Castlevania Dungeon Forums
The Castlevania Dungeon Forums => General Castlevania Discussion => Topic started by: Lumi Kløvstad on January 08, 2016, 08:53:47 PM
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I was just remembering Operation Akumajo (and how it fizzled out without ever achieving anything of note). I think their goals were noble, but in the end Konami just wrote them off as angry fanbois trying to take control of a franchise.
Honestly? They kind of were.
But, that doesn't change the fact that Castlevania is dying, and at risk of just becoming a bunch of PachiSlut machines.
We need to convince Konami there's still a market for quality games.
Hence this thread.
Let's start putting out heads together, and figure out how to show Konami (at a dark time when they are more stubborn and antagonistic than ever before) that there's still money to be made at this.
I don't want to see Castlevania clock out for good with the last game having been Lawds 2.
That'd just be embarrassing guys.
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Show them some fanfics.
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Show them some fanfics.
Yours?
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Sure. Why not?
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Well, for me personally, I'm making a 30th Anniversary Castlevania CD this year...I figure if fans can't get the games they want, they at least deserve the music...
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Well, for me personally, I'm making a 30th Anniversary Castlevania CD this year...I figure if fans can't get the games they want, they at least deserve the music...
That actually sounds real good.
I was also thinking that petitions are kind of pointless, but what about an open letter? Get it signed by as many people as we can, and fire it off direct to Konami's leadership.
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We do something better than them. Then this something gets incredibly popular, and they try to jump on the bandwagon.
That's what IGA's doing with his Bloodstained. He pretty much stole Castlevania's fanbase in one fell swoop, and I'm almost 100% sure his game will be a total success. And I'm almost 100% sure that, if Bloodstained is a success, he'll be allowed a license to do a Castlevania if he asks for it.
The truth is that Konami doesn't seem to care anymore.
I just wish they'd lend the Dungeon a license to create a fangame (like Capcom did with the Street Fighter VS Megaman). If they're not doing it, at fucking least let us do it then.
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We do something better than them. Then this something gets incredibly popular, and they try to jump on the bandwagon.
That's what IGA's doing with his Bloodstained. He pretty much stole Castlevania's fanbase in one fell swoop, and I'm almost 100% sure his game will be a total success. And I'm almost 100% sure that, if Bloodstained is a success, he'll be allowed a license to do a Castlevania if he asks for it.
I've seen fans try to do that before, and Konami's response ended up being essentially "well, since you're so much better, obviously we don't have to do anything because you've clearly got it covered already."
Nothing about that company makes any logical sense, so whatever we come up with will have to take that into account.
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I was also thinking that petitions are kind of pointless, but what about an open letter? Get it signed by as many people as we can, and fire it off direct to Konami's leadership.
Operation Akumajo tried that route...any guess as to what Konami' s (lack of) response was?
As self-defeating as it sounds, I think it is wasted energy to complain to Konami at this point in time. After all, if they didn't even care to hear out Hideo Kojima, why would they care about us little peons? Quite frankly, that's what I feel we are to Konami at this junction.
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Operation Akumajo tried that route...any guess as to what Konami' s (lack of) response was?
They eventually DID respond, but I imagine if someone as irritating as Operation Akumajo (who successfully alienated the majority of the Castlevania fanbase as I recall) sent you an open letter, you'd ignore that shit too.
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The biggest reality check for Konami has already been delivered through the IGA Kickstarter. If that doesn't deliver the message, nothing will.
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Operation Akumajo...who successfully alienated the majority of the Castlevania fanbase as I recall
I think that Konami did just fine on their own alienating their fanbase, they really didn't need a lot of help.
This sort of thing is going on all over the place, though. I feel that Square Enix, Capcom, and quite a few others haven't really done a good job of listening, or recognizing what made their companies successful in the first place. Square Enix may be trying to save face with a supposed FF7 remake, for example, but the fact that the traditional JRPG battle system is being completely remade to something more "modern" seems to be directly analogous to Konami's abandonment of the 2D genre.
Maybe money has something to do with it. Maybe the financial reality truly IS that people won't buy the "old" stuff enough to make it viable for a company (I doubt this is the case being that I bought a PS TV just for the Dracula X Chronicles and FF IV Complete), but I also think poor marketing plays a hand for Konami. I mean, I loved Hard Corps: Uprising, but come on! Why were too dumb to include "Contra" in the title of the game? Sales might have been remarkably better had they done so and people were AWARE of it, enough that I think they could have concluded that the genre and style is NOT dead..
