@Adam and the good people of KMN
After having had the time to process yesterday's news I feel I need to go on the record and say just a few things.
I was very sad yesterday because I was seeing that all that was conquered in the last few years regarding establishing real and valuable (and to me priceless) communication channels to and from Konami could vanish just like that, setting us, PES lovers, years back.
However I started to feel positive again when it became apparent (this is my subjective interpretation) that really Adam isn't "jumping ship" (pardon the image) but only changing its place on the ship. And that by no means he'll let, by action or inaction, anything to happen to what was achieved (again my subjective interpretation). It's vital that those hard fought, hard gained lines of communication don´t get severed or harmed in any way, shape manner or form!
And this is the bit I'm trying to convey, thank you for bearing with me so far. I'm letting you know that someone (I'll bet a lot more people too, not just me, from what transpire in this forum, but can't & won’t speak for others) is aware and acknowledges the massive effort that was getting all here at this point. Knowing a bit of Japanese culture (I go on the record here to say that when I talk about them is always with respect and admiration, not judgemental at all) I know how difficult it is to have them accept gaijin influence in any of their future actions! They are used to do what they think it's right and never never follow, always lead. It´s their culture, philosophy, hell, it's in their genes to be like that. And it's as natural to them as their skin and it's impossible for them to conceive it in any other way. So that only widens my admiration for the status quo you mad possible!
To illustrate what I'm saying about this Japanese trait, on one of the video interviews (the one Seabass was asked about the possibility of J-League presence in PES) revisit it, if you will, and watch the way Seabass answers that question. You don´t need to know Japanese to realize that what was asked was considered in such way inconceivable and preposterous that hardly warrants a proper answer! Yet he did have an answer: "it's our philosophy", which, in a unique way answers both nothing and everything at the same time (also very Japanese like).
More, by comparison, to see the enormity of KMN's task watch the body language and reaction of Mr. Murphy (who WORKS WITH AND FOR Konami) to the same question: it's obvious that he'd love to have the J-League in the rest of the world PES and it seems obvious (again, subjective, I know...) that he'd tried countless times to "convince" Konami to do it. His wearied down expression is almost saying: "No use, don´t waste your breath, I´ve tried time and time again. It's no use..."
Now, somebody playing devil's advocate would say "that could all be true but Konami felt the need to connect to the fans because the series was losing ground"
True, but as I was trying to make clear, meeting them half way is not half as easy as going the full distance. Because of the Euro/Japanese cultural divide a huge gap had to be bridged and shortened. I envision many things and time had to happen to allow this degree of fans/Konami interaction. And I perceive Adam as one of the driving forces that led to it.
Now I feel the need to talk a bit about myself because some (probably all...) of you are thinking: "why is this guy talking about this?" and I also want to show who's reading what my personal stake is and why this is so important to me. Ultimately, why I care.
I always loved football and as a very average player myself and also very much a computer guy, have always looked for the perfect (computer) game that allowed me to escape into the real game (of football). Easiest said than done, as my fellow community members know very well. That all started with Spectrum (yes, I'm *that* old). After several tries, I found the perfect game (for Spectrum anyway): Emlyn Hughes International Soccer. It was the first (and only, for a long time) that incorporated 2 things essential to simulate real football, inertia and gravity. Those are the things that allow you to wrong foot and outsmart your opponent. I played the hell out of that game. For those who don´t know, the Speccy screen was subdivided in a 8x8 pixel grid and for each one of these 8x8 blocks only 2 colours were allowed! Yet years later I still played it on a PC with an emulator. This was the time when games with full and rich graphics were available. I tried those for a while but was always coming back for EHIS... That is until I found ISS Pro Evolution. No more EHIS (after 10 years playing it). Until today I've always played PES in all incarnations since then. I also tried FIFA every year. It was a pain every single time. An hour it's the most I remember enduring it. And yet I gave it a try everytime. Many PES had their problems but for almost all versions I played them all year long. And every year after PES 6 I always hoped "this year will be better"... Now we seem close. But what makes me be hopeful for the future is knowing that even if it's not this year, or next year, as long as this communication keeps working, each year we all get to play a game which is closer and closer to the perfect game...
And I *know* that Adam & Co will make sure of that. Hell, he is a hardcore fan too! He worked so long and hard planting the seeds...Why would he leave when it's time to enjoy the results? That's why I think the future will shine bright. We all gone need shades...
Thanks to the ones who got this far. Sorry all for the long post.
Peace