GGI (Part II) : 1980

 

We continue our research into GGI. As noted in the first part, GGI is a company that touched on several different areas of the arcade business but always cultivated discretion. It isn't always easy to follow its trail.

At the end of the first part, despite the bankruptcy (page 2) in March 1980, we left GGI on a "see you later" rather than a "goodbye." Indeed, GGI resumed its activities immediately. They are more or less the same as before the bankruptcy. 

But 1980 is a turning point, and times are changing fast: modifying third-party companies' games without authorization and then selling them is no longer a vaguely tolerated activity. People now openly talk about piracy. In other words, GGI is about to become a pirate company... but not in Japan.

Here, summed up in one sentence, is what we know about GGI for the year 1980: it makes and sells modified copies of Galaxian around the world.

Galaxian

Galaxian was developed by Namco. The game was released on September 15, 1979 in Japan, and it became the new wave of video games after Space Invaders! Galaxian was a huge success, which of course led many companies to take an interest in it. To meet demand, and following a tradition begun with Space Invaders, Namco licensed Galaxian to a total of 19 companies worldwide. Obtaining a license from Namco came with certain conditions. The most important were not to change the game's name (Galaxian) and not to modify the game itself. 

In Japan alone, no fewer than 14 companies obtained an official license. Among the lucky recipients, some are heavyweights of the industry that need no introduction. For others, their names probably won't mean much to you. Here is the list of licensees: Taito, Irem, Sigma, Sammy Kōgyō, Sega, Logitec, Jatre, Takasago Denki Sangyō (高砂電器産業), Konami, General (ゼネラル), Osada Denki (長田電機), Nihon Bussan (Nichibutsu), Taisei Denki (大生電器), and Kyōwa Sangyō (協和産業). Abroad, Namco licensed the game to 5 companies: Midway (United States), Bell-Fruit (United Kingdom), Bertolino (Italy), Zaccaria (Italy), and Interflip (Spain). Sales of Galaxian began in February 1980 in the United States.

That's already a lot of companies allowed to legally manufacture and sell Galaxian, but there was still a host of other companies looking to sell Galaxian by any means necessary, including illegal ones. As I write this, the MAME software lists 46 different versions of Galaxian in total, whether original versions, officially licensed versions, or bootlegs. And there are still many more versions that are not listed by MAME. Among all these versions, a majority are modified versions. The modifications mainly concern the sprites, the speed, or the behavior of the enemies.

GGI is one of the companies that got into the business of copying Galaxian. After all, hadn't GGI already sold Spacian, a version of Galaxian running on Space Invaders hardware? It's hard to say exactly when GGI started selling copies of Galaxian by reproducing its original hardware. However, we find several traces of these copies, and they will help us sketch an evolution of the versions produced by GGI.

It starts far from Japan, in the Czech Republic.

Space Invader Kamikaze

It's on a Czech auction site that we find what may be the oldest copy of Galaxian made by GGI. It's a complete, working game, still installed in its original cabinet. 

"GG International" is proudly displayed in several places on the cabinet. The game is called Space Invader Kamikaze. 

GGI chose a name that has little to do with Galaxian. Perhaps the name Galaxian didn't yet mean much in Europe when GGI arrived there. Space Invaders was still an important game in Europe in 1980, and GGI may have wanted to introduce Space Invader Kamikaze as an improved version of Space Invaders (which wouldn't be entirely untrue). 

As for the game itself, the screenshot shows what appears to be a standard version of Galaxian — with one detail. The sprite representing the player's ship (called Galaxip in Namco's original version) has been replaced with the sleeker sprite of a supersonic jet. 

This sprite is, in a way, GGI's signature, as we'll encounter it again later in the article. Finally, let's note that the game, cabinet included, was not manufactured in Europe but was imported from Japan. Indeed, the components that make up the game (the monitor, for example) are Japanese. Inside, there's even a plate from the company that supplied the plywood used to build the cabinet. And that company is based in Niigata.

GGI, a truly international company

So GGI does business with Europe. Is that surprising? Not necessarily, because if you've previously read this article, you've already met Chōshirō Suzuki (鈴木長四郎). He would later become known as the president of Human. But before that, he had already worked for several companies, including GGI. In that article, Chōshirō Suzuki spent almost an entire year in seclusion. Starting at the end of the ski season, in May 1979, he decided to leave Mount Oze to return to Tōkyō and look for work. After some difficulty, he was finally hired by GGI, and one can imagine that this happened in the second half of 1979, or at the latest in early 1980. Chōshirō Suzuki mentions that during his time at GGI, he spent a lot of time abroad, particularly in Germany. The pieces of the puzzle fit together fairly well, and one can imagine that Chōshirō Suzuki is not unrelated to the presence of Space Invader Kamikaze in the Czech Republic.

Kamikaze by Karateco

There's another game that strongly resembles Space Invader Kamikaze. It might even be the same game. This game was discovered by the user QtQ (on X).

【レゲーなひとりごと】
さーて
今回はこの前配信開始されて盛り上がってる #ギャラクシアン を遊んでみますかね👾 pic.twitter.com/rWQfdZQ7OW

— QtQ【🏮⇨🍻⇨🕺⇨🏠】 (@_QtQ_) December 4, 2022

https://x.com/_QtQ_/status/1599323825485017088/video/1

https://x.com/_QtQ_/status/1599330561075843073/photo/2

Basically, it's Galaxian with the player sprite replaced. We find the same supersonic jet we saw in Space Invader Kamikaze (and which we'll see again). In Galaxian, the number of lives is shown by small Galaxip icons in the bottom left, and the level by a flag in the bottom right. In this case, the small Galaxips have also been replaced with the new sprite. The flag, however, is unchanged.

The seller's name is shown here on the title screen, and that's an important piece of information. It's the company Karateco. As far as I know, Karateco didn't manufacture games. It was a company specializing in importing games from Japan. But to be more precise, let's take the time to present what we know about Karateco, because this company is part of something bigger.

Karateco, a gateway to Europe?

Karateco is often considered a French company. Some nuance is needed here, though: Karateco is a Japanese company. Or rather, it is the Japanese subsidiary of the Stambouli Frères group.

Stambouli Frères was founded in 1965 in Beirut (Lebanon). This company was primarily specialized in international trade but also touched on all sorts of fields, such as casino management, drug stores, night clubs, game centers, etc. See here  ("About us"). Stambouli Frères appears to have been a major player in the Near East's leisure industry, at least during the 1970s. It follows that video games would be one of Stambouli Frères' activities, but not the only one.

In Europe, the company Stambouli Frères S.A. (a subsidiary of Stambouli Frères) was founded in Pantin (near Paris) in 1978. Its purpose was to import and export various products, including video games. This company later served as the "International Liaison Office" between the group's various branches.

Karateco was founded in Tōkyō (Minato ward) by 1980 at the latest. Its purpose was to export video games from Japan to the rest of the world. It's unlikely that Karateco ever sold games on the Japanese market. It's possible, however, that Karateco manufactured arcade cabinets in order to install PCBs in them before exporting them. This isn't entirely clear.

Around the same time, Stambouli Brothers was founded in New York. 