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Seriously I've contacted Konami on a couple of occasions receiving bull shit generic responses.
They used to make a point to state they don't take game design advice from fans.
Once I'd even contacted them to help their asses out because someone had infringed on one of their copyrights (Castlevania music being used where it shouldn't have been). They acknowledged this email properly, after about 10 days without even so much as a follow up email/ thank you.
They can seriously eat a for breakfast.
Obvious fuckwits are obvious. The fans are doing it much better. But seriously if you're going to starve your child at least give it to someone who cares, like Igasan.
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i think if Bloodstained is a big success that will be the best shot at showing Konami people want a new CV
Bloodstained is already financially a large success being one of the most highly funded KS ever. The fact this happened has shown everyone in this world, especially konami that oldschool Castlevania fans remain bloodthirsty for a new entry to the series - and willing to pay money for it.
I wouldn't be surprised if it is successful, Konami then turns around and tries to sue IGA for intellectual property.
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I wouldn't be surprised if it is successful, Konami then turns around and tries to sue IGA for intellectual property.
I'd almost be insulted if they didn't. They have an image as an oppressive North Korea-like state to maintain, after all.
Like I said, nothing they do makes any logical sense. The inmates are clearly running the asylum over there.
One thing I did do was buy the complete LOS saga over again during the Steam Winter Sale, firstly because I wanted to toy around with the PC versions but secondly to silently send a message that the Castlevania name still has some purchasing power with fans, even if they aren't my favorite games.
I mean, no company would do a damned thing without sales, so I gave them some.
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Quite simply, I don't think they can be convinced. Silent Hills had a huge market and it got shitcanned hard.
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Quite simply, I don't think they can be convinced.
It is entirely possible that this may be the case for current Konami leadership, but I still advocate fighting hard for Castlevania, because even if it achieves nothing with THIS ceo+board of directors, a future iteration may remember this and be more sympathetic to the cause.
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I've been making tribute albums since 2011, they better understand there are still fans out there.
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I've been making tribute albums since 2011, they better understand there are still fans out there.
Like Jack Black's song? ;p
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Plot and I are working a short game in which you infiltrate Konami to save the CV Bible and fight the evil CEOs and pachinko machines (yes when I said it was happening in the other thread I was entirely cereal).
If the irony of a CV clone ripping heinously on the overarching IP holder doesn't make the statement that there are still fans out there, I don't know what would. And if it doesn't, well then the rippings-on are just that much better.
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i dont want konami invlolved with castlevania anymore
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i dont want konami invlolved with castlevania anymore
I wouldn't want them involved either. Especially not after their whole LoS debacle, with a follow-up of tasteless pachislots. One way to get Konami back on track is to have another company buy them outright. Then that company fires all the CEOs who made the stupid decisions in the first place that lead to the recent disasters. After that, bring in fresh blood--people that love and respect not only the games but the fans as well. In other words have a company of the people, run by the people, for the people.
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I wouldn't want them involved either. Especially not after their whole LoS debacle, with a follow-up of tasteless pachislots. One way to get Konami back on track is to have another company buy them outright. Then that company fires all the CEOs who made the stupid decisions in the first place that lead to the recent disasters. After that, bring in fresh blood--people that love and respect not only the games but the fans as well. In other words have a company of the people, run by the people, for the people.
Desired headline: Valve buys Konami, Steam-exclusive Castlevania and Silent Hill commisioned.
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Desired headline: Valve buys Konami, Steam-exclusive Castlevania and Silent Hill commisioned.
As usual, Archer fucking nails it.
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As usual, Archer fucking nails it.
*Insert bullseye pun*
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I still think at some point they're going to wait for after Bloodstained and retaliate with sotn HD, just to spite IGA.
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I don't think Konami listens at all at this point. I think they're just looking at other popular games and then try to see how they can turn their own franchises into those. So, with LoS they essentially listened to God of War fanbase more than the CV fanbase.
"Screw what our fans want! Now, what can we do to please the GoW fans?"
