, formerly known as , was a Japanese

video game developer A video game developer is a software developer specializing in video game development – the process and related disciplines of creating video games. A game developer can range from one person who undertakes all tasks to a large business with em ...

founded in 1980. ADK began as a developer of arcade games and is best known for their library of SNK

Neo Geo The , stylized as NEO•GEO, is a video game platform released in 1990 by Japanese game company SNK Corporation. It was initially released in two ROM cartridge-based formats: an arcade system board (Multi Video System; MVS) and a home video gam ...

titles, including for its home consoles, produced in partnership with SNK. Most notable among these are their

fighting game The fighting game video game genre, genre involves combat between multiple characters, often (but not limited to) one-on-one battles. Fighting game combat often features mechanics such as Blocking (martial arts), blocking, grappling, counter- ...

s and, in particular, the '' World Heroes'' series and '' Aggressors of Dark Kombat''. The company closed with properties sold to SNK Playmore in 2003.

History

Early years

ADK was founded in July 1980 in

Ageo, Saitama file:Ageo Ageomaruyama-kouen Sakuramaturi 1.jpg, 260px, Ageo Maruyama Park is a Cities of Japan, city located in Saitama Prefecture, Japan. As of February 1, 2024, the city had an estimated population of 230,041 in 107,555 households and a popula ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

. At the time, it was known as ''Alpha Denshi'' or ''Alpha'' for short. Originally a producer of audio and telecommunications equipment, Alpha first ventured into video games in 1980 with two arcade titles: by Craul Denshi and Tehkan's , a basic Japanese chess game. ''Dorachan'' was recalled shortly after release due to unlicensed usage of the fictional character

Doraemon is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Fujiko F. Fujio. First serialized in 1969, the manga's chapters were collected in 45 volumes published by Shogakukan from 1974 to 1996. The story revolves around an earless robotic ...

. Despite an inauspicious start, Alpha continued to develop arcade games in 1981. , published by Sanritsu Giken Corp, was one of the earliest arcade

Mahjong Mahjong (English pronunciation: ; also transliterated as mah jongg, mah-jongg, and mahjongg) is a tile-based game that was developed in the 19th century in China and has spread throughout the world since the early 20th century. It is played ...

titles and helped Alpha to establish themselves in the industry. That same year, Craul Denshi released Alpha's ''Crush Roller'' (''Make Trax''), a maze video game similar to ''

Pac-Man ''Pac-Man,'' originally called in Japan, is a 1980 maze video game developed and published by Namco for arcades. In North America, the game was released by Midway Manufacturing as part of its licensing agreement with Namco America. The pla ...

''. By 1982, Alpha was able to finance their own independent development of ''Talbot'', another maze game, which they licensed to Volt Electronics for distribution. In 1983, Alpha expanded into

sports game A sports video game is a video game that simulates the practice of sports. Most sports have been recreated with video games, including team sports, track and field, extreme sports, and combat sports. Some games emphasize playing the sport (such ...

s with their self-published '' Exciting Soccer'' and two '' Champion Baseball'' titles for

Sega is a Japanese video game company and subsidiary of Sega Sammy Holdings headquartered in Tokyo. It produces several List of best-selling video game franchises, multi-million-selling game franchises for arcade game, arcades and video game cons ...

. Alpha would produce several more games for Sega through the mid 1980s while continuing to publish others on their own.

Partnership with SNK

Alpha Denshi began developing games almost exclusively for SNK hardware in 1987. In 1990, SNK was developing a new unified video game platform for both the home and arcades. Alpha was a close partner in the process and contributed much of the hardware design for what would eventually become the

. The 1990 Neo Geo arcade launch lineup included two Alpha titles: '' Magician Lord'' and ''

Ninja Combat is a 1990 side-scrolling beat 'em up video game developed by ADK (company), Alpha Denshi and published by SNK Playmore, SNK. It was one of the launch titles for both the Neo Geo (console), Neo Geo MVS (arcade) and AES (home) systems. Gameplay ...

''. ''Magician Lord'' was also later included as a

pack-in game Since the origin of video games in the early 1970s, the video game industry, the players, and surrounding culture have spawned a wide range of technical and slang terms. 0–9 A ...

for the 1991 home console, the Neo Geo AES. In 1992, following the revitalization of the

genre by

Capcom is a Japanese video game company. It has created a number of critically acclaimed and List of best-selling video game franchises, multi-million-selling game franchises, with its most commercially successful being ''Resident Evil'', ''Monster ...

