| rdfs:comment | - Nintendo Company, Ltd. was created in 1889, as a producer of playing cards. In the 20th century, they became a video game company, and their first big console was the Nintendo Entertainment System. It became a huge success in Japan and the USA, and was later released all over the world.
- Nintendo first found a foothold in the industry by making a series of electronic "microgames" such as the Game & Watch line of the early 1980s. Also around this time, the industry itself was in tumult as large numbers of companies flooded the video gaming market with hardware and software that was assumed to be popular, but was soon found to be of poor quality. These factors resulted in the massive video game crash of 1983 that crippled the North American market and other parts of the world. Even as Japan was largely immune, Nintendo had the foresight to strike at the crash's root causes. In response, it released the Nintendo Entertainment System beginning in 1983, arriving in the US by 1985. The console was a breakout hit in both regions, and was later released all over the world. For its
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| abstract | - Nintendo Company, Ltd. was created in 1889, as a producer of playing cards. In the 20th century, they became a video game company, and their first big console was the Nintendo Entertainment System. It became a huge success in Japan and the USA, and was later released all over the world. With their well known games featuring the characters Mario from the Super Mario Bros. series, Link from Legend of Zelda series and Samus Aran from the Metroid series, Nintendo became a household name, and the biggest video game company of its age. Another game that was first released on the NES was the original Final Fantasy game, by a little company known as Squaresoft which became another success, along with the cult-followed Chrono series.
- Nintendo first found a foothold in the industry by making a series of electronic "microgames" such as the Game & Watch line of the early 1980s. Also around this time, the industry itself was in tumult as large numbers of companies flooded the video gaming market with hardware and software that was assumed to be popular, but was soon found to be of poor quality. These factors resulted in the massive video game crash of 1983 that crippled the North American market and other parts of the world. Even as Japan was largely immune, Nintendo had the foresight to strike at the crash's root causes. In response, it released the Nintendo Entertainment System beginning in 1983, arriving in the US by 1985. The console was a breakout hit in both regions, and was later released all over the world. For its part, Nintendo was thus instrumental to pulling the industry from the aftermath of the crash. Nintendo soon became a household name, with memorable franchises and characters such as the Mario series, The Legend of Zelda hero Link, and Samus Aran from Metroid, the first-ever female lead in gaming history. The company was also key to bringing smaller developers into the mainstream, as it did with Square Co., Ltd. and its eventual rival Enix. It was in this climate that the first three games of the Final Fantasy series would not only develop, but flourish, at least in Japan. The original Final Fantasy did not reach the US until 1990. Its rival, Dragon Quest, was released one year sooner.
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