Konami just had their most profitable year ever

[Deleted member 5535]

So they had their most profitable year since they stopped making games?

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They never stopped to make games. There's mobile titles and some console games. That's why they're here and not in etcetera

Probably helped that Jim Sterling kept their name alive in gamers' minds lol

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This income isn't coming from "gamers". Konami don't offer products to them anymore, and that's why they're pissed because it don't cater them anymore.

Well, the Pachinko machines are gambling games, of course Its print money...such a shame. Really sad seeing Konami this way...or maybe Its anger

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Pachinko baby.

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Stop with this stupid meme. Pachinko is something minor in that contribution. They wouldn't be in that situation with just this since the main factor is mobile.

 

[RM8]

They'll beg Kojima to come back any second now!

But really, as much as it sucks that they took many beloved franchises with them (mostly Hudson stuff to be honest) who can blame them for getting out of the AAA gaming business. It's insanely expensive, risky, hype-dependent, and it turns out it's not as profitable as phone games.

 

[Ragnar Blackmane]

Yep, it's a remake with enhanced graphics, 4K support, new sound design and VR support. VR is optional, as I understand.

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Good to see that they are still doing something decent in the console/PC gaming market besides niche handheld games.

 

[Antrax]

Also, just because Konami is healthy as a business doesn't negate the fact that they are a bad video game publisher now. From the video game consumer perspective they really aren't doing much interesting or worth caring about. Like if Bethesda all of a sudden abandoned games and started making slot machines and opened up a bunch of Dovakiin gyms all over the country and started raking in the dough, they'd be doing well as a business but you could rightly say they turned to shit as a publisher. They aren't mutually exclusive.

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Fuck, I'd go to a Skyrim gym

 

[Eolz]

You must see how angry this type of post will make us Koji and MGS fans. Why do it?

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As this thread (and countless others) has proven, some fanboys will be angry about Konami whatever happens anyway.

 

[jroc74]

It pains me to admit this but Konami keeps showing us that they did the right thing by walking away from expensive console games and sticking with pachinko, mobile, PES, and the ocassional quick and cheap console game (Super Bomberman R).

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I just hope not too many else follow them.

 

[WestEgg]

So I'm getting some slight Deja Vu.

A man who can probably be called the biggest rock star in the world of video games, with a pretty significant cult of personality, and famed for being the developer of a hugely influential franchise, either leaves or is forced to leave the company he helped put on the map, likely caused by disagreements over his projects being overly ambitious. Said developer is highly respected enough to quickly find financing and create a new studio to pursue his dream project, one which is going to showcase what he believes is the true creative potential of video games. Years later, the company left behind is more successful than it has ever been, and while people are excited for the rock star developer's game, we still have little idea what his project is actually about, and no idea when it will actually materialize.

Are we talking about Kojima?

Or this guy?

Spoiler

 

[kirby_fox]

Stop dreaming of company selling IP to others lol. No sane company especially a company with such financial fitness like Konami would do such idiotic moves lol. Having more IP means more fix asset for the company. It is literally an insane move to sell your most valuable assets as a gaming company.

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The problem they face is if they should drop some IP while they're still valuable for money or try to use them in mobile and other areas. I could see them selling some IPs that they have no interest in, ones that they believe can't be used for plachinko or mobile, and ones they have a decent offer on the table for.

I think it's going to come down to the last part really. If they get a decent offer on an IP to sell outright, they might just. I don't see anyone attempting that though.

 

[skeezx]

i've made my peace that konami isn't into games anymore. it's like the ex-girlfriend you secretly wanted to fall on her face and live a horrible life after she left but no she married a doctor and got promoted at work went along just fine without you

i'll miss the hell out of castlevania, goeman and metal gear but other games have more or less carried on the torch. it was a great three decades but that's that. time to move on

 

[Deleted member 11413]

I just hope not too many else follow them.

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They won't unless their console business is already bad. Again, Konami got out of AAA development because they were doing poorly in that market. You don't abandon a market you are doing well and making money in just because something else is potentially more profitable.

