Konami (Japan)

Background
Founded in 1969 as a jukebox rental and repair business, but later making arcade games in 1973, Konami is a familiar and famous game publisher based in Japan known for their franchises such as Metal Gear, PES (Pro Evolution Soccer), Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (until Ubisoft acquired rights to the franchise, which would later be given to Activision), Castlevania, Gradius, Yu-Gi-Oh!, Contra, and Dance Dance Revolution.

1st Logo (1986-1998)
Nicknames: "The Konami Logo", "The Bacon Strips"

Logo: On a black (or or white) background, two curvy ribbons, one  and one  (or in white on the  background version; in  on the white background version), are seen arranged diagonally with "KONAMI" written below. The ribbons scroll up. Below it is the title screen.

FX/SFX: The scrolling.

Music/Sounds: The opening theme of the game or none.

Availability: Seen on a lot of Konami games on the NES, the MSX, and the arcades such as Contra.

Editor's Note: None.

2nd Logo (1990-1996)
Nicknames: "3D Konami Logo", "Laser Bacon Strips"

Logo: Against a black background, a spark draws a line at the top of the screen. It moves downward until a dark blue outline of the Konami logo from before is shown. Colors fill the Konami logo (the top ribbon, the bottom ribbon , and "KONAMI" ) and textures as the background fades to white. The end result is a beveled version of the Konami logo.

Trivia: This logo is based on the Konami Video logo.

Variants:
 * Depending on the video game system, the line drawn by the spark is in a different color.
 * on Super Famicom/Super Nintendo games
 * on Sega Mega Drive/Genesis games (this can also be spotted on Sega CD games, such as Snatcher)
 * on NEC PC Engine/TurboGrafx-16 games
 * Strangely, on the SNES/Super Famicom version of Gradius III, the logo is shown after the familiar cross hatch screen seen when an arcade game is turned on. There is no copyright info.
 * A still variant exists when region lockout occurs on the Sega Genesis/Mega Drive.

FX/SFX: The line animation and the color fill.

Music/Sounds: A digitized rendition of the second half of the Konami Video logo music, which is an ascending/descending bell-like synth sound as the color appears (which sounds different depending on the game/system); otherwise silent.

Music/Sounds Variants:
 * On Metal Warriors and the SNES version of Zombies Ate My Neighbors, the sound "reverberates" more.
 * On NFL Football for the SNES, the music sounds more muffled.
 * On Tiny Toon Adventures: Buster's Hidden Treasure for the Sega Genesis, the music is fast.

Availability: Seen on all Konami releases for the SNES and Sega Genesis/Mega Drive (and the Sega CD/Mega CD add-on), as well as some for the NEC TurboGrafx 16/PC Engine. The logo is preserved on Castlevania: The Dracula X Chronicles for the PSP and Wii Virtual Console versions of Konami releases as well as the Anniversary Collections for both Contra and Castlevania on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch.

Editor's Note: None.

3rd Logo (1991-1999)


Logo: Just the words "KONAMI" in white scrolling up against a black background.

FX/SFX: The scrolling.

Music/Sounds: None.

Availability: Seen on later games by Konami for Game Boy and the NES, such as Contra III: The Alien Wars and Tiny Toon Adventures: Cartoon Workshop.

Editor's Note: None.

4th Logo (1994-1999)
Nicknames: "Walking Konami Logo", "Konami Gumby", "Gumby Bacon Strips"

Logo: Against a black background with a white floor, we see the Konami logo from before, but rendered in 3D, walking across the screen from right to left, with the silvery text "KONAMI" following behind. The text then stops in the middle and the logo walks off-screen. The logo then walks in ahead toward the screen, pushing the text along with it until the screen turns white and both the text and logo turn into 2D (but in more solid colors than the 1st logo).

FX/SFX: The logo and text moving.

Music/Sounds: A series of synth chimes as the logo walks around, followed by a synth fanfare as the logo is fully formed.

Availability: Seen on Konami releases of the period for the PS1 and Saturn in Japan, such as Dance Dance Revolution and GuitarFreaks. It was also seen on a Japanese promotional tape for the Playstation.

Editor's Note: A memorable logo for many video game players thanks to the familiar CGI animation and whimsical music.

