Tag: Konami

Every eFootball cover star and PES cover star since 1996

Konami’s approach to eFootball cover stars and PES cover stars tells the story of the sports game’s history and evolution over two decades

Konami took a rather different approach with its eFootball cover stars, and PES cover stars before that. Their evolution over nearly two decades is as much the story of a video game franchise gradually finding its identity and audience as it is a career summary of some of soccer’s biggest names. Unlike FIFA, which used a different popular athlete for their yearly sports game, Konami turned its attention to the Champions League and, eventually, a handful of clubs it had license deals with. Konami’s rocky approach in the ‘90s eventually vanished in favor of shining the spotlight on exceptional talent in the UEFA, though that more diverse range of cover stars gradually gave way to several shades of Messi around 2017. 

Konami feels the ‘winds of change,’ as Silent Hill is just the beginning

Fans have been eagerly asking for Silent Hill’s revival for years.

Konami has been through a strong internal restructuring over the last ten years or so, with the publisher often looking less and less interested in gaming. That’s been painful for many fans around the world, as they’ve been with Konami for the better part of their childhoods, or spent dozens of hours on PS1 masterpieces such as Hideo Kojima’s Metal Gear Solid.

Now that eFootball is finally leaving behind its troubled kick-off, and that the pandemic has convinced Konami that gaming could still be a viable business, people can clearly see winds of change at the Japanese publisher. 

The label still owns intellectual properties such as Silent Hill, whose revival fans have been eagerly demanding for years. 

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To that purpose, Silent Hill Transmission – a digital event fully focused on the survival horror franchise, and aired in October – has revealed the future of the sleeping giant, and this has completely changed people’s opinion about Konami already.

Does Konami feel the winds of change internally, too? We’ve asked David Monk, eFootball’s senior partnerships and activations manager at Konami.

“Completely,” Monk tells GLHF. “It’s a good analogy. When you say winds of change, I would say innovation. And I would say trailblazing to a certain extent, because there is a really strong portfolio of titles coming out.”

“And so, as we saw with Silent Hill, there’s an opportunity that’s coming in a series [of games] that will be released, and will be really, really cool for everybody who’s loved all the historic titles and the IP.”

On top of that, “we’re able to continually develop that, and bring that to a new technology base. That’s really important for us.”

Silent Hill 2 and other announcements from the Silent Hill stream: A woman's face appears above a fog bank that covers an abandoned main street

And something new is coming to Silent Hill, indeed. Silent Hill: Ascension is set to be a Black Mirror: Bandersnatch-like interactive drama series, while Silent Hill f is coming from Taiwanese developer Neobards Entertainment under Ryukishi07’s eclectic direction, and is set in Japan’s 1960s.

After completely skipping PS4 and Xbox One, it’s a big deal. There’s a Silent Hill 2 remake coming from Bloober Team, and No Code (Observation) is also working on a Silent Hill psychological thriller called Towerfall. The movie franchise is making a comeback, too, with Return to Silent Hill coming from the same director as the original film, Christophe Gans.

This expansive approach has strengthened fans’ confidence in other IPs making a comeback. Rumors have suggested new Metal Gear Solid and Castlevania games could be in development, with a Snake Eater remaster recently linked to Virtuos Games.

Written by Paolo Sirio on behalf of GLHF.

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EA Sports-FIFA split is ‘the perfect storm,’ says Konami

We had a chat with Konami’s senior partnerships and activations manager for eFootball, David Monk, about the future of soccer sim games.

EA Sports and FIFA parting ways has been the talk of the town for an entire season, which isn’t surprising – they’ve been partners for 30 years. This will have a massive impact on the entire gaming industry, and sports in general. EA Sports FC is set to be the first post-FIFA soccer game from the publisher, kicking off an entirely new brand, similar to what happened only last year to Konami and eFootball – PES’ heir.

But how will that impact the entire soccer gaming landscape? We’ve asked Konami just that, as it is still busy catching up with its long-running competitor after the much-debated IP change.

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“If you objectively look at the football simulation category landscape, now you have a perfect storm for new entrants,” David Monk, senior partnerships and activations manager at eFootball, Konami, tells GLHF. 

“You have increased consumer capabilities in mobile gaming, and obviously, with console gaming, it’s more accessible, with the new generation of consoles coming out and these new technology bases available to users, as well as Android.

“Also, a lot more free-to-play games have come out in the non-football simulation category. So you look at all those ingredients everywhere – it’s the perfect storm for new publishers and new developers to enter into the simulation category.”

It’s clear that Konami won’t be considering, for example, coming back to retail, premium releases, should EA Sports stick to that model and prove successful again – or any other temptation after eFootball’s troubled start. 

