was a Japanese

publishing company Publishing is the activity of making information, literature, music, software and other content available to the public for sale or for free. Traditionally, the term refers to the creation and distribution of printed works, such as books, newsp ...

in the Kadokawa Group known for their brand magazines and book labels. These included such well-known magazines as ''

Dengeki Daioh is a Japanese shōnen manga magazine published by ASCII Media Works (formerly MediaWorks) under the ''Dengeki'' brand. Many manga serialized in ''Dengeki Daioh'' were later published in ''tankōbon'' volumes under ASCII Media Works' Dengeki Co ...

'', and ''

Dengeki G's Magazine is a Japanese magazine published by ASCII Media Works (formerly MediaWorks) and sold monthly on the thirtieth that primarily contains information on bishōjo games, but also includes an entire section on anime based on bishōjo games, and seria ...

'', along with MediaWorks' main

light novel A light novel (, Hepburn: ''raito noberu'') is a style of young adult novel primarily targeting high school and middle school students. The term "light novel" is a ''wasei-eigo'', or a Japanese term formed from words in the English languag ...

publishing

imprint Imprint or imprinting may refer to: Entertainment * ''Imprint'' (TV series), Canadian television series * "Imprint" (''Masters of Horror''), episode of TV show ''Masters of Horror'' * ''Imprint'' (film), a 2007 independent drama/thriller film ...

Dengeki Bunko is a publishing imprint affiliated with the Japanese publishing company ASCII Media Works (formerly MediaWorks). It was established in June 1993 with the publication of '' Hyōryū Densetsu Crystania'' volume one, and is a light novel imprint a ...

. The company was merged with

ASCII ASCII ( ), abbreviated from American Standard Code for Information Interchange, is a character encoding standard for electronic communication. ASCII codes represent text in computers, telecommunications equipment, and other devices. Because of ...

on April 1, 2008, and became

ASCII Media Works ASCII ( ), abbreviated from American Standard Code for Information Interchange, is a character encoding standard for electronic communication. ASCII codes represent text in computers, telecommunications equipment, and other devices. Because of ...

. They mainly catered to the Japanese male

otaku is a Japanese word that describes people with consuming interests, particularly in anime, manga, video games, or computers. Its contemporary use originated with a 1983 essay by Akio Nakamori in ''Manga Burikko''. may be used as a pejorativ ...

crowd, covering such topics as

anime is Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japane ...

, light novels,

manga Manga (Japanese: 漫画 ) are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long prehistory in earlier Japanese art. The term ''manga'' is u ...

plastic model :''In art and architecture, plastic model may also be any three-dimensional physical model, regardless of material.'' :''In mechanical engineering, a plastic model is a mathematical model of a material which incorporates plasticity.'' image:South-G ...

ling, and

visual novel A , often abbreviated as VN, is a form of digital semi-interactive fiction. Visual novels are often associated with and used in the medium of video games, but are not always labeled as such themselves. They combine a textual narrative with sta ...

s. However, MediaWorks had published three magazines targeted towards females—'' Comic Sylph'', '' Dengeki Girl's Style'', and '' Character Parfait''—but each one was a special edition version of another magazine. MediaWorks ran yearly contests for original novel and manga submissions, such as the light novel

Dengeki Novel Prize The is a literary award handed out annually (since 1994) by the Japanese publisher ASCII Media Works (formerly MediaWorks) for their Dengeki Bunko light novel imprint. The contest has discovered many popular and successful light novelists, like K ...

contest. In addition to publishing printed material, MediaWorks had been involved with the production of other media. They had developed and published visual novels for popular Japanese

media franchise A media franchise, also known as a multimedia franchise, is a collection of related media in which several derivative works have been produced from an original creative work of fiction, such as a film, a work of literature, a television program or ...

s where many different forms of media are published for a given series. Such well-known series included '' Kashimashi: Girl Meets Girl'', ''

Shakugan no Shana , also known simply as , is a Japanese light novel series written by Yashichiro Takahashi with illustrations by Noizi Ito. ASCII Media Works published 26 novels from November 2002 to November 2012 under their Dengeki Bunko imprint. The ...

