 | January 23, 2003 | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
Murakumo: Renegade Mech Pursuit | Xbox | July 25, 2002 | Yes | Yes | No | No |
Thousand Land | March 20, 2003 | Yes | No | No | No | |
Lost Kingdoms II | GameCube | May 23, 2003 | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
Shadow Tower Abyss | PlayStation 2 | October 23, 2003 | Yes | No | No | No |
Otogi 2: Immortal Warriors | Xbox | December 25, 2003 | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
Nebula: Echo Night | PlayStation 2 | January 22, 2004 | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
Armored Core: Nexus | March 18, 2004 | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | |
Kuon | April 1, 2004 | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | |
Armored Core: Nine Breaker | October 28, 2004 | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | |
Armored Core: Formula Front | PlayStation Portable | December 12, 2004 | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
Metal Wolf Chaos | Xbox | December 22, 2004 | Yes | No | No | No |
Yoshitsune Eiyūden: The Story of Hero Yoshitsune | PlayStation 2 | January 13, 2005 | Yes | No | No | No |
Another Century's Episode | January 27, 2005 | Yes | No | No | No | |
Yoshitsune Eiyuuden Shura: The Story of Hero Yoshitsune Shura | May 27, 2005 | Yes | No | No | No | |
Armored Core: Last Raven | August 4, 2005 | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | |
Enchanted Arms | PlayStation 3 | January 12, 2006 | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
Xbox 360 | ||||||
Another Century's Episode 2 | PlayStation 2 | March 30, 2006 | Yes | No | No | No |
Chromehounds | Xbox 360 | June 29, 2006 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
King's Field: Additional I | PlayStation Portable | July 20, 2006 | Yes | No | No | No |
King's Field: Additional II | August 24, 2006 | Yes | No | No | No | |
Armored Core 4 | PlayStation 3 | December 21, 2006 | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
Xbox 360 | ||||||
Nanpure VOW | Nintendo DS | April 26, 2007 | Yes | No | No | No |
Iraroji VOW | May 24, 2007 | Yes | No | No | No | |
Another Century's Episode 3: The Final | PlayStation 2 | September 6, 2007 | Yes | No | No | No |
Armored Core: For Answer | PlayStation 3 | March 19, 2008 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Xbox 360 | ||||||
Shadow Assault: Tenchu | Xbox 360 | October 8, 2008 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Inugamike no Ichizoku | Nintendo DS | January 22, 2009 | Yes | No | No | No |
Ninja Blade | Xbox 360 | January 29, 2009 | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
Microsoft Windows | ||||||
Demon's Souls | PlayStation 3 | February 5, 2009 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Yatsu Hakamura | Nintendo DS | April 23, 2009 | Yes | No | No | No |
Another Century's Episode: R | PlayStation 3 | August 19, 2010 | Yes | No | No | No |
Monster Hunter Diary: Poka Poka Airou Village | PlayStation Portable | August 26, 2010 | Yes | No | No | No |
Another Century's Episode Portable | January 13, 2011 | Yes | No | No | No | |
Dark Souls | PlayStation 3 | September 22, 2011 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Xbox 360 | ||||||
Microsoft Windows | August 23, 2012 | |||||
Nintendo Switch | October 19, 2018 | |||||
Armored Core V | PlayStation 3 | January 26, 2012 | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
Xbox 360 | ||||||
Mobile Suit Gundam Unicorn | PlayStation 3 | March 8, 2012 | Yes | No | No | No |
Steel Battalion: Heavy Armor | Xbox 360 | June 21, 2012 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Armored Core: Verdict Day | PlayStation 3 | September 26, 2013 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Xbox 360 | ||||||
Dark Souls II | PlayStation 3 | March 13, 2014 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Xbox 360 | ||||||
Microsoft Windows | ||||||
Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin | PlayStation 3 | February 5, 2015 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Xbox 360 | ||||||
PlayStation 4 | ||||||
Xbox One | ||||||
Microsoft Windows | ||||||
Bloodborne | PlayStation 4 | March 24, 2015 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Monster Hunter Diary: Poka Poka Airou Village DX | Nintendo 3DS | September 10, 2015 | Yes | No | No | No |
Dark Souls III | PlayStation 4 | March 24, 2016 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Xbox One | ||||||
Microsoft Windows | April 12, 2016 | |||||
Déraciné | PlayStation 4 (PlayStation VR) | November 6, 2018 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice | Microsoft Windows | March 22, 2019 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
PlayStation 4 | ||||||
Xbox One |
References[edit]
^ abc "Company". Retrieved May 8, 2018..mw-parser-output cite.citationfont-style:inherit.mw-parser-output .citation qquotes:"""""""'""'".mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-free abackground:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/65/Lock-green.svg/9px-Lock-green.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-registration abackground:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d6/Lock-gray-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-gray-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-subscription abackground:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/aa/Lock-red-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-red-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registrationcolor:#555.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription span,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration spanborder-bottom:1px dotted;cursor:help.mw-parser-output .cs1-ws-icon abackground:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4c/Wikisource-logo.svg/12px-Wikisource-logo.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center.mw-parser-output code.cs1-codecolor:inherit;background:inherit;border:inherit;padding:inherit.mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-errordisplay:none;font-size:100%.mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-errorfont-size:100%.mw-parser-output .cs1-maintdisplay:none;color:#33aa33;margin-left:0.3em.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration,.mw-parser-output .cs1-formatfont-size:95%.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-leftpadding-left:0.2em.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-rightpadding-right:0.2em
^ Ciolek, Todd (March 16, 2015). "The History of From Software". ign.com. Retrieved April 7, 2018.
