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{{system infobox
The '''Famicom''' was the Japenese equivalent to the [[Nintendo Entertainment System]], or NES, being a combination of the words "family" and "computer."
|image=[[File:Famicom.jpg|250px]]
|generation=Third
|release='''Family Computer:'''<br>{{flag list|Japan|July 15, 1983|ROC|1987|British HK|1991}} '''Nintendo Classic Mini: Family Computer:'''<br>{{flag list|Japan|November 10, 2016}}
|ratings=Nintendo Classic Mini: Family Computer:{{ratings|cero=B}}
|discontinued='''Family Computer:'''<br>September 25, 2003<ref name=Discontinue>http://www.webcitation.org/5nXieXX2B</ref><br>
'''Nintendo Classic Mini: Family Computer:'''<br>April 2017
|predecessor={{wp|Color TV-Game}}
|successor=[[Super Nintendo Entertainment System|Super Famicom]]
}}
{{quote|If you were to strike up a friendship with a Japanese gamer and happened to ask him whether he owned a [[Nintendo Entertainment System|NES]] back in the '80s, you'd probably be met with a blank stare.|''{{wp|Official Nintendo Magazine}}''}}
[[File:Family Computer Logo.png|left|250px]] The '''Family Computer''' (often shortened to '''Famicom''') is a third-generation video game console created by [[Nintendo]]. It was released in Japan on July 15, 1983; Taiwan in 1987; and Hong Kong in 1991. Because the latter region previously saw an official release of its {{wp|Western world|Western}} counterpart, the [[Nintendo Entertainment System]] (or NES), the Hong Kongese release of the Famicom was marketed as a "second-generation" hardware revision, adding the ability to toggle between PAL 50 Hz and PAL 60 Hz output.<ref>{{cite|author=Akfamilyhome|date=April 1, 2020|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IToY_73pRHU|publisher=YouTube|title=A History of Nintendo's Hong Kong Releases|language=Cantonese & English (English subtitles available)|archive=https://web.archive.org/web/20240525112253/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IToY_73pRHU|accessdate=June 5, 2024}}</ref> Nintendo additionally arranged a deal with the Russian technology company Steepler in 1994 to permit the sale of a clone console called the Dendy in the former Soviet Union in exchange for providing equal distribution for the [[Super Nintendo Entertainment System]].<ref>{{cite|author=Игорь Пичугин|date=November 1, 1994|url=https://www.kommersant.ru/doc/94004|title=Соглашение Steepler и Nintendo|publisher=Газета "Коммерсантъ"|language=Russian|archive=https://web.archive.org/web/20190427025842/https://www.kommersant.ru/doc/94004|accessdate=June 1, 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite|author=Семён Костин|date=December 14, 2021|url=https://dtf.ru/games/970617-legenda-o-slone-kak-it-kompaniya-steepler-sozdala-dendy-i-osnovala-rossiiskii-konsolnyi-rynok|title=Легенда о слоне: как IT-компания Steepler создала Dendy и основала российский консольный рынок|publisher=DTF|language=Russian|archive=https://web.archive.org/web/20240601223552/https://dtf.ru/games/970617-legenda-o-slone-kak-it-kompaniya-steepler-sozdala-dendy-i-osnovala-rossiiskii-konsolnyi-rynok|accessdate=June 1, 2024}}</ref> The console would be redesigned for the West as the Nintendo Entertainment System. The Family Computer's controllers were attached to the main unit, unlike those of the NES, and could be stored on the sides of the system. Player One's controller can pause the game, and Player Two's controller has audio controls. The cartridges were half the size of the NES's, and were inserted in the top instead of through a door in the front (like on the NES). Instead of looking like a vertical cartridge, like the NES, a Famicom cartridge more closely resembles an audio cassette but can be found in different colors, such as red, yellow, and blue. By the release of ''[[Super Mario Bros.]]'', Nintendo had already sold over four million units.<ref>{{cite|language=ja|url=www.ndw.jp/post-714|title=上村雅之さん 大いに語る。 ファミリーコンピュータ インタビュー（後編）（2013年10月号より）|publisher=[[Nintendo DREAM|''Nintendo DREAM Web'']]|accessdate=June 18, 2023}}</ref> The redesigned '''New Famicom''' (often called the '''AV Famicom''') would release in Japan on December 1, 1993. The Famicom sold 19.35 million units in Japan and would be discontinued on September 25, 2003.<ref name=Discontinue />


