Ancient (company)
is a Japanese video game developer based in Hino, Tokyo. It was founded on April 1, 1990 by composer Yuzo Koshiro, Ayano Koshiro, and Tomo Koshiro. The company is best known for its work on Streets of Rage 2, Beyond Oasis, the Protect Me Knight/Gotta Protectors series, and the 8-bit versions of Sonic the Hedgehog.
Overview
The company was founded when Yuzo, who had worked on the sound for The Super Shinobi, received an inquiry from Sega asking if he could create the entire game. Yuzo was told that taking on the entire game would require a company-wide deal, so he founded the company. Initially, he invited Shinobu Hayashi, an acquaintance from a doujin PC software circle, to work as a programmer, and formed the company with Ayano, who was in charge of graphics, and four high school classmates. The company was run as a cottage industry. The Game Gear version of Sonic the Hedgehog that they developed became a huge hit, and the profits were used to build the company's headquarters.