Kyūgo (キューゴ) and Stambouli Brothers announce their partnership (AM Show '80) (https://onitama.tv/gamemachine/pdf/19801101p.pdf page 6)

In 1981, Karateco France S.A. was founded in Dugny (also near Paris). One might assume this company duplicated Stambouli Frères S.A., but its purpose was different. 

According to Elliott Stambouli (former president), it was meant to "replace most imported leisure electronic products by French-made products under Japanese technology". The explanation isn't entirely clear. As I understand it, it involved manufacturing arcade cabinets at the Dugny factory to house PCBs imported from Japan. Importing PCBs is indeed much easier than importing complete arcade cabinets. Incidentally, Karateco France S.A. also manufactured vending machines.

A side note. The official history on Stambouli's former website mentions that 3 factories were founded in the late 1970s: Tōkyō, Johannesburg (South Africa), and Paris. That's questionable, isn't it? Or maybe "the late 1970s" shouldn't be taken too literally, and should be understood to include the early 1980s? And what about this factory in Johannesburg?

Stambouli Frères owed much of its success to electronic poker machines (The Double, for example) , games of chance that were easily turned into real gambling machines and that quickly became a source of income for various criminal groups, particularly in France. French law banned these machines starting in 1981, and Stambouli Frères chose to relocate the offending machines to the United States in 1982, as best it could. In 1984, Stambouli Frères moved its headquarters from Beirut to Cyprus. The group's name was later changed to Stambouli Enterprises.

Note that Karateco is among the many companies sued in the United States by Midway for importing copies of Galaxian.

Kamikaze Part 2, Part 3

Given this presentation of Karateco, shouldn't we consider that Kamikaze is an import? This is all the more plausible since several clues point to GGI:

• Karateco doesn't manufacture games, but GGI does
• Kamikaze and Space Invader Kamikaze are very similar
• Their names are more or less identical
• The player sprite is GGI's supersonic jet

But wait, why do we call this game Kamikaze? That name doesn't appear anywhere on the title screen. It's because that's the name that appears on this Karateco flyer. 

Judging by the in-game image on the flyer, it's clearly an advertisement for a Galaxian bootleg. Karateco named its bootleg Kamikaze.

There's an interesting detail on this flyer. Under the name Kamikaze, Karateco added "Part 2 and 3." Karateco gives no explanation, but this detail shows that Karateco sold several versions of Kamikaze (at least 3).

Perhaps GGI sold each of these versions to Karateco. Or did other bootleggers also do business with Karateco selling modified copies? In the legal world, a contract between a producer and a reseller usually implies a certain degree of exclusivity. The producer owns the game's intellectual property rights and chooses with whom to share them and under what conditions. But when it comes to bootlegs, outside the bounds of the law, there's no notion of exclusivity. A manufacturer can sell its copies to an unlimited number of resellers. Likewise, a reseller can buy copies from as many manufacturers as it wants, since none of them holds the rights. It's something like the Wild West of intellectual property, and anything goes as long as you don't get caught. From a legal standpoint, there was still relative impunity in 1980, but that wasn't going to last much longer.

What is certain is that GGI manufactured at least one other version of Galaxian.

Galaxian Part 4

We're lucky with Galaxian Part 4, since this game is emulated by the MAME software.

Unlike the previous games, Galaxian Part 4 brings a number of changes compared to the original Galaxian:

• Some sprites are replaced: the player's ship (the Galaxip), the one showing the number of lives remaining, and the one indicating the current level.

• The player's ship moves faster.
• The player's shots are faster.
• The enemies move faster horizontally.
• In the original game, when a flagship (the yellow enemy at the very top) attacks, it's accompanied by up to 2 escorts. It's now accompanied by up to 5 escorts.
• Starting from level 3, in the enemies' starting formation, there are 8 flagships instead of 2. The enemy formation is square-shaped.

Galaxian Part 4 thus gives even more dynamism and challenge to a game that was already excellent to begin with. It's a very enjoyable version. That said, Galaxian Part 4 is not an "original bootleg" by GGI. GGI borrowed already-existing "pirate code." But if GGI is using this code, it must have come from somewhere. And that's where a new company enters our story: Artic International.

A piece of code that was a hit among bootleggers

We've seen that Galaxian was reproduced in numerous versions by bootleggers. In many cases, the modifications consist of replacing sprites, changing colors, or speeding up the player's ship, the enemies, the shots, and so on.

In the case of Galaxian Part 4 and other bootlegs, there is a specific piece of code that changes two things:

• the size of the flagships' escort
• the number of flagships starting from the third level

These two features always go together. There is no bootleg that has one of these changes without the other. This code was quite successful in the black market of arcade games, since the MAME software references about fifteen bootlegs that used it. It's hard to know which bootleg was the first, the "original" one. However, all fifteen of these bootlegs have, hidden in their code, the names of two people: "TSUCHIYA TAKEHIKQ QKAZAKE." These are presumably the two programmers behind them.

On the Arcade Museum forum, user highscoreheroes made a nice discovery. Takehiko Tsuchiya and Yoshinobu Okazaki worked for Artic (or rather Artic International), a company based in Taiwan. 

Artic would soon be involved in several lawsuits in the United States. Notably, in 1982 it was sued by Midway for, among other things, dealing in copies of Galaxian and conversion kits that make the aliens move faster and increase their number to six when in formation. Does that ring a bell?

There would be a lot to say about Artic, but let's just say that this company's role in the global gray-market arcade industry is probably vastly underestimated.

In any case, it's quite possible that Artic International is the company behind our "original" bootleg.

As for our programmers, we later find a trace of one of them in a different context — in the code of the arcade game Sky Army (1982) by the company Shōei (ショウエイ). Yoshinobu Okazaki worked for the company Applied Engineering (or Applied Engneering), which appears to have been a contractor for Shōei.

So we still have a very hazy picture of who developed the code used in Galaxian Part 4. GGI thus reused a piece of code that already existed. But not directly from an Artic International bootleg — rather, from another company's bootleg.

Galaxian Part II

We've seen that the game Galaxian Part 4 was sold by GGI. One might instinctively think that GGI also sold games called "Galaxian Part 2" or "Galaxian Part 3." But we have absolutely no trace of that. In fact, GGI could have called its game directly Galaxian Part 4 because there was already a host of games claiming to be version 2 or 3. Most of these games are not emulated, and it would be hard to say what distinguishes them from one another, beyond perhaps a sprite swap or a speed increase on some game element.

For example, compare these two flyers (from an unknown company). 

https://ameblo.jp/neco65535/image-12740143491-15110233904.html

We have two games claiming to be Galaxian Part 2 and Galaxian Part 3. The text is identical. Who could say what sets these games apart? Is there even a difference? Adding "Part 2" or "Part 3" here looks like a marketing gimmick.

In this context, GGI may have tried to stand out by releasing a Galaxian "Part 4."

But there is one game emulated on MAME whose code is identical in every respect to that of Galaxian Part 4. Unlike Galaxian Part 4, this game kept the original Galaxian graphics, except for a logo change on the title screen. This game is called Galaxian Part II (or GX Part II), and it was manufactured by a company called International Scientific (the name doesn't appear in the game itself, but on the PCB).

The code of this game and that of Galaxian Part 4 are identical, character for character.

