Konami E3 2012 Press Event Recap

With so many press conferences coming up early next week before the Electronic Entertainment Expo, it can be difficult to sift through all of the news to see what each company is going to show.   Konami got the jump on the competition by revealing its projects during a special Thursday night online event, a 32-minute preview showcasing the games that they’ll have on the show floor.

While there was no sign of the new PlayStation Vita Silent Hill game, Konami still had a few aces up its sleeve, including new entries in ongoing series, along with a humorous short from the Mega 64 team.  Without further ado, here’s the rundown of what Konami showed last night.

First off, the team announced that it has joined forces with Zynga to introduce certain Konami titles into the social gaming scene.  A Frogger title could very well be in the works, and is likely to be unveiled at E3.  Speaking of the big green guy, who’s celebrating his 31st year in gaming, he’ll be returning in a new iOS game called Frogger Pinball, due sometime this year.  

Konami then introduced Pro Evolution Soccer 2013 and the significant changes that would be made to this year’s game, including gameplay improvements like bigger reaction from goalkeepers and special kick types.  Though this was mostly a technical explanation, it did show some of the new game footage in action, and it looks very good for the latest entry in an ongoing series.  Soccer fans are likely to be thrilled when it arrives later this year.

Hideo Kojima spoke about the upcoming Zone of the Enders HD Collection, and his devotion to bringing the series back for a new generation to enjoy.  The games, which will be released for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, will feature plenty of robotic shooting action, along with an interesting sci-fi storyline.  A premium package was also introduced with special new bonuses, including a special collector’s sleeve with artwork by Yoji Shinkawa.  The game should arrive later this year.

Kojima spoke briefly about the history of the Metal Gear Solid franchise, as it was nearing its 25th year in production.  Though he didn’t mention any new particular projects that would be revealed at E3, he did hint that the original could very well make a comeback, maybe even in high-definition form.  

Konami devoted a lot of the press conference time to the upcoming game Metal Gear Rising Revengeance, and for good reason.  The action game takes a more visceral turn in the Metal Gear franchise, with Raiden hacking and slashing at enemies while seeking revenge for a childhood gone wrong.  The game has no shortage of action, from slicing your way into a walker to deflecting bullets from a vehicular turret firing at you from a distance.  Though we’re not quite sure how the gameplay will come together just yet (Kinect?  Move?  Controller?), it’s looking very impressive, and we’ll be sure to have time for a road test next week at E3.

Along with the super-serious gameplay, Konami once again called upon the comical nutcases at Mega 64, who introduced “transferring” at last year’s Konami press conference for Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker, to do a short.  This time around, they did a small piece for Revengeance, featuring an unemployed Raiden working his way through a number of failed jobs, including an entertainer at a birthday party (he slices the cake, table and bouncy castle in half), dog walker (he fries the poor creatures), gourmet chef and plumber, among other jobs, before finally being given the task of fighting bad guys.  It’s pretty funny and should be up over at their official site by the time you read this.

From there, the Castlevania franchise took over to close the show.  Konami ran the Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2 trailer featuring a powerful figure in his castle before facing what appears to be an armada of soldiers waiting for him outside.  He “juices” up with power and manages to wipe out hundreds in a few swoops, using a generated whip that flings around as a powerful fiery weapon.  A huge creature then emerges from the ground, challenging his ability as it stomps closer to him.  Unfortunately, that’s just part of his troubles, as a strange figure also emerges, drawing his weapon and preparing to fight.

The interesting thing about the Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2 trailer was the inclusion of Xbox Live and PlayStation Network logos.  Could we be looking at a possible co-op supported title?  Check back for more information soon.

We’ve included the trailer here.  Enjoy!

Finally, a brief teaser was shown for the upcoming 3DS game Castlevania: Lords of Shadow – Mirror of Fate.  Though no gameplay footage was revealed, the company stated that the game would be officially unveiled on June 5th, the first day of E3, so it’s likely to be on the floor at their booth.  

Despite some weird use of hologram technology and some boring stuff at the beginning, a lot of interesting projects were revealed, namely Zone of the Enders HD Collection, Metal Gear Rising Revengeance and the Castlevania titles.  We’ll be making a stop at Konami’s booth and will provide you coverage shortly thereafter, letting you know just how good their line-up is going to be.