'', and ''

Strawberry Marshmallow is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Barasui about the adventures of four elementary school girls and their older sister-figure. It began serialization in ASCII Media Works' manga magazine ''Dengeki Daioh'' in 2002. In 200 ...

''. MediaWorks had also been involved in the production of anime television and

original video animation , abbreviated as OVA and sometimes as OAV (original animation video), are Japanese animated films and series made specially for release in home video formats without prior showings on television or in theaters, though the first part of an OVA s ...

series.

History

In 1992,

Kadokawa Shoten , formerly , is a Japanese publisher and division of Kadokawa Future Publishing based in Tokyo, Japan. It became an internal division of Kadokawa Corporation on October 1, 2013. Kadokawa publishes manga, light novels, manga anthology magazines su ...

's president Haruki Kadokawa was devoting himself to the movie business, and his younger brother and vice-president of the company, Tsuguhiko Kadokawa, was in charge of magazines the company published. At the same time, Tsuguhiko was the president of Kadokawa's subsidiary Kadokawa Media Office which was in charge of publishing video game magazines like ''

Comptiq is a Japanese computer game magazine, first published in 1983, by Kadokawa Shoten. The name "Comptiq" came from combining the words "computer" and "boutique". Originally a PC magazine, its focus shifted from computers to computer games. As of S ...

'', and

manga magazine Manga (Japanese: 漫画 ) are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long prehistory in earlier Japanese art. The term ''manga'' is used ...

s targeted towards the male

crowd in Japan centered around "

media mix Media may refer to: Communication * Media (communication), tools used to deliver information or data ** Advertising media, various media, content, buying and placement for advertising ** Broadcast media, communications delivered over mass e ...

" Japanese series where many different forms of media are published for a given series. Citing differences in the interests of business direction, Tsuguhiko resigned from Kadokawa Shoten to start MediaWorks on October 15, 1992, with a large contingent from Kadokawa Shoten employees joining him. In 1993, due to an influence from the

Tokyo Shock Boys The , or , is a Japanese group of four men who perform dangerous and crude stunts. The group was formed in Tokyo in 1990. The Tokyo Shock Boys have a huge cult following in Japan and have appeared in many other countries, such as Australia, Ne ...

, known in Japan as the , MediaWorks launched a series of magazines under the ''Dengeki'' line. These magazines were taken from previous publications that Kadokawa Media Office had published. The new magazines were named '' Dengeki Super Famicom'' (from Kadokawa's former magazine ''Marushō Super Famicom''), '' Dengeki PC Engine'' (from Kadokawa's former magazine ''Marushō PC Engine''), ''

Dengeki Comic Gao! , also known as ''Dengeki Gao!'' was a Japanese shōnen manga magazine that primarily contained manga and information about series featuring bishōjo characters. It was published from December 1992 to February 2008 by MediaWorks (publisher), Medi ...

'' (from Kadokawa's former magazine ''Comic Comp''), the now-defunct ''

Dengeki Oh This is a list of discontinued magazines that were published by the Japanese publishing company MediaWorks. Most of their magazines center around anime, manga, bishōjo games, or video games. The vast majority of MediaWorks' magazines carry the t ...

'' (taken from ''

''), and the now-defunct '' Dengeki Megadrive'' (originally a special edition of ''Dengeki PC Engine''). Also in 1993, Haruki Kadokawa was arrested for

cocaine Cocaine (from , from , ultimately from Quechuan languages, Quechua: ''kúka'') is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant mainly recreational drug use, used recreationally for its euphoria, euphoric effects. It is primarily obtained from t ...

smuggling Smuggling is the illegal transportation of objects, substances, information or people, such as out of a house or buildings, into a prison, or across an international border, in violation of applicable laws or other regulations. There are various ...

and lost his presidency at Kadokawa Shoten, which was soon taken over by Tsuguhiko Kadokawa in addition to his presidency of MediaWorks; MediaWorks was later made a

subsidiary A subsidiary, subsidiary company or daughter company is a company owned or controlled by another company, which is called the parent company or holding company. Two or more subsidiaries that either belong to the same parent company or having a s ...

of Kadokawa Shoten in 2002. MediaWorks became a member of Kadokawa Group Holdings, and after