We can go even further by comparing the original Galaxian PCBs with those of GGI and International Scientific.

Here are two original PCBs from Namco and Midway

https://www.dragonslairfans.com/smfor/index.php?topic=2493.0

A Galaxian PCB by GGI

I've lost the original link, sorry

A Galaxian PCB by International Scientific

https://forums.arcade-museum.com/threads/galaxian-part-ii-bootleg-not-in-mame.522483/page-2#post-4676396

There's a striking similarity between the GGI and International Scientific PCBs, far more than with the original PCBs.

This warrants a closer look at International Scientific.

International Scientific

Despite what its name might suggest, International Scientific (インターナショナル・サイエンティフィック in Japanese) is a Japanese company based in Hachiōji (Tōkyō). Of course, it sold bootlegs, but it can't be reduced to just that. I'm surprised to be writing this myself, but International Scientific was a pioneering company in consumer computing. What interests us here isn't just who International Scientific was, but above all whether this company could have played the same role as GGI in an international manufacturing and distribution network.

Here are a few observations that will help sketch its profile.

• If you're interested in computing history, you probably know that 1977 is the year the first three computers aimed at a broad consumer market were released: the TRS-80 (Radio Shack), the PET 2001 (Commodore), and the Apple II. What history has not recorded is that 1977 is also the year International Scientific released the Kaizer Z2, a computer that failed to find its place against its competitors.

https://moriyan6001.tumblr.com/post/54985121769/international-scientific-coltd-z-80-multi-cpu

•  Its successor, the Kaizer Z80, released in 1979, appears to have met the same fate

https://retrocdn.net/images/3/35/ASCII_JP_1980_10.pdf (page 18)

• Alongside its line of computers, International Scientific also traded in all sorts of computer products, as shown (or not — I admit it's not very legible) by this advertisement in the September 1978 issue of ASCII magazine. Notably, it sold products that were supposed to belong to its competitors.

     

• It also sold products imported directly from the United States. The American products are presumably those priced in dollars. The Japanese products are priced in yen.
• International Scientific formed partnerships with all sorts of companies internationally: the United States, Europe, Korea, etc., either for sales or for factory manufacturing. The company also had an office in California.
• In Japan, International Scientific had "partner factories" (協力工場) for hardware support (Kanon Seisakusho / カノン製作所, also based in Hachioji) and software (Densan / 電産).
• The Galaxian PCB shown earlier was manufactured in Japan. The components are Japanese, and it bears a "合" sticker, short for "合格" ("passed"), which is an internal certification that the product works.
• International Scientific already had a foothold in the arcade business as early as 1978, since it sold Universal's Circus Circus. Universal is a Japanese company, but its factories (or some of them?) are in Taiwan, and its products are distributed by Artic International in part of the United States.
• International Scientific was named, starting in January 1981 (along with many other companies), by Midway for dealing in copies of Rally-X and Pac-Man.
• In the lawsuit Nintendo of America vs. Elcon Industries, it's mentioned that the Crazy Kong games sold by Elcon were manufactured by Falcon but were sold to it by Artic International and International Scientific.

In the end, International Scientific looks like a sort of large import-export company for computer products across Japan and the rest of the world. Its network relied mainly on partnerships. It also had its own branded product line. Production of these products was supposedly handled by its "partner factories." My impression (which is by no means a claim of fact) is that International Scientific gradually found itself drawn into the same network as Artic International, and that it didn't turn out well for it. There are of course still many gray areas, but interesting, isn't it?

As for GGI, one may wonder how deeply it was involved in this network, at least in the United States. Because yes, GGI did have confirmed activities in the United States. But we'll get into that in the next article. Whatever the extent of its involvement, GGI is among the lucky few who apparently were never troubled by Midway or other companies that went after bootleggers.

The bootlegger, a lone wolf?

Before wrapping up this article on the year 1980, there's one question left that we can now answer: why is it so hard to know exactly what GGI was doing?

I've mentioned several times how hard it is to pin down where GGI's role begins and ends. That's also true for other companies, like International Scientific or Karateco. In fact, it holds for any somewhat obscure company in this industry. To understand this better, we need to take a closer look at how the bootleg industry works in general.

To do this, let's consider the general case of a company we only know to be a bootlegger. When you think of a bootleg company, the image that comes to mind is that of a somewhat isolated factory quietly churning out copies, hidden from view (especially from the police), and selling them under the table. The reality is far more complex.

Making a bootleg involves many steps. Let's list them:

1. Organization and funding of the project The producer who launches the project is the one who provides the funds. They set up contracts with contractors.
2. Reverse engineering and hardware design Before copying a game, you need to understand how it works. Then you need to create a new design that accounts for the technical or cost limitations the bootlegger faces. Basically, hardware design involves drawing the schematic of the copper traces on the printed circuit board (called a Gerber file) and detailing the components to be assembled. This is also the stage at which the silkscreen markings that will appear on the PCB are determined. If a company's name or logo is silkscreened on, it's normally that of the producer.
3. Ordering components Generally, it's the company running the project that orders the components, in order to keep costs down.
4. Modifying the original software The code is modified if the gameplay is to be changed. Some sprites may also be replaced, or the rights holder's name simply erased. This gives the bootleg a bit of individuality and can reduce somewhat the risk of legal action by the rights holder. If the bootleg is meant for a specific customer, that customer's name can be added to the title screen.
5. PCB manufacturing The copper traces are etched onto the printed circuit board following the supplied Gerber file.
6. Component assembly The company assembles the components it was given onto the PCBs it was given. It simply follows instructions. Once assembly is complete, the product is tested and validated.

The PCB is ready. It can be sold as-is or installed in a cabinet. If it's installed in a cabinet, that of course adds more steps.

After the game is manufactured comes the sale. Manufacturers generally produce large quantities of games. They usually can't sell directly to end customers (game centers, snack bars, cafés, etc.). Even though the games are bootlegs, they have to rely on local resellers who buy the bootlegs and resell them to end customers. Everyone involved is aware that these are cheaper but illegal products.

If the bootleg is meant for export, the producer can either sign contracts directly with foreign customers or sell its bootlegs to an import-export company that will find its own customers. Even if the producer signs contracts directly with foreign customers, it may still need an import-export company to actually ship the products.

Complicated, isn't it? What emerges from all this is that the bootlegger doesn't work alone. In its own way, it sustains an entire network of more or less complicit contractors. But if anything goes wrong — legally, in particular — it's the bootlegger who bears full responsibility and has to deal with the consequences.

Now that we've said all that, can we determine where GGI's role begins and ends? We know that GGI's name appears on arcade cabinets, on title screens, and on PCBs. We also know that it signed contracts abroad (that was Chōshirō Suzuki's job, wasn't it?).

At first glance, then, it was a producer.

We also know, from the previous article, that GGI had technical know-how. But that doesn't tell us at which stages of manufacturing GGI was involved, or even whether it was involved at all. Nor do we know whether GGI had its own factories. We'll also see in the next article (hopefully) that GGI negotiated contracts on all sides, and that this sometimes led in strange directions.

I'll say it again: it's difficult to determine where GGI's role begins and ends. But I hope that, after these explanations, it's now clearer why that is.

