Famitsu, previously known as Famicom Tsūshin, is a series of Japanese video game magazines published by Kadokawa Game Linkage, which was formerly called Gzbrain. This company is part of Kadokawa. Famitsu is released in weekly and monthly editions, as well as special issues focused on specific topics. It first appeared in 1986.

Shūkan Famitsū, the original magazine, is the most widely read and respected video game news magazine in Japan. Starting October 28, 2011, the company began offering a digital version of the magazine on BookWalker every week.

The name Famitsu comes from combining parts of the words Famicom Tsūshin. Famicom is short for Family Computer, which was the main video game console in Japan when the magazine first started.

History

LOGiN (ログイン), a computer game magazine, began in 1982 as a special edition of ASCII and later became a regularly published magazine. Famicom Tsūshin was a section in LOGiN that focused on the Famicom platform. It appeared in issues from March 1985 to December 1986. Because readers liked it, the publisher decided to create a magazine dedicated to it.

The first issue of Famitsu was published on June 6, 1986, under the name Famicom Tsūshin. It sold fewer than 200,000 copies, even though 700,000 copies were printed. A major competitor was Family Computer Magazine, which started in July 1985 by Tokuma Shoten. Famitsu’s editor noticed that many readers owned multiple game consoles and believed the magazine should cover different platforms. Over time, the magazine added more content and pages, and it was published three times a month instead of twice a month. On July 19, 1991 (issue #136), the magazine was renamed Shūkan Famicom Tsūshin, and it was published weekly after that. A monthly version called Gekkan Famicom Tsūshin was also released.

Hirokazu Hamamura, the editor-in-chief from 1992 to 2002, saw a private demonstration of Final Fantasy VI in 1993 and felt it marked the start of a new era. He believed the name Famicom Tsūshin should be updated. In 1996 (issue #369), the magazines changed their names to Shūkan Famitsū and Gekkan Famitsū. The name "Famitsu" was already widely used.

ASCII published the magazine from its start until March 2000, when it was sold to Enterbrain. Enterbrain published it for 13 years until its parent company, Kadokawa, took over in 2013. Kadokawa published the magazine until 2017. Since 2017, Kadokawa’s subsidiary, Gzbrain, has published the magazine. In 2019, the company changed its name to Kadokawa Game Linkage.

Shūkan FamitsūandGekkan Famitsū

Famicom Tsūshin first focused on the Famicom platform, but later covered games for multiple systems. In 1995, it was renamed Famitsu. Shūkan Famitsū is a weekly magazine that focuses on video game news and reviews. It is published every Thursday, and each issue is printed 500,000 times. Gekkan Famitsū is published once each month.

Famitsu’s covers feature pop idols or actresses on even-numbered issues and the Famitsu mascot, Necky the Fox, on odd-numbered issues. Special editions and year-end issues always show Necky dressed as popular video game characters from the present time. Necky was created by artist Susumu Matsushita and is drawn as a fox wearing costumes. The costumes reflect current popular video games.

The name "Necky" comes from a Japanese pun. It is the reverse of the Japanese word for fox, which is "kitsune." Necky’s original connection to Famicom Tsūshin was meant to sound like the Japanese onomatopoeia for a fox’s bark, "konkon." Necky appears in the game Super Mario Maker.

Special-topicFamitsupublications

Famitsu publishes several magazines focused on specific video game consoles. Currently available are:

• Entamikusu (previously Otonafami) is aimed at older readers and focuses on retro gaming. It has been published monthly since November 2010.
• Famitsū Connect! covers online gaming.
• Famitsū DS+Wii reports on Nintendo platforms, including the Nintendo 3DS and Nintendo Switch. The magazine was previously named Famitsū 64 and later Famitsū Cube, depending on the Nintendo platforms being used at the time.
• Famitsū GREE covers mobile gaming through the GREE service.
• Famitsū Mobage focuses on mobile gaming through the Mobage service.

Famitsu magazines that are no longer published include:

• Famitsū Bros. (previously Famicom Tsūshin Kōryaku Special) was aimed at younger readers and focused on tips and strategies for playing video games. It was published monthly and stopped in September 2002.
• Famicomi (previously Famitsū Comic) was a comic and manga magazine published irregularly between 1992 and 1995.
• Famitsū DC reported on news related to Sega platforms, including the Dreamcast. Earlier versions of this magazine covered the Sega Saturn and other older Sega systems.
• Famitsū Sister covered bishōjo games.
• Satellaview Tsūshin focused on the Satellaview. It was published monthly and lasted for 12 issues from May 1995 to May 1996. Its first issue was the May 1995 edition of Gekkan Famicom Tsūshin.
• Virtual Boy Tsūshin covered the Virtual Boy. Only one issue was published in 1995.
• Famitsū PS (previously PlayStation Tsūshin) began in May 1996 and reported on news about Sony platforms. It was later named Famitsū PS2 and Famitsū PSP+PS3 before stopping in March 2010.
• Famitsū Wave DVD (previously GameWave DVD) covered events, films, and game previews. Each issue included a DVD with video game footage, such as trailers and gameplay tips, as well as interviews with developers and publishers. It was published monthly from September 2000 until May 2011.
• Famitsū Xbox reported on news about the Xbox and Xbox 360. It was published monthly starting in January 2002 and stopped in 2013.

Scoring

Famitsu uses a review system where four critics each give a game a score from 0 to 10, with 10 being the highest score. The scores are added together to create a total score. As of 2024, thirty games have received perfect scores of 40 from Famitsu. The PlayStation 3 has the most perfect-scoring games, with seven total. Four of these games were also released on the Xbox 360, which is tied with the Wii for the second-highest number of perfect scores, with five total. Franchises with multiple perfect score winners include The Legend of Zelda, with five titles; Metal Gear, with three titles; and Final Fantasy, with two titles. The most recent game to receive a perfect score is Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth.

As of 2023, all but three games with perfect scores are from Japanese companies. Ten were published or developed by Nintendo, four by Square Enix, three by Sega, three by Konami, and one by Capcom. The only three completely foreign games to achieve a perfect score are The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim by Bethesda Softworks, Grand Theft Auto V by Rockstar Games, and Ghost of Tsushima by Sucker Punch Productions. Other foreign games that received near-perfect scores include Grand Theft Auto IV, Red Dead Redemption, L.A. Noire, and Red Dead Redemption 2 by Rockstar Games; Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, Call of Duty: Black Ops, and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 by Activision (but published by Square Enix in Japan); Gears of War 3 by Epic Games; and The Last of Us Part II and Uncharted 4: A Thief's End by Naughty Dog. Kingdom Hearts II, another game with a near-perfect score, was developed jointly by Japanese company Square Enix and American company Disney Interactive Studios.

Awards

Famitsu organizes the Famitsu awards. Video games can win different awards in categories such as Innovation, Biggest Hit, Rookie Award, and Highest Quality. One or two "Game of the Year" awards are given as the highest honor. Winners of the top prize are decided by a mix of scores from critics and fans, as well as how many games are sold.

Relationship with other magazines

The UK magazine MCV, which focuses on business, and the Japanese magazine Famitsu have a special agreement. This agreement allows them to share their news and articles with each other.