's ''

Street Fighter II is a 1991 fighting game developed and published by Capcom for arcade game, arcades. It is the second installment in the ''Street Fighter'' series and the sequel to 1987's ''Street Fighter (video game), Street Fighter''. Designed by Yoshiki O ...

'', Alpha developed '' World Heroes'' with assistance from SNK. It would go on to sell over 200,000 copies that year, and its popularity quickly spawned multiple sequels. In 1993, Alpha Denshi shortened its name to ''ADK'', short for Alpha Denshi ''Kabushiki gaisha'' (Japanese for " share company"). Shortly thereafter, ADK agreed to become an exclusive developer for SNK. In 1994, SNK launched the

CD-ROM A CD-ROM (, compact disc read-only memory) is a type of read-only memory consisting of a pre-pressed optical compact disc that contains computer data storage, data computers can read, but not write or erase. Some CDs, called enhanced CDs, hold b ...

-based version of the Neo Geo, the

Neo Geo CD The is a home video game console produced by SNK Corporation, released on September 9, 1994. The system is the same platform as the cartridge-based Neo Geo released four years earlier, but converted to the cheaper CD media format which reta ...

. ADK soon began porting their existing library to the new platform. In addition, ADK developed three new exclusive titles for the Neo Geo CD: ''Crossed Swords II'', ''ADK World'' and ''ZinTrick''. In the late 1990s, newer fifth generation consoles with 3D graphics and CD audio were becoming more popular with consumers and an attractive target for video game developers. Still under exclusive contract, ADK was only allowed to develop two

Sega Saturn The is a home video game console developed by Sega and released on November 22, 1994, in Japan, May 11, 1995, in North America, and July 8, 1995, in Europe. Part of the fifth generation of video game consoles, it is the successor to the succes ...

ports: '' World Heroes Perfect'' and '' Twinkle Star Sprites'', both published by SNK. Meanwhile, SNK released the short-lived Neo Geo Pocket and Pocket Color handhelds in 1998 and 1999. ADK developed only eight titles for the platform which was dwarfed in sales by Nintendo's

Game Boy Color The (GBC or CGB) is an 8-bit handheld game console developed by Nintendo. It was released in Japan on October 21, 1998, and to international markets that November. Compared to the original Game Boy, the Game Boy Color features a color TFT scre ...

and lasted less than three years. During this same time, the developer ''Miraisoft'' released two Sony PlayStation games with ADK included in the credits. This aroused suspicion at the time because while Miraisoft was officially listed as an "affiliate company" of ADK, ADK was still under exclusive contract with SNK and could not release PlayStation games themselves. While no further link between the two companies was publicly announced, it has been suspected that ADK used the affiliate brand to circumvent SNK's terms. In any event, ADK continued to develop Neo Geo games until 2001 when SNK declared

bankruptcy Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the deb ...

Final years

ADK was already facing financial difficulty and had reduced its workforce prior to SNK's demise. In 2000, ADK released its last video game title, ''Dynamite Slugger'', and was primarily focused on developing content for Japanese

i-mode i-mode (, ) is a Japanese mobile internet (distinct from wireless internet) service operated by NTT DoCoMo. Unlike Wireless Application Protocols, i-mode encompasses a wider variety of internet standards, including web access, e-mail, and ...

-based mobile devices. A variety of content was developed spanning informational,

social networking A social network is a social structure consisting of a set of social actors (such as individuals or organizations), networks of Dyad (sociology), dyadic ties, and other Social relation, social interactions between actors. The social network per ...

and

digital pet A virtual pet (also known as a digital pet, artificial pet, or pet-raising simulation) is a type of artificial human companion. They are usually kept for companionship or enjoyment, or as an alternative to a real pet. Digital pets have no conc ...

sites. However, ADK could not reverse their fortunes and ultimately declared bankruptcy in 2003. By this time, the successor to SNK,

SNK Playmore is a Japanese video gaming and interactive entertainment company. It was founded in 1978 as by Eikichi Kawasaki and began by developing arcade games. SNK is known for its Neo Geo arcade system on which the company established many franchises ...

, had already been established and was actively producing video games. Soon after the bankruptcy, SNK Playmore bought up ADK's relinquished intellectual properties, including ADK trademark.

Legacy

ADK characters occasionally appear in SNK Playmore games. First, in 2005, SNK released a sequel to ADK's ''Twinkle Star Sprites'', called ''Twinkle Star Sprites - La Petite Princesse'' for the

PlayStation 2 The PlayStation 2 (PS2) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Sony Interactive Entertainment, Sony Computer Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on 4 March 2000, in North America on 26 October, in Europe on 24 Novembe ...

