Kong Off 4 update per discussion with Richie

[konghusker]

I talked to Richie yesterday about the dates and plans for KO4.  He told me he has the machines in place for the event, he's still deciding on the format of bracket/high score though.  As far as why no official announcement is out yet as to when ko4 will happen, he said it's because he's been really trying to line up the prize money and sponsors.  He wants this one to be bigger and better than any other, and to do so he needs the sponsors.  Now after talking a while, I mentioned the idea of trying to get donations lined up for the prize money, or some sort of entry fee, etc... He wasn't opposed to that at all, and asked me to start a conversation on the forum about it.  To spear head any ideas that may be possible, let's see what ideas everybody has that could help Richie get the prize money he's after.  I'm sure we're talking about a total purse of around $3000-5000 probably, and possibly more.  He mentioned he's trying to do all of this alone, and I just thought we could at least help with ideas if not financial donations.  What does everybody think, and I'll forward the info on to Richie per his request.  Also, it's looking more like the ko4 may be in March next year due to Richie not having the financial part and sponsors fully lined up yet.  Fire away guys.

[lakeman421]

I talked to Richie yesterday about the dates and plans for KO4.  He told me he has the machines in place for the event, he's still deciding on the format of bracket/high score though.  As far as why no official announcement is out yet as to when ko4 will happen, he said it's because he's been really trying to line up the prize money and sponsors.  He wants this one to be bigger and better than any other, and to do so he needs the sponsors.  Now after talking a while, I mentioned the idea of trying to get donations lined up for the prize money, or some sort of entry fee, etc... He wasn't opposed to that at all, and asked me to start a conversation on the forum about it.  To spear head any ideas that may be possible, let's see what ideas everybody has that could help Richie get the prize money he's after.  I'm sure we're talking about a total purse of around $3000-5000 probably, and possibly more.  He mentioned he's trying to do all of this alone, and I just thought we could at least help with ideas if not financial donations.  What does everybody think, and I'll forward the info on to Richie per his request.  Also, it's looking more like the ko4 may be in March next year due to Richie not having the financial part and sponsors fully lined up yet.  Fire away guys.

I'm sure most of us could agree on that a hybrid type of format, but if I had to choose between the two I would go with the same high score format. I'm sure the biggest obstacle for this event is the financials since it has been one person buying and fixing all the machines. Sponsors for the event may be tough to find, but one or two big sponsors can make the goal happen. Coors has been a big sponsor the past couple of years which was convenient since we were playing in a bar and they were located close to Coors. Maybe we could all do some research and see what potential big sponsors that are somewhat local that could help out with the event. If not then some sort of donation or entry fee system may have to push us to the goal. I would love to see it in November again, but if it gets pushed back a little to make it a great event I wouldn't complain.

[d3scride]

Has he tried getting in touch with Nintendo for a sponsorship? Might be something they're interested in

http://nintendo.sponsorwise.com/CreateAccount.aspx

[SanTe]

Maybe we could all do some research and see what potential big sponsors that are somewhat local that could help out with the event. If not then some sort of donation or entry fee system may have to push us to the goal. I would love to see it in November again, but if it gets pushed back a little to make it a great event I wouldn't complain.

Kevin Smith (Silent Bob) is from Red Bank, NJ.  My vote: get him and Jason Mewes to emcee the event with a live Smodcast of the proceedings.  It would certainly be a lot more fun than the radio station dickheads who made a mockery of a previous KO and just annoyed people.  I don't know how this would help with sponsorship and prize money except to say Kevin Smith can talk other people into anything when he thinks something is cool, so maybe the sponsorships and prize money would follow somehow.

He lives in the Hollywood Hills but has been known to host frequent events in Red Bank, so if he was involved with the KO4 a small army of his followers would descend upon Richie's place for a really fun weekend.

[danman123456]

Sounds great. I'm in and will do what i can.

[ChrisP]

I've had a sneaking suspicion since this event was first announced that November was going to be  too soon to pull it together.

I also think that putting it off a few more months (heck, even a year or more) to make sure it lives up to the standards of the previous installments will be the best thing for the event. There is no reason to rush, and if anything, good reason to wait.