 

[Lusamine]

The problem they face is if they should drop some IP while they're still valuable for money or try to use them in mobile and other areas. I could see them selling some IPs that they have no interest in, ones that they believe can't be used for plachinko or mobile, and ones they have a decent offer on the table for.

I think it's going to come down to the last part really. If they get a decent offer on an IP to sell outright, they might just. I don't see anyone attempting that though.

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Anything can go on mobile and pachinko.

 

[Deleted member 5535]

They won't unless their console business is already bad. Again, Konami got out of AAA development because they were doing poorly in that market. You don't abandon a market you are doing well and making money in just because something else is potentially more profitable.

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Exactly this.

 

[AztecComplex]

i've made my peace that konami isn't into games anymore. it's like the ex-girlfriend you secretly wanted to fall on her face and live a horrible life after she left but no she married a doctor and got promoted at work went along just fine without you

i'll miss the hell out of castlevania, goeman and metal gear but other games have more or less carried on the torch. it was a great three decades but that's that. time to move on

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Let us pray that Bloodstained is good. It would go a long way to lessen the blow of Castlevania going the way of the dodo. I have high hopes it might just deliver. I like what I'm seeing so far

 

[Arthands]

because in the case of konami, rather than sticking to it and launching silent hills, focusing on improving the quality of the product they put out, etc. they withdrew. I'm glad they've found a way to stick around (albeit not really in "gaming"), but I expect to see this happen far more often for future companies. Why even bother competing in the console/pc gaming space when you can focus on super profitable low risk mobile games.

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Based on the operating profit chart, you can't blame them for ditching a potential lengthy development of a high risk game project, especially for a franchise that has been declining for years.

 

[Directed by Fulci]

So I'm getting some slight Deja Vu.

A man who can probably be called the biggest rock star in the world of video games, with a pretty significant cult of personality, and famed for being the developer of a hugely influential franchise, either leaves or is forced to leave the company he helped put on the map, likely caused by disagreements over his projects being overly ambitious. Said developer is highly respected enough to quickly find financing and create a new studio to pursue his dream project, one which is going to showcase what he believes is the true creative potential of video games. Years later, the company left behind is more successful than it has ever been, and while people are excited for the rock star developer's game, we still have little idea what his project is actually about, and no idea when it will actually materialize.

Are we talking about Kojima?

Or this guy?

Spoiler

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I think what you're saying is that Hideo Kojima is about to make us his bitch.

 

[Champion]

Kojima stans avoiding this thread like the plague lol

 

[SolVanderlyn]

Worst news I've heard in a long time. RIP Castlevania and Suikoden.

 

[Aselith]

It pains me to admit this but Konami keeps showing us that they did the right thing by walking away from expensive console games and sticking with pachinko, mobile, PES, and the ocassional quick and cheap console game (Super Bomberman R).

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Metal Gear 5 was insanely profitable for them. I think growth in their mobile offerings were responsible for this more than anything.

 

[srtrestre]

Metal Gear Solid: Pocket Snake for iOS/Android that's basically Pokemon Go but MGS themed. It'll be the continuation of the Solid Snake™ saga and picks up exactly where MGS4 left off.

Pls make dis Konami

 

[casiopao]

because in the case of konami, rather than sticking to it and launching silent hills, focusing on improving the quality of the product they put out, etc. they withdrew. I'm glad they've found a way to stick around (albeit not really in "gaming"), but I expect to see this happen far more often for future companies. Why even bother competing in the console/pc gaming space when you can focus on super profitable low risk mobile games.

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On the bold part. What the F? They literally just released top quality big console game on JP juat like 2 weeks ago and this is the narative u guys are pushing?

 

[DarkLordMalik]

Konami owns so many classic franchise. Silent Hill needs to come back this generation and a proper 'Remake' like RE1 will do wonders for it.

 

[Giga Man]

Fuck... Konami...?

