Hideo Kojima forced out of Konami, Kojima Productions to be disbanded

[Dcubed]

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1014109

 

Whelp! It's official now. It's unbelievable to imagine that the higher ups at Konami would dare to be so arrogant as to do this to Kojima, but there it is.

 

RIP Metal Gear. And once again, FUCK YOU Konami! Now nothing more than a sports and fitness company holding classic IPs hostage! What you have done to the people who made your name what it is today is truly unforgivable!

 

What a disgusting world we live in

 

I wonder what he will do now? Where will he go? Will he go it alone, via the independent route? Kickstarter? Will another publisher snap him up? Nintendo? Sony? Bethesda?

 

Truly nothing is sacred anymore

[RedShell]

FUCK YOU Konami! Now nothing more than a sports and fitness company holding classic IPs hostage!

Now? They've been like that for a while already.

 

I've never been a huge fan of Metal Gear, in fact I kind of hold it and Kojima responsible for destroying Konami in the first place, and for popularising the stealth mechanic in gaming (which I absolutely can't stand).

 

All of this focus on Metal Gear and Pro Evo, meanwhile greats like Mystical Ninja, Parodius, TwinBee, Contra, Castlevania, Bomberman, Eledees etc... have either gone to shit, or been forgotten about entirely!

 

Konami died a long time ago in my eyes.

[Ramar]

Shit move. Metal Gear without Kojima isn't worth investing in.

[Happenstance]

It is a crappy move, especially now that they have already started removing his name from MGS games on their website but I have to admit I'm quite interested now to see what Kojima does next now that he wont be tied to Metal Gear anymore.

[Map]

I'm wondering what will happen with Kojima and Del Toros Silent Hills now?

 

The P.T demo was outstanding last year, would be a shame if that project ended up dead.

[Dcubed]

Now? They've been like that for a while already.

 

I've never been a huge fan of Metal Gear, in fact I kind of hold it and Kojima responsible for destroying Konami in the first place, and for popularising the stealth mechanic in gaming (which I absolutely can't stand).

 

All of this focus on Metal Gear and Pro Evo, meanwhile greats like Mystical Ninja, Parodius, TwinBee, Contra, Castlevania, Bomberman, Eledees etc... have either gone to shit, or been forgotten about entirely!

 

Konami died a long time ago in my eyes.

 

Very true (and you know how I've felt about them for a long while). But even this seems like a low that I never thought they'd ever stoop to!

 

Metal Gear without Kojima isn't Metal Gear. I'm not a fan of how the series has progressed ever since MGS4, but this is just disgusting to watch - and also explains a lot about why they've taken certain things in a direction that I have not been happy with

 

With this now, they literally have gone and driven out ALL of their visionary directors/producers that made their name. They can't even claim that they've kept even one now!

 

So sad to see. And the independant route isn't even necessarily one that'll work out for someone with even as much clout as him - Koji Igarashi (Castlevania) left recently, wanting to make another game in the same vein as the Metroidvania Castlevanias and is currently working for hire on mobile junk while he seeks an opportunity (I really hope he lands on his feet, I know I would back a kickstarter of his )

Edited March 21, 2015 by Dcubed

[Jonnas]

Et tu, Konami? Are Nintendo and Namco really the only Japanese companies that haven't lost themselves over the years?

 

I'm more worried about Silent Hills at this point.

[Fierce_LiNk]

I'm wondering what will happen with Kojima and Del Toros Silent Hills now?

 

The P.T demo was outstanding last year, would be a shame if that project ended up dead.

 

Nooooooooooooooooooooooooo!

 

Fuck sake, I hope this doesn't happen.

[Dcubed]

Et tu, Konami? Are Nintendo and Namco really the only Japanese companies that haven't lost themselves over the years?

 

I'm more worried about Silent Hills at this point.

 

Well, even Namco have lost themselves a tad. Plenty of exploitative microtransaction crap, a bit of factory belt style production (the way that they really pump out Tales games is simply insane) and the quality of their titles can be really very much hit and miss (even long established series like Ridge Racer and Soul Calibur have been really very shakey in recent times...)