At the same time, the Silent Hill publisher knows that the soccer simulation category will soon be much more crowded – UFL is releasing in 2023, Goals is currently in development, and perhaps there’s even more on the horizon.

Of course, everyone is looking at what FIFA will be doing after parting ways with EA Sports, and launching a few World Cup initiatives – four games, including metaverse and NFTs, to start with. One of the biggest names the internet discourse keeps calling out as a possible FIFA partner for the future is 2K Sports, the label behind the most popular NBA and PGA games, but the company has debunked any rumor on that front, so far.

Written by Paolo Sirio on behalf of GLHF.

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¡Atención gamers! Liga MX deja el FIFA y va por exclusiva en eFootball

La Liga MX encontró en eFootball la manera de potencializar su marca a nivel mundial pues será una de las ligas exclusivas del videojuego

La Liga MX tiene nueva casa en los videojuegos y será por exclusiva en eFootball de Konami tras dejar el FIFA de EA Sports.

La desarrolladora japonesa y la primera división mexicana firmaron un convenio que comenzará en verano del 2022 sin que se dieran a conocer detalles económicos del arreglo que no debió ser barato.

La Liga MX encontró en eFootball la manera de potencializar su marca a nivel mundial pues será una de las ligas en exclusiva que tendrá el videojuego de usabilidad tanto en PC como en consola y de descarga gratuita en su versión eFootball.

Konami tendrá acceso a todos los jugadores de la primera división para escanear en 3D sus rostros y movimientos para hacerlo lo más parecido a la realidad de la Liga MX además de recreaciones fieles de todos los uniformes de la primera división.

Así pues termina una relación con EA de muchos años donde sinceramente los aficionados de la Liga MX en México y Estados Unidos siempre sentimos que nos quedaron a deber. Ya veremos esta nueva entrega con Konami.

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Yu-Gi-Oh Master Duel decks – Best starter deck breakdown

You can choose one of three decks to start with in Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duel – here’s what each deck can do so you make the right choice.

Yu-Gi-Oh Master Duel is out now, bringing the legendary card game to a global audience, free of charge. Yes, the base TCG and a bunch of expansions are now available, offering the easiest and most engaging way to log on and start battling other players. Competitive TCG players will adore this. 

But before you start battling with your full might and a completely customized deck, you’ll need to pick a starter deck. You’re given a starter deck at the beginning of the game and are then allowed to choose one of three more tactical decks:  Power of the Dragon’ Synchro of Unity’ or Link Generation. Experienced players will be able to figure out what kind of decks these are just from the title, but if you need some context before you make your decision, just read through our breakdowns below. 

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‘Metal Gear Solid 2’ and ‘3’ delisted while Konami renews licenses

All digital versions of ‘Metal Gear Solid 2’ and ‘3’ have been delisted, and no one knows when they will return.

Both Metal Gear Solid 2 and Metal Gear Solid 3 have been delisted from all digital download services, Konami has confirmed in an announcement on the official Konami website. This includes all versions of both games, available across seven total platforms. This follows rumors of a Metal Gear Solid 3 remake.

This can’t be blamed on Konami purposefully delisting older content, as they did with Hideo Kojima‘s PT playable teaser for the canceled Silent Hills. Instead, this can be attributed to the licenses Konami held for the historical footage used in both games. These licenses have recently expired, and Konami states that they are actively working towards renewing the licenses so both games can return to digital stores.

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“We are currently working on renewing the licenses for select historical archive footage used in-game, therefore, we have made the temporary decision to begin suspending the sale of METAL GEAR SOLID 2, METAL GEAR SOLID 3 and all products that include these games from digital storefronts globally starting from November 8th, 2021,” Konami stated. “We sincerely ask for your patience and understanding as we work towards making these products available for purchase once again.”

Below you can find a full list of the games delisted, and their respective platforms.

PlayStation 3

  • MGS2 Sons of Liberty HD Edition
  • MGS3 Snake Eater HD Edition
  • MGS HD Edition

PlayStation Vita

  • MGS2 Sons of Liberty HD Edition
  • MGS3 Snake Eater HD Edition
  • MGS HD Collection

PlayStation Now

  • MGS HD Collection

Xbox 360

  • MGS HD Edition: 2 & 3

Nintendo 3DS

  • MGS Snake Eater 3D

GOG/PC

  • MGS2 Substance

Nvidia Shield

  • MHS2 HD for Shield TV
  • MGS3 HD for Shield TV

Written by Dave Aubrey on behalf of GLHF.

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Virtuos employee confirms “unannounced remake” amid ‘Metal Gear Solid 3’ rumors

It looks like the rumored Metal Gear Solid 3 remake was real and could be snaking its way to an announcement soon. The developer behind the remake used woodland camo in a desert region — rookie mistake. 