Eh. I brought Bomberman back, so I can't truly hate them. (I'll never forgive what they did to Hudson, though.) Give me a 3D Bomberman adventure and dip their IPs back into Smash Bros. and they'll get even more profitable.

 

[KingOfDyslexics]

kojima no longer costing them profits.

 

[zerocalories]

Metal Gear Solid: Pocket Snake for iOS/Android that's basically Pokemon Go but MGS themed. It'll be the continuation of the Solid Snake™ saga and picks up exactly where MGS4 left off.

Pls make dis Konami

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I wish we could thumbs up posts, because i would thumbs up this post

 

[Ethan Hutn]

Good on Konami.

 

[Hailinel]

Kojima's later projects ate ridiculous amounts of budget. It doesn't surprise me at all that Konami is finding more profitability in mobile when they can develop more games for less money instead of banking the farm on one giant blockbuster game with an exorbitant cost.

 

[Mexen]

Patience PES.

 

[Border]

Makes complete sense I suppose. Kojima games ate away at their profits for endless years, and failed to really return on their investment.

 

[jabel]

They don't have to pay Kojima's salary anymore.

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[ggx2ac]

Updated the comparisons in the OP to include Square Enix and Sega.

For comparison:

FY3/2018 results
Konami
Digital Entertainment (Segment)
Revenue: ¥120,250 million (~$1.09 billion)
Segment Profit: ¥37,405 million (~$340.2 million)
Margin: 31.1%

Bandai Namco
Network Entertainment (Segment)
Net Sales: ¥326,537 million (~$2.97 billion)
Segment Profit: ¥50,150 million (~$456 million)
Operating Margin: 15.4%

Capcom
Digital Contents (Segment)
Net Sales: ¥74,141 million (~$674.2 million)
Operating Income: ¥19,103 million (~$173.7 million)
Operating Margin: 25.8%

Square Enix
Digital Entertainment (Segment)
Net Sales ¥191,469 million (~$1.75 billion)
Operating income ¥43,421 million (~$396.9 million)
Operating margin: 22.7%

Sega
Entertainment Contents (Segment)
Net Sales ¥209,563 million (~$1.915 billion)
Segment Income ¥14,841 million (~$135.65 million)
Margin: 7.1%

 

[carlosrox]

While they sit on IPs like Goemon and Castlevania they can make a trillion dollars and I won't give a FUCK.

 

[Visanideth]

Well deserved.

 

[Skronk]

Everyone who bought Metal Gear Survive got played like a damn fiddle!

I always forget about Yu-Gi-Oh when thinking about Konami games, I bet that does consistently make good money.

 

[Yukinari]

The least they could do is release that MGS5 map editor they showed off years ago.

 

[duckroll]

Looks like #FuckKonami really gained traction and took off!!!!

 

[casiopao]

Updated the comparisons in the OP to include Square Enix and Sega.

For comparison:

FY3/2018 results
Konami
Digital Entertainment (Segment)
Revenue: ¥120,250 million (~$1.09 billion)
Segment Profit: ¥37,405 million (~$340.2 million)
Margin: 31.1%

Bandai Namco
Network Entertainment (Segment)
Net Sales: ¥326,537 million (~$2.97 billion)
Segment Profit: ¥50,150 million (~$456 million)
Operating Margin: 15.4%

Capcom
Digital Contents (Segment)
Net Sales: ¥74,141 million (~$674.2 million)
Operating Income: ¥19,103 million (~$173.7 million)
Operating Margin: 25.8%

Square Enix
Digital Entertainment (Segment)
Net Sales ¥191,469 million (~$1.75 billion)
Operating income ¥43,421 million (~$396.9 million)
Operating margin: 22.7%

Sega
Entertainment Contents (Segment)
Net Sales ¥209,563 million (~$1.915 billion)
Segment Income ¥14,841 million (~$135.65 million)
Margin: 7.1%

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That Sega margin is so dire. They are out of big Ips too on package title and their mobile effort had been failure all around there.

 

[Deleted member 11038]

Looks like #FuckKonami really gained traction and took off!!!!

