Konami's Pachinko Hate: Why?

[SweetShark]

Simple question really. I mean, Konami isn't the only company which openly use popular videogame series to creta pachinko machines. Street Fighters, King of Fighters, Guilty Gears are some example. Where is the hate for those series?
I think most fans/critics overeacting a lot about this.

 

[Jandau]

First of all, aren't you a bit late with this thread? I mean, I'd hardly say anyone is overreacting about this because nobody is reacting to this anymore.

As for why... The problem was never in the machines themselves, but rather Konami's treatment of its franchises (snubbing Kojima at every turn, rushing out MGS5 even though it was incomplete, cancelling P.T./Silent Hills, etc.) contrasted with its shift towards Pachinko machines. It went from making a bit of money on the side from a franchise to prostituting it out while spitting on the medium that made those very same franchises.

Konami had been treating the gaming side of its business poorly for years, and the latest wave of crap they threw, followed by them pulling out of the industry showed a disdain for gaming, but at the same time they had no problems using the brands that were built up through gaming to move Pachinko machines.

And to top it all off, there can't be any new iterations of these series or anything set in those IPs because Konami is content to sit on them.

 

[Evonisia]

Yeah people did overreact a lot to them.

I think it's probably because they've been neglecting the main series while pushing these machines. Between cancelling "Silent Hills", Kojima leaving and Castlevania's main games being pretty much nothing like the ones people like anymore, it feels horrible to know Konami has shifted focus from the stuff they've gathered a fanbase from to pachinko machines that barely resemble the properties they're based on.

Plus the fact that Konami really shot themselves in the foot repeatedly last year, and the pachinko machines are just an addition to all the controversy they brewed.

 

[Chimpzy_v1legacy]

Well, the main difference is that Street Fighter, King of Fighters and Guilty Gear did not get their latest proper videogame instalments cancelled only for their publisher to announce a new title ... which turns out to be a pachinko machine.

In the case of Silent Hill that hurt all the more, because it had been a long time since we've gotten a game in the series that lived up to the likes of Silent Hill 2 or 3 (Shattered Memories can be argued about). While we have no idea on whether the Kojima/Del Toro team-up would've succeeded, the PT demo was at least intrigueingly promising.

I'm personally not really upset about it, but I can understand why big fans would consider it a punch to the face from Konami.

As for Metal Gear Solid, that's a whole other story which I really don't have the time to get into right now.

 

[Saelune]

Because they could be focusing on being a good game developer and instead are doing that bullshit. Most of the hate for it came after the Konami-Kojima thing, so it had a magnifying lens on it. I don't like anything that makes a game developer fall in quality. Id be just as mad at Nintendo if they decided to say fuck games and just make Mario and Zelda pachinko machines. I'm certainly worried that their businessman CEO is doing just that with his push towards the mobile market.

 

[Casual Shinji]

I think it's mainly the combination of cancelling or fucking up their popular gaming franchises, AND THEN as a final 'fuck you' announcing a pachinko machine version.

'We cancelled Silent Hills... But here's a Silent Hill pachinko machine!!!'

'We booted Kojima off of Metal Gear... But here's a Metal Gear Solid 3 pachinko machine!!!'

Konami is either being dreadfully stupid, or they have a team of trolls running their PR.

 

[gsilver]

People don't care if companies make Pachinko machines on the side. Lots of companies do that.

What Konami did was focus exclusively on that, and dismantled anything resembling a game studio at the company, and being very hostile to their employees and everyone else while doing it.


Though as a business decision... I can see Pachinko machines having much lower risk and much lower development costs. Pachinko is a hot market in Japan right now, so there's quite a lot of money to be made.

 

[SweetShark]

Well, the main difference is that Street Fighter, King of Fighters and Guilty Gear did not get their latest proper videogame instalments cancelled only for their publisher to announce a new title ... which turns out to be a pachinko machine.

In the case of Silent Hill that hurt all the more, because it had been a long time since we've gotten a game in the series that lived up to the likes of Silent Hill 2 or 3 (Shattered Memories can be argued about). While we have no idea on whether the Kojima/Del Toro team-up would've succeeded, the PT demo was at least intrigueingly promising.

I'm personally not really upset about it, but I can understand why big fans would consider it a punch to the face from Konami.

