Difference between revisions of "Midway Games"

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| logo=MidwayGames logo.svg
 
| logo=MidwayGames logo.svg
 
| founded=1958 (as Midway Manufacturing)
 
| founded=1958 (as Midway Manufacturing)
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| defunct=still in liquidation as of 2011
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| defunct=2010-06-09
 
| mergedwith=[[Williams Entertainment]] (1996)
 
| mergedwith=[[Williams Entertainment]] (1996)
 
| mergedinto=Bally (1969)
 
| mergedinto=Bally (1969)
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| headquarters=Chicago, Illinois, United States
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| headquarters=10750 West Grand Avenue, Franklin Park, Illinois 60131, United States
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| headquarters2=3401 N. California Avenue, Chicago, Illinois, 60618, United States{{fileref|E32001 Directory.pdf|page=96}}
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| headquarters3=10070 Mesa Rim Road, San Diego, California 92121, United States{{fileref|E32004 Directory.pdf|page=101}}
 
}}
 
}}
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{{sub-stub}}'''Midway Games, Inc.''' was a video game developer and later publisher.
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{{sub-stub}}'''Midway Games, Inc.''' was a video game developer and publisher.
  
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==History==
 
Midway was founded in 1958 as '''Midway Manufacturing Co.''' as an independent manufacturer of amusement equipment. In 1969 it was acquired by [[Bally Manufacturing]], which was a dominant force in the slot machine market, however the two continued to run as separate entities in the Bally family.
 
Midway was founded in 1958 as '''Midway Manufacturing Co.''' as an independent manufacturer of amusement equipment. In 1969 it was acquired by [[Bally Manufacturing]], which was a dominant force in the slot machine market, however the two continued to run as separate entities in the Bally family.
  
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During the late 1960s and early 1970s Midway produced electro-mechanical arcade machines, but by 1973 the company was beginning to take an interest in the burgeoning video games market. Midway got its big break when it acquired the license to distribute Japanese arcade games from the likes of [[Namco]] and [[Taito]] in North America, including ''[[Space Invaders]]'' and ''[[Pac-Man]]''. Midway would also produce its own video games, most notably the unauthroised modification to ''Pac-Man'', ''[[Ms. Pac-Man]]''.
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During the late 1960s to early 1970s, Midway produced electro-mechanical arcade machines. Their earliest interaction with [[Sega]] was in 1970, when Sega licensed their 1969 arcade hit ''[[Missile]]'' to Midway, who in 1970 released their own American version called ''S.A.M.I.''{{ref|1=[https://books.google.com/books?id=7qZhDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA11 ''The Sega Arcade Revolution: A History in 62 Games'']}} By 1973, the company was beginning to take an interest in the burgeoning video games market. Midway got its big break when it acquired the license to distribute Japanese arcade games from the likes of [[Namco]] and [[Taito]] in North America, including ''[[Space Invaders]]'' and ''[[Pac-Man]]''. Midway would also produce its own video games, most notably the unauthroized modification to ''Pac-Man'', ''[[Ms. Pac-Man]]''.
  
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Both Bally and Midway were producing pinball tables separately, so in 1982 it was decided to merge the two divisions, creating '''Bally Midway Manufacturing Co., Inc.'''. From this point onwards most video games and pinball tables were being credited to "Bally Midway", and the company was producing its own video games in addition to distributing imports.
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In 1982, Midway became '''Bally Midway Manufacturing Co., Inc.''' (a subsidiary of Bally Manufacturing) after it was merged with Bally's pinball division. After the summer of 1983{{magref|bb|1983-10-08|30}} Bally Midway purchased [[Sega Electronics]] (formerly Gremlin Industries) for an undisclosed price{{magref|cb|1983-09-10|37}}. Bally Midway became the exclusive North American distributor of Sega arcade games for a short period because of this, before Sega re-entered the market in 1985 to distribute their games themselves.
  
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After the summer of 1983{{magref|bb|1983-10-08|30}} Bally Midway purchased [[Sega Electronics]] (formerly Gremlin Industries) for an undisclosed price{{magref|cb|1983-09-10|37}}. The majority of Sega's products at this point were coming from Japan, so Bally Midway became the exclusive distributor of Sega arcade games for a short period, before Sega re-entered the market to represent themselves.
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Bally Manufacturing sold its Bally Midway division to [[WMS Industries]] in 1988{{magref|cb|1988-07-23|32}}, choosing instead to focus on their other ventures, such as casino games and fitness clubs. WMS changed the division's name back to "Midway Manufacturing Co.", however confusion would arise, as it would continue to use the Bally name for some pinball machines. The Midway brand would always be used for video games.
  
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In 1988 the Bally Midway division was purchased by WMS Industries. WMS chose to distinguish the brands once again, with the Bally name used for pinball, and the Midway name used for video games. The purchasing also led to the video game assets of [[Williams Electronics Games]] being merged with Midway. Williams, who also produced pinball tables, would effectively absorb the Bally pinball division some years later.
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Midway would create ''[[Mortal Kombat]]'', a video game that would become one of the main subjects of the [[1993–94 United States Senate hearings on video games]].
  
