Famitsu

Famitsu (ファミ通, Famitsū^?, formerly Famicom Tsūshin) is a line of Japanese video game magazines published by Enterbrain, Inc. and Tokuma. Famitsu is published in both weekly and monthly formats as well as in the form of special topical issues devoted to only one console, video game company, or other theme. Shūkan Famitsū (週刊ファミ通, Shūkan Famitsū^? lit. "Weekly Famitsū"), the original Famitsu publication, is considered the most widely read and respected video game news magazine in Japan, reaching its 1100th issue in December 2009.

The magazine was first published in 1986 under the title of Famicom Tsushin, as it was originally focused on news relating to the Family Computer Nintendo system (known outside Japan as the Nintendo Entertainment System). One of its mascots was Necky the Fox. Popular gaming articles in various issues included the Early Warnings, the "Famitsu Express", the Top 30s and their pioneering Cross-Reviews. Other coverage include movie and DVD news.

Special topic Famitsus

Famitsu publishes other magazines dedicated to particular consoles. Currently in circulation are:

Entamikusu (エンタミクス, Entamikusu^?) (previously Otonafami (オトナファミ, Otonafami^?)) is written for an older audience and covers retrogaming. It has been published monthly since November 2010.
Famitsū Connect! On (ファミ通コネクト!オン, Famitsū Connect! On^?) reports on online gaming.
Famitsū DS+Wii (ファミ通DS+Wii, Famitsū DS+Wii^?) reports on Nintendo platforms (currently the Nintendo 3DS and Wii U). The magazine was formerly known as Famitsū 64 and then Famitsū Cube (among other variations of those two names) based on whatever platforms Nintendo was producing games for at the time.0000
Famitsū GREE (ファミ通GREE, Famitsū GREE^?) reports on mobile gaming via GREE.
Famitsū Mobage (ファミ通Mobage, Famitsū Mobage^?) reports on mobile gaming via Mobage.

Former special topics

Famitsū spin-offs that are no longer in circulation include:

Famitsū Bros. (ファミ通ブロス, Famitsū Bros.^?) (previously Famicom Tsūshin Kōryaku Special) was written for younger audiences and concentrated on video game hints and strategy. It was published monthly and went defunct in September 2002.
Famicomi (ファミコミ, Famicomi^?) (previously Famitsū Comic) was a comic and manga magazine published irregularly between 1992 and 1995.
Famitsū DC (ファミ通DC, Famitsū DC^?) reported on Sega platforms news and covered the Dreamcast. Previous incarnations of this magazine included Sega Saturn Tsūshin which covered the Sega Saturn, with earlier issues covering earlier Sega platforms.
Famitsū Sister (ファミ通Sister, Famitsū Sister^?) covered bishōjo games.
Satellaview Tsūshin (サテラビュー通信, Satellaview Tsūshin^?) covered the Satellaview. It was published monthly and ran for only 12 issues from May 1995 to May 1996. Its inaugural issue was the May 1995 issue of Gekkan Famicom Tsūshin.
Virtual Boy Tsūshin (バーチャルボーイ通信, Virtual Boy Tsūshin^?) covered the Virtual Boy. Only one issue was ever published in 1995.
Famitsū PS (ファミ通PS, Famitsū PS^?) (previously PlayStation Tsūshin) began publication in May 1996, and reported on Sony platforms news. It was later known as Famitsū PS2 and Famitsū PSP+PS3 before being discontinued in March 2010.
Famitsū Wave DVD (ファミ通WaveDVD, Famitsū Wave DVD^?) (previously GameWave DVD) covered events, film, and previews. Each magazine included a DVD disc (NTSC Region 2) with video game footage. It was published monthly and went defunct in May 2011.
Famitsū Xbox 360 (ファミ通Xbox, Famitsū Xbox 360^?) reported on Xbox and Xbox 360 news and was published by EnterBrain. In its August 2010 issue, it covered 100 volumes. It went defunct in 2013.

Relationship to the Metal Gear series

Aside from providing pre-release news coverage of the games in the Metal Gear series (as well as the PlayStation 20th Anniversary and Metal Gear 20th Anniversary, including a special issue of Famitsu Wave DVD dealing with the latter^[1]), Famitsu itself has appeared in five Metal Gear games:

In the Japanese version of Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater, Famitsu makes a cameo appearance in the library section of Groznyj Grad's East Wing on the magazine rack. It was replaced in the North American version with the 178th issue of Electronic Gaming Monthly.

In Metal Gear Acid 2, a special card is issued by downloading from the official site that is based on the 890th issue of Famitsu.

In Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops Plus, a Special Camo Soldier utilizing the Famitsu logo was initially available as a special download from Konami's booth at TGS 2007, but could later be unlocked via passcode.

Weekly Famitsu appears as a Magazine item in the Japanese version of Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker, as part of the game's product placement that was conceptualized by series creator Hideo Kojima. This was also done to celebrate its 1100th issue that was released December 2009. The cover for the in-game magazine, however, is completely fictional, featuring Sayaka Yamamoto, the then-Public Relations member of KPJ, on the cover. The inclusion of the magazine and other product placement in the game was controversial, with some such as Brian Ashcroft of Kotaku going as far as to list its inclusion, involvement in promoting Peace Walker, and the perfect review score it gave the game as a conflict of interest.^[2]^[3]^[4] A similar scandal involving potential conflict of interests via scoring from Famits would later occur with the game Death Stranding. The magazine was replaced in the overseas versions with the Solid Magazine. Weekly Famitsu also had a brief cameo in Metal Gear Solid: Snake Eater 3D.

Famitsu Xbox 360 appears in the Japanese Xbox 360 version of Peace Walker HD Edition, replacing the Dengeki PlayStation weapon.^[5] Like with Weekly Famitsu in the same game, the Famitsu Xbox 360 cover was entirely fictional, and prominently featured Kazuhira Miller on the cover (similar to how Dengeki PlayStation featured Paz Ortega Andrade on the cover), and claimed to feature an exclusive interview with Hideo Kojima, and an interview involving Yoji Shinkawa, Kenkazu Matsubana, and Shuyo Murata, and presumably other content relating to the HD Edition.

Although Famitsu Wave DVD itself did not make an appearance in the Metal Gear series, the image of a Japanese woman cosplaying as Amanda Valenciano Libre used for the cover of Super Magazine in the English version was cited to have been taken from Famitsu Wave DVD.

Gallery

Metal Gear-coverage Famitsu images

1999 Weekly Famitsu coverage of Ghost Babel

Notes and references

This page uses content from Wikipedia. The original article was at Famitsu. The list of authors can be seen in the page history. As with the Metal Gear Wiki, the text of Wikipedia is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.

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