While EA and Activision certainly deserve to be a part of the conversation, it's hard to think of many gaming companies that have done more to undo all their goodwill than Konami. The company's pedigree of classics spans from the days of the arcades to the PlayStation 2 generation.
However, with the HD era came a terrible cold streak for the company that seemed to curse all their classic franchises, such as Silent Hill, Castlevania, and even Metal Gear. One thing's for certain, the Konami that gamers once loved has been gone for decades, and it'll take more than the Contra code to bring it back.
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10 They Haven't Done A Good Job At Preserving Their Classic Titles
During the 80s and 90s, Konami had a strategy of developing titles based on popular pre-existing brands such as the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, X-Men, and even The Simpsons. Many of these titles received rave reviews and generated tons of revenue. Unfortunately, licensing deals don't last forever, which is why digital downloads of these classic titles were eventually de-listed.
Even the X-Men XBLA version had to have its voices re-recorded because they didn't keep track of who performed the original lines. They even lost the source codes for the Silent Hill titles, which led to the HD collection's buggy and unfinished state.
9 Their 2010 E3 Press Conference
Konami's 2010 E3 press conference has become one of the biggest laughing stocks in the industry, prompting several memes and comical YouTube edits. Much of the demonstrations were lampooned for featuring Japanese representatives who could barely speak English, embarrassing comedic sketches for titles such as NeverDead, and the conference's overall drab and cheap presentation.
The one bright spot in this whole affair is Tak Fujii and his presentation of Ninety-Nine Nights 2. While the game was really nothing to write home about, Fujii's self-effacement and sheer enthusiasm overcame many of the cultural and language barriers in the event.
8 The Month Of Madness Was An Embarrassing Failure
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In a dim-witted move that undoubtedly sabotaged the quality of the games it was meant to promote, Konami's Month of Madness arbitrarily chose March to release three high-profile entries in the Silent Hill franchise. As a result, the HD Collection and Downpour were rushed out the door in a clearly unfinished state on the 6th and 13th, respectively.
The Diablo-esque dungeon crawler, Book of Memories, didn't actually make its March release date and was instead delayed to the suitably spooky month of October to coincide with the equally terrible film Silent Hill Revelation. Why all three games couldn't get that extra time is anyone's guess.
7 They Slapped Their Classic Franchises On Numerous Gambling Machines
Trailers for gambling machines based on the company's most beloved works have been bombarded with numerous dislikes and negative comments. In the wake of Silent Hills' cancelation, revealing a slot machine based on the second entry came across as entirely tone-deaf. Fans were also more than a little upset to see high-quality models of characters from one of the most acclaimed Metal Gear entries being wasted on an ad for a mere pachinko machine.
The most tasteless example is the Castlevania machine which depicts a succubus getting hit with the Belmont whip and mentions "Erotic Violence" as a selling point.
6 The PC Port Of Pro-Evolution Soccer Was Flagrant False Advertising
Terrible PC ports were an unfortunate trend during the eighth generation of video game consoles, but Konami's blunder takes the cake. Despite the Steam store page featuring screenshots of the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One ports of Pro-Evolution Soccer 2016, the PC port is a weird amalgamation that's more graphically in line with the worse-looking previous-gen versions.
While it includes certain gameplay features from the PlayStation 4 port, the polygon count, lighting, and textures don't boast the same amount of detail. Unsurprisingly, the store page was bombarded with overwhelmingly negative user reviews decrying the use of false advertising.
5 They've Tried In Vain To Censor Criticism
Even members of the press have managed to earn Konami's wrath. Jim Stephanie Sterling vented their frustrations with acquiring review copies of Konami's titles and getting approvals for interviews with their developers in a YouTube video. They interviewed developer Wayforward to talk about Silent Hill Book of Memories, which was, according to Sterling, the only coverage the game would end up receiving before release.
Unfortunately, Sterling was informed by a representative that they were blacklisted shortly after their video. Super Bunnyhop was also issued a DMCA copyright strike for his video detailing the internal drama between Konami and Kojima.
4 They've Ruined Their Most Beloved Franchises
Each of their beloved franchises suffered from gradual declines. The Silent Hill series was outsourced to several Western developers who failed to capture the psychological horror and dread of the first four titles before Kojima's take on the franchise was unceremoniously axed.
Castlevania made several unsuccessful attempts in the third dimension before MercuryStream released the God of War-like Lords of Shadow. Unfortunate, developmental problems plagued the sequel, leading to an underwhelming follow-up. After the departure of Hideo Kojima, the Metal Gear franchise's next title was an uninspired zombie spin-off called Metal Gear Survive.
3 They Fired The Figureheads Behind Their Most Beloved Franchises
The company has become infamous for its treatment of the creators who made their games possible. While the Castlevania franchise has spawned numerous titles and even a highly successful Netflix series, its creator Hitoshi Akamatsu, has largely been shrouded in mystery. After years of acclaimed titles, the company canceled Hideo Kojima's planned Silent Hills, dissolved his division, and fired him.
In an incredible act of pettiness, Konami would not even allow Kojima to accept an award for his work on Metal Gear Solid V Phantom Pain at the 2015 Game Awards. Several talented staff, such as Koji Igarashi, Akira Yamaoka, and Masahiro Ito, jumped ship long ago.
2 The Cancelation Of Silent Hills Marked A Turning Point For The Company
After years of subpar releases that diminished the brand, anticipation for Silent Hills was very high. With Kojima heading development and the involvement of horror legend Guillermo Del Toro, fans speculated if this would be the title to bring the series back to grace.
Unfortunately, speculation would be all they ever got, as Konami canceled the game in 2015. Reception to this news among fans and the press was overwhelmingly cold, spurning the creation of several indie horror titles such as Layers of Fear. Even eight years later, Del Toro took to Twitter to vent his frustration with the game's cancelation.
1 Reports Of Working Conditions Don't Paint A Pretty Picture
In 2015, allegations of poor working conditions were leveled at Konami from those who've claimed to see them firsthand. Reports have accused the company of adopting an arbitrary two-week approval system before granting developers the resources to perform their duties. Divisions within the company are also reportedly prohibited from communicating with each other, and are constantly at risk of having their contributions downplayed or even unacknowledged.
Silent Hill developer Masahiro Ito was solely responsible for the CG cutscenes of the first title, but almost went uncredited due to his lack of seniority. Only by threatening to withhold his technical expertise did Konami acquiesce.