Pro Evolution Soccerhas long been one of the most popular and successful sports franchises in the world. However, following the release ofPro Evolution Soccer2019 in 2018, Konami decided to rebrand the franchise due in part to losing key licenses. Instead ofPro Evolution Soccer, fans were instead deliveredeFootball PES 2020, followed byeFootball 2022most recently. The transition has proven a fiasco, however, and a new Konami trademark hints that a second rebranding could be in the works.
The trademark in question was filed March 15 in Australia forKonami Digital Entertainment. The mark is for a unique spin on thePro Evolution Soccername, swapping “Evolution” for “Powerful” to createPro Powerful Soccer. Given that it was a simple trademark filing, no further details were provided regarding Konami’s intent with the branding.
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Given that thePro Powerful Soccertrademark is just that, a trademark filing and nothing more, there’s little to speculate on beyond it being a possible new name forKonami’s soccer franchise. With the failure of theeFootballseries to become successful and the value in thePro Evolution Soccerbranding, Konami could be trying to put a new spin on an old favorite. Without further information, however, that’s just a possibility. Konami could be filing the trademark for something entirely different andeFootballcould remain its focus.
What’s rather funny about thePro Powerful Soccertrademark is that there’s already a game of that name in existence.Pro Powerful Socceris agacha gamecurrently available on mobile devices from Hong Kong studio Boltrend Games. It has just 5,000 installs on Google Play, but its existence can’t be denied. It may now end up in a battle with Konami for its international trademarks, however, if it wants to press the issue.
Fans can acknowledge that the situation surrounding Konami, and more specificallyPro Evolution Soccer, isn’t great right now. The rebranding ofPro Evolution SoccertoeFootballon its own is frustration, to say the least, but it’s part of a greater issue at Konami. The company’s shifted away from games in most of the ways that matter, and its remaining games have had notable issues – whether it be egregious monetization or performance problems.
The future of thePro Evolution Soccerfranchise is up in the air. Whether Konami brings it back aseFootball,Pro Powerful Soccer, or something else, fans are going to approach it with a cynicism that would have been hard to imagine five years ago. At the very least, expect news regardingKonami’s plansfor future soccer games,Pro Evolution Socceror otherwise, in the months to come.
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