Focusing on the “people” involved in esports, we will introduce key people who will be responsible for the future esports scene in interview format.[Behind the scenes of e-sports].Previous seriesWe conducted an interview with Fumio Suzuki, who serves as a director of the Japan Esports Union (JeSU) and is also the president and representative director of VARREL, which operates an esports business with Yokohama as its hometown. Mr. Suzuki, who has been involved in Japanese e-sports since the dawn of the country, including launching the “League of Legends Japan League,” explains the changes in Japan's e-sports scene and the events JeSU will host.Japan esports awardWe spoke to him about the story behind the scenes.
This is the 40th time, and this time, we will talk to Uematsu, the head of the Konami Amusement Esports Promotion Office, which provides many rhythm arcade games such as the “beatmania” series, “DanceDanceRevolution” series, “GITADORA” series, and “pop'n music” series. An interview was conducted with Mr. Sainaga. The company will hold “BEMANI PRO LEAGUE(hereinafter referred to as BPL)” and the behind-the-scenes details of how to manage e-sports tournaments that are close to the community.
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[Interviewer: Motoyuki Mori]
–Mr. Uematsu, please give us a brief self-introduction.
Mr. Saiei Uematsu (hereinafter referred to as Uematsu)My name is Uematsu and I have been in charge of the Esports Promotion Office, which was established in 2020 at Konami Amusement, as the head of the office from 2021. Until 2020, he was in charge of arcade game titles such as “GuitarFreaks'' and “DrumMania'' as a sound creator.
――I heard that the Esports Promotion Office was established in 2020, but had there been any tournaments until then?
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UematsuFor more than 10 years, we have been holding game competitions to determine the best game center/amusement facility player in the form of the “BEMANI Top Ranker Tournament'' and “KONAMI Arcade Championship.'' When BPL was first launched, Konami Group was ahead of the curve in developing baseball games (“Powerful Pro Baseball”) and soccer games (“Winning Eleven”) as e-sports, and “Beatmania” was also in full-scale development. We have come up with the outline of a plan to launch an e-sports professional league.
Since it is a game that originally revolves around music, what is e-sports as a new experience that is unique as an event? After considering this, we decided that it would be interesting to hold an e-sports event based on the concept of “music x esports'' that maximizes the excitement of the game with highly interactive music and scene production by DJs. This is how the current BPL was formed.
–In terms of timing, the state of emergency was declared due to the coronavirus…
UematsuTo be honest, there were many difficult parts. Originally, we had envisioned an offline event with an audience, where everyone would get excited and enjoy a music game, but it became difficult to implement, so we decided to proceed with it as a recorded program. In the first year, we made sure to avoid the “3 Cs'', thoroughly disinfected our hands, and kept our engineers at a safe distance. Starting in 2022, only the final match will be able to be held with spectators present, with spectators gathering at Tokyo Dome's Prism Hall. I remember that tickets were sold out immediately.
In March 2023, the tournament was held at Hikarie Hall in Shibuya, and in October of the same year, it was held at Shinagawa Intercity Hall with an audience. The tournament will be held at Funabashi Arena on March 20, 2024. Tickets are no longer on sale at this time, but I believe they will be on sale again by the time this article is published.
–You run a variety of rhythm games, but which one has a league?
UematsuCurrently “beatmania IIDX”, “SOUND VOLTEX”, “DanceDanceRevolution”
Three titles have been made into a league. We chose these three titles because they each have a strong competitiveness.
–The management of BPL is a little different from other game titles.
UematsuIn BPL, teams are operated by companies that own game centers/amusement facilities (such as “GENDA GiGO Entertainment” and “Round One”). So it would be like “ROUND1” vs. “GiGO”. Surprisingly, this method of operation is not well known, so I would like you to take this opportunity to take an interest.
Participating companies/teams (in alphabetical order)
Kyowa Corporation/APINA VRAMeS
GENDA GiGO Entertainment/GiGO
Rejaran/GAME PANIC
Matahari Entertainment/SILK HAT
TAITO STATION Tradz
Round one/ROUND1
Yamazakiya/Leisure Land
We want to maximize the number of people who gather at game centers/amusement facilities, and to that end, we need to work together with owner companies and operators to enliven the Pro League. We had been discussing from the time of its launch that the facility would also be popular. This idea was born from the idea that if we were to take measures to energize the entire amusement industry, we would want the corporations that operate stores to form teams, and by revitalizing e-sports, we could create a structure that would not only energize Konami but the entire industry.