Conclusion

GGI went bankrupt, but that gave it new vigor. In this year 1980, GGI truly lived up to the "I" in its name: G.G. International. We find traces of it in Europe, and perhaps in the United States (with Galaxian Part 4). All of this thanks to one game: Galaxian. 

But this is nothing compared to what comes next. In 1981, GGI will continue to grow its activities in the arcade business, including in legitimate trade (with a worldwide hit) and in more obscure circuits. And above all, new partners will appear, which will help us better understand just how far its network really extended. There will be an enormous amount to tell. 

It promises to be interesting, but my head already hurts just thinking about it.

GGI (Part I) : 1973 - 1980

GGI (ジージーアイ) is one of those companies that played a genuine role in the video game industry during its golden age — without ever leaving a lasting mark on its memory.

Put that way, the claim might seem strange. Have you ever come across this name before? Probably not.

And yet, GGI appears repeatedly in sources from the era, often in the background, associated with activities as varied as they are difficult to pin down.

The company disappeared long ago, and the history of video games has granted it only a marginal place. It fell into oblivion.

It must be said that it never really sought the spotlight. As we shall see, some of its activities even strayed into particularly grey areas.

From the outset, one thing must be made clear: it is difficult to determine precisely where GGI's activities begin and end. On several occasions, we will see it appear as a central player, without its exact role being established with any certainty.

---

What is GGI?

To begin with, what does "GGI" stand for?

That is the first question… and already, answers are scarce. The meaning of "GG" remains unknown, but the letter "I" stands for International. An advertisement published in the magazine Game Machine (page 7) designates the company under the name GG International (G G インターナショナル). The phone number confirms that it is indeed the same company.

This detail matters: part of GGI's activities took place abroad.

Its headquarters were located in Tōkyō, in the Chiyoda ward — the exact address will prove useful later in tracking its trail.

The company was led by Takeo Oguri (小栗武夫). His name sometimes appears as 小栗武雄 in Game Machine, but this is most likely an error. Beyond his role as president, we have no reliable information about him.

But the real question lies elsewhere: what exactly did GGI do?

GGI seemed to have a hand in everything: hardware manufacturing, game modification, distribution both in Japan and abroad, and even licensing negotiations for productions developed by others. A remarkable versatility — one that was, on occasion, accompanied by decidedly more questionable practices.

---

The early days

At its founding, GGI… did nothing. Or to be more precise (page 2):

"The company, originally founded in 1973 as a dormant entity, was reactivated in November 1978 and entered the business of modifying TV games."

The fact that a company remained inactive for five years may seem strange. Without further information, it is difficult to draw any conclusion, except that GGI was probably not originally intended for the video game sector.

As for the "business of modifying TV games", this refers to what is known as the conversion kit industry. It was built on the idea of extending the lifespan of existing machines by modifying their content — either by adding electronic circuits or by replacing components such as ROMs. These modifications made it possible to offer "new" games without having to design a complete system from scratch, often drawing direct inspiration from successful titles. This model allowed manufacturers to quickly follow market trends, at a time (the late 1970s) when intellectual property questions remained murky. The games for which the most conversion kits were designed were breakout games, and later Space Invaders. 

We discussed this at length in previous articles here and especially here.

And this is where a key element comes into play: an advertisement published in September 1978.

---

The first advertisement

https://onitama.tv/gamemachine/pdf/19780915p.pdf (page 5)

This is an advertisement for the company Turtle (タートル), based in Amagasaki (尼崎). We have already encountered Turtle in a previous article. In 1976, it was a distributor (or a leasing company? I'm now less certain…) of Fuji Enterprise products. Fuji Enterprise was little more than a memory by 1978, and there was no longer any connection between the two companies.

At first glance, nothing unusual about this advertisement: Turtle is selling conversion kits for breakout games.

But one detail catches the eye: the list of retailers.
Among them is GG International — at the top of the list.

This is GGI's first known appearance.

Yet this position is surprising. The list consists almost exclusively of conventional distributors. And yet GGI, then completely unknown, appears in first place.

This raises an obvious question: is GGI really just a retailer?

Several elements give reason to doubt it:

• Game Machine would later describe GGI as a company specialising in game modification (page 2)
• Turtle, for its part, had no technical capabilities of its own. Here is how Turtle presented itself at AM Show '78 (page 8):

"Our company is primarily a leasing business, not a manufacturer."

 

A hypothesis begins to take shape: GGI may have been the actual designer (and installer) of these conversion kits, with Turtle handling their commercial distribution.
This is not a certainty, but the clues converge.

If so, this advertisement would simply document… GGI's earliest products.

---

Let us now turn to these conversion kits. Here is what the advertisement says:

"Just add a PCB to enrich your game content! 4-digit display PCB / UFO PCBs Now on sale!!

- Can be easily installed by anyone — even a layperson — on either table-type or arcade-type "Scratch" or "Break" TV block-breaking game machines (excluding microcomputer-based models). - Transform your machine into something new!! Sales will increase dramatically. (Proven at our own location) - With the "UFO PCBs", combinations allow for up to 24 different game variations.

4-Digit Display

・Blocks appear infinitely. 

・After 9999 points, the score resets back from 0. 
・Combined with the UFO board, it becomes a groundbreaking block game.

 

UFO No.1

・The ball moves like a UFO. 
・When the ball hits a block in the yellow row (4th row from the top), it returns to normal movement. ・You can also choose to keep the UFO movement going continuously.

UFO No.2

・The ball moves randomly like a UFO. 
・The UFO ball returns to normal movement when it hits a block in the yellow row (4th row from the top).

Pro & Amateur Combined

・On the 1st round of blocks, the ball moves normally; on the 2nd round, it becomes a UFO ball. 
・The ball moves randomly like a UFO. 

・New feature!! You can optionally deploy two rackets at once.

Super UFO

・Now featuring curved UFO movement. Ideal for advanced players. 
・Combined with the 4-digit board, the fun reaches its peak.

If you send us your board, we will install it for you at our company (installation fees are charged separately). Beware of inferior imitation products."

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The conversion kits

The advertisement highlights several features:

• addition of a 4-digit display
• "UFO" ball behaviour (unusual movement patterns)
• gameplay variations of up to 24 combinations

That last point is probably more of a marketing argument than a measurable reality. Otherwise, congratulations if you managed to find all 24 combinations!

The kits presented here only work on machines using TTL (Transistor-Transistor Logic) technology — that is, electronic circuits without a microprocessor, where the game's behaviour depends directly on physical wiring. Unlike more recent systems, this isn't about replacing a ROM: the modification here requires hardware-level intervention, sometimes quite complex. The advertisement nevertheless insists on the simplicity of installation — a classic marketing argument.

We saw that Game Machine states GGI was reactivated in November 1978. However, the first advertisement mentioning GGI dates from September 1978. We can even go further back, since Turtle had begun advertising its conversion kits as early as June 1978. 

https://onitama.tv/gamemachine/pdf/19780615p.pdf  (page 14)

GGI may therefore have been reactivated as early as the first half of 1978.

---

Broader activities?

