Nihon Falcom
Nihon Falcom takes its name from a science fiction film. The founders wanted to evoke the Millennium Falcon, but changed the final "n" to an "m" to match the naming conventions of the early 1980s Japanese tech industry. Then they prepended Nihon, one of the native words for Japan, simply because it made the name sound complete. The result was a studio that, by its own company mythology, was named partly by pop culture and partly by aesthetic instinct. Founded by Masayuki Kato in 1981, Falcom would go on to shape the very genres that define Japanese gaming. The questions worth asking are: how did a PC-focused studio in a console-dominated era leave such a lasting mark, and where did the blueprints for action RPGs actually come from?
Panorama Toh, released for the PC-8801 in 1983, was Falcom's first role-playing game. Created by Yoshio Kiya, it was set on a desert island rendered as a hex grid, complete with a day-night cycle. The game lacked traditional statistical or leveling systems, but it introduced real-time combat using a gun. That single design choice placed it close to the action RPG formula before the genre had a name. Players needed to find and consume rations to survive, since every normal action drained hit points. Non-player characters on the island could be attacked, spoken to, or paid for items, though they could also run away with the player's money. Snakes could poison and paralyze the player, requiring medicine or help from NPCs. Kiya went on to create the Dragon Slayer and Brandish franchises, both of which pushed the action RPG concept further in the years that followed.
Dragon Slayer, Falcom's flagship action RPG series, set the template for the genre. The sequel, Dragon Slayer II: Xanadu, released in 1985, sold more than 400,000 copies, making it the best-selling PC game up to that point in time. That figure was remarkable for an era when personal computers were still niche hardware. Falcom's decision to build primarily for PCs distinguished it from its main rivals, Enix and Square, who targeted consoles. That focus helped popularize personal computers in Japan, a contribution Falcom is credited with directly. By the early 2010s, the Ys series had grown into the second-largest Japanese role-playing game franchise by total number of game releases, trailing only Final Fantasy.
In 1991, Falcom co-founded a joint venture with Sega. Sega held 55% of the company and Falcom held 45%. The venture's initial purpose was to develop CD-based games for Sega's consoles, specifically to help Sega recover ground in the 16-bit console market. A series of news sections about Sega Falcom ran in the magazine Beep! MegaDrive from its November 1991 issue through its February 1994 issue. Games produced under the arrangement included Popful Mail for the Mega-CD, along with Lord Monarch: Tokoton Sentou Densetsu, Dragon Slayer: The Legend of Heroes, and Dragon Slayer: The Legend of Heroes II for the Mega Drive. The partnership gave Falcom a foothold in console development without abandoning its PC-first identity. In 2007, Toshihiro Kondo became president of the company, succeeding founder Masayuki Kato.
Falcom's early soundtracks were composed primarily by Yuzo Koshiro and Mieko Ishikawa, two chiptune musicians who helped establish video game music as a craft worth taking seriously. Koshiro in particular became one of the most recognized names in game music history. Falcom's reputation for ambitious scores preceded its reputation in the West, where its games had limited reach due to the PC-focused distribution model. The Ys series, which combined action RPG gameplay with particularly noted music, became the franchise most associated with the studio's sonic identity. That musical legacy runs from the chiptune era through decades of subsequent releases, making Falcom's sound as much a part of its brand as any single game franchise.
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Common questions
What games is Nihon Falcom best known for?
Nihon Falcom is best known for the Ys series, The Legend of Heroes series, and the Trails series. The company also created the Dragon Slayer franchise, which is credited with establishing the action role-playing game genre.
When was Nihon Falcom founded and by whom?
Nihon Falcom was founded in 1981 by Masayuki Kato. Toshihiro Kondo succeeded Kato as president in 2007.
What does the name Nihon Falcom mean?
The name Falcom is derived from the Millennium Falcon, with the final "n" changed to "m" to match Japanese naming trends of the era. Nihon, one of the native names for Japan, was added to make the full company name sound complete.
What was Nihon Falcom's first RPG and what made it significant?
Nihon Falcom's first RPG was Panorama Toh, released for the PC-8801 in 1983. It featured real-time combat and a hex-grid overworld with a day-night cycle, anticipating the action RPG formula before the genre was formally established.
How well did Dragon Slayer II Xanadu sell?
Dragon Slayer II: Xanadu, released in 1985, sold more than 400,000 copies, making it the best-selling PC game up to that point in time.
Who composed music for early Nihon Falcom games?
Early Nihon Falcom soundtracks were composed primarily by Yuzo Koshiro and Mieko Ishikawa, both chiptune musicians who helped establish Falcom's reputation for notable video game music.