GameCenter CX

, also known as ''Retro Game Master'' in other regions, is a Japanese gaming-variety show television program produced by Fuji Television and . The name is a combination of "game center" (the Japanese term for an arcade) and Fuji TV's call sign, JOCX-TV. It stars Shinya Arino, a member of comedy duo Yoiko, who plays home console video games from previous decades and usually attempts to get the game's ending within a single day. The show has been on-air since November 4, 2003, with a new episode airing bi-weekly at Thursday midnight on Fuji TV One. As of 2023, 20 DVD sets have been released in Japan. In 2008, Fuji TV was looking for international distributors for subtitled DVDs.Game Center CX debuts in New York City
/ref>Subtitled Retro Game Master DVDs seek distributor
/ref>

Premise

The show is presented as a gaming variety show which follows a commentary-based long-play format. Shinya Arino challenges several games from previous eras, presented by his producers to get each ending. He is supported by the show's assistant directors (referred to as ADs) and sometimes other staff, both via moral support and actual gameplay. He also is featured in segments interspersed throughout the episodes where he goes to local arcade centers, as well as segments where he does a variety of things, such as interviews with game designers, showcasing classic console hardware or games, or a made-up game show where the staff participates.

GameCenter CX as a company

Arino is presented as an employee of the fictitious GameCenter CX company. His jumpsuit attire is adorned with the GameCenter CX logo, which with the second season onward lost the original brackets around the "CX". Arino formally greets anyone of status by serving him/her a business card. The CX company even promotes Arino depending on how well he does during the season. The phrase Arino says right before turning on the console, "''Kachō'' on!", signifies his role as chief of the aforementioned company.

To continue with the corporate theme of the show, a stock certificate was included with the second DVD collection to have the buyers feel like they owned stock in the company. In the last episode of season 7, Bandai Namco Entertainment president Ishikawa made Arino an honorary employee and presented him with a company card.

In addition, the company is set in a fictional universe featuring characters in the style of ''Dragon Quest'', which also features several characters as a form of commentators: The ''King'' and the members of his family, ''Queen'' and ''Prince''. Both ''Queen'' and ''Prince'' appeared earlier as main commentators in earlier seasons, but later ended up as DVD-only characters by replacing the ''King''. This universe also features villains, such as ''Skull King'', ''Black Satan'', ''Onitengu'' and ''Tuxedo Clowns''. An elder scientist called ''Hakase'' also exists, but he was only featured as a commentator of ''THE Game Maker'' DVDs.

ADs

The assistant directors help provide creative input, construct settings, and work as a camera crew at times, especially when on location. Their on-screen presence is typically precipitated by Arino struggling with a spot in a game. They will offer help of varying degrees, enough to dislodge Arino from his despair, but not so much as to raise questions about whether he beat the game on his own. These members of staff start as interns, and often they are promoted to various paid positions surrounding the show's production. Many have moved on to other Japanese TV shows. After they left the staff, sometimes they reappeared in the next seasons or special DVD challenges.

* - Season 1 (first episode only)
* - Seasons 1 & 2
* - Season 2
* - Seasons 3 & 4
* , a.k.a. - Seasons 5 & 6, was part of the main staff since the end of season 13 through 22 as a director
* , a.k.a. - Season 7
* - Season 8
* - Seasons 9 & 10
* , a.k.a. - Seasons 11 & 12
* - Seasons 11 & 12 & 13
* , a.k.a. - Seasons 13 through 15, currently work as a director since season 18
* - Seasons 13 through 15, currently work as a director since season 18
* - Season 16
* - Seasons 16 through 18, currently work as a director since season 22
* - Seasons 18 & 19
* - Seasons 19 & 20
* - Seasons 20 & 21
* - Seasons 21 & 22
* - Seasons 22 & 23
* - Season 23 & 24, currently work as a director on the ''Tamage'' segment
* - Seasons 25 through 28
* - Seasons 27 & 28
* , a.k.a. - Season 28 (current)

Miscellaneous staff

* - Cameraman
* - Art Director, Writer
* - Producer, Narrator
* - Video Editor, left the staff in the 18th season.
* , a.k.a. - Voice Mixing
* - Planner
* - Assistant Director, left the staff in the 12th season. Came back as director in 17th season.
* - Audio Editor
* - Assistant Director
* - Production
* - Assistant Director
* - Director
* - Promotion (PR)
* - Assistant Director