Another element is intriguing. An advertisement published shortly afterwards by the company Hōwa Tokki (宝和特機) presents very similar products: the same "4-digit display" PCB, the same UFO variants, and nearly identical visuals.

https://onitama.tv/gamemachine/pdf/19781001p.pdf  (page 5)

Two possibilities:

• simple reuse of visuals by the magazine
• or distribution of GGI's products through multiple intermediaries

In the second case, GGI would not be limited to a local network, but would already be operating on a larger scale. This hypothesis is reinforced by a later mention in Game Machine, indicating that the company was carrying out modification activities "on a large scale".

---

UFO, a popular variant?

You have probably noticed how proud Turtle is of its UFO variants. It is far from the only company to promote breakout games where the ball follows unusual trajectories. By the end of 1978, Game Machine is full of advertisements touting the UFO variant. I wanted to test a period-accurate breakout game with a UFO mode using the MAME emulator — I could not find a single one. It is interesting to note that today everyone knows what a breakout game is, but nobody remembers the UFO gameplay mode.

---

1979 ?

Ultimately, we can see that GGI was a pioneering company in the conversion industry. As for 1979, no source I am aware of documents it directly, but we know that GGI continued along the same business model. Where to look, then? Simple enough: Turtle kept selling conversion kits. That is the trail to follow.

At the beginning of 1979, Turtle announced (page 7) it was discontinuing the UFO variant and launching a new one called Space Block. As the name suggests, this variant appears to have been inspired by Space Invaders, which was taking the world by storm at the time. Here, the blocks move from top to bottom, just like the enemies in Space Invaders.

Space Block

Taito released Space Invaders Part II in mid-1979. Conversion kit manufacturers wasted no time for "finding inspiration". For example :

https://onitama.tv/gamemachine/pdf/19790115p.pdf (page 7)

Here, Turtle offered kits to:

• convert a breakout game into an Invader game — i.e. a Space Invaders clone
• convert an Invader game into an Invader Part II-style game — i.e. adding features specific to Space Invaders Part II, such as colour, different enemy behaviours, and so on
• convert an Invader game into yet another different type of game
• replace the dial controller with a joystick

The mention of "supplied with a P-ROM for service (maintenance)" (サービス用P-ROM付) shows that these kits were targeting microprocessor-based systems, marking a clear break from the earlier TTL hardware conversions. The use of such a ROM implies a direct modification of the program, making it possible to adapt machines from a wide variety of manufacturers. Similarly, the phrase "complete repair kit for Invaders from all manufacturers" suggests a technical service capable of working on a highly heterogeneous range of machines. This is far from a handful of hobbyists: everything points to an organised operation with advanced technical expertise.

Other companies offered similar services — relying on comparable technologies and providing similar features — such as Hōwa Tokki or Naka Nihon Lease (中日本リース), based in Nagoya.

https://onitama.tv/gamemachine/pdf/19790715p.pdf (page 16)

One can therefore imagine that GGI gradually built up a network of commercial companies acting as intermediaries with customers. That said, caution is warranted: there is no proof that GGI collaborated with any company other than Turtle. All we have are striking similarities between the services offered by Turtle and those offered by these other companies — and perhaps others still, since not every company active in this field necessarily advertised in Game Machine.

---

The first "original" game?

Still in the same vein, at the beginning of 1980 (page 10), Turtle offered what is today a legendary game: Spacian (スペーシアン).

Spacian is legendary not for its gameplay or popularity but for its technical achievement. 
It is a port of Galaxian (Namco) running on Space Invaders hardware — made possible, of course, by a conversion kit. 

During a 2019 interview, Spacian was presented to Tomohiro Nishikado, the creator of Space Invaders, for the first time. He was very impressed, even if the game did run rather slowly…

---

Bankruptcy after two years

In June 1980 (page 2), Game Machine announced:

"GGI (Chiyoda, Tōkyō, president Takeo Oguri (小栗武雄)) issued a dishonoured check at Daiichi Mutual Bank on March 22nd and had its banking transactions suspended."

In other words, GGI went bankrupt.

The article also noted:

• large-scale game modification activities
• a debt of approximately 100 million yen

The contrast is striking.

In the space of barely two years, GGI went from:

• an emerging player in the conversion industry
• to a company operating on a large scale
• then to sudden bankruptcy

Should we see in this poor management? A particular incident? Nothing allows us to say.

But placed in context, this collapse was not an isolated one. Turtle's last advertisement dates from April 1980. Hōwa Tokki and Naka Nihon Lease had already disappeared.

The conversion industry itself was collapsing at the same period. It had depended largely on operators' need to convert their Invader machines. With the release of Galaxian, built on newer and more powerful hardware, an entire ecosystem vanished.

GGI did not escape this wave.

---

Conclusion

Is this already the end for GGI? Not at all — it is only the beginning.

Despite this swift bankruptcy, the company did not disappear entirely from the radar. On the contrary, it would resurface in unexpected contexts, sometimes far from Japan, and often in situations that were murky at best.

The story of GGI is, in reality, only just beginning.

Chôshirô Suzuki (GGI)

 

During my research concerning the company GGI (ジージーアイ), I came across a fascinating article ¹ (in my opinion, obviously) in the July 1995 issue of Coin Journal magazine  (page 136).

The central theme of the article is the life of Chōshirō Suzuki (鈴木長四郎). At the time of the interview, Chōshirō was the president of Human (ヒューマン) (a home video game maker). But what interests us here is that he was part of GGI and his role appears to have been significant.

To be honest, only a small portion of the article is of interest for better understanding what GGI was. We mainly learn that GGI was an intense environment, perhaps chaotic, but formative.

The article is a biography that begins with Chōshirō Suzuki's childhood and thus describes the different stages of his life. Chōshirō Suzuki would of course face many difficulties and adventures throughout his existence. Despite his doubts, he never gave up and overcame the trials. The narrative takes us up to the creation of Human and the establishment of the first video game creator training school. To conclude, Chōshirō Suzuki shares with us some thoughts and his vision of life. It's therefore a classic biography that follows an expected framework. But this doesn't diminish its interest and it's very well written.

Moreover, the article once again illustrates how Space Invaders introduced protagonists from the most diverse and varied backgrounds into the arcade game sector.

The article should normally have stopped there, on what is ultimately quite a flattering portrait of the protagonist. But surprisingly, it continues with a second biography, that of his son Takeshi Suzuki (鈴木剛嗣). This second part reveals a less brilliant side of Chōshirō Suzuki. He sacrificed his family to succeed in his professional life. Entrepreneurship in Japan in the 1970s/80s had a human cost, and Chōshirō's family paid the price. Takeshi Suzuki takes a harsh view of his father, but this view evolves as he grows up and forges his own path.

So we will find in this article some useful information for the continuation of our research. 
Does this justify posting the entirety of the 8 translated pages here? Of course not. 

But it's my blog and no one can stop me, right?

Takeo Ueyama : Mars Japan, TIM, TMK (Part II: 1980-1985)

TIM has a logo !

We continue to follow the adventures (or misadventures?) of Takeo Ueyama (上山武夫) during the arcade industry Golden Age.

Part I is here.

