Kaiko

Kaiko was a German game development studio founded in 1990 in Bochum by Peter Thierolf and Frank Matzke. Initially operating under the name A.U.D.I.O.S, the team renamed themselves Kaiko before their first release and went on to produce some of the most visually distinctive titles of the Amiga era.

Frank Matzke's background in Japanese anime gave Kaiko's games an unmistakeable visual identity - clean lines, bold composition, and an animated sensibility that stood apart from the darker aesthetics of contemporaries like Psygnosis. Their collaboration with composer Chris Hülsbeck on Apidya produced one of the finest game soundtracks of the 16-bit era, using the TFMX format to push the Amiga's Paula chip to its limit.

Explore the full history of Kaiko's rise and fall, or dive straight into the catalogue of published and unreleased titles.

Kaiko published four titles under their own name between 1991 and 1993. Gem'X (1991) introduced Frank Matzke's anime art direction to the Amiga market - a debut confident enough to be developed simultaneously for four platforms. Apidya (1992) refined that visual identity into a horizontal shoot-'em-up with a Chris Hülsbeck TFMX soundtrack that remains one of the most celebrated pieces of Amiga game music. And Turrican 3: Payment Day (1993) brought Factor 5's Mega Drive franchise back to the platform where Turrican had begun, in a technically demanding conversion completed as the studio was heading into its final years.

Browse every published and unreleased title in the catalogue, or read the in-depth articles on all three flagship games at Flagship Titles.