RIP Konami

[Ronin]

NOOOO!!!!

I'll never see Bloody Roar again! :'(

 

[The Good Gentleman]

• Konami developers who aren’t seen as useful are reassigned duties such as security guards, cleaning staff at fitnes clubs, or roles at pachi-slot machine factories. This includes producers who worked on big titles. In 2013, Japanese newspaper Asahi News reported on a former Konami employee who allegedly went from development to working in a Konami pachi-slot factory, which led him into severe depression.
• After announcing on Facebook that he was leaving Konami for a new job, Konami monitored said former employee’s social media post and reshuffled those within the company that “Liked” it.

 

[TWOxACROSS]

Nikkei report: Bad things happening at Konami​

The Summary​

• Culture at the company shifted from traditional, hardcore games to cheaper, social titles in 2010 when Konami shipped a mobile game called Dragon Collection, which earned huge profit at a low budget.
• Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain‘s development budget has surpassed 10 billion yen ($80 million).
• Kojima Productions is now known as “Number 8 Production Department.” Its computers have no internet access and can only send messages between internal computers.
• Employees that leave the office during lunch beak are monitored with time cards. Those who return late have their names announced throughout the company.
• There are cameras in the office corridors to monitor the movements of Konami’s employees.
• Most Konami employees don’t have their own permanent company e-mail addresses. Staff who deal with people outside the company, such as public relations, do, however, everyone else’s e-mail is routinely randomized and changed every few months.
• Konami developers who aren’t seen as useful are reassigned duties such as security guards, cleaning staff at fitnes clubs, or roles at pachi-slot machine factories. This includes producers who worked on big titles. In 2013, Japanese newspaper Asahi News reported on a former Konami employee who allegedly went from development to working in a Konami pachi-slot factory, which led him into severe depression.
• After announcing on Facebook that he was leaving Konami for a new job, Konami monitored said former employee’s social media post and reshuffled those within the company that “Liked” it.

(Rules be damned) I only have one word for this - ****.

 

[SPARTAN-1000]

Konami Has Changed , its no longer about game consoles but they are going Mobile instead ......Konami Has changed .

 

[Absent Nova]

Wow just when it looks like Konami has made themselves look incredibly terrible, they somehow manage to top themselves.

 

[WolfOD64]

Apparently, Kojima's ousting from Konami wasn't completely unwarranted after all:

http://nichegamer.com/2015/07/metal...-kojima-split-from-konami-over-budget-issues/

 

[Dark Drakan]

Apparently, Kojima's ousting from Konami wasn't completely unwarranted after all:

http://nichegamer.com/2015/07/metal...-kojima-split-from-konami-over-budget-issues/

Sounds from the article like that's merely an opinion so details still haven't been officially released:

A later clarification was issued by Muranaka, in which she claimed articles (like our own) were published based solely on speculation, and not on fact, and that her words were not the reason for Kojima’s “soon departure from Konami.”

She also pointed out that “Konami, on the other hand, is a business that is focused on budget and profit. So I simply expressed that maybe that has something to do with it. But never did I say that either Kojima or Konami is at fault. The truth of the matter is that I don’t know why he’s leaving, and therefore I don’t have an answer.”

We’ve gotten some folks writing in (including our source) saying that we’ve misquoted Rika Muranaka, and Muranaka has gone on to make a follow-up clarification saying her words are her own opinion, and may or may not be indicative of the current situation at Konami.

 

[Innsmouth]

Kojima ousting was result of Konami's CEO being complete a-hole

 

[TWOxACROSS]

It's something I could see being true, though. Kojima is a pretty huge visionary kind of guy, who might not think about the feasibility of an idea in a financial sense. However, at the same time, Konami's laser-like focus on their financial situation, while fiscally responsible, is ruining their reputation with their consumerbase.

As much as I know Kojima said he'd make Metal Gear games until the day he died, I could also imagine him becoming incredibly burnt out on doing them, or at least doing them with Big Boss in the lead. Wouldn't be surprised if Konami noticed that Snake Eater was a huge success and was all but forcing Kojima to make more Big Boss-centric Metal Gear games, considering everyone is rather exasperated by the amount of backstory given to a man we already knew pretty much everything about by MGS4.

It'll be interesting to see what Kojima will put out when he doesn't have to worry about Metal Gear. Just...hoping it doesn't go the Kickstarter route of him just making a copy of his old games that made him popular.

 

[Stylish Nero]

Yeesh if Kojima goes the kickstarter we'll have someone worst than Inafune when it comes to managing a budget and in this day and age of overbloated development costs and lower game sales most devs will probably be afraid to have a guy like Kojima on their staff. It might gain more attention to their company but not sure how financially liable he would be when it comes to development cycles.

 

[Innsmouth]

Whole claim about overblown budget is exaggerated. Seriously, people want quality but don't want to pay for it. GTAV costed twice amount of MGSV

 

[TWOxACROSS]

Wasn't a lot of GTAV's massive budget also counting all their engorged marketing?

 

[Innsmouth]

it doesn't matter. Marketing is part of game sale process. It counts towards it. And even than it costed 265 mil. And honestly MGSV didn't even costed as much to make as games like Deadpool and new TR, so people should know better before complaining about development cost.

 

[Absent Nova]

Instead of "Silent Hills" with Guillermo del Toro. Konami makes a pachinko machine of Silent Hill.

 

[TWOxACROSS]

To be fair, pachinko games are stupid lucrative in Japan.

 

[BLACKSWIPE]

****ing Christ. First Crapcom now Konami. What's happening to Japanese gaming?

Oh yeah, mobile gaming.

God sometimes I wonder why mobile games are so popular. Guess they appeal to the crowd who wants instant gratification, which unfortunately only seems to grow each day.

 

[Director Bison]

if there so ****
it really make you wonder how they were able to even keep kojima for as long as they did

 

[TWOxACROSS]

****ing Christ. First Crapcom now Konami. What's happening to Japanese gaming?

Oh yeah, mobile gaming.

God sometimes I wonder why mobile games are so popular. Guess they appeal to the crowd who wants instant gratification, which unfortunately only seems to grow each day.

The same reason handheld gaming is king in Japan - travel. Gaming on the go is valued highly in a society that moves a majority of its populace by transit. Rather than be bored sitting on a bus or train, people play games.

Not to say it's right, but that's what it is, and the companies are desperate to follow any cashflow they can get in this world economy.

 

[Innsmouth]

if there so ****
it really make you wonder how they were able to even keep kojima for as long as they did

most likely because he had own studio and freedom to do with it way he did.

 

[DreadnoughtDT]

It seems that now that Capcom is stepping up its business practices and making nice with its fanbases, Konami has to pick up the awful company slack and turn into what Capcom could've become.

No more Zone of the Enders, no more Castlevania (I did back Bloodstained, don't worry), no more MGS, no more Gradius...