. In that same year came '' Neo Geo Battle Coliseum'', a console and arcade fighting game featuring several characters from the '' World Heroes'' and '' Aggressors of Dark Kombat'' franchises. In 2008, SNK released a compilation of five classic ADK Neo Geo titles for the PlayStation 2 titled (lit. "ADK Spirits"). The compilation includes '' Aggressors of Dark Kombat'', '' Ninja Master's: Haō Ninpō Chō'', ''

'', '' Ninja Commando'', and '' Twinkle Star Sprites''. It was ported to

PlayStation 4 The PlayStation 4 (PS4) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Announced as the successor to the PlayStation 3 in February 2013, it was launched on November 15, 2013, in North America, November 29, 2013, in ...

in 2015, and localized outside Japan in 2017. In 2019, Jeanne D'Arc, one of the characters from the '' World Heroes'' series has appeared as playable DLC character in '' SNK Heroines: Tag Team Frenzy''.

List of products

The following lists ADK-developed titles by platform of earliest release. Third-party publishers are also noted.

Early arcade games

* ''Dorachan'' (

1980 Events January * January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a United States grain embargo against the Soviet Union, grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission. * January 6 – Global Positioning Sys ...

, Craul Denshi) * ''Shogi'' (

, Tehkan) * ''Janputer'' (

1981 Events January * January 1 ** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union. ** Palau becomes a self-governing territory. * January 6 – A funeral service is held in West Germany for Nazi Grand Admiral ...

, Sanritsu Giken) * ''

Jump Bug is a 1981 scrolling shooter platform game developed by Alpha Denshi under contract for Hoei Corporation. It was distributed in arcades by Sega in Japan and Europe, and by Rock-Ola in North America. The player controls a bouncing Volkswagen- ...

'' (

, contracted by Hoei Sangyo, published by

) * '' Crush Roller'' / '' Make Trax'' (

, Craul Denshi) * ''Talbot'' (

1982 Events January * January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00). * January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street Bridge in Washington, D.C. ...

) * '' Exciting Soccer'' (

1983 1983 saw both the official beginning of the Internet and the first mobile cellular telephone call. Events January * January 1 – The migration of the ARPANET to TCP/IP is officially completed (this is considered to be the beginning of the ...

) * '' Champion Baseball'' (

) * ''Champion Baseball II'' (

) * ''Bull Fighter'' (

1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeas ...

) * ''Equites'' (

) * ''Exciting Soccer II'' (

1985 The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a n ...

) * ''High Voltage'' (

) * ''Perfect Janputer'' (

) * ''The Koukou Yakyū'' (lit. "The High School Baseball") (

) * ''Splendor Blast'' (

) * ''Super Stingray'' ( 1986,

) * ''Kyros No Yakata'' / ''Kyros'' ( 1986) * '' Time Soldiers'' / '' Battle Field'' (

1987 Events January * January 1 – Bolivia reintroduces the Boliviano currency. * January 2 – Chadian–Libyan conflict – Battle of Fada: The Military of Chad, Chadian army destroys a Libyan armoured brigade. * January 3 – Afghan leader ...

, SNK) * '' Sky Soldiers'' ( 1988, SNK) * '' Gang Wars'' (

1989 1989 was a turning point in political history with the "Revolutions of 1989" which ended communism in Eastern Bloc of Europe, starting in Poland and Hungary, with experiments in power-sharing coming to a head with the opening of the Berlin W ...

, SNK) * ''Sky Adventure'' (

, SNK) * ''Super Champion Baseball'' (

, SNK) ormally titled as ''Kaettekita Champion Baseball''

NES

* ''STED: Iseki Wakusei no Yabou'' (

1990 Important events of 1990 include the Reunification of Germany and the unification of Yemen, the formal beginning of the Human Genome Project (finished in 2003), the launch of the Hubble Space Telescope, the separation of Namibia from South ...

, K Amusement Leasing/

KAC KAC or Kac may refer to: Organizations * Kenitra Athletic Club, a football club in Kenitra, Morocco * EC KAC or Klagenfurter Athletiksport Club, an ice hockey club in Klagenfurt, Austria * Knight's Armament Company, an American firearm manufactu ...

