Grasshopper Manufacture Inc. (株式会社グラスホッパー・マニファクチュア, Kabushiki Gaisha Gurasuhoppā Manifakuchua) is a Japanese video game developer founded on March 30, 1998 by Goichi Suda. They are well known for creating titles such as Killer7 and the No More Heroes series.
History
The company was founded on March 30, 1998 in Suginami, Japan. Its founder, Goichi Suda, gave two reasons why he chose the name "Grasshopper:" The first being a reference to the song of the same name by UK band Ride, which he was listening to on repeat when forming the company.[2] The second reason is that originally he wanted to use a Japanese word "battamon" as the company name. "Batta" means "grasshopper" and "mon" is "a thing" and when you put the words together, it means "copy or fake." However, he later changed his mind and stuck to Grasshopper instead. The word "Manufacture" was added in because his game company was about "building things."[3]
Grasshopper was said to be working on an Xbox 360 title, and presented a concept for a PlayStation 3 game called Kurayami, a non-linear action-adventure inspired by the worrying and confused universe of the Czech writer Franz Kafka, whom Suda admires.[8] This was later cancelled and reincorporated ideas were put into the game Shadows of the Damned.[8] In 2010, Yasuhiro Wada joined Grasshopper Manufacture as COO. He then left Grasshopper, and founded the company Toybox in 2011.[9] During development of Shadows of the Damned, the employee count of Grasshopper would double to 140.[10]
On 30 January 2013, Grasshopper Manufacture was acquired by GungHo Online Entertainment.[11] Their first title released under GungHo was Let It Die. In 2018, the company would post a notice of an absorption-type split over issues in management, confirming that new Grasshopper Manufacture, Inc. would now operate independently of GungHo and work on their own intellectual property such as No More Heroes under Goichi Suda's management. The old Grasshopper Manufacture, Inc. (currently Supertrick Games[12][13]) would retain a majority of Grasshopper staff at the time, which would be assigned to work on GungHo-owned IP such as Let It Die.[14] Grasshopper Manufacture would subsequently downsize to a more indie scaled studio, hosting 20 employees as of 2019.[15]
The company's first title developed after the split was Travis Strikes Again: No More Heroes, a spinoff entry in the No More Heroes series, marketed as a return for the franchise, a tribute to indie games and a commemorative title for Grasshopper Manufacture's history. The game was followed up with No More Heroes III, the first proper mainline installment for the franchise since 2010. The game retains the core development team from the previous title and was developed in collaboration with outsourced staff, being self-published by Grasshopper Manufacture, with physical distribution assistance from Nintendo. As a pair, the games mark Goichi Suda's return to a directorial role, having not directed a game since the original No More Heroes in 2007.[16]
Grasshopper was acquired from GungHo by NetEase Games by October 2021. In announcing the acquisition, Grasshopper stated that they had plans for at least three major games in the next ten years.[17][18] In May 2022, it was revealed that Grasshopper opened a new studio named Yabukiri Studio, while they teased the announcement of a new game.[19]
Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Windows
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Ports and remakes
Despite the commercial and critical success of No More Heroes: Heroes' Paradise, it was not well received among fans or by Suda51 himself and he would only recommend the original Wii version, even years later.[20] Ever since, Suda51 has wanted to be involved in ports of Grasshopper's works,[21] but due to ownership rights, this has not always been possible.
Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Windows
Yes
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Canceled titles
Title
Platform(s)
Notes
The Silver Case The 25th Ward: The Silver Case
Nintendo DS
Originally chosen for the DS due to its popularity, this port was set to be the first western release. Ultimately, the quality did not meet Suda's standard and it was canceled in 2012.
Kurayami
PlayStation 3
Concept that would eventually evolve into Shadows of the Damned. The original incarnation had less emphasis on action.
Lily Bergamo
PlayStation 4
Concept that would eventually evolve into Let It Die. Originally featured an anime artstyle and sported a female protagonist that used bandages in combat.
Project GMD
Unknown
Briefly shown during the 2023 Grasshopper Direct.[25] The blurred footage depicts a cowgirl with some sort of shooting mechanic.
Project MGD
Briefly shown during the 2023 Grasshopper Direct. The blurred footage depicts an explosion.
Project SSK
Briefly shown during the 2023 Grasshopper Direct. The blurred footage depicts a swordsman cutting through various suited enemies with copious amounts of blood being released, reminiscent of No More Heroes.