As for Metal Gear Solid, that's a whole other story which I really don't have the time to get into right now.

Yes, but this apply for other publishers as well. Sure, they didn't stopped produce other games of a series, but the do some other "sins".
For example the recent Pachinko base of Guilty Gears series have the appearance of a MAJOR villain who doesn't still appeared in the main games of the series...
Why not hate for this thing, eh?

 

[DefunctTheory]

Spoiler

Well, the main difference is that Street Fighter, King of Fighters and Guilty Gear did not get their latest proper videogame instalments cancelled only for their publisher to announce a new title ... which turns out to be a pachinko machine.

In the case of Silent Hill that hurt all the more, because it had been a long time since we've gotten a game in the series that lived up to the likes of Silent Hill 2 or 3 (Shattered Memories can be argued about). While we have no idea on whether the Kojima/Del Toro team-up would've succeeded, the PT demo was at least intrigueingly promising.

I'm personally not really upset about it, but I can understand why big fans would consider it a punch to the face from Konami.

As for Metal Gear Solid, that's a whole other story which I really don't have the time to get into right now.

Yes, but this apply for other publishers as well. Sure, they didn't stopped produce other games of a series, but the do some other "sins".
For example the recent Pachinko base of Guilty Gears series have the appearance of a MAJOR villain who doesn't still appeared in the main games of the series...
Why not hate for this thing, eh?

No one really cares that they're making pachinko machines. It's that they appear to be making pachinko machines at the expense of their video game business.

It would be like Apple had stopped producing new phones and switch entirely to making smart watches. Or if Marvel cut their movie release schedule to one movie every 5 years so they had more time for a new, exciting series of live action, direct to DVD shorts.

 

[Zenja]

Well, the main difference is that Street Fighter, King of Fighters and Guilty Gear did not get their latest proper videogame instalments cancelled only for their publisher to announce a new title ... which turns out to be a pachinko machine.

In the case of Silent Hill that hurt all the more, because it had been a long time since we've gotten a game in the series that lived up to the likes of Silent Hill 2 or 3 (Shattered Memories can be argued about). While we have no idea on whether the Kojima/Del Toro team-up would've succeeded, the PT demo was at least intrigueingly promising.

I'm personally not really upset about it, but I can understand why big fans would consider it a punch to the face from Konami.

As for Metal Gear Solid, that's a whole other story which I really don't have the time to get into right now.

Yes, but this apply for other publishers as well. Sure, they didn't stopped produce other games of a series, but the do some other "sins".
For example the recent Pachinko base of Guilty Gears series have the appearance of a MAJOR villain who doesn't still appeared in the main games of the series...
Why not hate for this thing, eh?

Because no one upset actually cares about these Pachinko machines. It isn't about the machines, or making sure that these machines are canonical. As Chimpsy said, Guilty Gear did not get their latest proper video game installments cancelled only for their publisher to announce a new Pachinko machine instead. Konami focusing on Pachinko machines is the easy way out because they don't actually have to mess with "game development" but instead can make these machines which play an already established game and call it a new entry for the franchise.

Imagine if Mass Effect, Elder Scrolls, or whatever your your favorite series is was basically cancelled because the company wanted to make pinball machines/slot machines instead. No more new entries to the franchise that got them this popular, just "stickers" on a machine to sell that machine on the namesake of your favorite IP.

The worst part is that their decision to do this, means no more new entries to these franchises. You are actually losing additions to your favorite series because of this. Personally, I would also add in that they are capitalizing on compulsive behavior as well. Foregoing making new original and artistic content to take advantage of compulsive gamblers. Something they could do without the need of these IPs.

 

[CaitSeith]

Simple question really. I mean, Konami isn't the only company which openly use popular videogame series to creta pachinko machines. Street Fighters, King of Fighters, Guilty Gears are some example. Where is the hate for those series?
I think most fans/critics overeacting a lot about this.

In reality is due to a down-spiral of Konami's uncaring attitude towards its games (besides Metal Gear Solid), despite being some of the best in old-school gaming. But the way they canceled the next Silent Hill and removed P.T. from the PS4 store (despite the hype and praise), followed by the trailer for their Silent Hill pachinko (and its annoying mood-killer HIT THE LEVER!), just guaranteed fans backlash.