A brief Summary

After briefly leading, Fuji Enterprise (フジ・エンタープライズ), RJ Corporation (アールジェイコーポレーション) and Mars Japan (マース・ジャパン), he found himself at the head of TIM (ティ・アイ・エム), a regional-scale distributor based in Tôkyô.
TIM quickly grew close to a promising company: Shin Nihon Kikaku (新日本企画), the future SNK. Together, they rode the wave generated by Space Invaders.
The two companies announced their merger in the press, but it remained just an announcement.
With the end of the Invader Boom and its alliance with Shin Nihon Kikaku, we can guess that TIM had to manage by alone to move its stock of Space Invaders games.

Alone? Really?

Takeo Ueyama : Mars Japan, TIM, TMK (Part I: 1975-1979)

We've talked at length about Fuji Enterprise (フジ・エンタープライズ) in previous articles. This one is more of a spin-off, as we'll follow the adventures of a secondary character: Takeo Ueyama (上山武夫).

Although he might seem like a minor figure, Takeo Ueyama actually appears at several key moments in the history of the arcade industry — the emergence of what would become SNK, the Invader Boom, the rise of a collaborative bootleg network, lawsuits over game intellectual property, and more. 

In short, he didn't just make friends along the way.

A Brief Look Back

Let's do a quick recap of the events preceding this article.

Takeo Ueyama first appears in Game Machine magazine in June 1975 (page 2). He is the president (社長) of the Fuji Enterprise group, possibly since the company's founding in June 1973. He reports to only one person: Tokuzô Uragami (浦上徳三), chairman (会長) of the group.

The group is flourishing, but Takeo Ueyama suddenly resigns from the presidency of Fuji Enterprise on April 20, 1976 (page 2), citing "personal circumstances".

Is this really a departure? We can question this because he soon reappears at the head of RJ Corporation (アールジェイコーポレーション). RJ Corporation is potentially a satellite company of Fuji Enterprise whose purpose is to handle the distribution of Kansai Kigyô (関西企業) games. Everything is explained in more detail here.

Takeo Ueyama leaves RJ Corporation on August 25, 1976 (page 11), only 3 or 4 months after the group's creation. It is stated that he resigns to "become independent".

This is where we'll pick up the thread of events.

Mars Japan

After his departure from RJ Corporation, approximately one year passes during which we don't know what Takeo Ueyama is doing. Then, starting in the fall of 1977, he becomes part of a brand new company: Mars Japan.

This company probably has a modest scope as it occupies an office among others in an office building in Meguro (Tôkyô).

Mars Japan sells its own products. The range is limited: a karaoke machine, an arcade game, and a few related products. 

Let's discover them: 

Mars Juke - MJ-8800

Mars Juke is a karaoke machine. The invention of karaoke dates back to 1971. It's still something quite recent. When we think of karaoke, we imagine a video on a screen displaying the lyrics to sing. In the 1970s, there's nothing like that. The karaoke only produces the music without the singer's voice. The song lyrics are printed in a separate booklet.

Supercar DX Pittanko

Based on this image, it's a bit difficult to determine how Super DX Pittanko (スーパーカーDXピッタンコ) is played. Fortunately, the text accompanying the advertisement (page 13) provides more information.

"How to play: When you insert a 10-yen coin, a supercar — the Lamborghini Countach LP500S — dashes onto a three-lane road. If the center supercar is successfully sandwiched between the police cars (Porsche) on both sides, you score 1 'Pittanko' point (perfect). However, the center supercar tends to slip away quickly and keeps fleeing. The police cars on both sides are controlled by rotary knobs on the left and right sides of the cabinet. The score is shown up to 8 points; beyond that you succeed, and a 'Pittanko' supercar film is automatically dispensed as a prize."

The theme of this game is unmistakable. We're right in the middle of the "Supercar Boom" phenomenon, which I already discussed in this article.

In the photo, we can clearly see the rotary knobs but not the three-lane road. Is this panel really the one for the game? Or perhaps a placeholder image while waiting for the actual panel to be ready?

The manufacturer is Hokkai Seisakusho (北海製作所) (TAN 91-13988), a company based in Edogawa (Tôkyô). We know nothing else about Hokkai Seisakusho, except that it manufactured a video game in 1981 (TAN 95-2122).

Pittanko

Pittanko (ピッタンコ) is a Japanese word meaning "exactly right". Here, pittankos are photo films that can serve as prizes. They are mentioned in the Supercar DX Pittanko advertisement. Another advertisement (page 13) provides more details.

"Color film of sports cars (positives) Increase your sales by using them as prizes for a wide range of store game machines from various companies (Shinkansen, Dead Heat, Super Car, Piccadilly, etc.), pachinko-type game machines, prize-catching machines (Clean Sweep, Skill Digger, etc.), and other children's game machines.

How to use the films: Bring this film to your nearest DPE (Developing, Printing, Enlarging) shop to obtain beautiful color prints of sports cars in the size you desire. Enjoy enlarged color projections with a slide projector.

For store games, exchange 3 prize tickets for 1 of these films."

 

Supercar Card Game

It's somewhat anecdotal, but Mars Japan mentions in the advertisement that it also sells a card game with a supercar theme.

The Amusement Machine Show '77

The 15th AM Show takes place in October 1977. It's the event of the year not to be missed for all companies in the arcade sector.

But Mars Japan is a newly created company. It therefore hasn't had time to secure a booth.

Fortunately, it can count on the support of a company we've already discussed: Kansai Kigyô (関西企業). In addition to its own products, Kansai Kigyô presents Pittanko, from Mars Japan, at its booth.

Mars Japan had also announced in an advertisement the presence of Supercar DX Pittanko at the AM Show. This may be the case, but it's not confirmed by the Game Machine report.

Yet it seems that on the left side of the photo, we can see the end of the name 'Mars Juke' (『マースジューク』). And isn’t the machine located beneath that name Supercar DX Pittanko?

In any case, the presence of Mars Japan products at the Kansai Kigyô booth shows us that Takeo Ueyama and Tetsushi Matsumoto (松元哲士), president of Kansai Kigyô, parted on good terms after the RJ Corporation episode.

A New Address

Mars Japan changes address (page 3) just after the AM Show. The new address is: 1-20 Hazawa, Nerima-ku, Tokyo (東京都練馬区羽沢 1-20). A new address for new ambitions after the AM Show?

Mars Japan Organizational Chart

There's something I haven't mentioned about Mars Japan's organization: the president (社長) is not Takeo Ueyama.

It's a certain Masao Watanabe (渡辺正雄). But he doesn't handle the company's affairs.

On a daily basis, it's actually Takeo Ueyama who runs the company. His title is executive managing director (専務 senmu). He's sort of the company's number 2.

He's assisted by his senior managing director (常務 jômu) Shôji Nakayama (中山庄次).

Already Bankrupt...

We don't hear about Mars Japan for a few months until this announcement (page 3): Mars Japan went bankrupt on March 31, 1978.

It seems that conditions deteriorated quite rapidly for Mars Japan after the AM Show and the move, as Shôji Nakayama left the company as early as December 1977, leaving Takeo Ueyama alone at the helm.

Game Machine magazine indicates that the details after this departure are unclear.

As for president Masao Watanabe, he's no longer our concern, but we find him a few years later (page 3) as president of a company called Watanabe Amusement (渡辺アミューズメント) in Tochigi Prefecture (栃木県).

