was a Japanese

video game developer A video game developer is a broad term for a software developer specializing in video game development – the process and related disciplines of creating video games. A game developer can range from one person who undertakes all tasks to a larg ...

based in

Kōka was a after '' Tenpō'' and before '' Kaei.'' This period spanned the years from December 1844 through February 1848. The reigning emperors were and . Change of era * December 2, 1844 (): The new era name of ''Kōka'', meaning "Becoming Wi ...

Shiga is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Shiga Prefecture has a population of 1,412,916 (1 October 2015) and has a geographic area of . Shiga Prefecture borders Fukui Prefecture to the north, Gifu Prefecture to the northe ...

. Founded in May 1984, it had worked on approximately 40 titles for

arcade Arcade most often refers to: * Arcade game, a coin-operated game machine ** Arcade cabinet, housing which holds an arcade game's hardware ** Arcade system board, a standardized printed circuit board * Amusement arcade, a place with arcade games * ...

, computer and

home console A home video game console is a video game console that is designed to be connected to a display device, such as a television, and an external power source as to play video games. Home consoles are generally less powerful and customizable than ...

s, a large number of which went uncredited. It is best known for developing ''

Mega Man ''Mega Man'', known as in Japan, is a Japanese science fiction video game franchise created by Capcom, starring a series of robot characters each known by the moniker "Mega Man (character), Mega Man". Mega Man (video game), The original game w ...

'' games for

Capcom is a Japanese video game developer and publisher. It has created a number of multi-million-selling game franchises, with its most commercially successful being '' Resident Evil'', '' Monster Hunter'', '' Street Fighter'', '' Mega Man'', '' ...

, namely all of 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 te ...

''Mega Man'' games (except ''II'') and ''

Mega Man X3 ''Mega Man X3'' (stylized as ''MEGA MAN X³''), known as in Japan, is a video game released by Capcom for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES). The game was originally released in Japan on December 1, 1995, and later in North American an ...

''. Its exact fate is unknown, but its website was taken down in 2002.

History

Minakuchi Engineering was established in May 1984, basing its headquarter on Kōka District of

, and named their company after one of the towns in the area, Minakuchi. According to its now defunct website, Minakuchi Engineering had worked on about 40 different games for a variety of publishers, but due to the anonymous nature of the video game credits at the time, it's difficult to identify exactly which it's responsible for. One of its better known footnotes is the partnership with

, having developed the ''

'' games including '' Mega Man: The Wily Wars'' for Sega Genesis, ''

'' for SNES, and four of the Game Boy ''Mega Man'' titles (from '' Mega Man: Dr. Wily's Revenge'' to ''

Mega Man V ''Mega Man V'' is a video game published by Capcom for the Game Boy handheld game console. It is the fifth game in the Game Boy version of the original ''Mega Man'' series. The game follows the adventures of the protagonist Mega Man as he must d ...

'', with exception of '' II''). One of its employees was ''Mega Man'' series composer Kouji Murata, who worked on the Game Boy ''Mega Man'' games starting from ''

Mega Man III ''Mega Man III'' is an action-platform video game by Capcom for the Nintendo Game Boy. It is the third game in the handheld version of the ''Mega Man'' series. The game follows the title character Mega Man as he fights the evil Dr. Wily, who ...

''.

Games developed

Arcade

* ''Power Spikes'' (1991) * ''Turbo Force'' (1991)

Game Boy

* ''

Bionic Commando ''Bionic Commando'' is a video game franchise consisting of an original arcade game released in 1987 and several later versions and sequels. Background The original Japanese arcade game and its Famicom counterpart (''Hitler's Resurrection'' ...

'' (1992) * '' Mega Man: Dr. Wily's Revenge'' (1991) * ''

'' (1992) * '' Mega Man IV'' (1993) * ''

'' (1994) * ''

Qix is a 1981 puzzle video game developed by husband and wife team Randy and Sandy Pfeiffer and published in arcades by Taito, Taito America. ''Qix'' is one of a handful of games made by Taito's American division. At the start of each level, the pla ...

'' (1990) * ''

Solar Striker ''SolarStriker'' is a vertically scrolling shooter developed by Nintendo R&D1 with Minakuchi Engineering for the Nintendo Game Boy. It was first published in Japan on January 26, 1990, then released later in North America on February 2, 1990, an ...

'' (1990)

Genesis

* '' Mega Man: The Wily Wars'' (1994)

MSX2

* ''Kimagure Orange Road: Natsu no Mirage'' (1988) * ''Maison Ikkoku: Kanketsuhen: Sayonara, Soshite...'' (1988) * ''

What's Michael? is a Japanese manga series created by Makoto Kobayashi. In 1984, it began its serialization in the ''Weekly Morning'' magazine. The manga shows Michael, an orange American Shorthair tabby cat, his feline friends, and other domesticated pets ...

'' (1989)

SNES

* ''

Magic Sword In mythology, legend or fiction, a magic sword is a sword with magical powers or other supernatural qualities. Renowned swords appear in the folklore of every nation that used swords. Josepha Sherman, ''Once upon a Galaxy'' p 113 In some t ...

'' (1992) * ''

Knights of the Round Knights of the Round may refer to: * Knights of the Round Table The Knights of the Round Table ( cy, Marchogion y Ford Gron, kw, Marghekyon an Moos Krenn, br, Marc'hegien an Daol Grenn) are the knights of the fellowship of King Arthur in th ...

'' (1994) * ''

'' (1995)

References

Links

* (Wayback Machine) Companies based in Shiga Prefecture Companies disestablished in 2002 Video game companies established in 1984 Video game companies of Japan Video game development companies {{Japan-videogame-company-stub