In the opposite of Konami, SNK (owners of King of Fighters) announced they were leaving the pachinko business, coming back to gaming.

 

[EHKOS]

Because the FOX engine is being wasted. Look at how good that cutscene is. IT BELONGS IN A museum VIDEO GAME.

 

[Level 7 Dragon]

It's not the pachinko machines themselves, but everything around them.

It all began with a Silent Hills, a collaboration between game designer Kojima, film maker Del Toro and body horror artist Jinji Ito being cancelled for unknown reasons.

Business is business, so most have let it slide. However, then the letters came. Anonymous letters from Konami employees describing physical and mental abuse, as well as complete disregard for their work. Industry veterans that helped establish the medium the way it is today quit after being demoted to cleaning toilets. There was a line of other nasty claims, but that is a completely different story.

That and Konami withdrawing from western stock markets made the populus raise their collective eyebrow at what was happening. It was later confirmed that Kojima had to quit following legal and mental abuse from the board of directors. Konami probably noticed the negative PR it was gathering and tried to perform some damage control by claiming that everything is alright.

Sadly for them, more employees spoke out for Kojima. A storm was brewing.

On april 25'th 2015 independent journalist George Wiedman, known as Super Bunny Hop on Youtube uploaded a video speculating about the corporate issues that Konami faced at the time.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iMK-kajdgMA [/youtube]

Seven hours after the video was posted, it was taken down by Konami for "showing a few seconds of Metal Gear Rising footage". By that point most of the gaming press stood up for George and stated their direct critisism of Konami. Five hours after the takedown, the video was reinstalled.

The next day, Konami showed their trailer for a Silent Hill pachinko machine, which was reposted of various gaming news sites and used as an outlet for all the negative press. I clearly remember the top comment being Jim Sterling saying "#FucKonami"

The final part in the scandal was the statement by Hideo Kojima's Konami representative that he won't be allowed to visit that year's Video Game Award ceremony because the executives didn't want him recieving the award for him latest game. After the annoucer stated that, the crowd started booing Konami.

Basically, that summs up the saga. It's not that people have problem with pachinkos, but rather what they represent.

 

[SweetShark]

Because the FOX engine is being wasted. Look at how good that cutscene is. IT BELONGS IN A museum VIDEO GAME.

Guilty Gears Pachinko have beautiful animation sequences which are "wasted" for this.


Btw, here is one of the Major villains I was talking about:

 

[bluegate]

Because, well, there are a lot of entitled little kids on the internet that feel that a company should spend all their resources in a way that suits them and only them.

 

[hermes]

Because they did it after a long and disrespectful break up with game creator, in which they treated his employees in ways it would make Estasia blush. And now, they take his most emblematic creation and turn it into a Pachinko game. It would be like DC unceremoniously kicking Moore out of the door in a highly publicized ordeal, and then making "Watchmen Babies in V for Vacation".

It is not a problem with Pachinko machines per se, or even gaming IPs being adapted to slot games, but after a lot of reported issues, the uncertainty of the future of the MGS IP was fresh in the mind of many people. Having the next big thing being a casino machine was them putting the finger in a sore spot.

 

[sageoftruth]

Because the FOX engine is being wasted. Look at how good that cutscene is. IT BELONGS IN A museum VIDEO GAME.

Guilty Gears Pachinko have beautiful animation sequences which are "wasted" for this.


Btw, here is one of the Major villains I was talking about:

Watching that has me wondering, how do you work any semblance of a plot or a narrative into a pachinko machine? It looked like that was happening on the screen, but I couldn't fathom what that had to do with the slot machines running below the screen. Even pinball, strikes me as having more storytelling potential than pachinko.

 

[Fox12]

Simple question really. I mean, Konami isn't the only company which openly use popular videogame series to creta pachinko machines. Street Fighters, King of Fighters, Guilty Gears are some example. Where is the hate for those series?
I think most fans/critics overeacting a lot about this.

No one is mad at their pachinko machines. When they were still releasing good content, no one cared. People are mad that they've ruined all of their IP's, cancelled all of their games, and then had the audacity to release pachinko machines based on said games. It was like a spot in the face after everything they've done.