It looks like the rumored Metal Gear Solid 3 remake was real and could be snaking its way to an announcement soon. The developer behind the remake used woodland camo in a desert region — rookie mistake. 

Last month, VGC reported that Konami is planning to revive its dormant series, such as Silent Hill, Castlevania, and Metal Gear Solid. The studio behind the latter, according to the report, is Virtuos, a Chinese video game company that has a long history of ports and triple-A development support. 

Virtuos is one of the largest video game companies in the world, and you’ve probably played games the studio has worked on without even realizing it. Uncharted 4, Battlefield 1, and Horizon Zero Dawn are just some games Virtuos has supported. Elsewhere, Virtuos brought Dark Souls Remastered, The Outer Worlds, and BioShock to Nintendo Switch. 

It looks like its next project will be the most ambitious yet — recreating what’s considered by many as the best Metal Gear Solid game ever made. An employee at Virtuos seemingly confirmed the rumors in their job description on LinkedIn. 

The post confirms that Virtuos is working on an “unannounced [triple-A] action-adventure game remake” and is targeting 4K resolutions on certain platforms. 

According to VGC, remasters of the first two Metal Gear Solid games will be launching prior to the release of the Metal Gear Solid 3 remake. 

The original game landed on PlayStation 2 in 2004. It follows the story of Naked Snake prior to his transformation into Big Boss. Snake is trapped behind enemy lines and must eat snakes — hence why it’s called Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater — and use camouflage and stealth to survive. There’s also a bit where you climb a ladder for about ten minutes, and everyone loves it. 

Series creator Hideo Kojima likely won’t be involved with the project, but Kojima likely will keep up with the incredible tweets. It’s just a shame we probably won’t ever see his take on Silent Hill.

All isn’t lost, however. There are “multiple” Silent Hill projects in the works at external studios, according to VGC. The Medium developer Bloober Team has been heavily rumored to be one of the studios working on the horror series. 

Written by Kirk McKeand on behalf of GLHF. 

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Konami issues apology for the disastrous launch of ‘eFootball 2022’

Is it too late to say sorry?

eFootball 2022 only came out on Wednesday, but it’s already the worst reviewed game on Steam. Like, ever. Mainly because, well, it’s  incredibly glitchy. In an attempt to make good with fans who are rightly disappointed, developer Konami Digital Entertainment released a statement acknowledging all of eFootball 2022’s  faults.

“After the release of eFootball 2022, we have received lots of feedback and requests regarding game balance that includes pass speed and defense operation,” Konami said on Twitter. “We should also like to acknowledge that there have been reports of problems users have experienced with cutscenes, facial expressions, movements of players, and the behavior of the ball.” 

Konami continued: “We are very sorry for the problems, and want to assure everyone we will take all concerns seriously and strive to improve the current situation.”

Check out the complete statement from Konami for yourself below

Glitchy video game releases happen. Even Halo Infinite became a bit of a meme  during its recent beta. Similarly, Call Of Duty: Vanguard looked terrible on Xbox  during its first beta. Those were games still in the testing phase, though, while this is supposed to be eFootball 2022’s release state, and the common consensus is that it came out unfinished. It’s a sentiment that’s hard to argue with when you see some of the worst glitches in action too.

Hopefully, Konami fixes eFootball 2022 so that soccer fans can enjoy it.

Written by Kyle Campbell on behalf of GLHF. 

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‘eFootball 2022’ might be the worst-rated sports game ever, but at least its bugs are hilarious

Pour one out for the Pro Evolution Soccer fans.

So, eFootball 2022 just came out and it’s already the worst-rated game in Steam’s history, VGC reported Thursday. Yes, in the nearly twenty years of the platform’s existence, Konami’s new free-to-play soccer simulation immediately shot to the very bottom of Steam’s user ratings. Let that sink in for a moment.

eFootball 2022  has undoubtedly earned that honor, though, as it’s so buggy that people can barely play it. Character models literally fall apart on the field or randomly squash into 2D cutouts — when they aren’t busy doing Naruto running poses. Not to mention the models themselves look like Frankenstein’s monster fell out of the ugly tree and hit every branch on the way down.

I mean, look what they did to Paris Saint-Germain’s Lionel Messi. He looks like some sort of greasy lizard on the right!

Fans of Pro Evolution Soccer are furious about all this. No doubt because eFootball 2022 is supposed to be a spiritual successor of sorts to that series. Frankly, the game should not have come out in such an unfinished state, so the negative reviews aren’t unjustified. 

If nothing else, at least all the bugs are knee-slap-worthy. Pro Evolution Soccer fans are sharing the funniest glitches all over, which you can check out below. 

Written by Kyle Campbell on behalf of GLHF. 

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