Konami has opened a new "creators first" studio in Osaka and raises its staff's salary
After a number of quiet years, the developer seems to be revving itself up again.
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Silent Hill developer and pachinko machine producer Konami has opened up a new studio in Osaka, Japan.
The developer and Yu-Gi-Oh publisher just recently celebrated its 50th establishment anniversary last month, and in a press release last week it announced that it has just opened up another studio, Konami Osaka Studio (thanks, GamesRadar). According to the press release, Konami Osaka Studio is a "developmental relocation of the existing studio and comes with the concept of 'Creators First,'" explaining that it is "characterised by a well-developed environment where creators can demonstrate their full potential."
The press release didn't explain what it means by "Creators First" outside of that, and whether it means internally or externally, so we'll have to wait and see what comes from that. It did also note that Konami's "next-generation [Research & Development] centre, 'Konami Creative Front Tokyo Bay,' is in the process of construction," so it sounds like the company is going all in on its future after quite a few quiet years. There's also a positive point for employees, as Konami has "substantially," raised its base-salary. Always good to hear devs are getting paid more!
Wrapping things up, the press release noted that "in order to achieve further sustainable growth in the significantly expanding 'entertainment' field, Konami Group will strengthen its product development capabilities and continue to provide products and services for the next generation." Outside of revitalising the Silent Hill series with a remake of the second game and further new entries, there's also a film in development (which recently cast its main characters), which could be what Konami means by wanting to expand within the entertainment field.
A Silent Hill live event is set to take place this year too, obviously something a bit different from either film or video games, so it seems that Konami is trying to broaden its horizons in a number of ways.