Music

* Audio clips from the videogame '' Kid Icarus'' (光神話 パルテナの鏡) are often used to intro segments with The King.
* The song used during Arino's arcade field trip adventures is called 異国のしらべ from HEAT WAVE.
* The song during his trip north is "Between the expansive sky and large land" by Chiharu Matsuyama.
* The second and third seasons made extensive use of the soundtracks from the games '' Headhunter'' and '' Headhunter Redemption'' to highlight the show's dramatic segments.
* Musical segues from the anime ''Azumanga Daioh'' are regularly used during field segments, in which Arino visits various game centers and convenience stores.
* The show also frequently features popular music by contemporary artists such as Phil Collins, Jesse McCartney and Madonna, as well as music from film scores like ''Jurassic Park'' and Disney's ''The Hunchback of Notre Dame''.
* The song used for showing elements from games at Season 9 and onwards is called ''Hijacked'' from the library music album called ''Hollywood Premieres'' by 615 Trax and Warner Chappell Production Music.

Segment Songs

* "Game Collections" uses the songs ''The King Of Pleasure'' (seasons 1 & 2 only) and ''Reaching For The Stars'' (all seasons, bar 10th) by Fantastic Plastic Machine.
* "Arino's Ring-Ring Tactics!" uses both the opening and ending songs from Monkey, ''Monkey Magic'' and ''Gandhara''.
* "Urawaza Jet Stream" uses the songs "The Intimacy of My Woman's Beautiful Eyes" by James Carter (for only one episode) and " Romeo Is Bleeding" by Tom Waits for the rest the segments. Episode 25 uses the song "Night Birds" by Shakatak while Arino is reading the postcard.
* "The Aces of Hardware Won't Appear" uses (and is named after) the song " Heart No Ace ga Detekonai" by Candies.
* "The Romance Never Ends" uses (and is named after) the song "" by C-C-B.
* "Game & Watch, I Can't Leave You Alone" uses the song "" by .
* "Famicom Manga Café"'s song is based on by Yoshie Kashiwabara.
* "GameCenter CX NEWS" uses the song ''Eternity'' by Capsule.
* "Singing About Whatever the Hell You Want" uses (and is named after) the song "" by Kenji Sawada.
* "Retro Read-Aloud" uses the song Naturish by Marsh and Nox Vahn.
* "Everything Important in Life, I Learned From Video Game Strategy Guides" uses the theme song from the 1999 film '' The Road Home'', by .
* "A Waste of Color" uses the song '' Sailor Fuku o Nugasanai de'' by Onyanko Club;
* "Project CX" uses the song '' Earthly Stars'' by Miyuki Nakajima.
* "Barcode Battler" uses the songs ''Liar Game'' and ''Electrode Spark 0101'' from Liar Game.
* "Famicom Sniper" uses a special arrangement of the Main Theme from '' Golgo 13: Top Secret Episode''.
* "When I Looked Back, He Was There" uses the song " Yah Yah Yah" by Chage and Aska.
* "Game Center MSX" uses the song ''Overnight Success'' by Teri DeSario
* "DJ Monster Battle" uses the song "Anasthasia" by T99.
* "Chief Arino's Bonus Assessment" uses the song "En Aranjuez con Tu Amor" by David Garrett.
* "2P Battles Without Honor" uses the song ''Jingi Naki Tatakai'' from Battles Without Honor and Humanity.
* "Good-Bye Game Boy" uses the song '' Good Bye Natsuo'' by Aya Matsuura.
* "Until the Udon Boils" uses the song ''634 (MUSASHI)'' from NHK Pro Yakyuu at the end of each episode.
* "KACHOxFAMILY" uses the song "Mixed Nuts" by Official Hige Dandism.
* "Dangerous Safety Zone" uses the song ''Wine Red no Kokoro'' by Anzen Chitai at the end of each episode.
* "chocoGAME" uses the song '' Hot Limit'' by T.M. Revolution during segment objectives.

Original songs

* ''Last Continue'' by former AD/AP Tomoaki Nakayama
* ''Sayonara Game'' by former AD Yuko Watanabe
* ''Tatakae! Kacho Fighter'' by producer Nozomi Ishida
* ''Momoko-chan Koi Uta'' by former AD Takeshi Tsuruoka (originally from '' Tokaido Gojusan Tsugi'')
* ''Last Continue (English version)'' by former AD/AP Tomoaki Nakayama
* ''Ken o Nuke! GCCX MAX'' by multiple staff from the show as ''Messe Messe Club'' (Gen Matsui, Yuta Kaga, Kouichi Abe, Ryo Osuka)
* ''ENDINGRATULATION'' by accekk (writer Masayuki Kibe and former AD Tasuku Iwahashi's band duo)

Game challenges

Not counting duplicated appearances, segment-only appearances, and Nintendo eShop episodes, the publisher who made more appearances on the show is Konami with 63 different games.

