E-mail response from Konami

[capitanpato]

Ok, so I wrote an e-mail to Konami asking them to shed some light on the "Mystery of the dissapearing MLS EXTRATIME 2002 for PS2". Much to my surprise they answered my mail. Here is the response:

"Dear Konami Customer:

We are writing in response to your letter about ESPN MLS Extratime.
We regret to inform you that Konami of America, Inc. has canceled ESPN MLS
Extratime. Konami of America, Inc has not made any official announcement to
port ESPN MLS Extratime to the PS2.

For more information on ESPN MLS Extratime and other release dates visit:

http://www.konami.com/main/schedule.shtml

Please contact Customer Service if we can be of any other assistance.

Konami of America, Inc.
1400 Bridge Parkway, Suite 101
Redwood City, California, 94065-1567
USA
Attn: Customer Service
[email protected]
1-(650)-654-3249
1-(650)-654-5687


So there you have it. They screwed us.

 

[Decado]

Screwed themselves. MLS is hardly a console selling franchise.

The PS2 version would probably have sold 2-3X as many copies as the GC/Xbox versions combined.

 

[juventusita]

So this game is still on for x-box and gamecube?

 

[dougb]

Hey Capitapato,

I'm impressed you actually managed to get a response from them! I've sent them two nice polite e-mails and haven't received a whisper.

My EB has the X-Box version shipping tomorrow (but this seems to change with the weather, so who knows :<

I think we should all send a big collective F*CK YOU to Konami for being such a bunch of *******s about the whole thing. They are truly the kings of the F*CK UP when it comes to marketing. No PES or Winning Eleven in North America but we continue to get a deluge of F*CKING **** titles like football, winter sports, basketball...The list is practically endless.

MLS Extratime 2002 will be an absolute failure from a sales standpoint because the haven't bothered to lift so much as a little pinky marketing it. Unfortunately, the failure of that series will probably be taken as justification for not distributing PES or Winning Eleven over here. So console owners, unless they go to the expense/risk of modding, importing, or using knives (WTF?!!?)and owning a PS2 to boot, will be stuck with either F*CKING IDIOTIC FOOTBALL ATTEMPT 2000 ad naseum etc. etc. or no football at all.

ARRRGGHHH (Middle finger extended in the general direction of Konami's Hawaii offices)

Doug

Best wishes to all non-Konami people.

Question: How do you get a one-armed Konami executive out of a tree?

 

[juventusita]

Oh god, I know. The genres of games in the United States can get plain retarded. What kind of idiot thinks that more people in the United States are going to buy winter sports games with bobsledding, cross-country skiing, and ski jumping rather than a soccer game. Soccer has a good sized market in North America, but there's no selection of games. You can get FIFA and that's pretty much it. That's it, i'm going to take over the world and eliminate all people who didn't bring their great soccer games to America (ahem, Konami).

 

[bertkamp16]

To all you guys that live here in the States, use the knife method!!
Forget about MLS 2002 and get a Game Shark 2 and use the knife method to play a REAL soccer game, like WE5FE or PES.
You can thank me when you're playing a REAL football game...

 

[dougb]

Bergkamp,

I think I'd probably spring for a Japanese import PS2 before attempting the Knife method. I read a description of it and thought that it sounded a bit risky. Is there much of a chance of knocking off the clips?

Best wishes,

Doug

 

[BrandonBett02]

WTF!

Are you telling me there is going 2 be no ESPN for PS2! How dumb is konami! First they dont release PES of WE5 in the states. and now they pull ESPN from the most popular systeam!

 

[Decado]

Does the "trick" still work with newer version of the PS2? My PS2 code starts with U4.

 

[juventusita]

I don't have a PS2, just xbox, or else I would knife it.

 

[CapnKill]

Figures

I thought that might happen, after all the fishy release date pushbacks..

Konami has blown me away with their lack of inteligence on this matter. EA must be very happy that they'll have no competition..
The X-BOX version apperantly will come out, but from what I read it will pale in comparison w/ the PES. So, I'm done with it..

It's chip time and WE6 time when that comes out.
I hate the fact that my money will somehow end up at Konami and somehow pay the salaries of those marketing duche bags, but I do really want to play that damn game!

 

[Internazionale]

Whatttttt ????!!!
Konami is gonna cancel the PS2 version for ESPN.
What the HELLL !!!!
I've been waiting too long for ths, and now Konami don't
want to port it to PS2 version.
Stupid F***'n Konami !!!!!

 

[steveee]

it might be because they might just be brining WE, PES, ISS.. or whatever to US PS2 now since ESPN and Konami are no longer together.

 

[juventusita]

Or monkeys could fly out of my ass.

Konami in Hawaii are so gay they wouldn't even think about something great like that. I wouldn't be surprised if even if they bring some games to the states, KCEO would have messed them up (compared to KCET).

 

[fbxraki]

I can only hope that Konami is waiting for the World Cup to release the new Pro Evolution Game, if they have not abondened the idea completely. Now that they have dumped their contract with ESPN (Good riddance, I am sure everyone will miss the integrated ESPN look & feel and other flashy generic bull$%$# !), maybe but maybe they finally realized their mistake and decided to be efficient. A simple freaking port to the North American system, how difficult can this be anyway?

Sometimes I am getting the idea that they intentionally do not release good but different games over here. It sounds like someone wearing the same dull and dark tie to work each day, has defined a cultural barrier which cannot be crossed. It sounds stupid, but I cannot find any other explanation. Maybe this situation should be redefined as pure ignorance, but then how can everyone be so consistently ignorant? As a foreigner, sometimes I really have a difficult time to understand such decision makers in US.

Emre