Jun'ya Ōta (太田 順也, Ōta Jun'ya) (born March 18, 1977), known professionally as ZUN, is a Japanese independent video game…
Jun'ya Ōta (太田 順也, Ōta Jun'ya) (born March 18, 1977), known professionally as ZUN, is a Japanese independent video game developer and composer, known for creating the Touhou Project bullet hell shoot 'em up video game series through his one-man doujin group Team Shanghai Alice (上海アリス幻樂団, Shanhai Arisu Gengakudan; lit. "Shanghai Alice Fantasy Ensemble"). ZUN developed the first five Touhou games for the Japanese NEC PC-9800 computer series, with the first, Highly Responsive to Prayers, released in August 1997; the series' signature danmaku mechanics were introduced in the second game, Story of Eastern Wonderland (also 1997). The release of Embodiment of Scarlet Devil in August 2002 marked a shift to Microsoft Windows. Numerous sequels followed, including several spin-offs departing from the traditional bullet hell format. He has also collaborated with other circles to produce related print works and music albums. His Touhou series has become more particularly notable as a prominent source of Japanese dōjin content, with the series spawning a vast amount of fan-made works such as artwork, music, print works, video games, and Internet memes. Because of this, it has gained a large cult following outside of Japan. In 2010, the Guinness World Records called Touhou "the most prolific fan-based shooter series" ever created. The popularity of the series and its derivative works has been attributed in part to the few restrictions placed by ZUN on the use of his content. ZUN is also known as the Hakurei Kannushi (博麗神主), which is also the name he uses for his Twitter account.
Famous Japanese People: Systems Engineer
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Daito Manabe (Japanese: 真鍋 大度, Hepburn: Manabe Daito) (born 1976) is a Japanese media artist, programmer, engineer, and…
Daito Manabe (Japanese: 真鍋 大度, Hepburn: Manabe Daito) (born 1976) is a Japanese media artist, programmer, engineer, and DJ who creates artwork and interactive installations that utilize contemporary technologies such as virtual reality as well as prominent use of light and sound. He founded Rhizomatiks in 2006 after graduating from the University of Tokyo. His work with Rhizomatiks includes collaborations with Perfume, Björk, Nike, Honda and an augmented reality computer graphics display at the closing ceremony of the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. In 2016 Manabe collaborated with American artist Nosaj Thing to create a touring show featuring real-time augmented reality visuals using multiple Kinect cameras on stage. The debut performance at Coachella Festival was described by Pitchfork Magazine as "runaway winner for best visual production" and was billed by Sónar Festival as "extremely captivating, technologically advanced, show of inordinate beauty". Manabe won the 2016 Mainichi Design Award In 2023 Manabe collaborated with two-time Olympic champion Yuzuru Hanyu in the creation of his solo ice show production Gift, the first figure skating event to be held at Tokyo Dome.
Motoi Okamoto is a Japanese video game producer, programmer and writer. He joined Nintendo in April 1999. Initially, he…
Motoi Okamoto is a Japanese video game producer, programmer and writer. He joined Nintendo in April 1999. Initially, he provided library support on Luigi's Mansion (2001), subsequently assisting other projects like Pikmin (2001), Pikmin 2 (2004), The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker (2002), and Super Mario 64 DS (2004). In 2006 he directed Wii Play. He left the company in May 2008 and founded Entersphere, an independent studio which developed Army Corps of Hell (2011) for the PlayStation Vita. In June 2019 he joined Konami and was put in charge of the Silent Hill series. He subsequently served as series producer for Silent Hill: Ascension, director, producer, designer and writer for Silent Hill: The Short Message (2024), producer for Silent Hill 2 (remake), Silent Hill f, and Silent Hill: Townfall. He also worked on Return to Silent Hill alongside Akira Yamaoka as executive producers.
Kazuhito Iwaike (Japanese: 岩池 一仁, Hepburn: Iwaike Kazuhito; born on October 11, 1968), known exclusively by his stage…
Kazuhito Iwaike (Japanese: 岩池 一仁, Hepburn: Iwaike Kazuhito; born on October 11, 1968), known exclusively by his stage name K.A.Z, is a Japanese musician and songwriter. He is known for his work with Oblivion Dust, hide with Spread Beaver and Vamps.
Hideaki Kobayashi (小林 秀章, Kobayashi Hideaki) is a Japanese cosplayer, computer engineer, music producer, and…
Hideaki Kobayashi (小林 秀章, Kobayashi Hideaki) is a Japanese cosplayer, computer engineer, music producer, and photographer. He is known for cosplaying as a schoolgirl. He is nicknamed as Sailor Suit Uncle (セーラー服おじさん, Sērā-fuku Ojisan).