Main games

NOTE: An asterisk (*) is noted beside the episode number to indicate the episode's localization and release on Kotaku. Western titles in "quotes" are unofficial names Kotaku uses to refer to Japan-only games.

;1st season 7 wins, 6 losses
(This season featured a game series or game company as its main focus with Arino's challenge game as a secon3dary feature)

;2nd season 6 wins, 3 losses
(episode numbering started with Arino's challenge games being the main feature)

;3rd season Complete victory

;4th season 5 wins, 4 losses
(The season mascot changes from King to Queen)

;5th season 5 wins, 1 draw
(Season was shortened due to birth of Arino's daughter)

;6th season 4 wins, 3 losses
(The season mascot changes from Queen to Dark King)

;7th season 7 wins, 1 loss, 1 carryover
(the season changes from Dark King to King. The Dark King makes a brief reappearance in #53. Sarina Suzuki from '' Mecha² Iketeru!'' appeared as a guest in the ''Tamage'' segment on episode #45)

;8th season 7 wins, 2 losses, 1 pending

;9th season Complete victory
(The season was shortened due to Arino being hospitalized; all episodes from #64 and onwards started to be in HD and 60FPS)

;10th season 6 wins, 1 loss

;11th season 7 wins, 3 losses

;12th season 4 wins, 5 losses
(The season mascot changes from King to Fallen Warrior)

;13th season
(The season mascot changes from Fallen Warrior to King, it was shortened due to Arino getting a free rest of 100 days)

;14th season

;15th season

;16th season

;17th season

;18th season
(The season mascot changes from the King to Elephant King)

;19th season

;20th season

;21st season
(During Episode 244, the staff switched to a CRT monitor during the light gun stages.)

;22nd season

;23rd season

;24th season
(The season mascot changes from King to Frozen King and then to Penguin King.)

;25th season
(The season mascot changes from Penguin King back to the King)

;26th season

;27th season

;28th season

;29th season

;Notes

DVD-Exclusive Challenges

Each DVD-Box set released includes a game challenge exclusive to the DVD set. Most of these challenges were Famicom games.

;Notes

Nintendo eShop-exclusive specials Challenges

These challenges became officially inaccessible by the closure of Minna no Nintendo Channel on June 28, 2013 for Wii and on March 28, 2023, by the closure of Nintendo eShop for 3DS and Wii U.

YouTube channel content

The channel was opened as a celebration of the show's 20th anniversary in November 2022. Some episodes include their BGM swapped compared to their original TV airings or even the DVD versions.

Video releases

On June 23, 2011, gaming website Kotaku started streaming English-translated episodes of the series. On January 13, 2012, Kotaku announced that their agreement to broadcast the show had ended; there would be no second season, and existing episodes would be removed when the rights expired. On February 28, 2012, Discotek Media announced that they had acquired the rights to the 12 episodes shown on Kotaku, releasing them on DVD on September 18, 2012.

;DVD Boxes
So far there have been twenty DVD sets put out with the latest released in December 2023. Each one contains key episodes, game center visits, and a game challenge exclusive to the DVD set. They are not season compilations.

;Rental DVDs
Rental DVDs are budget versions of DVD boxes, containing several challenges, several ''Tamage'' and a little bonus video.

;Other DVDs

;Notes

Segments

Each episode of ''GameCenter CX'' is made up of a number of different segments. The only segment which appears in every episode is Arino's Challenge. The other segments vary by episode and season. However, the episodes that appear on Kotaku omit these segments, instead of focusing only on the challenge of the week.Crunk Games Game Center CX Episode Guide
/ref>

Media

Video games

At the end of the sixth season, it was announced that there were plans to make a ''GameCenter CX'' video game. The game, entitled ''GameCenter CX: Arino no Chōsenjō'', was developed for the Nintendo DS as a collaborative effort between Fuji TV and Bandai Namco Games. During the seventh season, certain parts of the show featured the development process of the game. The game was released in Japan on November 15, 2007, and in North America by Xseed Games on February 10, 2009, under the title '' Retro Game Challenge''. A second game, '' GameCenter CX: Arino no Chōsenjō 2'', was released in Japan on February 26, 2009. Xseed Games has stated that US release of the game is unlikely, due to its predecessor's not catching enough attention from the North American gaming community. A third game, '' GameCenter CX: 3-Chōme no Arino'', was released in Japan on March 20, 2014, and was the first installment in the series to release on Nintendo 3DS.

Arino appears as a Mystery Mushroom figure in '' Super Mario Maker'', which is unlocked by clearing one of his Event Courses added to the game on November 4, 2015.

