Konami stops production of AAA console titles, Gameblog claims
Yesterday Gameblog reported that worldwide technology director Julien Merceron left Konami, today they are bringing more disturbing news. According the the website, Konami has stopped development on all console AAA projects, with the exception of Pro Evolution Soccer. Gameblog states there will be no large scale console game before the fiscal year 2017/2018. Earlier this year, Konami announced that they will be mainly focusing on the mobile market for future games.
Currently the studio is still working on Metal Gear Online, but apparently once that’s done there are no plans to develop another big Metal Gear title. This goes against earlier reports that Konami was already hiring new staff for the next game in the series, after Kojima’s departure.
Keep in mind these are still just rumors, but according to Eurogamer, both the news about Julien Merceron as well as this report are true. But it’s hard to say when we’ll know for sure.
Update: Tweet by Rika Muranaka (composer who worked on several Konami games including Metal Gear titles):
Yes….it's pretty sad…now, I can't write music to any of AAA games..well, I need to find another AAA game company https://t.co/lVIFRXi95a
— Rika Muranaka (@unjazzmusic) September 18, 2015
Update 2: Su Yi-Na Farmer (Communications Manager at Konami UK) tweeted the following:
I hope re-purposing speculation and rumour as news, isn't the new standard
— Ⓢⓤ (@ParodiSu) September 18, 2015
Update 3: According to Konami Customer Support, the rumors aren’t true.