{{stub}}
A few months after the July 1983 release of the Famicom, Sharp produced the {{wp|Nintendo Entertainment System models#Sharp Nintendo Television|Sharp C1 Famicom TV}}, a combined console and TV unit packaged with ''[[Donkey Kong Jr. + Jr. Sansū Lesson]]''. The following year, Sharp released the Playbox BASIC and [[Family BASIC]] accessories, allowing users to program in {{wp|BASIC}} on their Family Computers, and included characters of the [[Super Mario (franchise)|''Super Mario'' franchise]] as programmable sprites.


[[Category: Video Game Systems]]
In February 1986, the [[Family Computer Disk System]] accessory was released, and it enabled games to be played on the Family Computer in the form of a disk. Many newer games that were never released on the Family Computer or NES were released only on the Disk System, such as ''[[Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels]]''.
 
In 1987, the {{wp|Famicom 3D System}} accessory was released, but like the future [[Virtual Boy]], it flopped. This is compatible with the Disk System game ''[[Famicom Grand Prix II: 3D Hot Rally]]''.
 
==Nintendo Classic Mini: Family Computer==
[[File:NintendoClassicMini-FamilyComputer-Packshot.jpg|thumb|left|150px|The packaging of the Nintendo Classic Mini.]]
{{main|Classics#Nintendo Classic Mini: Family Computer}}
On September 29, 2016, Nintendo announced the '''Nintendo Classic Mini: Family Computer''', the Family Computer counterpart of the [[Classics#NES Classic Edition|NES Classic Edition]],<ref>{{cite|date=September 29, 2016|url=www.nintendo.com/jp/topics/article/d2923b54-8552-11e6-9b38-063b7ac45a6d|language=ja|title=ファミコンが、手のひらサイズで"再"登場！|publisher=Nintendo|accessdate=May 31, 2024}}</ref> and was released alongside it in Japan on November 10, 2016. Like the NES Classic Edition, it includes 30 pre-installed Family Computer games, although with some differences in the game lineup, such as ''[[NES Open Tournament Golf|Mario Open Golf]]'' in place of ''[[Donkey Kong Jr. (game)|Donkey Kong Jr.]]'' Production for the console was discontinued in April 2017.<ref>{{cite|author=Sephazon, Robert|date=April 14, 2017|url=www.nintendolife.com/news/2017/04/the_famicom_classic_edition_has_now_also_been_discontinued|title=The Famicom Classic Edition Has Now Also Been Discontinued|language=en|publisher=Nintendo Life|accessdate=May 31, 2024}}</ref>
{{br|left}}
 
==Appearances in the ''Super Mario'' franchise==
*In ''[[Super Mario Bros.: Peach-hime Kyūshutsu Dai Sakusen!]]'', [[Mario]] himself owns a Famicom, on which he plays an unnamed video game which bears some similarities to ''[[Super Mario Bros.]]'' [[Princess Peach]] and [[Bowser]] also teleport through the television to which the Famicom is connected, although they do not appear to have any role at all in the game Mario is playing.
*In ''[[WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Microgame$!]]'', 9-Volt owns a Famicom system which can be seen in the upper-left corner of the screen during his introduction cutscene.
*In ''[[Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door]]'', during [[Princess Peach]]'s Interlude after Chapter 5, [[TEC]] asks Peach to drink an invisibility potion in order to secretly enter [[Grodus]]'s chamber and upload important data on a disk into the room's computer. When this happens, the computer screen shows the Famicom Disk System boot-up sequence.
*In the Japanese version of ''[[WarioWare: Smooth Moves]]'', the microgame [[Super Nostalgic Entertainment System]] uses a Family Computer instead. The Famicom controller also appears as a sound effect icon in the [[Sound Studio]].
*In ''[[Super Paper Mario]]'', a Famicom can be seen on a shelf in one of [[Francis]]' rooms in his [[Fort Francis|fort]], among other Nintendo systems.
*In ''[[WarioWare: D.I.Y.]]'', a green Family Computer cartridge makes up the bottom screen of the title screen. Also, the designs and colors of the cartridges in this game are based on those of the Famicom.
*In ''[[WarioWare Gold]]'', the Famicom appears as a collectible Nintendo [[list of souvenirs in WarioWare Gold|souvenir]].
*In ''[[WarioWare: Get It Together!]]'' in [[9-Volt]]'s Nintendo Classics level, the boss that appears in the intermission before the boss microgame has a Famicom controller for a face.
<gallery>
TheGreatMissionMarioPlayer.png|thumb|''Super Mario Bros.: Peach-hime Kyūshutsu Dai Sakusen!''
Family Computer microgame OMIW.jpg|''WarioWare: Smooth Moves'' (Japan)
SPM Francisroomright.png|''Super Paper Mario''
WWGIT Nintendo Classics Boss.jpg|''WarioWare: Get It Together!''
</gallery>
 