Whenever (if ever) Castlevania comes back, it's gonna be 100% what Konami wants it to be. Hopefully the company will have some new creative blood at some point, and something good can come out of it. My only hope right now is that Konami wants to please the Dark Souls crowd and makes a Castlevania inspired by that. It could really go either way but I think the foundation for a decent 3D Castlevania is hidden within Dark Souls rather than God of War.
As for 2D Castlevania, it may very well happen after Bloodstained, but I bet Konami is genuinely uninterested in 2D action games these days. I would've thought Shovel Knight (and all the other indie hits) might've made them interested again, but it doesn't seem like it, sadly.
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I still feel that we will get some sort of 2D Castlevania upon the release BloodStained if anything out of spite or Konami trying to cash in on BloodStained's success.
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I still feel that we will get some sort of 2D Castlevania upon the release BloodStained if anything out of spite or Konami trying to cash in on BloodStained's success.
Exactly. They will wait until the fans have had a taste for blood and ride the success. Because Igasan will make Bloodstained 2 eventually and he will require time.
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I'm sure Konami doesn't care about the core fans.
They are looking to get a share of the mainstream crowd.
If Bloodstained proves successful on that front, then we might see Konami make a move.
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I really just want Konami to sell the IP so we can all move on. My love for the series is greater than my hatred for Konami, so if it looked quality enough I would most likely begrudgingly buy the new game. But I absolute despise Konami now and I don't see that changing until they get rid of all the upper management assholes involved with this drama.
They most likely will do something to combat Bloodstained, but I fear it will be lackluster and possibly even Japan only. I fear they are too up their own ass to put out a normal game. We shall see. But seriously, fuck Konami.
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I believe Konami aren't just too far up their own ass, they've just plain gone bananas. As one Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw would put it:
Because of course Konami recently decided that they're going to take everything they've built over the years as a game developer, arrange it nicely in front of them, and then pick up a big hammer, and then smash and smash and smash and smash and smash! "Sorry we had to cancel Silent Hills, but we kind of lost our interest in it, around the same time we lost our fucking miiiiinds! Here, have a pachinko machine instead. We like pachinko machines because it's nice to have something around with some fucking balls! Also, fuck off, Hideo Kojima, you're too reliably bankable for our liking, we'd much rather stick our feet up our arse and bounce down the stairs making burbling noises with our lips, blrblrblrblrblrblr."
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Their must be a way of getting into these yo-yos heads. These world class high tech state of the art yo-yos.
I would buy CV merchandise if I could find it but in MA and it doesn't have any comic book store clout. I don't see any merch anywhere in the Salem MA store and that would be a prime place for it to shine especially during Halloween.
How about and internet rumor?
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How about and internet rumor?
No, those tend to lead to very, very sore blue balls.
Besides, false rumors won't work very well due to how evidence-demanding the internet folks are these days.
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Know what's good for resurrecting old franchises? When Konami licks stinky buttcrack :P
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It's Castlevania's 30th anniversary this year, isn't it? I sure do wonder what Konami has down the pipeline. Maybe a tweet or a Facebook post even. I can't wait!
/deadinside
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It's Castlevania's 30th anniversary this year, isn't it? I sure do wonder what Konami has down the pipeline. Maybe a tweet or a Facebook post even. I can't wait!
/deadinside
I am more excited for the Pokemon 20th anniversary than this. /sigh
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I'm not falling for the anniversary thing again. I'm still salty about the 25th
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I'm not expecting anything from Konami this year. I'm just waiting for Bloodstained.
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What's happening to Konami seems to be happening to a lot of Japanese game companies lately.
Either way, it's a shame to see what Konami's become. I hope they get it together and start putting out quality games as a rule rather than simply repackaging existing genres (which they've always kind of done.)
In the meantime, I'll keep enjoying the games we DO have and will be looking forward to Bloodstained when it comes out.
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Bloodstained pretty much is Castlevania's 30th anniversary
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Maybe they'd get the message if I bought the Android version of the pachislot game.
I just remembered that's a thing I can do now that I have a smartphone.
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Maybe they'd get the message if I bought the Android version of the pachislot game.
I just remembered that's a thing I can do now that I have a smartphone.
Do it, and post detailed reviews as only you can.
Bloodstained pretty much is Castlevania's 30th anniversary
What a great interim project to celebrate with while the fans wait for Shaft to get his shit together and revive the series.
What's happening to Konami seems to be happening to a lot of Japanese game companies lately.