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Always looked stupid and childish to me.

 

[Han]

The only thing i don't understand is: Why they don't sell their non-used IPs to third party companies. Get the license money and let them do the work.

But i guess they are afraid of bad games --> the IP loses reputation?

 

[lauregami]

I love watching gamers react to this by not wanting to address the fact that the problem is capitalism suffocating the creation of media and dancing around the fact that if more regulations aren't placed on the industry NOW then it is going to die. Guess all that matters to them is numbers on a screen going up. They share more in common with the business execs who have turned their hobby into another gambling outlet than they care to admit.

 

[Oath]

Good on them, they stuck to their strengths, cut the fat, and got rewarded

 

[Deleted member 11038]

I love watching gamers react to this by not wanting to address the fact that the problem is capitalism suffocating the creation of media and dancing around the fact that if more regulations aren't placed on the industry NOW then it is going to die. Guess all that matters to them is numbers on a screen going up. They share more in common with the business execs who have turned their hobby into another gambling outlet than they care to admit.

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Konami and other companies earning a lot through mobile games are just satisfying user demands. I don't see what's wrong with that. I obviously don't like their new direction but what can we do? Besides, even not buying their games won't change anything because Konami doesn't care at all since they already showed they can do good without console gamers money.

Look at MG Survive, that game bombed hard in sales, yet they didn't care one bit and their results are the best one ever.

 

[SageShinigami]

Mobile games don't seem to be working for other companies, and it's forcing them to take the console market seriously. But Konami has hits like CyGames. If Konami's the sacrifice we had to make to snap Sega and Capcom out of it, I guess that works?

 

[lauregami]

Konami and other companies earning a lot through mobile games are just satisfying user demands. I don't see what's wrong with that. I obviously don't like their new direction but what can we do? Besides, even not buying their games won't change anything because Konami doesn't care at all since they already showed they can do good without console gamers money.

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Probably the only thing I like better than gamers putting their foot in their mouth every time a big number with a money symbol is waved in their face is the backpedaling that's done once they start trying to rationalize their own exploitation in their heads.

Is this "satisfying user demands" or creating and enabling gambling addictions? I see something wrong with participating in an industry that takes advantage of people.

The success isn't a good thing. They don't care because they don't have to care because they have bigger numbers than you. Other companies are going to move away to get those numbers, and that has potential to kill the industry as we know it not only for large game creators but small developers.

 

[Laughing Banana]

Kojima better be hopeful that Death Stranding is profitable for him because the irony of it if it's not can destroy the minds of so many gamers, lol.

 

[MONSTER]

so the reality was Kojima being a detriment to the company?

Konami won?

 

[casiopao]

The only thing i don't understand is: Why they don't sell their non-used IPs to third party companies. Get the license money and let them do the work.

But i guess they are afraid of bad games --> the IP loses reputation?

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The risk is not worth the revenue it can brought. Like, there is bigger chance of a new Suikoden game by other devs to tarnished the value of the IP than it suddenly become a big hit.

At least letting it dormant means the value will stays still without any fear of depreciation.

 

[Deleted member 8196]

Kojima better be hopeful that Death Stranding is profitable for him because the irony of it if it's not can destroy the minds of so many gamers, lol.

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I see a huge budget around that game and some million copies to recoup the cost of development.

 

[Vault]

The money that Konami would want for any IP would be more than anyone would be willing to pay so its a nonstarter

Why would you buy the Silent Hill IP when you can just make your own horror game with a different name

 

[casiopao]

Mobile games don't seem to be working for other companies, and it's forcing them to take the console market seriously. But Konami has hits like CyGames. If Konami's the sacrifice we had to make to snap Sega and Capcom out of it, I guess that works?

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Actually...... Sega and Cacpcom is in no way of shape any where close to Konami in terms of income lol.

Both those company better hope their package game effort would be able to come out faster and be more successful as right now their mobile effort is so dire.

 

[san00ake]

This just shows you how in this shitty world evil never pays.