Enough is enough: down with Konami

Konami has done everything in its power to alienate everyone humanly possible. At this point, they can just f*** right off.

[BrandanT]

Thanks Konami. You just showed the world how to get rid of respect and gratitude in a few moves.

Step 1: Disappoint
Step 2: Get rid of most respected official
Step 3: Announce future disappointment

[AndyWeiss33]

It's so sad to see firsthand how few shits the companies we support give about us.

[Ike_Broflovski]

Then stay off poker machines, a large percentage of them are made and programmed by Konami.

[ThunderPulse]

If they cared about you they would have kept Kojima.

[freshslicepizza]

from the article,
"Making games just to make money is, quite frankly, a hideous concept to me."

konami doesn't owe anyone anything. so let's begin there. we have all enjoyed their games throughout the years and if they want to go in a different direction (going mobile) then that is on them. so whatever they do it's their decision because we do not own the company. just because we bought their games doesn't mean we decide what they should do.

it sucks but there are hundreds if not thousands of other games made every year.

[Magicite]

Last good Konami game that I have played (which doesnt involve H.Kojima) - I cant remember one...

[Angels3785]

ummm...castlevania?

That was great!

[titans9999]

I bet you Kojima will start his own company, he doesn't need the idiots at Konami...if it wasn't for him they would have gone out of business a long time ago!

[AndyWeiss33]

I certainly hope so! If he does, I'd be as excited as I have been about any AAA company in years, just to see what he can do with full financial and creative control.

[Nio-Nai]

That's not even remotely true.

They started in 1973 with amusement games like arcade machines.

And because of the actual costs of modern video games (*being in the hundreds of millions of dollars*) It's starting to move towards the same area as the industry with movies like TRON and Avatar which drive companies bankrupt (*especially the 3D teams behind them*)

The industry is too big now, the costs are so high that 1 failed high budget title can destroy a company.

This is the best move they can make to ensure that their company doesn't go under, and not a handful of gamers is worth more than the lively hood of over 5000 employees and associated employees through family companies.

[AndyWeiss33]

Right, Konami definitely doesn't need him to succeed as a business. Super Bunnyhop's video shows how much more money they make in their various other enterprises. However, they probably do need him to be a critical success in the console world... which they seem set on abandoning anyway.

[Angels3785]

I'm sorry man, but that is pure ignorance....the video game industry, and in particular the AAA video game industry is but MAYBE 1/100th of their business.

They pretty much own the machines in most gambling institutions around the world.

Not to mention the fact that putting all your eggs in AAA games these days can be very risky as Nio-Nai said above.

One failed game can ruin a company these days similarly to the film industry especially with dev times and costs on the rise. Not to mention the fact that like most big AAA devs Konami has a handful of games in the pipeline.

That is one of the reasons I commend Activision from a business standpoint. Granted they dish out tons of money, but they have figured out this industry in terms of profitability. Lots of releases multiple times a year.

Now is that a good thing in terms of quality of game etc? in my opinion no, but it works.

[Skankinruby]

This was ever in question? Konami isn't burying themselves they want out just as much as everyone wants them gone. The only thing to hope for is someone getting a hold of their franchises as continuing to give them the love they deserve.

[Deathdeliverer]

Thought any of that was bad, wait til you see this shit... And if this is wrong to do I apologize. Never submitted anything nor do I know how. http://www.pcgamer.com/kona...

[Nio-Nai]

From a financial perspective this is the best choice to make. Mobile is in the hands of not just a select few gamers, but many more people. So many people in fact that there are fewer in their target countries who don't have mobile over those who do.

Consoles exclusives have one platform, that requires someone to own it. These titles also cost tens of millions to now staggering hundreds of millions of dollars to produce. And then they are lucky to make their money back on some titles due to used games being such a huge thing.

From someone who has loved Metal Gear and Z.O.E I do not mind them doing this. Sure I love the games, but honestly, gaming needs a break, things need to settle down. Many of the fans keep screaming for more and then complain when they get something that's not exactly what they want. It's a financial hazard to continue production of these titles.

Konami knows where the money is at to allow their company to continue to grow and I'm happy to see them take it.

I'm not happy at the childish antics many gamers have been pulling lately.

[plmkoh]

"From a financial perspective this is the best choice to make."

From a financial perspective, it's dumb to put all your eggs into one basket. Especially one as volatile as the mobile market. Need I remind anyone, the fate of companies such as Zynga, Rovio, Zeptolab who were all skyhigh unlimited in profit only 1-3 years ago, but are now struggling to find an identity today.

You only need to look at EA Games stocks today to see that it's very profitable to venture into multiple styles of gaming.

