koei

Koei Co., Ltd. was a Japanese video game company founded in 1978 by Yōichi and Keiko Erikawa in Yokohama. From its inception, it specialized primarily in historical strategy and action games inspired by Japanese and Chinese history. Thanks to this unique focus, it became one of Japan’s leading video game developers and publishers.

The company gained its greatest popularity through the Dynasty Warriors, Samurai Warriors, Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Nobunaga's Ambition, and Warriors Orochi series. The Dynasty Warriors series, in particular, defined the musou genre, in which players battle hundreds of enemies on vast battlefields. In addition to action games, Koei has also built a strong reputation through its sophisticated strategy titles focused on empire management, diplomacy, and historical battles.

Koei has developed games for a wide range of platforms, including PlayStation, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox, Nintendo, and PC. The company has collaborated with many major partners and has also participated in the development of licensed games based on well-known franchises, such as Attack on Titan, Fire Emblem Warriors, Hyrule Warriors, and Persona 5 Strikers.

In 2009, the company merged with the studio Tecmo to form Koei Tecmo Holdings, which remains one of Japan’s leading video game publishers to this day. All of its most successful series continue under its brand, and new projects are being developed for modern consoles.

With a history spanning more than forty years, Koei ranks among the most influential companies in the Japanese gaming industry. Its games are known for their large-scale battles, historical accuracy, strategic depth, and unique style, which has won over millions of fans around the world.