Enterbrain , formerly , is a Japanese publisher and division of Kadokawa Future Publishing founded on 30 January 1987 as . Magazines published by Enterbrain are generally focused on video games and computer entertainment as well as video game and strategy ...

became a member of the same group, Enterbrain's ''Famitsu'' line and MediaWorks' ''Dengeki'' line started to compete against each other, especially in terms of presenting information pertaining to

bishōjo game A or , is "a type of Japanese video game centered on interactions with attractive girls". ''Bishōjo'' games are similar to ''Choose Your Own Adventure'' books in the way of narrative, in which the game tells a story but the player may make ...

s. By 2001, MediaWorks specialized in publishing

video game Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device to generate visual feedback. This fee ...

s, and magazines pertaining to such media. The company was merged with

on April 1, 2008, and became

Magazines published

*''Dengeki Arcade Card Game'' *''

Dengeki Bunko Magazine was a Japanese light novel magazine published by ASCII Media Works (formerly MediaWorks). The magazine succeeded the light novel magazine '' Dengeki hp'', and originally was published as a special edition issue of ''Dengeki Daioh'' for the first ...

'' *''

Dengeki Hime was a Japanese magazine published monthly by ASCII Media Works (formerly MediaWorks) publishing information mainly on adult visual novels. The magazine started as a special issue of the now discontinued ''Dengeki Oh'' in 1997, and in 2001 it be ...

'' *''

Dengeki Hobby Magazine was a Japanese magazine under the Dengeki Hobby brand published by ASCII Media Works (formerly MediaWorks) centering on information relating to plastic models and toys. It first went on sale on 25 November 1998. There was a Chinese version pub ...

'' *''Dengeki Layers'' *''

Dengeki Maoh is a Japanese seinen magazine published by ASCII Media Works (formerly MediaWorks). It first went on sale on October 27, 2005, and is sold every month on the twenty-seventh. The magazine features information on video games, manga, and light nove ...

'' *''

Dengeki Nintendo DS (lit. "Nintendo Shock") is a Japanese gaming magazine published by ASCII Media Works (formerly MediaWorks). The magazine mainly covers information pertaining Nintendo games and consoles. History and profile The magazine was originally named ...

'' *''

Dengeki PlayStation is a Japanese video gaming publication by ASCII Media Works (formerly MediaWorks). It primarily features information pertaining to the PlayStation brand. Dengeki was originally founded as a magazine in 1994 and ran until 2020, when it ceased p ...

Publishing imprints

;

: is a

label aimed at a male audience established in June 1993. The editors in charge of this label have a reputation for welcoming new authors, and hold a yearly contest, the

, to discover new talent. The eighth volume of ''

Kino's Journey , shortened to ''Kino's Journey'', is a Japanese light novel series written by Keiichi Sigsawa, with illustrations by Kouhaku Kuroboshi. The series follows a traveler named Kino and her talking motorcycle named Hermes, as they explore ...

'', originally published in October 2006, was Dengeki Bunko's one-thousandth published novel. In April 2007, three movies based on separate light novel series published by Dengeki Bunko were produced; the three titles were ''

'', ''

'', and ''

Inukami! is a Japanese light novel series written by Mamizu Arisawa, with illustrations by Kanna Wakatsuki. The series originally started serialization in volume seventeen of ASCII Media Works' now-defunct light novel magazine ''Dengeki hp'' on Apri ...

''. ;

Dengeki Comics is a manga publishing label affiliated with the Japanese publishing company ASCII Media Works (formerly MediaWorks) and is aimed at a male audience. Aside from the main Dengeki Comics label, there is the related Dengeki Comics EX label, which ...

: is a

publishing label aimed at a male audience. Aside from the main Dengeki Comics label, there is the related Dengeki Comics EX label which publishes a lesser number of manga volumes. A large amount of the manga published under ''Dengeki Comics'' was originally serialized in the magazine ''

''. ;Dengeki G's Bunko : was a publishing label originally established in 1997 as a

label aimed at a male audience—the light novels were based on

s. The label was run by three men:

Mizuhito Akiyama is a Seiun Award-winning author noted for his science fiction light novel series ''Iriya no Sora, UFO no Natsu''.SFSite
He ...

