KONAMI Supports eSports Competition at the 2018 Asian Games

This is the first time eSports has entered the Asian Games as a demonstration competition event. In this eSports competition, there are six games that are competed and one of them is PRO EVOLUTION SOCCER 2018 which is a game produced by KONAMI.

JAKARTA- KONAMI also supports the success of the 2018 Asian Games, which is the largest sporting event in Asia. The 2018 Asian Games are currently being held in Jakarta and Palembang from 18 August 2018 to 2 September 2018.

This time the Asian Games added eSports as a demonstration match for the first time. For the first time, eSports is included as a category in an international sporting event. In this eSports category, there are six games that will be competed and one of them is PRO EVOLUTION SOCCER (PES).

On Friday, August 24 2018, KONAMI held a media discussion discussing the presence of eSports in the 2018 Asian Games and the participation of Indonesian PES athletes. This event also presents Takayuki Kurumada as Deputy Division Director of Promotion Planning Division, Konami Digital Entertainment Co., Ltd., then Eddy Lim as General Chair of the Indonesia eSports Association, then representatives of Indonesia in the PES competition at the 2018 Asian Games, namely Setia Widianto and Elga Cahya Putra, and also Ponaryo Astaman as the former captain of the Indonesian national football team.

“PES2018 is the only sports game that was chosen to be a demonstration match at the 2018 Asian Games. I think PES2018 was chosen because this game is quite friendly to those who rarely even play games. Plus PES also has many similarities with the sport of football, “said Takayuki Kurumada, Deputy Division Director of Promotion Planning Division, Konami Digital Entertainment Co., Ltd.

The eSports competition at the 2018 Asian Games will be held from August 26, 2018 and for the PES match itself it will be held on September 1, 2018. eSports is a growing industry, the number of fans continues to grow every day around the world.

“I’m sure many of you are getting to know eSports because of the Asian Games. Therefore, we as one of the companies that offer games to be contested cooperate with the organizing team to make this competition rich in content. We also continue to support the recognition of the PES game series through its players and also through competition,” added Kurumada.

Since eSports has now become part of the 2018 Asian Games, eSports has been increasingly recognized as a sport. The players can also be called athletes because they train hard every day like other sportsmen, they also have fans who support them during the matches.

“There are various ways to enjoy eSports apart from being a player, you can also enjoy eSports by watching matches either live or via broadcast or video. This can be an opportunity to spread the excitement of eSports to those who have never tried to play,” added Kurumada.

“Even in the eSports industry, to become a great eSports player requires hard work, smart thinking, and strong determination. What is important if you want to play is that you have to be physically strong and fit,” said Eddy Lim, General Chairperson of the Indonesian eSports Association.

Setia Widianto and Elga Cahya Putra, who were Indonesian representatives at the 2018 Asian Games in the PES competition, expressed their joy because the eSports industry is now increasingly widely known by the public.

“There is an important element in eSports, namely competition, where there are winners and losers. Just like sports in general. The competitions that take place also have rules that have been agreed upon so that the nuances of competition are also unavoidable,” said Setia Widianto regarding the similarities between eSports and traditional sports.

Ponaryo Astaman also agrees with Setia Widianto that there is a sense of competition between players in the world of sports. In a competition there will be winners and losers, but sportsmanship must be upheld.

“There should be no cheating in the match, each party must be able to accept whatever the result, win or lose,” said Ponaryo, former captain of the Indonesian national football team.

“I also really enjoy playing this game. Since childhood I have loved to play this PES game with my family, relatives, and friends. This is a game that holds many childhood memories for me,” continued Ponaryo.

Setia Widianto and Elga Cahya Putra also added that they are now proud to represent Indonesia and are training hard to face the 2018 Asian Games. “It is an honor for me and the community to be able to appear as athletes at the Asian Games, because now playing games is no longer just a hobby, but it has become a proud profession, able to achieve achievements and even make the name of the Indonesian nation proud,” said Setia Widianto.

“We will start training intensively starting on August 25 tomorrow. We hope that our fellow football and PES game lovers can support our PES ‘national team’ which will compete against other Asian countries on September 1,” continued Elga Cahya Putra.

In addition to the 2018 Asian Games, KONAMI also collaborates with communities from various parts of the world. Since 2001, KONAMI has held eSports competitions in Europe. Currently KONAMI has a ‘PES LEAGUE’ tournament which is the official world PES tournament from KONAMI.

The PES game series is a video game product from KONAMI that has been enjoyed for more than 20 years since 1995 as a game console. The total number of copies sold worldwide has reached more than 100 million copies, due to the high quality of images and expressions as well as the ease of operation.

On August 30 2018, KONAMI will release the latest series of PES, namely PES 2019 which can be played via computer, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.