A remaster of the first two games on Nintendo DS, named ''GameCenter CX: Arino no Chōsenjō 1+2 REPLAY'' for the Nintendo Switch was announced by Fuji TV and is set to be released only in Japan by February 22, 2024. Currently, no news of English localization from either Fuji TV or Bandai Namco has been announced.

Books

Several books of the show have been manufactured and released by Ohta Publishing from 2004 to 2011. These books cover secrets and interviews with the TV show's staff:

* ''GameCenter 「CX」'' (ISBN 487233907X)
* ''GameCenter CX2'' (ISBN 4778310195)
* ''GameCenter CX3'' (ISBN 4778310454)
* ''GameCenter CX COMPLETE'' (ISBN 9784778311803)
* ''GameCenter CX V'' (ISBN 978-4-7783-1290-9)
* ''GameCenter CX CHRONICLE''

The Japanese Magazine CONTINUE (also from Ohta Publishing) has a frequent habit of interviewing Arino over the years as well.

CD

''GameCenter CX 10th Anniversary Soundtrack'' (HMCM-1120) is a music CD containing 16 tracks used in the show, manufactured by Happinet. Some of the tracks are part of the original songs, others are Staff themes and standard game music from games that Arino played in the show. It was released on July 24, 2013, as a part of the show's 10th anniversary.

''BONUS STAGE'' (LNCM-1454) is a music CD from ''accekk'' (also called AXK, created by Staff writer Kibe and named by Arino), manufactured by Mastard Records. It was released March 4, 2023. Of the 9 tracks included, two of them, ''ENDINGRATULATION'' and ''ASSISTANTDIRe:CTION'', are used in the TV show.

Theatrical Film

''GameCenter CX: The Movie - 1986 Mighty Bomb Jack'' was released on February 22, 2014, to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the show. It features excerpts of the Mighty Bomb Jack episodes alongside a fictional side-story set in 1986 focused on a boy named Daisuke constructing a love relationship with a girl named Kumiko by borrowing his cartridge. As with the show's DVDs, it was distributed by Happinet.

Spin-Offs & Advertising

''Biohazard EX'' (SDS-12863) is a special bonus DVD that came with early pre-orders from Japanese copies of '' Resident Evil: Extinction'' in Blu-Ray, DVD, and UMD discs, manufactured by SPEJ. The disc itself includes an interview with Arino discussing his thoughts on ''Resident Evil'' games and movies, as well excerpts of the Capcom episode from the show's first season. It was not sold as a retail disc.

''THE Game Maker'' was a series of DVDs focused on a variety of content from video game companies, as a tribute to the show's first season. It features Arino & Yoshiuki Hirai doing playthroughs with live commentary, as well as extended Game Collections, interviews, and other kinds of extras (varying by disc). These DVDs were manufactured between 2010 and 2011. The companies featured were Irem, Jaleco, Namco, Sega, Sunsoft, Taito and Tecmo (the ''Sega'' edition was sold in a DVD box with two DVDs rather than a single one).

''GameCenter DX'', starring another challenger (Masaru Hamaguchi, the other half of star Arino Kacho's comedy duo "Yoiko"), and featuring many staff of the original, began in 2015 to showcase contemporary Nintendo titles, such as the latest entries in the '' Mario Bros.'' and '' Starfox'' series.

'' Yowiko no xx de xx Seikatsu'' (''Yoiko's Everyday Life in omething') is a spin-off of both ''GameCenter CX'' and ''GameCenter DX'', featuring Arino and Hamaguchi playing games for Nintendo Switch and being run by Nintendo's Japanese YouTube channel since 2017. Notable games played by the duo are '' Minecraft: Nintendo Switch Edition'', ''Super Mario Maker 2'' and '' Nintendo Switch Sports''.

Since 2023, the TV show's official YouTube channel made Arino do collaboration crossovers with known personalities from Japan, such as '' Eiko Kano's CritiKano Hit'', Nijisanji's ''Hyakumantenbara Salome'' and '' Masahiro Sakurai on Creating Games''.

Nintendo eShop-exclusive specials

On occasion, special ''GameCenter CX'' programs were produced for the Nintendo Channel for the Wii.

Later, when the Nintendo eShop succeeded the Nintendo Channel, additional specials were produced, such as a special where Arino and late Nintendo president Satoru Iwata interviewed each other and played '' Balloon Fight'', which Iwata had programmed during the early years of his career.

References

{{Reflist

External links

Official GameCenter CX site (Japanese)

English episode guide at Crunk Games

2003 Japanese television series debuts
2010s Japanese television series
2020s Japanese television series
Television shows about video games
Fictional companies
Fuji Television original programming