Natsume Atari Co., Ltd. (Japanese: ナツメアタリ株式会社) is a Japanese company that creates and sells video games. It is located in Shinjuku, Tokyo, Japan, and is known for making games based on other companies' characters or stories, as well as mobile games.
The company was first started as Natsume Co., Ltd. (Japanese: ナツメ株式会社) in 1987. In 1995, the American part of the company, Natsume Inc., became a separate company. Both companies kept the name "Natsume" in their own countries. In 2013, Natsume Co., Ltd. changed its name to Natsume Atari after merging with its subsidiary, Atari Inc. (a company that makes pachinko machines, not the American game company). In 2026, the company officially became known as Winning Entertainment Group Inc. (Japanese: Winning Entertainment Group株式会社; WEG).
Products
During the NES and SNES era, Natsume Co., Ltd. created many video games, some of which were licensed for publication, such as Power Rangers. Natsume Inc. published a variety of games, including titles developed by Natsume Co., Ltd., such as S.C.A.T., Wild Guns, Shadow of the Ninja, and Pocky & Rocky. Natsume Co., Ltd. also developed the Medarot games until the end of the GBA era, and Natsume Inc. published some of these games outside of Japan.
A large number of Natsume Co., Ltd.'s products were video games it created for other companies. Some of its major partners over the years included Imagineer, Bandai, THQ, and Taito. Most of Natsume's video games, as a contractor, were original titles, but it also occasionally made versions of games for different systems.
Corporate divisions
Natsume Co., Ltd. was created in Japan on October 20, 1987. It became the main company of Natsume Inc., which was started in May 1988. Natsume Inc. began making and publishing video games in 1990. By 1995, Natsume Inc. became its own separate company and is now owned and operated independently.
In October 2002, Natsume Co., Ltd. created a pachinko company called Atari Inc. in Osaka. This company focused on making slot and pinball machines. It is important to note that this is different from the American company named Atari. On May 6, 2005, a division called Natsume Solution started working in Shinjuku. This team focuses on creating websites, offering mobile services, and developing web systems. On March 1, 2006, Natsume Solution was combined with another company called Evolve.
In October 2013, Natsume Co., Ltd. changed its name to Natsume Atari. It is not directly connected to Natsume Inc. or its subsidiary, Natsume Inc. Japan. Even though the companies separated, Natsume-Atari and Natsume Inc. worked together on several projects. The team at Natsume-Atari includes experienced developers who are on average 54 years old (as of 2022). Key members are composer Hiroyuki Iwatsuki, designer Shunichi Taniguchi, and programmer Toshiyasu Miyabe. Their work includes games like Wild Guns Reloaded, The Ninja Saviors: Return of the Warriors, and Pocky & Rocky Reshrined. Inside the company, there is a team called Tengo Project, which was created in 2008 to make Omega Five. This team now focuses on creating modern versions of classic video games.
On January 1, 2026, the company changed its name again to Winning Entertainment Group to start a new chapter. Natsume-Atari remains the name used for international operations in Europe and the Middle East, including an office in Bahrain. Natsume Inc. continues to be an affiliated company.
Works
These games were made when Natsume Inc. was part of Natsume Co., Ltd. Natsume Inc. only released games made by Natsume Co., Ltd. until it became independent in the mid-1990s.
After separating from Natsume Inc., WEG mainly worked as a game developer. However, WEG also released some games, especially those in the Medarot series.