 

But they're not all bad at least. A bit rocky, but they've at least managed to keep a hold of their staff and let them (mostly) make the games they want to make (and from a programming/art production standpoint, they're some of the best in the business - their work on Smash Bros Wii U/3DS, Mario Kart 8 and Wii Sports Club was exceptional!). And as far as their publishing efforts go? Not too shabby either, a little bit meddling in some cases like Dark Souls 2, but far from the worst. Their recent efforts on PC have also been really very good as well and they're also generally very respectful of their past too (barring a few unfortunate exceptions like Tales of Phantasia iOS...)

Edited March 21, 2015 by Dcubed

[Ramar]

Nintendo would do well to get Kojima on board. Not that I reckon he would fancy it, but it would be interesting.

[Fused King]

[Zechs Merquise]

Konami died shortly after the 16 bit era.

 

If you look at the amazing titles on the SNES, it was like that Konami logo on the box was a seal of greatness, when you saw that you knew you were getting a quality game!

 

Axelay, Probotector, Castlevania, Gradius, Lethal Enforcers, Pop N' Twinbee, Tiny Tunes, Cybernator, Metal Warriors (this was USA only and I played it on a emulator, it is one of the greatest SNES games out there, why it never got a PAL release is beyond me), Turtles in Time, Zombies Ate My Neighbours, Adventures of Batman and Robin and many more...

 

These games were all brilliant and hold up today as some of the best games ever created. I remember by the end of the N64 era, there was only ISS64 that could be held up to that SNES level of brilliance. Since then I've only played Konami retro titles with the exception of Metal Gear Solid The Twin Snakes, which whilst good, was more movies and text than gameplay!

 

Personally, I look forward to the ensuing shit storm over this, but Konami have been dead for a long time.

[Jonnas]

These games were all brilliant and hold up today as some of the best games ever created. I remember by the end of the N64 era, there was only ISS64 that could be held up to that SNES level of brilliance.

 

I recommend playing Mystical Ninja Starring Goemon, then, ya missed out. Also, Castlevanias in the style of Symphony of the Night. Great stuff.

 

(Also, it's Tiny Toons, gosh!)

[RedShell]

I recommend playing Mystical Ninja Starring Goemon, then, ya missed out.

Big-time. Absolutely superb game. :awesome:

 

 

 

One of Konami's finest.

 

That vid is making me want to dig out my N64 to play through it again.

[Hero-of-Time]

Part of me is gutted but at the same time MGSV brings the series pretty much full circle, so his work is pretty much done.

 

Konami will try to continue the series without him but I doubt it will do very well. Whether people care for his style of game or not, Kojima is Metal Gear and to have someone else helm the mainline series just seems wrong.

 

I wonder what will happen with Silent Hills now? I was looking forward to his take on the series, especially how he is a genius at messing with players minds. P.T. was one of the best things about gaming last year and it will be sad if it was all for nothing.

 

Like many on here, I loved Konami in the SNES/MegaDrive era. They had some great franchises but the company really struggled to find their place one polygons hit. The gaming landscape changed, with a more focus on realistic games, and Konami just couldn't find a way to fit in, outside of a couple of franchises.

 

It's sad to see some of my childhood favourites like Capcom, Sega and Konami head this way but they have only themselves to blame. The HD era saw a major power shift and the Western market started to dominate. I often think that the Japanese developers would have fared a lot better if they had just stuck what they would good at and known for, instead of trying to appeal to western audiences. Namco have done a decent job of staying true to what they are, as have Nintendo. there's also the guys who make the Nepuntia series ( and a host of other JRPGS ) that have managed to carve out a niche fanbase and have stayed true to their vision.

[Dcubed]

Part of me is gutted but at the same time MGSV brings the series pretty much full circle, so his work is pretty much done.

 

Konami will try to continue the series without him but I doubt it will do very well. Whether people care for his style of game or not, Kojima is Metal Gear and to have someone else helm the mainline series just seems wrong.

 

I wonder what will happen with Silent Hills now? I was looking forward to his take on the series, especially how he is a genius at messing with players minds. P.T. was one of the best things about gaming last year and it will be sad if it was all for nothing.

 

Like many on here, I loved Konami in the SNES/MegaDrive era. They had some great franchises but the company really struggled to find their place one polygons hit. The gaming landscape changed, with a more focus on realistic games, and Konami just couldn't find a way to fit in, outside of a couple of franchises.