Either way, it's a shame to see what Konami's become. I hope they get it together and start putting out quality games as a rule rather than simply repackaging existing genres (which they've always kind of done.)
In the meantime, I'll keep enjoying the games we DO have and will be looking forward to Bloodstained when it comes out.
I keep forgetting you're still alive Docta. ;)
At some level, Konami has a ready and willing set of employees who recognize that it is a gaming company and are willing to try to bring it back to that. Even if Konami's current leadership is allergic to money (and their decision-making logic says that they are), their shareholders are NOT. Eventually, the company will lose money to their toxic reputation and shareholders will demand the board step down and be replaced. Then those who remember what Konami used to be will be in a position to make it happen again.
Or they won't, and all we'll have are old games and fond memories that steadily turn sour.
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What's happening to Konami seems to be happening to a lot of Japanese game companies lately.
Either way, it's a shame to see what Konami's become. I hope they get it together and start putting out quality games as a rule rather than simply repackaging existing genres (which they've always kind of done.)
In the meantime, I'll keep enjoying the games we DO have and will be looking forward to Bloodstained when it comes out.
Pretty much. Then again, it seems like no game companies are doing well anymore, whether Japanese or Western.
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The world is in a state of panic atm, companies want guaranteed profit and are only seeing dollar signs.
Unfortunately in a creative, artistic and design driven industry it's very difficult to survive. Small Indie developers are probably safer right now.
But then what, only AAA games and indie? I'd hate to see everything in between leave, that would really polarise the industry for the worse imo. Why? The AAA companies will end up buying the IP's we all knew and loved to be pimped out like shameless whore$. Not good.
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The world is in a state of panic atm, companies want guaranteed profit and are only seeing dollar signs.
Unfortunately in a creative, artistic and design driven industry it's very difficult to survive. Small Indie developers are probably safer right now.
But then what, only AAA games and indie? I'd hate to see everything in between leave, that would really polarise the industry for the worse imo. Why? The AAA companies will end up buying the IP's we all knew and loved to be pimped out like shameless whore$. Not good.
I miss B-Class games, which is where Castlevania always found the most fans.
B-class games were those pretty great but not amazing games that tended to hit shelves at half of what the big games were selling but reliably promised a still pretty good all around experience. Maybe the graphics were a little worse or the controls weren't as refined, but the whole thing still felt good to play.
Now, there's Triple-A, Budget, and Indie gaming. We lost a whole product class somewhere halfway through the 2000's and Castlevania and many other franchises have suffered for it.
Good examples of B-class games are the first BloodRayne, Blades of Time, Hunted: The Demon's Forge, SiN Episodes: Emergence (criminally underrated and that series should have had more), WET, and Velvet Assassin. You can definitely tell where costs were cut, but they remain enjoyable.
Castlevania's strengths were found in that zone, I think, and when Konami would try to "go big" with Castlevania and make it a Triple A, disaster usually followed. But they kept trying.
I guess they never had a stern talking to by Vaas Montenegro about the definition of insanity. (https://youtu.be/rKMMCPeiQoc)
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Or they won't, and all we'll have are old games and fond memories that steadily turn sour.
So, we are turning into grumpy old curmudgeons shaking our walking sticks at Konami.
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So, we are turning into grumpy old curmudgeons shaking our walking sticks at Konami.
We've been at this too long. Our hopes are almost as dead as this franchise.
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We've been at this too long. Our hopes are almost as dead as this franchise.
True, I only used to hit up CV dungeon for detailed info on the games and never post in forums. Despite the fact CV pretty much is dead I'm shocked at making Master Hunter.
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Even if Konami's current leadership is allergic to money (and their decision-making logic says that they are), their shareholders are NOT. Eventually, the company will lose money to their toxic reputation and shareholders will demand the board step down and be replaced. Then those who remember what Konami used to be will be in a position to make it happen again.
Or they won't, and all we'll have are old games and fond memories that steadily turn sour.
Don't count on this at all. Konami is not losing money, video games are a small part of their business, and they make much higher profits off of Panchinko, mobile, and their health clubs in Japan. This is just a gamer's hope, and does not reflect the reality of the situation.
As long the Pachinko machines make money, the Castlevania IP is going nowhere. The only real hope at this point is if Bloodstained does well enough for konami to copy it, and possibly even license it out to Iga for a game or two.
