Konami Slots

There is no more diversified gaming company than Konami. A Japanese company who started so small back in the 1970's, simply jumped right in the mix with the big boys and made waves. In fact, the name Konami means 'Little Waves'. Little did they know what they were building up to would amount to a tidal wave. Their history is multi-faceted and can appear somewhat fragmented, so it's best to take a narrative approach so as to not miss anything vital in their ascent to the phenomenal gaming and production giant they are today.

In 1969, in Osaka Japan, Kagamasa Kosuki founded and operated a thriving juke box rental and repair company. With the invention of superior home stereo systems, and in part to the booming car stereo boom, juke boxes were not enjoying the same spotlight they had for over two decades. By the early 1970's the younger population were turning their attention to the newest invention that had begun to replace the once again popular pinball machines.

The new kid on the block was arcade games and Konami began to get their feet wet by developing their own brand of game. It wasn't until a few years later though, that this type of game really began to take off and it happened to coincide with Konami's release of two of their best games - Scramble and Super Cobra. These games were an instant hit in Japan, but were a bit slow in the United States. Still, Konami was getting notice and began to look into expanding their growing business in new directions while continuing to dominate the arcade game market.

Eventually Konami turned their attention toward the gambling industry - casino slot machines in particular. They had many years of technical experience and expertise behind them with arcade games, and had a sense of what the American public wanted because of Japan's fascination of most things American. So to facilitate their goals of making their mark in this new territory, they moved the company to Las Vegas and released their first licensed slot machines in 2005. Rocky Slots was modeled after the hugely popular movie Rocky, starring Sylvester Stalone. It was an instant success as fans who identified with the movie could play the slot machine and symbolize their wins with the main characters triumphs. A star was born.

Konami has a long list of games to their credit and they express a pension for naming the games with different takes on the word 'money', as is apparent in their games like Big Payoff, Coinopolis, Aloha Gold, Money in the Bank, African Treasure, Atlantic Treasure, Solstice Gold, Billionaires and Cash Inferno.

Being one of the most successful manufacturers of slot machines and arcade games in history has not made Konami sit back and just reap the rewards. They are constantly looking to the future, delving into new markets and keeping their ideas fresh. One of their latest ventures has been in motion pictures with their first release being a huge hit. Silent Hill was the pic - a dark and haunting tale of innocence lost, which not surprisingly, was based on an arcade and video game.