BPL professional players will belong to teams operated by companies that own amusement facilities. I feel that various synergies are being created by players belonging to professional teams and the creation of a community separate from that of users, which creates interaction and rivalry between teams.
–I see. After going through the draft meeting, players enter the league.
UematsuBeatmania IIDX runs on a cycle where matches are held once a month starting in July, with the finals in October. Actually, I think there should be tournaments that anyone can easily participate in, but first of all, I want to hold them in a high-class manner.
――Having been running a professional league for several years, what kind of feedback have you had from people around you?
UematsuSince the first year, we have received far more entries than the number of entries, which shows the high level of attention and high expectations of users. On the other hand, there are already world tournaments being held with various contents, including tournaments with large prize pools, and there are questions like “How is it as a business?'' and “There are only a handful of star players.'' It is similar to the general entertainment business. We also recognize this phenomenon as an issue.
–Even though you say it's an e-sports league for rhythm games, it might not make sense.
UematsuFirst of all, we believe that “music transcends language barriers and is universal.” In addition, I believe that by adding gaming elements to this, we will be able to match the idea that “esports can overcome various obstacles.''“I'm sure it'll be fun if I go.”Based on this concept, we are aiming for a festival-like format where people can say, “If you just go, there's something fun to do!'' When I went there, there was Beatmania, there was music being played by a DJ, and there were friends I could talk to. In the future, no matter where you go to the various game centers/amusement facilities across the country, you will be able to enjoy BPL and find friends to enjoy it with you! To achieve this, we will first maximize the experience with BPL. I want to make it a moving experience that ranks among the top three in my life.
–What kind of users are the players and fans?
UematsuThere are many users of “beatmania IIDX'' who have truly mastered the game. The age group for “SOUND VOLTEX” is a little younger, perhaps 18 to 30 years old.
Among celebrities, Mirin Furukawa of Dempagumi.inc, who led TEAM MIRIN as a manager in “BEMANI PRO LEAGUE ZERO”, and Yunocy, who was active as a player, also play a lot of “beatmania IIDX” of the “BEMANI” series. I'm giving it to you.
–What is the appeal of BPL?
UematsuIt's not only for users who like each title, but most importantly, it includes many songs, so I think it will be enjoyed by music lovers as well. Also, in “SOUND VOLTEX'', the creators who created the songs provide live commentary, so I think people who are involved in sound creation, for example, can also enjoy it. Creators sometimes release new songs right after the tournament ends, and we then have a match using the new song that was just released, and it gets very exciting at times like that. There are many things to see, so be sure to check them out!
–Please tell us what BPL is aiming for.
UematsuI believe that music has many possibilities. Songs you listen to when you're happy, songs you listen to when you're sad, songs that cheer you up. Our values may change depending on our encounter with music. We actively play music at BPL, so it's a place where you can encounter that kind of music, and it's also a place where you can enjoy rhythm games as entertainment, and a place where you can get together with friends and play something together. A place where you can enjoy a game, and the space itself is an interesting place to begin with. We're aiming to create a place on a larger scale where 3,000 or 5,000 people can gather and enjoy music and games together.
――Over the past few years, the level of attention to e-sports in Japan has changed in many ways. How do you view this change?
UematsuIf you simply use the word “esports”, you can reach young people and Generation Z! I think we have passed that phase, and I think the characteristics of each title and league are starting to emerge. Looking at it from a different perspective, I see that each title has its own “culture,'' rather than the broad category of “esports.''
–Finally, please give a message to the readers of this article.
UematsuBPL is still in its development stage. Actually, I want to make the players feel better and climb higher together with them, but realistically, I'm putting a burden on the players, and the viewers are also complaining about various things. Even though I've learned this, I don't think I'll ever lose the feeling that “the music is great,'' “the games are fun,'' and “I want to see great play,'' so I'd like to continue to make it more exciting together.
For those who have never watched BPL, there is a lot of music, and even though it is called e-sports, there are exciting team battles that are completely different from other titles. I would appreciate it if you could give it to me. There are places in your town where you can experience it, so be sure to visit your local game center/amusement facility. We have also put together some recommended videos from the past, so please take a look below.
Recommended playlistBEMANI PRO LEAGUE -SEASON 3- SOUND VOLTEX All matches”
–thank you very much.
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