, known as ''Goemon'' and ''Mystical Ninja'' internationally, is a

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 ...

series created and produced by

Konami , is a Japanese multinational video game and entertainment company headquartered in Chūō, Tokyo, it also produces and distributes trading cards, anime, tokusatsu, pachinko machines, slot machines, and arcade cabinets. Konami has casino ...

Etsunobu Ebisu is a Japanese video game developer. Good-Feel started in Hyogo, Japan in 2005 and opened a production facility in Tokyo in the same year. Their main focus had been educational games for the Nintendo DS, which were released solely in Japan. Th ...

is the joint producer of the franchise. These games revolve around the main character, Goemon and his exploits. His character is loosely based on

Ishikawa Goemon was a legendary Japanese outlaw hero who stole gold and other valuables to give to the poor. He and his son were boiled alive in public after their failed assassination attempt on the Sengoku period warlord Toyotomi Hideyoshi. His legend lives ...

, the noble thief of Japanese

folklore Folklore is shared by a particular group of people; it encompasses the traditions common to that culture, subculture or group. This includes oral traditions such as tales, legends, proverbs and jokes. They include material culture, ranging ...

. While the early games emphasized Goemon as a noble thief, he eventually becomes more of a standard video game hero character. His trademarks are his blue bushy hair and weapon of choice, the

kiseru A is a Japanese smoking pipe, traditionally used for smoking ''kizami'', a finely shredded tobacco product resembling hair. History The word ''kiseru'' is said to have originated from the Cambodian word ''khsier'' around the 16th century, whil ...

. The games are set in a cartoonlike, mystical

Feudal Japan The first human inhabitants of the Japanese archipelago have been traced to prehistoric times around 30,000 BC. The Jōmon period, named after its cord-marked pottery, was followed by the Yayoi period in the first millennium BC when new inve ...

, with many references to Japanese folklore. Although the series has its roots in action-adventure, the ''Ganbare Goemon'' series has features from genres including

role-playing Role-playing or roleplaying is the changing of one's behaviour to assume a role, either unconsciously to fill a social role, or consciously to act out an adopted role. While the ''Oxford English Dictionary'' offers a definition of role-playing a ...

puzzle video game Puzzle video games make up a broad genre of video games that emphasize puzzle solving. The types of puzzles can test problem-solving skills, including logic, pattern recognition, sequence solving, spatial recognition, and word completion. H ...

s and

board game Board games are tabletop games that typically use . These pieces are moved or placed on a pre-marked board (playing surface) and often include elements of table, card, role-playing, and miniatures games as well. Many board games feature a co ...

s. ''Ganbare Goemon'' is popular in Japan. The series consists of video games, with its success spawning a wide series of merchandise and an

anime is hand-drawn and 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 Japanese, (a term derived from a shortening of ...

and manga series. Konami has generally regarded the Goemon games as too specific to the Japanese market to be released worldwide. However, five of them have been released overseas: '' The Legend of the Mystical Ninja'' for the

Super NES 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 ...

, ''

Mystical Ninja Starring Goemon ''Mystical Ninja Starring Goemon'' is a platform action-adventure video game released by Konami for the Nintendo 64 on August 7, 1997 in Japan, April 16, 1998 in North America, and 18 April 1998 in Europe as the fifth entry in the ''Ganbare Goem ...

'' and ''

Goemon's Great Adventure known as ''Mystical Ninja 2 Starring Goemon'' in Europe, is a video game developed and released by Konami for the Nintendo 64 on December 23, 1998. It is the third game in the '' Goemon'' series released in North America and Europe, following '' ...

'' for the

Nintendo 64 The (N64) is a home video game console developed by Nintendo. The successor to the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, it was released on June 23, 1996, in Japan, on September 29, 1996, in North America, and on March 1, 1997, in Europe and ...

and two titles for the

Game Boy The is an 8-bit fourth generation handheld game console developed and manufactured by Nintendo. It was first released in Japan on April 21, 1989, in North America later the same year, and in Europe in late 1990. It was designed by the same t ...

. In 2002–2003, a mobile phone was released for the titled ''Ganbare Goemon: Tsūkai Game Apli'' series. The latest original game of the series was '' Ganbare Goemon: Tōkai Dōchū Ōedo Tengu ri Kaeshi no Maki'', released in Japan for the Nintendo DS in 2005. Since then, the series has been used primarily as themes for Konami's

pachislot A slot machine (American English), fruit machine (British English) or poker machine (Australian English and New Zealand English) is a gambling machine that creates a game of chance for its customers. Slot machines are also known pejoratively a ...

machines. The series is represented in ''

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate ''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate'' is a 2018 crossover fighting video game developed by Bandai Namco Studios and Sora Ltd. and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo Switch. It is the fifth installment in the '' Super Smash Bros.'' series, succeed ...

'' with a purchasable Goemon costume for

Mii A Mii ( ) is a customizable avatar used on several Nintendo video game consoles and mobile apps. Miis were first introduced on the Wii console in 2006 and later appeared on the 3DS, Wii U, the Switch, and various apps for smart devices. Miis c ...

fighters, revealed during a Nintendo Direct in September 2019.

Related media

Anime

Original video animation

* A single-episode thirty-minute

OVA , 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 ...

was released in Japan in 1993 titled . The OVA starred the voice of

Daiki Nakamura is a Japanese voice actor affiliated with 81 Produce. Some of his best-known work includes Gaine in ''The Brave Express Might Gaine'' and Grandpa in '' Grandpa Danger''. Filmography Anime *''After War Gundam X'' (Shingo Mori) *'' Aoki Densets ...

as Goemon and

Hideyuki Umezu is a Japanese actor and voice actor affiliated with 81 Produce. Biography Filmography Television animation ;1980s *''Mobile Suit Gundam ZZ'' (1986) – Nelmarsen *''Bravoman'' (1988) – Bravoman ;1990s *''Holly the Ghost'' (1991) – Kakaras ...

as Ebisumaru and featured segments parodying ''

Gradius is a series of shooter video games, introduced in 1985, developed and published by Konami for a variety of portable, console and arcade platforms. In many games in the series, the player controls a ship known as the Vic Viper. Games *''Scra ...

'', '' Akumajō Dracula'' and ''

TwinBee is a vertically scrolling shooter released by Konami as an arcade video game in 1985 in Japan. Along with Sega's '' Fantasy Zone'', released a year later, ''TwinBee'' is credited as an early archetype of the "cute 'em up" type in its genre. It ...

''. * A second-episode thirty-minute

was released in Japan in 1998 titled .

Television series

Manga

Goemon is the protagonist of many manga based on the video game series. There are several series, each one based on a different game. Most of the manga were illustrated by artist Hiroshi Obi and were published between 1991 and 1998 to accompany the release of each new game. Obi died from a brain stem hemorrhage on August 3, 2014, at the age of 54.Ganbare Goemon Manga Artist Hiroshi Obi Passes Away
/ref>

List of games

Video games (main series)

Video games (spin-offs)

Other games

References

External links

Official Konami of Japan ''Ganbare Goemon'' site
* {{Konami franchises Konami franchises Video game franchises Video game franchises introduced in 1986 Video games about ninja Video games developed in Japan Video games adapted into television shows