Meet Mr Genki

What's the very first computer game you played?

 Chiller on the Commodore 64. I guess £1.99 doesn't extend to buying the Thriller license, but it was not missed as your imagination did the rest. Either that or Bruce Lee on the Speccy. It'd always end in a brawl with my brothers when the rather rotund gadgie would, despite promises of assistance, attack Bruce. Still occasionally he would come to the rescue - to the tune of my brothers singing "Yan'll be there, Waiting for you."

What's your best gaming memory?

 I got hooked on GoldenEye on the N64. On a review's advice, I was playing on the top, 007 difficulty setting. Don't get me wrong - I usually lack such morals when it comes to difficulty settings. It seemed to take a near perfect game to collect all the satellite pieces from the lab and make it to the checkpoint in time. But I managed to deny daylight and under many a moon managed to fight through eventually with pupils dilated and very sweaty palms. That has to be the closest to pure gaming.
On a more sentimental note, I loved the diverse gameplay of Xandra's Big Adventure on the Super Famicom. Poor bloke - just your average jelly baby, family farmer, but with a poorly child. But it gave me a real desire to succeed against such odds as invisible platforms with the wee man pulling your heart strings and lives long in the memory. 

What's the one system you can't live without?

 I think it'd have to be the PC Engine LT just shading out the Super Famicom. I've always loved handhelds from the days when a local toy shop sold Game & Watch and quickly followed by the GameBoy, then onto busting Cheech & Chong vehicles in APB on the Lynx via Mickey Mouse on the Game Gear. The PC Engine has a real Nippon-centric array of titles due to it flourishing so much in its domestic climes. Missing it first time round has added to the pleasure of unearthing a few of these blooming beauties. And the compact LT screen gives a clean, crisp look that you can play in bed. Definitely the most under-the-covers fun - even surpassing the PSP with a hot UMD.

What retro systems do you currently own?

 Saturn, Dreamcast, Nintendo 64, GameCube, Playstation, Lynx, Jaguar, Neo Geo CD, GameBoy, Neo Geo Pocket besides those mentioned. Having beautiful box packaging on the games added to the regret of selling my Super Famicom collection and was probably when I first realised I was a collector. But getting them back can be just as much fun. Buying a Neo Geo and brand new carts probably wasn't the intended way to spend an eighteenth birthday coming of age present. Nor was getting a PSX for £700 on release. But such misdemeanours are all part of import gaming’s rich tapestry. Luckily Genki would never charge such prices... :)

Do you play newer games?

Not too much these days. But I've always an eye on the fresh titles. Pole's Big Adventure (almost) makes me want to set up my Wii net connection again. And having been brought up on the Super Famicom, Super Mario Brothers U looks like a dream from the future. 

How long has GenkiVideoGames been running now?

Seven years. Being a new company means we work hard to please without laurels to rest on. Genki generally means "fine" or "healthy", and is frequently used to ask "How are you?" In Japan. The language translation software often brings this out as "Is it vigorous?" which never fails to entertain our simple minds. 

Why did you set it up?

GenkiVideoGames.com was founded to bring more exposure to the delightful Japanese exclusive titles that don't make it to the West. In a global world, influences from other cultures cross pollinate across the internet and growing exposure to manga, anime and Akiba culture has meant bringing out Japanese games in Western markets is much more feasible. The situation has therefore improved, but going back over the last decade we can see countless examples of fine games not being released outside Japan such as some of the DC shooters. And going further back there's plenty of treasure to trawl up to the surface. We also want to make import gaming less exclusive in terms of price, though unfortunately the Pound ain't what it used to be at the minute.

What are your most popular products?

Whilst there will always be the big titles on each system such as Taromaru, Crows and Dungeons and Dragons on the Saturn, or Kaze Kiri, Steam Hearts and Sapphire on the PC Engine, we get requests for train sims, pachinko titles, anime - themed Famicom games, a bomb diffusal game on the PSX, war sims... Of course our staple market is the shoot em up and 2D fighting titles with liberal lashings of platformers. But the real beauty lies in the diversity of titles out there. Such requests are always welcome through our "Customer Request" facility - it often alerts us to brilliant titles we may have missed and hopefully ends with another very satisfied customers...

