Japan honors NES, PS2, Mario
Government-sponsored Media Arts Plaza includes 14 game entries--including Final Fantasy, Metal Gear Solid, the PlayStation, and DS--in list of 100 items most representative of Japanese media.
The Media Arts Plaza, a project of the Japanese government's Agency for Cultural Affairs, has announced a list of "100 examples of media that represents Japan."
The list was compiled based on questionnaire results to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the Japan Media Arts Festival, a yearly event that recognizes creative and technically excellent media. List candidates were selected based on Web-based polls--some 33,884 people responded--and mailed-in surveys from artists, editors, and critics.
The list is broken into four categories--art, entertainment, animation, and manga--of 25 items each. Over half the entertainment category was composed of game hardware and software: Nintendo's Game Boy, DS, and Famicom (aka the NES), were chosen, along with Sony's PlayStation and PlayStation 2. The games selected were Super Mario Bros., Space Invaders, Final Fantasy VII, Puyo Puyo, Pokémon, Metal Gear Solid, and Dragon Quest I, III, and V.
From January 21, 2007, a special exhibition at the National Art Center Tokyo will showcase the chosen works.
Featured Game
Developer: Nintendo
Genre: 2D Platformer
Platform: NES
Release Date: Oct 18, 1985
Related Games
Latest News
Latest Entertainment Headlines
Cartoon Network developing movies based on the comic-book series Firebreather, The Vanishers, and Mice Templar.
News Features
Featured Stories
E3 2008: SCEA unveils $399 80GB PS3, God of War III
Sony's press conference sees SCEA president Jack Tretton reveal Resistance for PSP and MAG, an all-new massive action game from Zipper Interactive; PS3 video store launching tonight; full video inside.Newsmakers
E3 2008: Video Q&A: Carmack on 'one-game' id-EA deal
Legendary Doom founder, id lead designer Tim Willits, and EA Partners GM David DeMartini talk to GameSpot about how Electronic Arts became Rage's publisher.





136 Comments
cool.. will go look up the full article.
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
Sigh, i need to go to Japan
Login to rate this comment
/ (+1)
*clicks on last link*
Ooooo, what a neat looking building. It's so...wavy...
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
Great! Here we have some Dragon Quest! Best series ever!
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
ya... youd think there would be a lot of final fantasies
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
ya... youd think there would be a lot of final fantasies
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
FF7 all da way!!! mgs is pretty good too ^^()
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
Wow...it just goes to show how theres a greater love for DQ in Japan, than in the States...
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
Hmm, I also expected to see Final Fantasy VI. Still, I suppose that while Final Fantasy VI is seen as one of the top RPGs of its generation, Final Fantasy VII is representative of a new generation of RPGs... ...and some of the themes do smell more of Japan than do those of Final Fantasy VI.
Anyhow, we can only hope electronic gaming will eventually become as highly valued in the West as it is in Japan today...
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
Interesting. No Final Fantasy VI or Dragon Quest IV. But it shows us evidence of the differences between Japan's preference and America's: Representing Japan - three Dragon Quests made the list and only one Final Fantasy.
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
Government-sponsored
wow
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
I
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
Pokémon rules XD
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
japan rules
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
Viva Japan!!!!!!!!!
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
Definitely a nice event in Japan. I really hope that they could make a "tour" and showcase that event in more museums around the world.
I was really surprised to see manga like Slam Dunk (a personal favorite) and Neon Genesis Evangelion in the list.
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
Not to sound stereotypical or anything, but I really hope that Gozilla and/or the Power Rangers made it onto that list.
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
Okaaaaaaay... um.... cool?
I wish the US was more accepting of Video Games...
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
I don't get it!!!!!!!.
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
What!?! No transexual anime porn catagory?????? Don't these people know anything about japanese media?
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
Mario FTW!
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
where would the united states be without stuff from japan
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
DJGeki
"Slow day for news, eh? It's not a building erected to pay homage, nor is it a museum exhibit...just a survey. Why, exactly, is this news?"
Well, seriously, why is anything videogame related "news"?
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
Its weird that the Japanesse dont like Zelda as much as we do in the States because I would think OOT would be on there.
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
Slow day for news, eh? It's not a building erected to pay homage, nor is it a museum exhibit...just a survey. Why, exactly, is this news?
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
pokemon...it should have been there maybe 4 years ago but i dont think it deserves to have a spot now
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
go nintendo!
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
FF7, jest plain awesome, MGS sweet, Mario, hmm hey its a classic. DQ 1,3,5 cool, i jest beat 8, and whats funny i found out that the game i played as a kid dragon warrior, was DQ1 lol, and beat it too, no wonder why the DQ sieres felt fimiler.
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
at last Nintendo gets the respect they rightfully deserve,Sony as well has some great games on that list
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
There isn't a comparison, FFVII completely and utterly owns FFVIII - X. Chrono Trigger should have been acknowledged though.
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
I was in Japan in febuary... Akihabara, Tokyo is the best place in the world!!!
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
no words describe the success of the DS in japan...
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
I wanna go to Japan!!
(
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
Touring (Zeromind) Japan next week baby!
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
Going to JAPAN NEXT SUMMER! CAN'T WAIT!
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
playstation the shyt!
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
thats good... nintendo is getting the respect it deserves
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
NES FTW!!!!

Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
Nice.
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
Yay, Puyo Puyo made the list
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
The DS is like a cellphone in that country, everyone has it
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
awesome, NES was a great system.
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
yay
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
Cool to see three Dragon Quest titles up there, including DQ3 and DQ4, which were two of the best games ever made (regardless of genre), and DQ1 which helped popularize the RPG genre on consoles (though it was not the first Japanese RPG).
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
I'm glad the NES is on the list. The NES did ressurect the videogame industry after the Crash in the 80s. If you don't know what I'm talking about, the Crash was caused by poor quality of games when Atari, Colecovision, Intellivision (to name a few) were competing each other in the console war in the early 80s. Due to bad sales, this caused videogame companies to go out of business. To know more about the Crash, watch G4's Game Makers (used to be called Icons). If you can't find the time and date, check the G4tv.com for schedules (GameMakers might not be on the channel anymore, but double check just to be sure.)
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
NES, PS2 and Mario?
Ok, Well deserved but please let me to let you know that Shenmue is in the list too...
BTW Game Spot do you know that SEGA will release Shenmue III:Next Gen(Terilogy Pack) or no???
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
Well deserved. I still have my NES
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
Dragon Quest first of all was the first japanese RPG, secondly japanese gamers have allways been appealed more to a story of magic and of a hero who saves the world... heck, I'd say I'm more of a japanese gamer than anything else... though I'm from the west...
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
Go Mario! You RULE!
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)
Hey peeweeshift ... go read your history books and see why DQ games appeal to the Japanese more than most other things ... if you don't like it, save your comment for yourself. A nation of gamers can't be anymore wrong than your pathetic understanding of their culture.
Login to rate this comment
/ (+0)