Just like RJ Corporation before it, Mars Japan only existed for a total of half a year. But this time, it's not the end but a new beginning, as the company will be reborn in another form.

TIM: Mars Japan 2.0?

A few months pass and Takeo Ueyama returns once again at the head of a company, as president this time!

This company is called TIM (ティ・アイ・エム) and it first makes itself known in January 1979. As for its address, it's simply that of Mars Japan.

TIM is in some ways the continuation of Mars Japan.

But unlike Mars Japan, TIM doesn't sell electromechanical games but video games.

Mars Japan sold games under its own name, but TIM adopts a different strategy.

Indeed, during the period between Mars Japan's bankruptcy and TIM's creation, a major phenomenon for the industry occurred: the Invader Boom. Space Invaders became an essential game in Japan. Taito can't produce enough machines to meet demand. A huge market has opened up for all kinds of ambitious entrepreneurs from all backgrounds. All companies in the sector, whether they're already well-established pillars or just ephemeral phenomena without a future, want to sell Space Invaders. Those who can't try to sell games "inspired" by Taito's original game. The least scrupulous companies simply sell copies with a different name.

TIM arrives a bit late to fully benefit from the Invader Boom. But it's not too late.

What place remains to occupy? What strategy to adopt?

• Become a game distributor, meaning buy Space Invaders games from Taito in large quantities and then resell them?
• Obtain a license from Taito and produce its own version of Space Invaders?
• Produce a game that resembles Space Invaders, with enough differences in graphics or gameplay not to call it a copy?
• Produce a copy of Space Invaders without worrying about the details and without concern for the future?

TIM modestly chooses a somewhat different path. In theory, TIM is an independent distributor. In practice, it becomes a reseller on behalf of a company that has managed to obtain a Space Invaders license from Taito.

That company is Shin Nihon Kikaku.

Shin Nihon Kikaku

Shin Nihon Kikaku (新日本企画) is the company that would become SNK a few years later. A large, well-known company in the sector (notably for its fighting games), but whose origins are incredibly obscure in comparison.

Unless I'm mistaken, the only source concerning its origins is a 2007 blog post whose content was taken up six months later by Wikipedia and then by the entire internet.

Shin Nihon Kikaku may have started as a sole proprietorship (個人事業) from 1973. The only certainty is that it became a joint-stock company (株式会社) in July 1978 (page 6). Its address is in Higashi-Osaka, in the Kansai region.

During 1978, the company sold a series of brick-breaker games called Micon Kit (マイコン・キット).

At the end of 1978, Taito made a public announcement (page 2). It had granted a license for its Space Invaders game to 3 companies for the first time, including Shin Nihon Kikaku. This gave them the right to manufacture and sell their versions of Space Invaders within the limits of the license agreement.

This is where the collaboration between TIM and Shin Nihon Kikaku begins.

Shin Nihon Kikaku and TIM, Hand in Hand

As we've seen, Shin Nihon Kikaku is still a young company. It doesn't yet have a national scope.

In 1978, its activities intermingled with those of a company based in Nagoya (Aichi Prefecture): Chûbu Center (中部センター). The nature of their relationship is not very clear, but it seems that it didn't survive 1978.

At the beginning of 1979, Shin Nihon Kikaku collaborates with two companies: Shure Lease (シュアー・リース) and TIM. We already talked about Shure Lease here.

This collaboration takes the form of private exhibitions organized in large hotels. TIM being a local company based in Tôkyô, it's in this city that it will organize all its private exhibitions.

The First Private Exhibitions

The first private exhibition takes place on January 23-24, 1979 at the Tôkyô Kankô Hotel (東京観光ホテル) in Shinagawa (Tôkyô). Game Machine (page 3) mentions that it was a great success.

The second takes place on March 22, 1979 at the Akasaka Tôkyû Hotel (赤坂東急ホテル) in Tokyo. This one (page 2) is organized in collaboration with Shure Lease (and of course Shin Nihon Kikaku). The games sold very quickly.

During these 2 private exhibitions, two games were presented:

Space Micon Kit

Space Micon Kit (スペースマイコン・キット) is the third and final iteration of the Micon Kit series. The first was a classic brick-breaker. The second introduced ships that earned points when shot down. Space Micon Kit introduces a second type of ship and new level layouts. 

Without going into detail here, the games in the Micon Kit series are designed to be modifiable.

Space Invaders

Space Invaders (スペース・インベーダー) was developed by Tomohiro Nishikado (西角友宏), an employee of Pacific Kôgyô (パシフィック工業), a Taito subsidiary. Shin Nihon Kikaku's version is faithful to the original and makes no modifications. Shin Nihon Kikaku sells the TT (Tabletop) version.

The End of the Invader Boom in Japan

Even though the arcade industry is emerging from the shadows, it remains poorly regarded by Japanese society. The phenomenal success of Space Invaders eventually worries parents who question the harmful influence this game can have on their children. Japanese society points to the emergence of certain anti-social behaviors among young people: offenses (theft, counterfeit coins or use of voltage generators to get free games, even theft of the machine...), excessive spending, or playing until midnight.

The JOU (Japanese Operators Union) and the JAA (Japan Amusement Association), two national associations representing arcade industry companies, are considering (page 1) with various institutions a code of conduct for arcade machine operators.

The main ideas that emerge are:

1. The fight against machines that violate electrical law,
2. The fight against gambling and prize distribution at the end of the game. Everything that doesn't comply with the anti-gambling law (Fûeihô 風営法).
3. The fight against offenses such as buying stolen goods.
4. The prohibition for minors to play after midnight.

Moreover, regarding children's proper development, operators:

1. Must not let elementary and middle school children play on their way to or from school.
2. Must not let elementary and middle school children enter after 5 PM if they are not accompanied by a parent.

These declarations of intent are meant to moralize the industry sector but also to reassure Japanese society.

On this last point, the effect won't be as expected. Space Invaders will henceforth be categorized as a social problem by part of the population.

As a consequence, the Invader Boom will stop abruptly in mid-1979.

The end of the Invader Boom is a catastrophe for many companies that invested heavily. Many of them (including Taito, and probably Shin Nihon Kikaku and its partner TIM) find themselves with huge stocks of games impossible to resell.

All is not lost. There are solutions to survive:

• Resell the games abroad, where the Invader Boom continues in full swing.
• Modify the machines to turn them into new games.
• ... that's about it!

The situation is therefore very complicated. The number of companies that went bankrupt following this abrupt change is countless.

This brings us to TIM's third private exhibition.

The Last Private Exhibition

TIM's third private exhibition (page 3) still in cooperation with Shin Nihon Kikaku, takes place on September 6, 1979, once again at the Tôkyô Kankô Hotel (東京観光ホテル) in Shinagawa.

As we've seen, quite a lot has happened since the previous private exhibition, and this has consequences for the games being presented.

Space Invaders - Part II (スペース・インベーダー・パート2)

In an attempt to renew public interest, Taito re-released Space Invaders in an updated version.

