Sting

A Japanese video game developer founded in 1989, known for early PC Engine and Super Famicom titles.

Role-playing (RPG)

Action

Tactics

Sports

Strategy



Website

Founded

1989

HQ

Tokyo, Japan

Known for

Role-playing / Strategy / Simulation

31

Games

1990–2015

Years

17

Platforms

$83.99

Ø CIB

+61.7%

24M change

About

Sting Co., Ltd. established itself in the early 1990s by developing shoot 'em ups like Psycho Chaser and Override, as well as porting Tatsujin to the PC Engine. The company also developed sports titles during this era, including Naxat Stadium, Hakunetsu Pro Yakyuu (released in North America as Extra Innings), and the boxing games Kentou-Ou World Champion and TKO Super Championship Boxing.

Founded by former Compile staff members, the developer utilized these early projects to forge strong publishing partnerships, particularly with Naxat Soft. Psycho Chaser and Override demonstrated the team's ability to push the PC Engine's graphical limits with fast horizontal and vertical scrolling. This technical proficiency secured them the responsibility of porting Toaplan's highly regarded arcade shoot 'em up Tatsujin to the same platform, a release praised for its accuracy to the source material.

Simultaneously, the studio expanded into sports simulations. Naxat Stadium and Hakunetsu Pro Yakyuu offered detailed statistics and accessible gameplay, leading to the latter's Western localization on the Super Nintendo Entertainment System as Extra Innings. Sting further refined its 16-bit development skills with Kentou-Ou World Champion, released internationally as TKO Super Championship Boxing. This boxing title utilized the Super Nintendo's hardware capabilities to present a dynamic, rotating ring perspective. These foundational releases established the programming expertise and design philosophies that would define the studio's later transition into complex tactical role-playing games.