[Nio-Nai]

The mobile market has over 1 billion active smartphones across the world, with it estimated to reach 2 billion active phones by mid 2016.

500 million of those are Japans close neighbor China. Who has a ban on consoles except for limited sales, Japan itself has 50 million active users of smartphones on a daily basis.

They also own some of the largest entertainment machines in the industry in Japan, and have been in that field since 1973.

You have no idea what you are talking about, please do not speak to me about it, any further pointless chitchat is pretty much you trolling.

I don't care about your disagrees either. I speak of facts, not childish "wahhh, they aren't making my video game" anymore points.

[rainslacker]

There's a lot of revenue in mobile gaming. Quite a lot actually, and it makes up a nice chunk of all gaming industry revenue.

This however does not mean that mobile gaming is profitable across the board. Quite the opposite in fact. Many mobile gaming ventures, even from big publishers, fail to meet expectations, or even turn a profit. And by many, I mean most(more than 50%).

The way the mobile market works for big publishers is that they put out a lot of games, which is relatively inexpensive to make in contrast to big budget games, and then bank off the ones that succeed.

Konami is going to do the same thing, because it's the only way to actually make money on the mobile market. They'll have 3 failed games to one successful game, and that one successful game will rake in a lot of cash.

In the mean time, they devalue their brand image, and the name Konami dwindles into nothingness. Just think of how many people recognize Konami now for their work. Now go on to list me the names of any big publishers mobile branch(they all have one). Mobile games rarely build themselves up to the status that you would see in a game like MGS, where people would eagerly anticipate the next game in a series or IP. They have their die-hards like anywhere, but most of the time it's just..."oh theres a new Angry Birds game".

Most console and PC games actually do turn profits, even with big budgets in the tens to hundreds of millions. The difference is though, that the risk is much greater that the game may not turn a profit. A failed AAA title hurts a lot more than a failed mobile game, which honestly could just be reskinned and remarketed to try and make it successful.

I actually have no doubt that Konami will do well in the mobile market, but I also know that many gamers will not care or even recognize the name Konami 10 years from now.

[Father__Merrin]

will we see any regular console games? I've been fond of them since the Commodore 64 days

[rainslacker]

I'm sure we'll see the occassional one. They won't hang the Metal Gear name out to dry at least. I doubt we'll see the huge MGS franchise though, more likely spin offs. They also do have a lot of franchises that they could captialize on, and there is no reason for them to completely drop out of the console market, I just think they want to focus more resources on the mobile market.

[Gilgamesh15]

Let it go already.

[lunatic0001]

In all honesty...I could care less what they do...if they think they have better fortunes making mobile games and selling their poker machines than so be it...they are a company after all...I love mgs so I hope mgs5 is a good send off to my favorite series and just let it die after that before they ruin it...thats what many franchises lack...closure

[mydyingparadiselost]

Normally, I would preach patience and understanding in a situation like this. Konami needs to make money, and having multiple ventures through which to do so is a large part of many companies in many nations...

But under the circumstances as they sit, I think we should watch as the flames from the burning business buildings light the night sky, and others should be wary as the burning light casts ominous shadows on Capcom and Sega's offices...

[WitWolfy]

I give the 2-3 years before they start selling off their game IPs.

[Blues Cowboy]

Oh the angst and anger. Look guys: Konami has been circling the drain for some time now. The way they've handled (and destroyed) most of their franchises has been shameful and the sooner they clear out the better.

I love how they're actively planning to leave the console gaming arena, but articles like this are telling them to "**** right off." Erm, that's EXACTLY what they're doing.

[Relientk77]

Konami's days are numbered

Edit: the image with the article seems pretty on point. Great strategy Konami

[teo72]

MGS5 is the last Konami game I will ever buy...
Seems to me that MGS5 is also the last consolegame Konami wants to make...Sad to see them leave consoles. Although, knowing Kojima will probably be better off without Konami, warms my heart.

[Arty84]

lets revisit all these anti Konami articles after MGS5 releases and see how many of those angry fans fill Konamis bank accounts probably securing their budget to their new mobile direction

no point complaining if your just going to keep on giving them money

[quenomamen]

Nothing hurts like losing money, don't buy their product no need to get crazy.

[iTechHeads]

Down with Konami? How much further down can they go? They're pretty much irrelevant already. Metal Gear Solid V will likely be their final console game and with Kojima leaving there's nothing else Konami has that can make them money on consoles.

[UnHoly_One]

They are a for-profit corporation. They think switching to mobile will make them more money.

I get being disappointed about MGS going away or whatever, but all of this "Screw them and burn them to the ground, blah blah blah" crap is just insane to me.