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Midway developed and published some of the most successful video games of the 80s before striking gold in the 90s with the ''Mortal Kombat'' series of fighting games and ''NBA Jam'' series of sports games.  
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In 1996, WMS purchased [[Time Warner Interactive]] (which owned [[Atari Games]]). Time Warner Interactive was merged into [[Williams Entertainment]] which then became [[Midway Home Entertainment]]. Midway Games split from WMS Industries in 1998; Midway gained Williams' arcade game properties while Williams gained Midway's pinball properties.
  
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In 1994, WMS would purchase [[Tradewest]] and rename it "Williams Entertainment". Then, in 1996, WMS purchased [[Time Warner Interactive]] (and [[Atari Games]]). Both were subsequently merged into a '''Midway Games''' brand - Williams Entertainment became [[Midway Home Entertainment]] while Time Warner Interactive became [[Midway Games West]]. In 1998 Midway Games split from WMS Industries, becoming its own separate company once again.
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Their output started to decline in the 2000s — and their bottom line plummeted, leading to their bankruptcy in 2009. [[Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment]] currently owns most of their IP assets.
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Their output started to decline in the 2000s — and their bottom line plummeted, leading to their bankruptcy in 2009. Warner Bros. currently owns most, if not all, of their IP assets (bar some Atari Games assets, now owned by a different Atari Inc.).
 
  
 
==Softography==
 
==Softography==
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{{CompanyHistoryAll|Midway Games|Midway Manufacturing|Bally Midway}}
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{{CompanyHistoryAll|Midway Games|Midway Amusement Games|Midway Manufacturing|Bally Midway}}
  
 
==Gallery==
 
==Gallery==
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==References==
 
==References==
 
<references />
 
<references />
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[[Category:Licensors]]

Latest revision as of 21:45, 23 August 2024

https://segaretro.org/images/3/32/MidwayGames_logo.svg

MidwayGames logo.svg
Midway Games
Founded: 1958 (as Midway Manufacturing)
Defunct: 2010-06-09
Merged with: Williams Entertainment (1996)
Merged into: Bally (1969)
Headquarters:
10750 West Grand Avenue, Franklin Park, Illinois 60131, United States
3401 N. California Avenue, Chicago, Illinois, 60618, United States[1]
10070 Mesa Rim Road, San Diego, California 92121, United States[2]

This teeny-tiny article needs some work. You can help us by expanding it.

Midway Games, Inc. was a video game developer and publisher.

History

Midway was founded in 1958 as Midway Manufacturing Co. as an independent manufacturer of amusement equipment. In 1969 it was acquired by Bally Manufacturing, which was a dominant force in the slot machine market, however the two continued to run as separate entities in the Bally family.

During the late 1960s to early 1970s, Midway produced electro-mechanical arcade machines. Their earliest interaction with Sega was in 1970, when Sega licensed their 1969 arcade hit Missile to Midway, who in 1970 released their own American version called S.A.M.I.[3] By 1973, the company was beginning to take an interest in the burgeoning video games market. Midway got its big break when it acquired the license to distribute Japanese arcade games from the likes of Namco and Taito in North America, including Space Invaders and Pac-Man. Midway would also produce its own video games, most notably the unauthroized modification to Pac-Man, Ms. Pac-Man.

In 1982, Midway became Bally Midway Manufacturing Co., Inc. (a subsidiary of Bally Manufacturing) after it was merged with Bally's pinball division. After the summer of 1983[4] Bally Midway purchased Sega Electronics (formerly Gremlin Industries) for an undisclosed price[5]. Bally Midway became the exclusive North American distributor of Sega arcade games for a short period because of this, before Sega re-entered the market in 1985 to distribute their games themselves.

Bally Manufacturing sold its Bally Midway division to WMS Industries in 1988[6], choosing instead to focus on their other ventures, such as casino games and fitness clubs. WMS changed the division's name back to "Midway Manufacturing Co.", however confusion would arise, as it would continue to use the Bally name for some pinball machines. The Midway brand would always be used for video games.

Midway would create Mortal Kombat, a video game that would become one of the main subjects of the 1993–94 United States Senate hearings on video games.

In 1996, WMS purchased Time Warner Interactive (which owned Atari Games). Time Warner Interactive was merged into Williams Entertainment which then became Midway Home Entertainment. Midway Games split from WMS Industries in 1998; Midway gained Williams' arcade game properties while Williams gained Midway's pinball properties.

Their output started to decline in the 2000s — and their bottom line plummeted, leading to their bankruptcy in 2009. Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment currently owns most of their IP assets.

Softography

Electro-mechanical arcade

LaserDisc hardware

System 1

Arcade

Master System

Mega Drive

Game Gear

Mega-CD

32X

Saturn

Dreamcast

Atari 2600

Atari 8-bit family

Apple II

Commodore 64

IBM PC

BBC Micro

ZX Spectrum

Amstrad CPC

  • Tapper (1984) (as Bally Midway)

Gallery

  • Midway Manufacturing logo (1958-1982)

  • Bally Midway logo (1982-1991)

  • Midway Games logo (1996-)

References

  1. ↑ E3 2001 Directory, page 96
  2. ↑ E3 2004 Directory, page 101
  3. ↑ The Sega Arcade Revolution: A History in 62 Games
  4. ↑ Billboard, "October 8, 1983" (US; 1983-10-08), page 30
  5. ↑ Cash Box, "September 10, 1983" (US; 1983-09-10), page 37
  6. ↑ Cash Box, "July 23, 1988" (US; 1988-07-23), page 32
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