(formerly known as Tehkan Ltd.) is a Japanese video game corporation that is best known for the Ninja Gaiden, Dead or Alive, Deception, Monster Rancher, Rygar, Tecmo Bowl, Tecmo World Wrestling, Fatal Frame and Gallop Racer video game series.

History

The company was founded on July 31, 1967 as a supplier of cleaning equipment. Two years later, in 1969, it started to sell amusement equipment.

On March 1981, a U.S. division was inaugurated as U.S. Tehkan, Inc.. A month later, on April 1981, Tehkan released in Japan its first arcade video game titled Pleiads (which was distributed in America by Centuri). When it was still called Tehkan, the company also released such classic games as Bomb Jack and Tehkan World Cup. On January 8, 1986, Tehkan officially changed its name to Tecmo.

On August 29, 2008 Square Enix made plans for a friendly takeover of Tecmo by purchasing shares at a 30 percent premium with a total bid of 22.3 billion yen. On September 4, 2008 Tecmo officially declined the takeover proposal. Tecmo has since been in talks with Koei about a possible merger between the two companies.

Lawsuits

On the 3rd June, 2008 Team Ninja head Tomonobu Itagaki resigned from the company and filed a 145 million yen ($1.3 million) lawsuit for "unpaid completion bonuses" and "emotional distress". This was followed by another lawsuit filed on the 16th of June by two plaintiffs on behalf of Tecmo's 300 employees for unpaid wages amounting to ¥8.3 million.

Games

Subsidiaries

• Team Ninja

References

External links

• Tecmo, Ltd. (Japan)
• Tecmo, Inc. (United States)
• Tecmo entry at MobyGames