Zero Wing is a 1989 horizontally scrolling shooter video game developed by Toaplan and published by Namco for Japanese…
Zero Wing is a 1989 horizontally scrolling shooter video game developed by Toaplan and published by Namco for Japanese arcades; in North America, it was distributed by Williams Electronics. Controlling the ZIG space fighter craft, players assume the role of protagonist Trent in a last-ditch effort to overthrow the alien space pirate organization CATS (Abigor in the PC Engine version). It was the eighth shoot 'em up game from Toaplan, and their fourteenth video game overall. Headed by development chief Toshiaki Ōta, Zero Wing was created by most of the same team that previously worked on several projects at Toaplan, initially starting as a project not intended for commercial release but to train new recruits before being ultimately released to the market. The game was later ported to other platforms, each one featuring several changes or additions compared with the original version. Zero Wing enjoyed a degree of success in arcades and its home conversions were met with mostly positive reception from critics. The European Mega Drive version later gained renewed popularity due to the "All your base are belong to us" internet meme, which plays off the badly translated introductory cutscene. The rights to the title are owned by Tatsujin, a Japanese company formed by Masahiro Yuge. The Mega Drive version was later released in North America by independent publisher Retro-Bit in 2020 as well as the Nintendo Classics service.
Satoru Iwata (Japanese: 岩田 聡; December 6, 1959 – July 11, 2015) was a Japanese businessman, video game programmer, and…
Satoru Iwata (Japanese: 岩田 聡; December 6, 1959 – July 11, 2015) was a Japanese businessman, video game programmer, and producer. Beginning in 2002, Iwata served as the fourth president of Nintendo, as well as the chief executive officer (CEO) of Nintendo of America from 2013 until his death in 2015. Iwata was a major contributor in broadening the appeal of video games by focusing on novel and entertaining software rather than top-of-the-line hardware. Born in Sapporo, Iwata expressed interest in video games from an early age and created his first simple game while in high school. He majored in computer science at the Tokyo Institute of Technology. In 1980, he joined the game developer HAL Laboratory while attending the university. At HAL, he worked as a programmer and closely collaborated with Nintendo, coding his first commercial console game in 1983 and programming early Nintendo Entertainment System titles including Pinball, Golf, and Balloon Fight. Later games to which he contributed include EarthBound and numerous installments in the Kirby series. Following a financial downturn and near-bankruptcy, Iwata became the president of HAL in 1993 at the insistence of Nintendo president Hiroshi Yamauchi and restored the company's financial stability. In the following years, he assisted in the development of the Pokémon and Super Smash Bros. series. Iwata joined Nintendo as the head of its corporate planning division in 2000. Nintendo saw strong growth under Iwata, and when Yamauchi retired in May 2002, Iwata succeeded him as the company's president, becoming the first president unrelated to the Yamauchi family. Under Iwata's leadership, Nintendo developed the Nintendo DS and Wii game consoles, helping the company achieve massive financial success. As a self-declared gamer, he focused on expanding the appeal of video games across demographics through a "blue ocean" business strategy and the Touch! Generations brand. Nintendo attained record profits by 2009, and Barron's placed Iwata among the top 30 CEOs worldwide. Iwata expanded his strategy by defining a quality-of-life product line for the Wii that evolved into a ten-year strategy to create standalone products. Later hardware such as the Nintendo 3DS and Wii U proved far less profitable than the Wii, and Nintendo's net sales fell by two-thirds from 2009 to 2012, with the company recording its first operating losses in 30 years during this period. Refusing to lay off employees, Iwata voluntarily halved his salary in 2011 and again in 2014. In 2015, after several years of decline, Iwata directed a portion of Nintendo's focus into the rapidly growing mobile game market through a landmark partnership with mobile provider DeNA established that March, while overseeing early development of the Nintendo Switch. Throughout his tenure, Iwata built a close relationship with Nintendo fans through social media and his regular appearances in Iwata Asks and Nintendo Direct, becoming the public face of the company. In June 2014, a tumor in Iwata's bile duct was discovered during a routine physical exam. It was removed, and Iwata returned to work in October of that year. The illness resurfaced in 2015, and Iwata died at the age of 55 from its complications on July 11. Members of the gaming industry and players worldwide offered tributes through public announcements and social media, and fans established temporary memorials around the globe. Iwata was posthumously awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2015 Golden Joystick Awards and the 2016 D.I.C.E. Awards.
Kazuro Morita (森田 和郎, Morita Kazurō) (1955 – July 27, 2012) was a Japanese video game designer known for his work on…
Kazuro Morita (森田 和郎, Morita Kazurō) (1955 – July 27, 2012) was a Japanese video game designer known for his work on the Morita's Shogi video game series. Becoming interested in computer programming during high school, he entered magazine competitions during his university years, creating video game versions of board games. He won a competition organised by Enix in 1982 with the video game Morita's Battlefield, which was published the following year to great commercial success. Following this success he established Random House, developing his Shogi series and several other game projects, several published by Enix. From 1999, he remained as a programmer for Yuki Entertainment (later Examu) following their acquisition of Random House's properties. He continued acting as a company manager while contributing to the programming of titles including Samurai Shodown V and VI. Among those whom he was survived by are his wife Sakicho, and his brother politician Takashi Morita.