We try to give as much coverage to various consoles as our customers will allow us: as such we are particularly well stocked on the Saturn, Dreamcast, PC Engine, Super Famicom, Mega Drive and Playstation. Whereas the Famicom, WonderSwan, XBox and PC FX tend to have less of a fan base so we have to go steady on our spending sprees there.

What are Genki Games doing this year?
Continuing to sniff out undiscovered gems of retro titles, like a gourmet truffle pig.

Which game did you play the most last year and why?
Probably Animal Crossing. Bit embarrassing, so I'll say it was to try and build up some kanji power! The Wii release was disappointing, but something grabs you and won't let go until you've paid your mortgage, rid your house of roaches and run a helping of cold medicine across to a sick friends gaff before checking if Crazy Red has anything new in stock and if there are any big fish in the bay.

If you could make a retro game yourself, what what you do?
Good question. There would have to be ninjas in it such as Kaze Kiri. But humour too like the Ganbare Goeman series. And perhaps the odd idol princess to challenge to a game of paper, scissors, stone like a UMD game. Which is why we don't develop games!

What do you think is the best system of all time?
The Super Famicom. Like the Saturn and PC Engine its almost unrecognisable in its Japanese form to its Western incarnation. There are a wealth of titles as fresh as a recently cut tuna that slipped the net here: a charming platformer called Violinist of Hamelin, Syo the Seal is a cutsey one and Nosferatu is a nice gothic platformer like Prince of Persia meets Castlevania. Assault Suits Valken is a belting shooter as is Cotton 100% and Kikikaikai, Septentrion is a highly original title…

At what age did you start gaming?
About nine I think. I had a C64 which was fun (when they loaded.) That bizarre robot ROB nearly got me into the NES, but instead I ended up dishing out shurikens like confetti in Shinobi and wondering where on earth Alex Kidd came from on the Master System.

What is your biggest gaming achievement?
I pretty much played though Zelda on the Super Famicom in one sitting. No major achievement I guess, but it was quite a few hours. I was spellbinded though by the emotional intensity at times and the enchanting game world. It'll always remain the perfect gaming experience.

Why do you think Retro remains so popular?
Not wishing to be too philosophical, I think we look back on alot of games and have plenty of warm, happy, nostalgic memories of that time which also helps the game to attain immortal status. Like alot of music where you recall what you were doing at the time, you never forget the first time you played Super Mario World.

Why focus on Japanese games?
Just because there are so many that never got released here. I personally prefer the box art too. The situation is alot better now, but it used to always be some gruff Conan look alike on the front of box. Not that there's anything wrong with gruff Conans of course!

What's the rarest Japanese game you sell?
The rarest one was a prize edition of Bangaio on the Dreamcast that has already featured on Retro’s pages. There were only five of them used for a competition and winners received the game, developer signed phonecard and poster.

You sell merchandise as well: is there a lot of demand for that?
I think we have quite a hardcore following as the merchandise has not been too popular. Just to ruin our hardcore credentials, we have stocked a lot of Animal Crossing merchandise over the years. Plus its always hard to resist a Club Nintendo hanky release…

Do you have a brick and mortar store? If not, why not? If yes, where is it located? How is business?
It was a shame but not even a Central London CEX import store could last. So we think outside Japan it’d be hard to survive with a physical store. But business is fine thanks – we continue to sniff out import truffles and most importantly at the right price.

What are your biggest pre-orders right now?
Due to the high value of the Yen, we tend to concentrate on the retro games that hold their value (ie aren’t heavily discounted if it doesn’t sell enough units…) So for new releases, we mainly go for the 360 shooters (such as Akai Katana and Eschatos) and and pick them up on re-release for the better price. The Neo Geo USB pad is proving there are still plenty of fans of the Rolls Royce of consoles.