5th Logo (1995-1998)
Nicknames: "3D Konami Logo II", "Rotating Konami Logo"

Logo: Against a black background, the two bacon strips rotate 180 degrees until they stop and the logo's background turns or white and the text "KONAMI" turns.

Variants:
 * On Fighting Bujutsu, the Konami logo moves from left to the center, almost in warp speed.
 * On Gradius IV, the logo ends with a still of the 8th logo.

FX/SFX: The logo moving in 3D.

Music/Sounds: A remixed version of the 2nd logo's synth chime.

Music/Sounds Variant: Depending on the game, a longer version of the music can be found on Hang Pilot and Gradius IV, which is 4 seconds long.

Availability: Seen on some Konami arcade games released from 1995 until 1998 starting with Midnight Run: Road Fighter 2 and ending with Racing Jam: Chapter 2. Note that the majority of these games can range from very rare to extinct. However, the Hang Pilot (a.k.a Gradius IV) variant can be found on Gradius III & IV Collection on the PlayStation 2 and other compilations of Gradius games.

Editor's Note: None.

6th Logo (1996-1999)
Nicknames: "Through the Rocks", "Rocky Bacon Strips"

Logo: Against a swirly dark blue sky looking similar to the northern lights, we see some boulders rising from the ground. The word "KONAMI" in steel flips up from underneath. We zoom out, and this ends with the two strips flipping up to the screen really fast. The screen quickly shifts to white, with the logo in slightly lighter colors and a registered trademark "®" symbol.

FX/SFX: The boulders, the logo rising, the northern lights sky, and the logo forming.

Music/Sounds: A dramatic tune with boulders crumbling (sounds more like explosions), a jet-like sound as the strips fly forth, and an orchestral "hit" as the logo is formed.

Availability: Seen on pretty much all Konami games for the PS1 and Saturn released in North America and PAL territories, such as Contra: Legacy of War, Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, and select sports games from the company.

Editor's Note: None.

7th Logo (1997-1999)


Nicknames: "Flip In", "Flipping Bacon Strips"

Logo: Against a black/ gradient background, the three pieces of the Konami logo flip in, the ribbon coming in from the left, the  ribbon coming in from the right, and the company name in  zooming out. When they join together, the screen turns white. The logo lacks the registered trademark "®" symbol from before.

FX/SFX: The parts of the logo coming together.

Music/Sounds: Just a chime when the logo comes together.

Availability: Seen on Mystical Ninja Starring Goemon and all other Konami games for the Nintendo 64.

Editor's Note: None.

8th Logo (1998-2003)
Logo: Just a still picture of the ribbons logo.

Variants:
 * On Metal Gear Solid, the logo fades out to the KCEJ logo.
 * Beginning in late 1998, the "KONAMI" text is now rendered in an un-italicized, bold font. It would sometimes be seen in a white box on a black background.

FX/SFX: None.

Music/Sounds: None, or the game's theme. On Metal Gear Solid, there is a 12-note synth vocal jingle based off of the Policenauts theme song. For arcade releases, the chimes from the Konami Video logo (albeit with low marimba notes and the string chord) are used.

Availability: Seen on some games from Konami, such as Metal Gear Solid, ''Yu-Gi-Oh! Forbidden Memories, Konami Arcade Classics, and Evolution Skateboarding''. Can also be seen on the company's arcade games of the time, including early titles under the BEMANI series (beatmania IIDX, DanceDanceRevolution, pop'n music, GuitarFreaks, and DrumMania).

Editor's Note: None.

9th Logo (2003-)
Nickname: "The Knife", "The Banner", "The Text"

Logo: Just the word "KONAMI" in a much different font on a knife-shaped banner. This takes place on a white or black background.

Variants:
 * Starting in 2013, the knife-shaped banner is removed, so it's only the text.
 * Beginning in 2018, the logo's colors are inverted; now it's white text displayed on a background.

FX/SFX: The fade-in.

Music/Sounds: Usually none. On arcade games, a tune is heard which just a little bit sounds like the Capcom jingle.

Music/Sounds Variant: Early releases use the Konami Video chimes.

Availability: Common. Seen on all Konami games since 2003.

Editor's Note: None.