==Gallery==
===Logos===
<gallery>
Family Computer Logo.png
Famicom Family logo.svg|Alternate logo
</gallery>
 
===''Super Mario'' games===
<gallery>
FC Dr. Mario.png|''[[Dr. Mario (game)|Dr. Mario]]''
FC DK.png|''[[Donkey Kong (game)|Donkey Kong]]''
FC DK new.png|''Donkey Kong'' alternate cartridge
FC DKJ.png|''[[Donkey Kong Jr. (game)|Donkey Kong Jr.]]''
Famicom dkjr.jpeg|''Donkey Kong Jr.'' alternate cartridge
FC DKJM.png|''[[Donkey Kong Jr. Math]]''
DKJr Sansū Lesson cartridge.jpg|''[[Donkey Kong Jr. + Jr. Sansū Lesson]]''
FC DK3.png|''[[Donkey Kong 3]]''
FamilyBASICcartridges.jpg|[[Family BASIC]] and Family BASIC V3 cartridges
FC Golf old.jpg|''[[Golf]]''
FC Golf new.png|''Golf'' alternate cartridge
FC MB.png|''[[Mario Bros. (game)|Mario Bros.]]''
Mario Bros. Famicom cart.jpg|''Mario Bros.'' alternate cartridge
FC MOG.png|''[[NES Open Tournament Golf|Mario Open Golf]]''
FC Pinball.png|''[[Pinball (game)|Pinball]]''
PlayboxBASICcartridge.jpg|[[Family BASIC|Playbox BASIC]]
FC SMB.png|''[[Super Mario Bros.]]''
FC SMB3.png|''[[Super Mario Bros. 3]]''
FC SMUSA.png|''[[Super Mario Bros. 2|Super Mario USA]]''
FC WW.png|''[[Wario's Woods (Nintendo Entertainment System)|Wario's Woods]]''
FC Wrecking Crew.png|''[[Wrecking Crew]]''
FC Yoshi.png|''[[Yoshi (game)|Yoshi]]''
FC YC.png|''[[Yoshi's Cookie]]''
</gallery>
 
===Miscellaneous===
<gallery>
Made in Wario site 9-Volt controller.gif|Pictogram of a Famicom controller from the official [[WarioWare (series)|''Made in Wario'']] website
Nintendo Museum Nintendo Classics.png|Photo of the "Nintendo Classics" exhibit at the [[Nintendo Museum]]
Nintendo Museum Big Controller.png|Photo of the "Big Controller" exhibit at the Nintendo Museum
</gallery>
 
==References==
<references/>
 
==External links==
{{NIWA|FireEmblem=Family Computer|MetroidWiki=Famicom|NWiki=1|StarfyWiki=Famicom|StrategyWiki=Category:NES|WikiBound=Nintendo Entertainment System|ZeldaWiki=Famicom}}
*[https://www.nintendo.com/jp/famicom/index.html Official Famicom 40th Anniversary site (Nintendo JP)]
{{NES}}
{{Systems}}
[[Category:Japan-only systems]]
[[Category:Systems]]
[[it:Family Computer]]

Latest revision as of 11:38, November 21, 2024

Family Computer
Family Computer
Generation Third generation
Release date Family Computer:
Japan July 15, 1983[?]
ROC 1987[?]
British HK 1991[?]
Nintendo Classic Mini: Family Computer:
Japan November 10, 2016[?]
Discontinued Family Computer:
September 25, 2003[1]