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Don't count on this at all. Konami is not losing money, video games are a small part of their business, and they make much higher profits off of Panchinko, mobile, and their health clubs in Japan. This is just a gamer's hope, and does not reflect the reality of the situation.
As long the Pachinko machines make money, the Castlevania IP is going nowhere. The only real hope at this point is if Bloodstained does well enough for konami to copy it, and possibly even license it out to Iga for a game or two.
Slow down speedy gonzales.
I said their toxic reputation will damage their profits -- in the sense that now that they have been unmasked as the monsters they are, fewer and fewer people will willingly do business with them. Doesn't matter if they aren't a gaming company. Companies that have well earned reputations for abusing customers and employees tend not to see a whole lot of future customers.
And all that negative press is gonna bite them in the ass unless they change, and they won't change. So it WILL hit them where it hurts. In their wallets.
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Don't count on it. Business is about making money, love it or hate it, Konami is doing a good job at that, and cutting their sagging gaming department off will only make them do that better, and that is all investors and business partners care about. I think you are falling down the wishful thinking rabbit hole.
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The issue is Konami's main business is the gambling industry, is it not?
Last time I was at the Casino I noticed a lot of Konami machines. This in itself is more than lucrative. Not to mention their pachislot utopia they've built.
Do they really give a fuck about the individual? About preserving a good image with gamers? I'd say they don't, gaming is their less profitable market specifically at the moment. I don't think they'd be batting an eyelid at something that couldn't sell like a Blockbuster.
Do they care about their public image? The whole Kojima fiasco answers that, one of the most revered men in gaming publicly humiliated to the point where crowds were booing at the game awards (thanks to one ballsy journalist who actually reported the news). I was walking into JB Hifi seeing signs above PS4 MGS that read "A game by HIDEO KOJIMA".
Sorry Archer, they don't give a flying fuck.
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There is always the chance that this will explode in their faces in a much bigger way than they anticipate.
Companies of that scale are not immune to company-destroying blunders, and I firmly believe their handling of Hideo Kojima will eventually prove to be the disease that destroys their entire bankable reputation. But like any great disease, it's gonna have to incubate, and they're going to have to let it go untreated.
And, especially given what I've been hearing around the 'net, a REAL explosion also doesn't seem to be out of the question, terrifyingly enough.
Konami has pissed people off enough that jilted former employees who meet every conceivable definition of "way beyond disgruntled" might actually resort to corporate terrorism. Arson is a good bet (as it's a classic way of sending a message to someone you really hate). Konami doesn't yet have any goddamn idea how badly they fucked up, and we might end up seeing them take some more literal losses in the foreseeable future because of it.
Probably not. But time will tell.
People do dangerous things when they feel their lives have already been destroyed by "the man", and this is a company that has produced a fair number of such people. Hideo Kojima stands to win big by his falling out with the company, but the little guys? Not so much.
Former employees going completely postal has a precedent. And people have gone postal for much, much less.
I don't really want it to happen, but it would be difficult to feel that justice hadn't been served if it did.
Assuming it doesn't, we can look forward to more and more employees steadily deciding "fuck your terms and conditions" and high tailing it for wherever the employers don't see themselves as God-Kings.
In my perfect Walgreen's world, they find jobs with Nintendo and Kojima Productions. More than likely, they end up working at bars and the like.
This whole thing is a fucking travesty.
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#marxism #itwaswritten
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#marxism #itwaswritten
This is really kind of meant for a different thread, but at the time, Marx was almost 100% dead on the money about how working class folks were abused. His solution sucked, but his initial premise was insanely accurate.
The premise is still plenty true, but the solution he offered still doesn't work.
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*Insert bullseye pun*
(https://castlevaniadungeon.net/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fstatic.comicvine.com%2Fuploads%2Foriginal%2F10%2F109662%2F3510008-bullseye5.jpg&hash=b7665a207ed50faa2bd073d6759fee29313265d7)
(Sorry, couldn't resist)
Outside of Bloodstained, the only thing that might get Konami's attention is to have a fangame with some hype that would REALLY get them to take notice, like Streets of Rage Remake did with Sega. It almost seems like that game was so well made that it embarrassed Sega into reacting like they did, demanding it be C&D'ed and all.
Even still, Bloodstained looks like our best bet.