ABOUT The King of Games
The Kyoto-based "EDIT MODE" design team began a line of T-shirts called "King of Games" in 2001 after Masaaki Enami convinced Nintendo Company Ltd. ("NCL" a.k.a. Nintendo of Japan) to grant him a license to produce a line of high-quality, original Nintendo shirts. Enami-san was unusually lucky; most licensees are large companies, mass-producers of thousands of toys. Perhaps being a Kyoto native as well as a lifetime Nintendo fan had an influence on NCL's decision.
K.O.G.'s first shirt, "Mario 20th Anniversary" commemorated the humble beginnings of Mario--the hero of the classic DONKEY KONG (1981).
Perhaps a few Nintendo fans have seen this shirt before. Miyamoto himself has worn this shirt on several occasions. It's also one of the few K.O.G. shirts for sale at the Nintendo World store in NYC.
 One of the earliest KOG designs
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Making K.O.G. shirts is not without it's challenges. Every shirt design must be approved by the licensing department at NCL. More importantly, each design must be approved by the creators of the game as well. It's not uncommon for a design to go through several revisions before everyone is satisfied. After a design is approved, small test run of shirts is made for final approval. Then the shirts can go into production.
| Typically, a total of about 200 shirts are hand-printed at a time. Occasionally, (if demand is high enough), some shirts are reprinted. Subsequent printings occasionally have small design changes to differentiate them from the 1st run shirts. All print runs and quantities need approval from NCL. |
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Fantastic Adventure, first run (left) and a current model.
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Since K.O.G.'s start as a one-man operation, K.O.G. has grown to a 3-man team and a handful of dedicated supporters/helpers. From April 2006, K.O.G. began the process of setting up an online store to service Nintendo fans outside of Japan. The expansion is being handled by Sarugakucho, Japan's only game-tuning company.
GAME & WATCH   GAMEBOY   SEGA  OTHER SHIRTS  |
Copyright (C) 2004-2008 editmode & THE KING OF GAMES. All Rights Reserved.
Supported by Sarugakucho