Nintendo Classic Mini: Family Computer:
April 2017

Ratings Nintendo Classic Mini: Family Computer:
CERO:B - Twelve years and older
Predecessor Color TV-Game
Successor Super Famicom
“If you were to strike up a friendship with a Japanese gamer and happened to ask him whether he owned a NES back in the '80s, you'd probably be met with a blank stare.”
—Official Nintendo Magazine
The logo for the Family Computer

The Family Computer (often shortened to Famicom) is a third-generation video game console created by Nintendo. It was released in Japan on July 15, 1983; Taiwan in 1987; and Hong Kong in 1991. Because the latter region previously saw an official release of its Western counterpart, the Nintendo Entertainment System (or NES), the Hong Kongese release of the Famicom was marketed as a "second-generation" hardware revision, adding the ability to toggle between PAL 50 Hz and PAL 60 Hz output.[2] Nintendo additionally arranged a deal with the Russian technology company Steepler in 1994 to permit the sale of a clone console called the Dendy in the former Soviet Union in exchange for providing equal distribution for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System.[3][4] The console would be redesigned for the West as the Nintendo Entertainment System. The Family Computer's controllers were attached to the main unit, unlike those of the NES, and could be stored on the sides of the system. Player One's controller can pause the game, and Player Two's controller has audio controls. The cartridges were half the size of the NES's, and were inserted in the top instead of through a door in the front (like on the NES). Instead of looking like a vertical cartridge, like the NES, a Famicom cartridge more closely resembles an audio cassette but can be found in different colors, such as red, yellow, and blue. By the release of Super Mario Bros., Nintendo had already sold over four million units.[5] The redesigned New Famicom (often called the AV Famicom) would release in Japan on December 1, 1993. The Famicom sold 19.35 million units in Japan and would be discontinued on September 25, 2003.[1]

A few months after the July 1983 release of the Famicom, Sharp produced the Sharp C1 Famicom TV, a combined console and TV unit packaged with Donkey Kong Jr. + Jr. Sansū Lesson. The following year, Sharp released the Playbox BASIC and Family BASIC accessories, allowing users to program in BASIC on their Family Computers, and included characters of the Super Mario franchise as programmable sprites.

In February 1986, the Family Computer Disk System accessory was released, and it enabled games to be played on the Family Computer in the form of a disk. Many newer games that were never released on the Family Computer or NES were released only on the Disk System, such as Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels.

In 1987, the Famicom 3D System accessory was released, but like the future Virtual Boy, it flopped. This is compatible with the Disk System game Famicom Grand Prix II: 3D Hot Rally.

Nintendo Classic Mini: Family Computer[edit]

Nintendo Classic Mini: Family Computer
The packaging of the Nintendo Classic Mini.
Main article: Classics § Nintendo Classic Mini: Family Computer

On September 29, 2016, Nintendo announced the Nintendo Classic Mini: Family Computer, the Family Computer counterpart of the NES Classic Edition,[6] and was released alongside it in Japan on November 10, 2016. Like the NES Classic Edition, it includes 30 pre-installed Family Computer games, although with some differences in the game lineup, such as Mario Open Golf in place of Donkey Kong Jr. Production for the console was discontinued in April 2017.[7]

Appearances in the Super Mario franchise[edit]

  • Super Mario Bros.: Peach-hime Kyūshutsu Dai Sakusen!

    Super Mario Bros.: Peach-hime Kyūshutsu Dai Sakusen!

  • WarioWare: Smooth Moves (Japan)

    WarioWare: Smooth Moves (Japan)

  • Super Paper Mario

    Super Paper Mario

  • WarioWare: Get It Together!

    WarioWare: Get It Together!

