Nintendo

Oh man, time to talk Nintendo, YES! It is ON! Like…well, actually, Nintendo owns “it's on like Donkey Kong." Hmmm. Let's go back to the beginning, when Nintendo dominating the American video game market was almost an accident. Back then, Japanese NES players were on the internet, while gamers in other countries could barely make their mouth muscles form the syllables “it's-a me, Mario!” 80s video gaming might seem quaint by today's standards, but don't worry: gun-nut Americans could still shoot things. And Nintendo's soldiered on through the years, with the N64 and all those Goldeneye tournaments at elementary school sleepovers and finally getting us through COVID-19 lockdowns with Danny Trejo's Animal Crossing island.

Lastly, we can't talk Nintendo without mentioning musical legend Koji Kondo. Trust us, the man merits his own paragraph here.