Hideyuki Kurata is a Japanese anime screenwriter, light novelist, and manga artist, noted for authoring the series composition of such works as ''Read or Die'', ''Now and Then, Here and There'', ''Kamichu!'', and ''Gun Sword''. He has been a member of Yōsuke Kuro ...

, and Masanori Date. As of 2003, the label has been suspended and has been succeeded by Dengeki Game Bunko. ;Dengeki Game Bunko : is a publishing label established in 1994 when it was originally related with

tabletop role-playing games A tabletop role-playing game (typically abbreviated as TRPG or TTRPG), also known as a pen-and-paper role-playing game, is a form of role-playing game (RPG) in which the participants describe their characters' actions through speech. Participa ...

. The label stopped production in September 1997 but was later restarted in December 1999 as a

computer game Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, game controller, controller, computer keyboard, keyboard, or motion sensing device to gener ...

and

publisher. The label succeeded the previous publishing label Dengeki G's Bunko. ;Sylph Comics :Sylph Comics is a

publishing label aimed at a female audience. The manga that are published under this label were originally serialized in the shōjo magazine '' Comic Sylph''. The first bound volumes were published under this label starting on March 21, 2008.

Contests

;

Dengeki Comic Grand Prix The is an award handed out semiannually (from 2004–2009) and annually (since 2010) by the Japanese publisher ASCII Media Works (formerly MediaWorks) for original one-shot manga. Between the first and fifth contests held, there were two divis ...

:The is an award handed out annually (since 2001) by the

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

ese publisher MediaWorks for original

one-shot One shot may refer to: Film and television * One-shot film, a feature film shot in one long take with no edits, or manufactured to look like so * ''One Shot'' (2005 film), a Sri Lankan action film directed by Ranjan Ramanayake * ''One Shot'' (2 ...

. Between the first and fifth contests held, there were two divisions: original, and

anthology In book publishing, an anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler; it may be a collection of plays, poems, short stories, songs or excerpts by different authors. In genre fiction, the term ''anthology'' typically categ ...

. This was changed from the sixth contest on to a '' Daioh''/'' Gao!'' division which covers

seinen is an editorial category of Japanese comics marketed toward young adult men. In Japanese, the word ''seinen'' literally means "youth", but the term "''seinen'' manga" is also used to describe the target audience of magazines like ''Weekly Ma ...

manga, and a ''

Sylph A sylph (also called sylphid) is an air spirit stemming from the 16th-century works of Paracelsus, who describes sylphs as (invisible) beings of the air, his elementals of air. A significant number of subsequent literary and occult works have be ...

'' division which covers shōjo manga. There are four types of prizes given out each contest: the Grand Prix Prize (one-million

yen The is the official currency of Japan. It is the third-most traded currency in the foreign exchange market, after the United States dollar (US$) and the euro. It is also widely used as a third reserve currency after the US dollar and the e ...

), the Semi-Grand Prix Prize (five-hundred-thousand yen), the Excellence Prize (two-hundred-thousand yen), and the Honorable Mention (one-hundred-thousand yen). There was also once a ''

Dengeki Moeoh is a Japanese shōnen manga magazine published by ASCII Media Works (formerly MediaWorks) under the ''Dengeki'' brand. Many manga serialized in ''Dengeki Daioh'' were later published in ''tankōbon'' volumes under ASCII Media Works' Dengeki Co ...

'' Grand Prize division which was held twice with a Grand Prize and Honorable Mentions. ; Dengeki hp Tanpenshōsetsu Shō :The was an award handed out annually between 2000 and 2006 by the

ese publisher MediaWorks for exceptionally written short stories and

novella A novella is a narrative prose fiction whose length is shorter than most novels, but longer than most short stories. The English word ''novella'' derives from the Italian ''novella'' meaning a short story related to true (or apparently so) facts ...

s. The prize was associated with MediaWorks' now-defunct

magazine '' Dengeki hp''. Between the first and fourth contests held, the editorial department of MediaWorks' included the narrowed-down novellas in an issue of ''Dengeki hp'', and the winner was decided from a reader-participation voting poll. This was changed with the fifth though seven contests by the use of a committee to award the prize. ;Dengeki Taishō :The is an award handed out annually (since 1994) by the Japanese publisher ASCII Media Works with two divisions: the

for

s under ''

