Cosmi Corporation (COSMI) was an American computer software company based in

Carson, California Carson is a city in the South Bay (Los Angeles County), South Bay and the Los Angeles Harbor Region, Harbor regions of Los Angeles County, California, located south of downtown Los Angeles and approximately away from Los Angeles International ...

. It sold low-cost software directly to consumers in large retail outlets, computer stores, and drug, hardware, and grocery stores. It had two major imprints: Celery Software, and Swift Software/Swift Jewel. Platforms it has published for include:

Atari 8-bit computers The Atari 8-bit computers, formally launched as the Atari Home Computer System, are a series of home computers introduced by Atari, Inc., in 1979 with the Atari 400 and Atari 800. The architecture is designed around the 8-bit MOS Technology 650 ...

, Atari 16-bit computers, the

VIC-20 The VIC-20 (known as the VC-20 in Germany and the VIC-1001 in Japan) is an 8-bit entry level home computer that was sold by Commodore International, Commodore Business Machines. The VIC-20 was announced in 1980, roughly three years after Commod ...

Commodore 64 The Commodore 64, also known as the C64, is an 8-bit computing, 8-bit home computer introduced in January 1982 by Commodore International (first shown at the Consumer Electronics Show, January 7–10, 1982, in Las Vegas). It has been listed in ...

Commodore 128 The Commodore 128, also known as the C128, is the last 8-bit home computer that was commercially released by Commodore Business Machines (CBM). Introduced in January 1985 at the CES in Las Vegas, it appeared three years after its predecessor, t ...

, and

Amiga Amiga is a family of personal computers produced by Commodore International, Commodore from 1985 until the company's bankruptcy in 1994, with production by others afterward. The original model is one of a number of mid-1980s computers with 16-b ...

, Apple II computers,

IBM International Business Machines Corporation (using the trademark IBM), nicknamed Big Blue, is an American Multinational corporation, multinational technology company headquartered in Armonk, New York, and present in over 175 countries. It is ...

and Tandy compatibles, Windows, Palm OS, and PocketPC.

Origin

Cosmi Corporation was founded in 1982 by George Johnson. Its business model was of vertical integration, rapidly pivoting into trendy or popular product niches, and maintaining low prices. It published and distributed software for

personal computer A personal computer, commonly referred to as PC or computer, is a computer designed for individual use. It is typically used for tasks such as Word processor, word processing, web browser, internet browsing, email, multimedia playback, and PC ...

systems.

Products

Cosmi products included games, such as '' Forbidden Forest'', '' The President Is Missing,'' and ''

Aztec Challenge ''Aztec Challenge'' refers to either of two early action video games published by Cosmi Corporation, Cosmi, as well as two subsequent remakes. In all game versions the player takes control of a running Aztec warrior. The first was a side-scrollin ...

''. It also published utility software including a

database In computing, a database is an organized collection of data or a type of data store based on the use of a database management system (DBMS), the software that interacts with end users, applications, and the database itself to capture and a ...

word processor A word processor (WP) is a device or computer program that provides for input, editing, formatting, and output of text, often with some additional features. Early word processors were stand-alone devices dedicated to the function, but current word ...

spreadsheet A spreadsheet is a computer application for computation, organization, analysis and storage of data in tabular form. Spreadsheets were developed as computerized analogs of paper accounting worksheets. The program operates on data entered in c ...

, street maps, vacation planners, and a 3D World Atlas. Further examples include: * Print Perfect Scrapbook Deluxe - Creates memorable scrapbook layouts, templates, designs, decorative artwork, and photo editing tools. * iPod Video - Styles and protects the surface of the iPod. * Website Promoter - Contains tools that will drive traffic to a website, optimise rankings in key search engines, and boost site's popularity. * Perfect Website Creator * Platinum Perfect Pro Office System Software, a version of

OpenOffice.org OpenOffice.org (OOo), commonly known as OpenOffice, is a discontinued open-source office suite. Active successor projects include LibreOffice (the most actively developed) and Collabora Online, with Apache OpenOffice being considered mostly d ...

Shovelware

In 2001, Cosmi began publishing

shovelware Shovelware is a type of video game or software bundle known more for the quantity of what is included than for its quality or usefulness. The metaphor implies that the creators showed little care for the quality of the original software, as if t ...

, which was sold at

Best Buy Best Buy Co., Inc. is an American multinational consumer electronics retailer headquartered in Richfield, Minnesota. Originally founded by Richard M. Schulze and James Wheeler in 1966 as an audio specialty store called Sound of Music, it was r ...

and

Office Depot The ODP Corporation is an American office supply retailer headquartered in Boca Raton, Florida. The company operates 922 retail stores in the United States under the Office Depot and OfficeMax brands, as well as e-commerce sites and a business ...

. Examples from this era include: * 20,000 Recipes * 3D Bubble Burst * 3D Bug Attack * 3D Frog Frenzy * 3D Pinball Express * 3D Missile Madness * 3D Virtual Reality Landscaper * Amazing Calendar Marker * Amazing Flow Chart Maker * Board Games * Brochure Magic * Business Card Maker * Card Games * Desktop Publisher * Forms Maker and Filler * Free Financial Calculator * Free Fonts and Dingbats * Free Fractal Chaos Screen Savers * Free Game Run Away Train * Free Wind Power Screen Saver * Guide to the Galaxy * Herbert + The Underwater Pyramid * Label Publisher * Las Vegas Super Casino * Mah Jongg Magic * PC Attorney * Photo Editor Plus * Professional Resume Plus * SAT ACT Prep * Stationery Maker * Talking Flash Cards * Top 20 Solid Gold * Top 50 Blazing Games All of which were published on the same disk. The installer would ask which one was being installed and then ask for a specific word on a specific page of the manual of the selected product, as a form of rudimentary DRM.

ValuSoft Games

Mergers and Dissolution

In 2012, Cosmi acquired ValuSoft from the now-defunct

video game publisher A video game publisher is a company that publishes video games that have been developed either internally by the publisher or externally by a video game developer. They often finance the development, sometimes by paying a video game developer ...

THQ THQ Inc. was an American video game company based in Agoura Hills, California. It was founded in April 1990 by Jack Friedman, originally in Calabasas, and became a public company the following year through a reverse merger takeover. Initial ...

for an undisclosed sum. The company was renamed to ValuSoft Cosmi. In 2020, Play Hard Games was acquired, and then dissolved, by Ziggurat Interactive. As of 2025, some of its games are still sold under the ValuSoft Cosmi brand.

References

External links

* Video game companies established in 1982 Software companies established in 1982 1982 establishments in California Software companies based in California Organizations based in Carson, California Companies based in Los Angeles County, California Video game companies of the United States Defunct software companies of the United States {{US-software-company-stub