 

It's sad to see some of my childhood favourites like Capcom, Sega and Konami head this way but they have only themselves to blame. The HD era saw a major power shift and the Western market started to dominate. I often think that the Japanese developers would have fared a lot better if they had just stuck what they would good at and known for, instead of trying to appeal to western audiences. Namco have done a decent job of staying true to what they are, as have Nintendo. there's also the guys who make the Nepuntia series ( and a host of other JRPGS ) that have managed to carve out a niche fanbase and have stayed true to their vision.

 

All very true but the bolded is especially true. That is by far the biggest mistake that they all made and we all saw it coming a mile off. Capcom especially is a really baffling case because they actually did have some success early on in the generation when they did stick to their guns and eventually lost grip on reality (outside of a few exceptions, like Monster Hunter and Ace Attorney, where the execs actually just bloody left it alone like they should've done with everything else!)

 

Don't forget about Atlus too! They've stuck to their guns and have been going nowhere but up as a result!

[Jonnas]

It is fascinating that Atlus, a relatively small company that has always struggled to get their games published properly, has become one of the few Japanese success stories of this generation. And they did it by being good at what they do, and being the best they could be at that.

 

Sega's story is a bit more heartbreaking than others, though, because their games didn't change that much from what they used to be (other than a few Sonic games, like 06 or Shadow), but they still found themselves without success.

[Dcubed]

It is fascinating that Atlus, a relatively small company that has always struggled to get their games published properly, has become one of the few Japanese success stories of this generation. And they did it by being good at what they do, and being the best they could be at that.

 

Sega's story is a bit more heartbreaking than others, though, because their games didn't change that much from what they used to be (other than a few Sonic games, like 06 or Shadow), but they still found themselves without success.

 

All very true. SEGA have always struggled for a place in this world though. Times just happen to be especially hard for them right now

 

But at least they've been having some success as of late. Their PC efforts have done well for them, as have smaller projects like the Miku games and the SEGA 3D Classics

 

But yeah, there's another one that have fought tooth and nail to not lose themselves completely. Even though they've been through godknowshowmany upheavals and changes and they've had a few unsuccessful attempts at setting their sights higher and more mainstream, they've always generally tried to keep a grip on who they were and never abandoned their past at least!

Edited March 27, 2015 by Dcubed

[Hero-of-Time]

"We will pursue mobile games aggressively," says Konami's new CEO Hayakawa in an interview with Nikkei Trendy Net.

 

"Our main platform will be mobiles. Following the pay-as-you-play model of games like Power pro and Winning Eleven with additional content, our games must move from selling things like "items" to selling things like "features."

 

"We saw with these games that even people who buy physical games are motivated to buy extra content. The success of Power pro especially has motivated us to actively push more of our popular series onto mobile than ever before."

 

"Gaming has spread to a number of platforms, but at the end of the day, the platform that is always closest to us, is mobile. Mobile is where the future of gaming lies."

 

"We hope that our overseas games such as MGSV and Winning Eleven continue to do well, but we are always thinking about how to push our franchises onto mobile there too."

 

"With multiplatform games, there's really no point in dividing the market into categories anymore. Mobiles will take on the new role of linking the general public to the gaming world."

 

[Serebii]

The effect of mobile gaming on this industry makes me a sad panda

[Hero-of-Time]

The effect of mobile gaming on this industry makes me a sad panda

 

You and me both.

 

It's not just the mobile business though that has caused this reaction from Konami. They are looking to make some serious bank if gambling gets legalized in Japan.

[Agent Gibbs]

 

That statement

 

[Glen-i]

Well, this is about as depressing as that one Mario Kart League last year where I did absolutely awful... I posted a GIF that is totally appropriate now.

 

 

Every time I think I've lost all my respect for Konami, they say or do something that somehow makes me lose even more.

 

I think at this point, I'm at negative respect now. Konami actually owe me respect now.

[Jimbob]

I guess MGSV is the last big console game from Konami, watch as it will soon be as high a price as Twin Snakes is on Gamecube in a few years time.

[david.dakota]

Nintendo really would do well by offering big Japanese talent a home. Perhaps setting up an near-autonomous company providing exclusives to Nintendo platforms is the way to go; it would give Nintendo some great exclusive content and, hopefully, ensure Japan has a strong gaming development community in the future.