)

Neo Geo

* '' Magician Lord'' (

, SNK) * ''

'' (

, SNK) * '' Sun Shine'' / ''Block Paradise'' (

, unreleased) * '' Blue's Journey'' / '' Raguy'' (

, SNK) * '' Thrash Rally'' (

1991 It was the final year of the Cold War, which had begun in 1947. During the year, the Soviet Union Dissolution of the Soviet Union, collapsed, leaving Post-soviet states, fifteen sovereign republics and the Commonwealth of Independent State ...

, SNK, ''Rally Chase'' on NGCD) * '' Crossed Swords'' (

, SNK) * '' Fun Fun Bros'' (

, unreleased) * '' Mystic Wand'' (

, unreleased) * '' Ninja Commando'' (

1992 1992 was designated as International Space Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 – Boutros Boutros-Ghali of Egypt replaces Javier Pérez de Cuéllar of Peru as United Nations Secretary-General. * January 6 ** The Republ ...

, SNK) * '' World Heroes'' (

, assisted by and published with SNK) * '' World Heroes 2'' (

1993 The United Nations General Assembly, General Assembly of the United Nations designated 1993 as: * International Year for the World's Indigenous People The year 1993 in the Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands had only 364 days, since its ...

, assisted by and published with SNK) * '' Aggressors of Dark Kombat'' (

1994 The year 1994 was designated as the " International Year of the Family" and the "International Year of Sport and the Olympic Ideal" by the United Nations. In the Line Islands and Phoenix Islands of Kiribati, 1994 had only 364 days, omitti ...

, SNK) * '' World Heroes 2 Jet'' (

, SNK) * '' Shōgi no Tatsujin: Master of Syougi'' (

1995 1995 was designated as: * United Nations Year for Tolerance * World Year of Peoples' Commemoration of the Victims of the Second World War This was the first year that the Internet was entirely privatized, with the United States government ...

, SNK) * '' World Heroes Perfect'' (

, SNK) * '' Ninja Master's: Haō Ninpō Chō'' (

1996 1996 was designated as: * International Year for the Eradication of Poverty Events January * January 8 – A Zairean cargo plane crashes into a crowded market in the center of the capital city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo ...

, SNK) * '' Over Top'' (

) * '' Twinkle Star Sprites'' (

, SNK) * ''Dance RhythMIX'' (

2002 The effects of the September 11 attacks of the previous year had a significant impact on the affairs of 2002. The war on terror was a major political focus. Without settled international law, several nations engaged in anti-terror operation ...

, unreleased)

Neo Geo CD

All released Neo Geo titles were also ported to Neo Geo CD. * '' Crossed Swords II'' (

) * ''ADK World'' (

) * ''ZinTrick'' (

, SNK)

Hyper Neo Geo 64

* ''Beast Busters: Second Nightmare'' (

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for Lunar water, frozen water, in soil i ...

, SNK)

PlayStation

* ''Treasure Gear'' (

1997 Events January * January 1 – The Emergency Alert System is introduced in the United States. * January 11 – Turkey threatens Cyprus on account of a deal to buy Russian S-300 missiles, prompting the Cypriot Missile Crisis. * January 1 ...

, as Miraisoft) * ''Star Monja'' (

, as Miraisoft, published by GMF)

Neo Geo Pocket

* ''Melon Chan no Seichō Nikki'' ("Melon-chan's Growth Diary") (

, SNK) * ''Shōgi no Tatsujin: Master of Syougi'' (

, SNK)

Neo Geo Pocket Color

* '' Crush Roller'' (

1999 1999 was designated as the International Year of Older Persons. Events January * January 1 – The euro currency is established and the European Central Bank assumes its full powers. * January 3 – The Mars Polar Lander is launc ...

, SNK) * ''Dokodemo Mahjong'' (

, SNK) * ''Neo Poke Pro Yakyū'' (

, SNK) * ''Party Mail'' (

, SNK) * ''Shōgi no Tatsujin: Master of Syougi Color'' (

, SNK) * ''Dynamite Slugger'' (

2000 2000 was designated as the International Year for the Culture of Peace and the World Mathematics, Mathematical Year. Popular culture holds the year 2000 as the first year of the 21st century and the 3rd millennium, because of a tende ...

, SNK)

References

External links

The History of ADK
t Jap-Sai.com * *
ADK
Game Developer Research Institute {{DEFAULTSORT:Adk (Company) SNK SNK Playmore ADK (company) games Video game development companies Video game companies established in 1980 Video game companies disestablished in 2003 Companies that have filed for bankruptcy in Japan Defunct video game companies of Japan Companies based in Saitama Prefecture Japanese companies established in 1980 Japanese companies disestablished in 2003