Ryukyu[a] is a 1989 puzzle video game developed by ASCII Corporation and published by Login Soft for X68000, PC-98 and MSX2. It was ported to the arcades by Success and the PC Engine and Game Gear by Face; Sega released the game in the arcades and the Game Gear version outside Japan as Solitaire Poker.[1]
| Ryukyu | |
|---|---|
 X68000 box art | |
| Developers | ASCII Corporation Success (arcade) Face (consoles) |
| Publishers | |
| Designer | Ryuji Kuwaki |
| Platforms | X68000, PC-98, MSX2, arcade, PC Engine, Game Gear |
| Release |
|
| Genre | Puzzle |
| Mode | Single-player |
Hamster Corporation released the arcade version outside Japan for the first time as part of their Arcade Archives series for the Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 4 in May 2025.[2]
Gameplay
editRyukyu is a combination of solitaire and poker. Players carefully select cards from their deck to drop into a 5x5 square, in order to create the best Poker hands possible in vertical, horizontal, and diagonal lines to clear stages and compete for high scores. All poker hands rise in score as defined in actual poker.[3]
Development
editRyukyu was designed by Ryuji Kuwaki, a college student at the time, as a submission to a software contest held by LOGiN, a regular extra issue of ASCII that eventually branched off to become Famitsu. The game was named after the Ryukyu Islands, present-day Okinawa Prefecture, where the game is set at. Kuwaki won the grand prize, in addition to the Yuji Horii and Yoshio Kiya Awards held by the magazine. ASCII helped Kuwaki finalize the game, which was released on August 8, 1989, for X68000, PC-98 and MSX2, while Kuwaki retained the copyright.[4] Success successfully negotiated for the arcade rights with ASCII, developing an arcade port released by Sega which brought the game to a wider audience.[5] Face developed ports to the PC Engine and Game Gear, the latter of which was released overseas by Sega.[6][7]
Reception
editNotes
editReferences
edit- ↑ Akagi, Masumi (October 13, 2006). アーケードTVゲームリスト国内•海外編(1971-2005) [Arcade TV Game List: Domestic • Overseas Edition (1971-2005)] (in Japanese). Japan: Amusement News Agency. ISBN 978-4990251215.
- ↑ Yarwood, Jack (May 21, 2025). "This Week's Arcade Archives Release Is A '90s Puzzle Game From The Developer Of The Cotton Series". Time Extension. Retrieved August 7, 2026.
- ↑ "【アケアカ】『琉球』5月22日より配信開始。縦、横、斜めにポーカーの役を揃えてハイスコアを目指すシンプルパズルゲーム | ゲーム・エンタメ最新情報のファミ通.com". ファミ通.com (in Japanese). Retrieved August 7, 2026.
- ↑ LOGiNソフトウェアコンテスト 第3回 堀井賞、木屋賞結果発表！ '89上半期. LOGiN. Vol. 8, no. 13. July 7, 1989. pp. 170–173.
- ↑ セガ社の新体感マシン「R360」 全方向高速回転 システム16B「オーライル」「琉球」も (PDF). Game Machine. No. 393. December 1, 1990. p. 24. Archived (PDF) from the original on January 31, 2020. Retrieved August 7, 2026.
- ↑ PCエンジン通信 § 琉球. Famitsu. Vol. 5, no. 17. August 17, 1990. p. 196.
- ↑ BEEP! GAME GEAR § 琉球. Beep! MegaDrive. Vol. 7, no. 6. June 1991. p. 119.
- ↑ 新作ゲームクロスレビュー. Famitsu. Vol. 5, no. 20. September 28, 1990. pp. 16–20.