'', and the for

illustration An illustration is a decoration, interpretation or visual explanation of a text, concept or process, designed for integration in print and digital published media, such as posters, flyers, magazines, books, teaching materials, animations, vid ...

s. Each division consists of the Grand Prize (one million yen), the Gold Prize (five hundred thousand yen), and the Silver Prize (three hundred thousand yen). The first two rounds also had a

game design Game design is the art of applying design and aesthetics to create a game for entertainment or for educational, exercise, or experimental purposes. Increasingly, elements and principles of game design are also applied to other interactions, in ...

division called , and between the third and eleventh rounds there was a

division called .

Video games

MediaWorks had been in the business of developing and producing video games of series that have light novels or manga published by MediaWorks. These games were typically

visual novels A , often abbreviated as VN, is a form of digital semi-interactive fiction. Visual novels are often associated with and used in the medium of video games, but are not always labeled as such themselves. They combine a textual narrative with sta ...

, a genre of

adventure games An adventure game is a video game genre in which the player assumes the role of a protagonist in an interactive story driven by exploration and/or puzzle-solving. The genre's focus on story allows it to draw heavily from other narrative-based me ...

, but some have also been

sound novel A , often abbreviated as VN, is a form of digital semi-interactive fiction. Visual novels are often associated with and used in the medium of video games, but are not always labeled as such themselves. They combine a textual narrative with sta ...

s, which has less attributes of an adventure game than a normal visual novel. The video games produced were ported to the

PlayStation 2 The PlayStation 2 (PS2) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Sony Computer Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on 4 March 2000, in North America on 26 October 2000, in Europe on 24 November 2000, and in Australia on 3 ...

Nintendo DS The is a handheld game console produced by Nintendo, released globally across 2004 and 2005. The DS, an initialism for "Developers' System" or "Dual Screen", introduced distinctive new features to handheld games: two LCD screens working in tan ...

. Earlier games like '' Emerald Dragon'' and ''Ojōsama Express'' were ported to the

PC Engine The TurboGrafx-16, known as the outside North America, is a home video game console designed by Hudson Soft and sold by NEC Home Electronics. It was the first console marketed in the fourth generation, commonly known as the 16-bit era, though ...

Super Famicom The Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES), commonly shortened to Super NES or Super Nintendo, is a 16-bit home video game console developed by Nintendo that was released in 1990 in Japan and South Korea, 1991 in North America, 1992 in Euro ...

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 was the successor to the succ ...

, and

PlayStation is a video gaming brand that consists of five home video game consoles, two handhelds, a media center, and a smartphone, as well as an online service and multiple magazines. The brand is produced by Sony Interactive Entertainment, a divisi ...

. Other games, like those based on the ''

'' series, were ported to both the PS2 and DS. A section of MediaWorks known as DS Dengeki Bunko produced sound novels playable on the Nintendo DS based from light novels published under MediaWorks'

publishing label. These included: ''

Allison Allison may refer to: People * Allison (given name) * Allison (surname) (includes a list of people with this name) * Eugene Allison Smith (1922-1980), American politician and farmer Companies * Allison Engine Company, American aircraft engine ...

'', ''

Baccano! is a Japanese light novel series written by Ryohgo Narita and illustrated by Katsumi Enami. The series, often told from multiple points of view, is mostly set within a fictional United States during various time periods, most notably the ...

'', ''

'', and ''

Iriya no Sora, UFO no Natsu is a Japanese sci-fi light novel series written by Mizuhito Akiyama with illustrations by Eeji Komatsu that centers on the relationship between Kana Iriya, a high school girl who has to fight alien invaders, and Naoyuki Asaba, a member of t ...

''.

References

External links

Dengeki.com
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Mediaworks (Publisher) ASCII Media Works Book publishing companies in Tokyo Former Kadokawa Corporation subsidiaries Manga distributors Comic book publishing companies of Japan Publishing companies established in 1992 Publishing companies disestablished in 2008 Japanese companies established in 1992 Japanese companies disestablished in 2008