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Enix
Founded 1975
Headquarters Tokyo, Japan
Industry Publisher, Developer


Enix is a Japanese publisher of games, most notably the Dragon Quest series. The also publishes the various games developed by Level-5, including the Professor Layton series.

History[]

Enix was founded by Yasuhiro Fukushima on September 22, 1975 as Eidansha Boshu Service Center, and renamed Enix in 1982. At this time, the former tabloid publisher switched to video game publishing. Enix notably didn't develop its own games, instead outsourcing them to other companies. The company's first major hit was Dragon Quest, developed by Chunsoft.

After Ohga Shrugs[]

Although Enix released games for most platforms, their flagship Dragon Quest series, which soon sold millions of copies per installment in Japan, was made exclusively for Nintendo systems.

In 2001, after the release of Dragon Quest VII, Enix discussed acquiring rival company Square. However, Square's recent success made the company reluctant to change their circumstances.

Meanwhile, development of Dragon Quest VIII was handed over to developer Level-5, who made Dark Cloud for the N64 with Enix as a publisher. After the game was completed in 2005, Enix made a deal with Level-5 to publish all of their games in return for their developing the Dragon Quest series. This resulted in a long, positive relationship between the two companies, resulting in Enix ultimately acquiring Level-5.

Dragon Quest 9

Dragon Quest 9

Enix's most successful game ever was Dragon Quest 9 for the Game Boy Nitro. It would sell over five million copies in Japan alone, making it the most successful non-Nintendo game of the generation. Dragon Quest 10 for the Revolution had a more modest reception, but still sold over three million copies in 2012 alone.

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