Regarding the development of Space Invaders - Part II, Tomohiro Nishikado, the developer of the first Space Invaders, recalls this:

"I made Part II together with a junior colleague named Tetsunosuke Hatori (羽鳥鉄之助), but there are some differences between what I remember and what he remembers. I think Hatori's memory is probably more accurate. According to him, right after the first Space Invaders was completed, I had already started preparing for Part II.

He says he's not sure whether I did that because the sales division asked me to, or because I anticipated that the boom around the first game would eventually fade and decided to start on my own initiative. But apparently, around September or October — right after the first game was finished — I began working on the planning and programming for Part II. For a long time, I mistakenly thought that I hadn't worked on Part II myself and had left it entirely to Hatori. But Hatori told me, "When I joined the development, about half of the program was already done. I just made a few minor adjustments toward the end." That means, in reality, I was directly involved in making Part II.

As for the ideas behind Part II, we wanted to add something different from the first game, so we introduced a feature where the invaders split apart."

Enemies that split in two when hit by a shot appear starting from the fourth level.

Besides this, we find the following changes:

• Color graphics (not simply an overlay on the screen) and slightly redesigned
• New sound effects and improved sound
• Small animated scenes between levels
• Enemies are arranged differently according to levels
• It becomes possible to continue a game at the same point after losing by inserting a new coin
• Etc.

Once again, Shin Nihon Kikaku commercializes Space Invaders - Part II in tabletop format with an official Taito license.

New Space Wars

New Space Wars (ニュー・ススペース・ウォーズ) is a mysterious game. It's not currently emulated and is considered lost. But there are still things to say.

Comparing images of New Space Wars and Galaxy Wars (Universal), we note a striking resemblance.

Galaxy Wars is a game that consists of making a missile travel vertically across the screen to shoot down alien ships placed at the very top, all while avoiding aliens circulating horizontally and shots coming from the ships. 

It's an attempt to reuse Space Invaders hardware to make a new game that met with some success. This is well explained for example here and here.

Following the trend launched by Space Invaders, Galaxy Wars gave rise to a series of manufacturing licenses (page 2) with other companies: Taito, Nihon Shôji (日本商事), and Irem.

Taito had previously sued Universal because the company considered that Universal was producing a copy of Space Invaders (this game is called Cosmic Monsters). This license agreement is potentially a concession that Universal granted to Taito.

Still, Shin Nihon Kikaku doesn't seem to possess a license to manufacture a copy of Galaxy Wars. In October 1979, Universal had already initiated legal proceedings (page 2) against Shôei (ショウエイ) for releasing a copy of this game. Shin Nihon Kikaku may have abruptly halted the commercialization of New Space Wars to avoid having to face these same legal proceedings, as we don't hear about this game afterwards.

Yosaku

Yosaku (与作) is a game published by Shin Nihon Kikaku.

Yosaku is a somewhat strange object in the arcade world.

It starts with a song that had some success in Japan from 1978. Composed by Kiminori Nanasawa (七澤公典) and sung by several singers, including Saburô Kitajima (北島三郎). 

The song tells the daily life of Yosaku who goes to the mountains to cut wood.

It's therefore a popular song with a simple theme, but the arcade industry picked up this theme in 1979 to make a game out of it. Or rather, no fewer than five different games were published, maybe even more.

Shin Nihon Kikaku's version is currently considered lost, as it's not emulated. But it's known that a working machine exists, as this video proves: 

As one might guess, the goal of the game is to help Yosaku cut trees while all the forest animals try to prevent him from doing so.

The manufacturer name displayed on the title screen is "OLCA CORPORATION". There's a whole debate about whether the game in this video is an original or a bootleg manufactured by the company Orca (オルカ). I'm not going to discuss it here.

What we can say is that Yosaku uses the same hardware as Space Invaders. We can therefore assume that it's yet another attempt to reuse unsold Space Invaders PCBs in a different way.

Finally, it's indicated that the machine presented during this private exhibition was a prototype.

Yosaku to Gonbei

Wing version of Yosaku to Gonbei

Yosaku to Gonbei (与作とゴン平) is NOT a Shin Nihon Kikaku game. It's a game published by Jatre (ジャトレ), a company whose business model is split halfway between arcade and karaoke.

The game is manufactured by Yorii Electronics (ヨリイエレクトロニクス) (based in Saitama). I could be wrong, but I believe Yorii Electronics is basically a screen monitor manufacturer. This game is then commercialized by two companies under two different names. Wing (ウイング), which is probably Yorii Electronics' commercial front, publishes the game under the name Yosaku to Donbei (与作とドン平). Jatre publishes it under the name Yosaku to Gonbei (与作とゴン平).

This game doesn't resemble Shin Nihon Kikaku's. Here, we're dealing with a rather intense version of Space Invaders. The goal of the game isn't to cut down a tree but to shoot down all the birds sitting on it with a rifle.

Obviously, it's yet another game whose base is Space Invaders hardware.

We can make the following reflection: TIM has only exhibited Shin Nihon Kikaku games until now. Why exhibit a Jatre game now?

Perhaps it's simply that TIM remains an independent distributor despite the more than close ties it maintains with Shin Nihon Kikaku.

Still, Jatre will go bankrupt shortly after (at the beginning of 1980), victim, like many others, of the end of the Invader Boom.

And Suddenly... The Marriage Between TIM and Shin Nihon Kikaku

TIM and Shin Nihon Kikaku therefore collaborate together through private exhibitions. We can also assume that these two companies work together the rest of the time.

Shin Nihon Kikaku is based in the Kansai region and has a limited sales network.

TIM is based in Tokyo. Its business is precisely to sell games.

Why not unite to form an autonomous group (manufacturing/sales)?

Other companies in the sector have followed or will follow this same path: Data East/Zest, Konami/Leijac, Nanao/Irem, etc.

It's therefore natural that the following announcement (page3) comes a few weeks after the last private exhibition:

"On September 20, Shin Nihon Kikaku absorbed and merged with TIM, while welcoming Mr. Takeo Ueyama as senior managing director (常務) of the company. TIM, which had been an active and powerful distributor of Shin Nihon Kikaku's products in Tokyo, is expected—through this merger—to further strengthen and stabilize the company's sales network."

With this merger, Takeo Ueyama will become the number 2 or 3 of a rapidly expanding company, assisting president Eikichi Kawasaki. The future looks bright, doesn't it?

...And the Express Divorce

It's an incredible announcement for TIM and its president. It will be followed by... absolutely nothing. Takeo Ueyama will never join Shin Nihon Kikaku. TIM and Shin Nihon Kikaku will each continue their activities on their own. It's even possible that they never worked together again afterwards. Inexplicable, but that's how it is. In any case, it's the end of TIM's private exhibitions.

When we think about the reasons for this express divorce, we can't help but imagine all sorts of scenarios. The truth is that we have no explanation, nor any information.

The two companies were about to merge, but it didn't happen. That's all.

Conclusion

The 1970s thus conclude on a sour note for TIM and its president Takeo Ueyama. TIM no longer has its partner Shin Nihon Kikaku.

In the next part, we'll see that TIM is ultimately far from isolated, but its partners are far from being the best company.

We've also seen that the end of the Invader Boom had left all the arcade sector players with tons of Invaders Games PCB units in stock, forcing them to make choices.

Is this an opportunity or the beginning of the end for TIM?