Taito facts for kids
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Taito shares its headquarters building (in Shinjuku) with its parent company, Square Enix.
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Native name
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株式会社タイトー
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Romanized name
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Kabushikigaisha Taitō |
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Formerly
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Taito Trading Company |
| Subsidiary | |
| Industry | Video games Arcades Toys |
| Founded | August 24, 1953 |
| Founder | Michael Kogan |
| Headquarters | , |
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Key people
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| Total equity |  ¥45.70 billion |
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Number of employees
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752 (March 2020) |
| Parent | Square Enix (2005–present) |
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Taito Corporation is a Japanese company famous for making video games, toys, and arcade cabinets. They also run fun game centers! Taito is located in Shinjuku, Tokyo, Japan.
The company was started by Michael Kogan in 1953. Back then, it was called the Taito Trading Company, . They used to import things like vodka, vending machines, and jukeboxes into Japan. Taito began making its own video games in 1973.
In 2005, a big gaming company called Square Enix bought Taito. By 2006, Taito became a full part of Square Enix.
Taito is known for being a very important company in the early days of video games. They made many popular arcade games like Speed Race (1974), Western Gun (1975), Space Invaders (1978), Bubble Bobble (1986), and Arkanoid (1986).
Along with companies like Capcom, Konami, Namco, and Sega, Taito is one of Japan's most famous video game makers. It was also the first Japanese company to send its games to other countries. Many of Taito's games, especially Space Invaders, were groundbreaking. Space Invaders helped video games become super popular in the late 1970s. The alien characters from the game are still famous symbols in the video game industry today.
Taito also runs a chain of arcade centers across Japan called "Taito Game Stations." They make toys, soft plush dolls, and prizes for claw machines too.
Contents
History of Taito
The story of Taito began in 1944 when Ukrainian Jewish businessman Michael Kogan started a company called Taitung in Shanghai, China. Kogan had worked in a factory in Japan during World War II. After the war, he moved to Shanghai to join his father. Taitung, which means "Taito" in Japanese, sold things like floor coverings and wigs.
Early Years (1950s-1960s)
When the Communist government took over China, Kogan closed his business in 1950. He then moved to Japan, which was recovering from the war. His second business, a clothing company called Taito Yoko, had money problems. So, on August 24, 1953, Taito Yoko was replaced by the Taito Trading Company. Michael Kogan teamed up with Akio Nakatani, a lawyer.
The Taito Trading Company first made vodka, being the first company to do so in Japan. They also imported peanut vending machines and perfume machines.
By 1955, there was a lot of competition in the vodka business, so Taito stopped making it. They focused on their successful vending machines and started importing jukeboxes. Since Taito didn't have a license to import new jukeboxes, they bought broken ones from United States military bases. They fixed these machines using parts from other broken units.
As Japan's economy got better, Taito became the official seller of AMI jukeboxes in the country. This deal became very successful, and by 1960, over 1,500 machines were sold. Taito also partnered with the Seeburg Corporation, becoming their main agent in Japan. This made Taito one of the top jukebox companies in the nation.
In the 1960s, Taito began making electro-mechanical games (EM games). These games used electronic parts. In 1967, they released Crown Soccer Special, a two-player game that felt like real association football. In 1968, their game Crown Basketball was a big hit in the US.
Video Game Era (1970s-1980s)
In August 1972, Taito Trading Company changed its name to Taito Corporation. In 1973, they opened their American branch, Taito America, in Chicago.
Taito's First Video Game
Taito's very first video game was an arcade game called Elepong. It was a ping-pong game released in Japan in 1973.
Tomohiro Nishikado, an engineer who joined Taito in 1968, was very important in Taito's move into video games. After making popular shooting games like Sky Fighter (1971), his bosses wanted him to explore new technology. Nishikado was the only one at Taito who knew how to work with integrated circuit (IC) technology.
Nishikado spent six months studying Atari's Pong arcade game to understand how its chips worked. He then started changing the game. This led him to create Pong-style sports video games for Taito, such as Soccer and Davis Cup, both released in November 1973.
He then created several original arcade video game hits for Taito. These included the sports game TV Basketball (1974), the racing game Speed Race (1974), and the shooter game Western Gun (1975). These games were also released in North America by Midway Manufacturing.
In 1978, Nishikado created Space Invaders. This game became Taito's most famous title and one of the most popular arcade games ever. It helped start the "golden age" of arcade video games. After Michael Kogan passed away in 1984, his son, Abraham "Abba" Kogan, became Taito's chairman.
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In April 1986, Taito joined with two of its smaller companies, Pacific Industrial Co., Ltd. and Japan Vending Machine Co., Ltd. Japan Vending Machine had been bought by Taito in 1971 to help with amusement facilities. Pacific Industrial was created by Taito in 1963 to develop products.
Modern Taito (1990s-Present)
In 1992, Taito announced a new CD-ROM-based video game console called WOWOW. It was meant to play almost perfect versions of Taito's arcade games and even download games from a satellite. However, the WOWOW console was never released.
Taito America, the US branch, closed down in July 1996 after more than 20 years. Taito had already sold the rights to publish its games in America to Acclaim Entertainment a year before. Similarly, Taito (Europe) Corporation Limited, which distributed Taito games in Europe, closed in 1998.
In August 2005, the big gaming company Square Enix announced they would buy Taito. This made Taito a part of Square Enix. Square Enix wanted to help Taito grow and expand into new types of gaming, especially arcades. The deal was accepted, and Taito became a Square Enix company.
By September 2005, Square Enix owned most of Taito. In March 2006, Square Enix made Taito a fully owned part of their company. Taito's shares were no longer traded on the Tokyo Stock Exchange.
In 2008, Square Enix decided to close two smaller Taito companies, Taito Art Corporation and Taito Tech Co., Ltd., because they had finished their work.
In February 2010, Taito's part that made games for home video game consoles became a separate company called Taito Soft Corporation. However, Taito Soft was soon merged into Square Enix in March 2010. Now, all of Taito's games for home consoles in Japan are published by Square Enix.
The current Taito Corporation was formed on February 1, 2010. It combined the previous Taito company with ES1 Corporation. ES1 Corporation was created in 2009 to run arcade facilities. This new Taito Corporation took over all of Taito's arcade and mobile game businesses.
On November 30, 2016, Taito announced that its classic games Space Invaders and Arkanoid would be available on Facebook through Instant Games on Facebook Messenger and Facebook News Feed.
On July 3, 2018, Taito announced they would start publishing games for home video game consoles again. They want to bring Taito's famous games to modern platforms to earn more money. Taito plans to make new original games for consoles in the future.
See also
In Spanish: Taito Corporation para niños
- List of Taito games
- Taito of Brazil
