Konami Logo

The Japanese corporation Konami is best known for its games Contra, Metal Gear, Pro Evolution Soccer, Silent Hill, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. It is among the largest gaming companies by revenue. Today, they produce not only games but also movies and anime. It even has fitness clubs all over Japan operating under the brand.

Meaning and History

It all started back in the late 1960s when four friends decided to repair and rent jukeboxes. In the 1970s, the friends turned the business into the production of arcade machines. Their own first game was released in 1978, after which the company grew and expanded beyond Japan into the United States. From that moment on, Konami began to develop very dynamically. The name Konami was formed from the names of the founders: Kagemasa Kozuki, Yoshinobu Nakama, Hiro Matsuda, and Shokichi Ishihara.

What is Konami?
Konami Digital Entertainment currently manages game production through four main divisions located on three continents. Initially, these were games intended for arcade machines, but PCs, consoles, and also portable platforms were eventually added to the list. Games such as Frogger, Scramble, and Super Cobra brought the greatest success to the company.

1981 – 1986

The company went for a basic logo that featured only the name of the company. Thanks to the simplicity and the blue color, it looked timeless. The unique feature of the wordmark was the first uppercase letter. It had an elongated top diagonal line, while the bottom one resembled a hook.

1986 – 1998

This version looked bolder thanks to bright orange and red ribbons placed above the wordmark. They were drawn diagonally and gave some dynamics to the emblem. The wordmark was a light gray color and featured plain, italicized, sans-serif font that balanced out the bright elements.

1998 – 2003

There was a minimal update introduced in 1998. The name was now black and not italicized. This made the emblem appear striking and daring.

2003 – 2013

To mark its 30^th anniversary, the company introduced a new brand look. The wavy ribbons were gone and replaced by a red, rectangular base that curved to create a pointy end on the right side. The font was also updated with an addition of delicate serifs and a white color that contrasted well against the bright red.

2013 – Today

For a new anniversary, the company decided to invert the colors and use the red seen in the previous logo for the name itself. The font remained the same, though. The brand returned to its origins and created a more long-lasting, simple brand image.

Font and Color

Originally, the company went for a rather traditional color choice and used a deep blue for its logo. Then it introduced bolder colors – red and orange. As the founders say, red is used to show stability and strong appeal to Konami’s creativity and innovation. Although the company had a font that featured smooth curves for its first logo, it went for a more basic typeface with straight lines and cuts in the 80s.