Gallery[edit]

Logos[edit]

  • Family Computer Logo.png
  • Alternate logo

    Alternate logo

Super Mario games[edit]

Miscellaneous[edit]

  • Pictogram of a Famicom controller from the official Made in Wario website

    Pictogram of a Famicom controller from the official Made in Wario website

  • Photo of the "Nintendo Classics" exhibit at the Nintendo Museum

    Photo of the "Nintendo Classics" exhibit at the Nintendo Museum

  • Photo of the "Big Controller" exhibit at the Nintendo Museum

    Photo of the "Big Controller" exhibit at the Nintendo Museum

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b http://www.webcitation.org/5nXieXX2B
  2. ^ Akfamilyhome (April 1, 2020). A History of Nintendo's Hong Kong Releases. YouTube (Cantonese & English (English subtitles available)). Retrieved June 5, 2024. (Archived May 25, 2024, 11:22:53 UTC via Wayback Machine.)
  3. ^ Игорь Пичугин (November 1, 1994). Соглашение Steepler и Nintendo. Газета "Коммерсантъ" (Russian). Retrieved June 1, 2024. (Archived April 27, 2019, 02:58:42 UTC via Wayback Machine.)
  4. ^ Семён Костин (December 14, 2021). Легенда о слоне: как IT-компания Steepler создала Dendy и основала российский консольный рынок. DTF (Russian). Retrieved June 1, 2024. (Archived June 1, 2024, 22:35:52 UTC via Wayback Machine.)
  5. ^ 上村雅之さん 大いに語る。 ファミリーコンピュータ インタビュー（後編）（2013年10月号より）. Nintendo DREAM Web (Japanese). Retrieved June 18, 2023.
  6. ^ September 29, 2016. ファミコンが、手のひらサイズで"再"登場！. Nintendo (Japanese). Retrieved May 31, 2024.
  7. ^ Sephazon, Robert (April 14, 2017). The Famicom Classic Edition Has Now Also Been Discontinued. Nintendo Life (English). Retrieved May 31, 2024.

External links[edit]

Family Computer coverage on other NIWA wikis:
[Edit]
Family Computer / Nintendo Entertainment System games
Super Mario franchise Donkey Kong (1983) • Mario Bros. (1983) • Pinball (1984) • Golf (1984) • Family BASIC V3† (1985) • Wrecking Crew (1985) • Super Mario Bros. (1985) • Super Mario Bros. 2 (1988) • Super Mario Bros. 3 (1988) • Dr. Mario (1990) • NES Open Tournament Golf (1991) • Mario is Missing!* (1993) • Mario's Time Machine* (1994)
Donkey Kong franchise Donkey Kong (1983) • Donkey Kong Jr. (1983) • Donkey Kong Jr. + Jr. Sansū Lesson† (1983) • Donkey Kong Jr. Math (1983) • Donkey Kong 3 (1984) • Donkey Kong Classics* (1988)
Yoshi franchise Yoshi (1991) • Yoshi's Cookie (1992)
Wario franchise Wario's Woods (1994)
Family Computer Disk System Golf (1986) • Super Mario Bros. (1986) • Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels (1986) • I am a teacher: Super Mario Sweater (1986) • All Night Nippon: Super Mario Bros. (1986) • Golf: Japan Course (1987) • Golf: U.S. Course (1987) • Yume Kōjō: Doki Doki Panic (1987) • Famicom Grand Prix: F1 Race (1987) • Donkey Kong‡ (1988) • Famicom Grand Prix II: 3D Hot Rally (1988) • Donkey Kong Jr.‡ (1988) • Mario Bros. Returns‡ (1988) • Wrecking Crew‡ (1989) • Pinball‡ (1989)
Miscellaneous Nintendo World Championships 1990* (1990) • Nintendo Campus Challenge* (1991)
* NES only
† Famicom only
‡ Disk Writer only
[Edit]
Video game systems and add-ons
Nintendo home consoles Family Computer/Nintendo Entertainment System (Family BASIC, Family Computer Disk System) • Super Famicom/Super Nintendo Entertainment System (Satellaview, Super Game Boy) • Nintendo 64 (Nintendo 64DD) • Nintendo GameCube (Game Boy Player) • Wii (Virtual Console, WiiWare) • Wii U (Virtual Console) • Nintendo Switch
Nintendo handhelds Game & Watch • Game Boy • Virtual Boy • Game Boy Color • Game Boy Advance • Nintendo DS (Nintendo DSi, DSiWare) • Nintendo 3DS (Virtual Console) • Nintendo Switch
Other MS-DOS • VS. System • Nintendo PlayChoice-10 • Nintendo Super System • Nelsonic Game Watch • Super Mario Bros. Watch • Gamewatch Boy • Philips CD-i • Mini Classics • Triforce • Visteon Dockable Entertainment System • Classics • LodgeNet • Nintendo Sound Clock: Alarmo
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