^ abcde Ciolek, Todd. "The History of From Software". IGN. p. 1. Retrieved May 20, 2017.
^ "From Software acquired by Japanese publisher Kadokawa Corporation". Retrieved April 28, 2014.
^ "From Software to open new studio in Fukuoka". Gematsu. September 12, 2015.
^ "FromSoftware to Establish New Studio in Fukuoka in October 2015". FromSoftware. Retrieved June 25, 2016.
^ "Nominees | The Game Awards 2015". The Game Awards. Ola Balola. November 12, 2015. Archived from the original on November 14, 2015. Retrieved November 13, 2015.
^ "Dark Souls 3 confirmed, coming early 2016". Polygon. Retrieved October 2, 2015.
^ Ben Dutka (February 12, 2009). "Demon's Souls Caps Impressive First Week of Sales in Japan". PSX Extreme. Retrieved March 17, 2010.
^ May 8, 2014, Financial Highlights for the Fiscal Year Ended March 2014, NAMCO BANDAI Holdings Inc.
^ May 7, 2014, Dark Souls II Ships 1.2 Million In U.S. And Europe, Siliconera
^ den Ouden, Adriaan. "RPG of the Year". RPGamer. Retrieved March 26, 2010.
^ Marchello, Sam. "Best Graphics". RPGamer. Retrieved March 26, 2010.
^ Staples, Ken. "Best PS3". RPGamer. Retrieved March 26, 2010.
^ "Community Choice Game of the Year". Game Revolution. December 23, 2011. Retrieved December 31, 2011.
^ Polygon Staff (November 27, 2017). "The 500 Best Video Games of All Time". Polygon.com. Retrieved December 1, 2017.
^ "The Top 300 Games of All Time". Game Informer (300). April 2018.
^ "Edge Presents: The 100 Greatest Video Games of All Time". Edge. August 2017.
^ Hillier, Brenna (April 27, 2016). "Dark Souls 3 director already working on a new IP". VG247. Retrieved April 27, 2016.
^ McWhertor, Michael. "FromSoftware's Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice coming from Activision". Polygon. Retrieved 11 June 2018.
^ Statt, Nick. "Dark Souls creator From Software is making a VR game called Déraciné". The Verge. Retrieved 12 June 2018.
^ "Products". fromsoftware.jp. Retrieved 8 May 2018.
External links[edit]
- Official website
Categories:
- 1986 establishments in Japan
- Software companies based in Tokyo
- Kadokawa Corporation
- Japanese brands
- Video game companies of Japan
- Video game companies established in 1986
- Video game development companies
- Video game publishers
(window.RLQ=window.RLQ||).push(function()mw.config.set("wgPageParseReport":"limitreport":"cputime":"0.680","walltime":"0.849","ppvisitednodes":"value":4901,"limit":1000000,"ppgeneratednodes":"value":0,"limit":1500000,"postexpandincludesize":"value":116553,"limit":2097152,"templateargumentsize":"value":2840,"limit":2097152,"expansiondepth":"value":17,"limit":40,"expensivefunctioncount":"value":5,"limit":500,"unstrip-depth":"value":1,"limit":20,"unstrip-size":"value":58949,"limit":5000000,"entityaccesscount":"value":1,"limit":400,"timingprofile":["100.00% 617.618 1 -total"," 30.30% 187.138 1 Template:Reflist"," 23.18% 143.156 18 Template:Cite_web"," 21.32% 131.675 1 Template:Infobox_company"," 18.53% 114.455 1 Template:Infobox"," 13.28% 82.016 69 Template:Dts"," 6.38% 39.422 3 Template:Navbox"," 6.19% 38.240 1 Template:FromSoftware_games"," 5.78% 35.729 1 Template:Official_website"," 5.49% 33.915 1 Template:Use_mdy_dates"],"scribunto":"limitreport-timeusage":"value":"0.275","limit":"10.000","limitreport-memusage":"value":5534403,"limit":52428800,"cachereport":"origin":"mw1273","timestamp":"20190213233303","ttl":2073600,"transientcontent":false);mw.config.set("wgBackendResponseTime":91,"wgHostname":"mw1252"););