Key (company) - Definition and Overview

Key is a Japanese ren'ai game studio, known for making dramatic and plot-oriented games. Their debut release Kanon was hugely successful in Japan. It combined an elaborate and sentimental storyline, an up-to-date anime drawing style and a popular musical score.

Their second game, AIR was similarly well received in Japan, having a similar if not more complex storyline. Both Kanon and AIR sold over a million copies and had non-Ecchi console ports released as well.

Studio Key recently released CLANNAD, a ren'ai game similar to its previous games, but this time without any Ecchi content even in its initial release. CLANNAD suffered many delays before its release, leading to a great deal of anticipation from fans. The game finally released in 2004 and, although with more than 2 years of delay, is well received from fans.

In October 2004, Key has accounced it's next title Planetarian (planetarian ～ちいさなほしのゆめ～), which will be distributed by online payment and download.

Known Released Games:

• Kanon (1999)
• AIR (2001)
• CLANNAD (2004)
• Planetarian (planetarian ～ちいさなほしのゆめ～) (Released in December 2004)

External links

• Key homepage (http://key.visualarts.gr.jp)