Hudson Soft (1973)
The Kudo Brothers' Bee Emblem, Famicom's First Licensee, PC Engine, and Bomberman
Established on May 18, 1973 in Sapporo, Japan by brothers Yuji and Hiroshi Kudo as an amateur radio and coffee shop, Hudson Soft became the historic first independent third-party licensee for the Nintendo Famicom in 1984. Renowned for its iconic yellow bee emblem, Hudson created eternal franchises including Bomberman and Adventure Island, co-engineered the revolutionary 16-bit PC Engine (TurboGrafx-16) console with electronics giant NEC, and developed the initial golden era of Mario Party for Nintendo.
From Ham Radio to Famicom Kings: The First Licensee
Named after the iconic Hudson 4-6-4 steam locomotive, Hudson Soft pivoted into personal computer software in the late 1970s. In 1984, Hudson negotiated a historic breakthrough agreement with Nintendo President Hiroshi Yamauchi, becoming the Famicom's very first third-party licensee. Their port of Lode Runner sold 1.2 million cartridges, proving the viability of external publishing on consoles. Executive Toshiyuki Takahashi captured legendary celebrity status across Japan for his '16-shot' finger-tapping speed, inspiring the Adventure Island franchise.
The PC Engine Breakthrough and Multiplayer Bomberman
Conceiving a bespoke graphical coprocessor that Nintendo rejected, Hudson partnered with electronics conglomerate NEC to launch the PC Engine (TurboGrafx-16) in 1987. Compact as a jewel case and utilizing ultra-thin HuCard ROMs, it outsold the Famicom in Japan during the late 1980s. Concurrently, Hudson's Bomberman franchise codified competitive 4-player and 5-player local party gaming via the Multitap adapter. Following financial distress caused by the collapse of Hokkaido Takushoku Bank, Hudson was absorbed by Konami in 2012.