So I am fully in support of it being moved back and think it's a great decision.

[lakeman421]

Has he tried getting in touch with Nintendo for a sponsorship? Might be something they're interested in

http://nintendo.sponsorwise.com/CreateAccount.aspx

I was thinking of this earlier.  Great find Craig.  It's always worth a try and maybe even Nintendo will go back to their roots for an event like this.

[ebinsugewa]

Nintendo is really protective of their IPs, I honestly think NOT involving them is the best play. They tried to prevent a big Smash Bros. tourney from streaming or taking place at all.

The Kevin Smith idea however, I think is very, very smart.

[lakeman421]

Nintendo is really protective of their IPs, I honestly think NOT involving them is the best play. They tried to prevent a big Smash Bros. tourney from streaming or taking place at all.

Probably a good idea to stay away from Nintendo.  We can also try Bruce Springsteen.  Or Mike G. could work his Detroit connections to get us Eminem involved 

[marinomitch13]

I echo the sentiments of Chris. I'd hate to see the KO4 suffer in quality from being rushed.

If we could maybe pull together some of our publicity connections (like people seem to be willing to try), it'd be cool to get someone like Vice to cover the event more fully.

[SanTe]

I was thinking of this earlier.  Great find Craig.  It's always worth a try and maybe even Nintendo will go back to their roots for an event like this.

They will not.  Nintendo has made it abundantly clear over the years that they do not care about their arcade era except when it comes to enforcing their IP with lawsuit threats.  Even the company history page on their web site makes no mention of their coin-op past.  Nintendo's modern history began with the NES as far as they are concerned.

[Xermon54]

If the event would be deported from November 2014, to March 2015, I would definitely understand.

Since last Kong Off 3, there are bigger expectations for the next Kong Off's (we have to agree that the Kong Off 3 was the best in term of scores/prizes/media). We can't go below that, so we need to do something bigger, and if it takes more time, that's fine.

For the prize money, I think it needs to be a lot bigger. To make a video game tournament interesting in the eyes of everybody, it needs to have a big purse. Regular people don't really take seriously a tournament with a 2k prize winner, haha. But if the prize money is 10k, or even 15k, people will definitely take it more seriously.

If we take for example last Super Smash Bros Melee competition, the winner grabbed 5k, 2nd got 3k, and 3rd got 2k. And they had a total prize money of 15k.

I think we need to get Jeff Willms 5k for first position at least. 

As for media coverage, we will have to top Kong Off 3, and I hope Richie will succeed at it (won't be an easy task, though). We need to get Emimem!

[konghusker]

I think these are all good ideas.  I think getting Nintendo involved could be risky, but also could really make this huge if they were accepting.  It's a big gamble though.  I personally prefer the March time frame since it will allow more time for all of us to get our funds and time off built up.  I know I could really use the extra time for saving money and vacation time.

What is the best way for everybody to go after sponsors?  Probably local sponsors will be the best chance.  Or is a kickstarter possible?  I know nothing about how those really work, but is it possible?

If needed, I wouldn't complain about having to pay an entry fee either. 

[konghusker]

Vincent, Richie is after a much bigger prize for first place this year.  He isn't talking about it at this point, but he's close to aquiring something that everybody will want to win.  It's the monetary prizes that he needs help with, and finding sponsors for the event.  I think this can get bigger than ko3, but will need more than just one man working on it.  Everybody needs to use any connections they have to try to figure this one out.

[mikegmi2]

Nintendo is really protective of their IPs, I honestly think NOT involving them is the best play. They tried to prevent a big Smash Bros. tourney from streaming or taking place at all.

Probably a good idea to stay away from Nintendo.  We can also try Bruce Springsteen.  Or Mike G. could work his Detroit connections to get us Eminem involved 

Em should have some time on his hands since Hailie just graduated from High School.  It would be pretty cool if he backed the event.  Probably unrealistic, but you never know.

Nintendo, I agree with others, not a great idea...they would probably try to stop it rather than help out.

I'd be cool with a $50 entry fee or something, if that would help out with some of the costs.  Half could go to the arcade and half could go to the prize pool.

Making a phone call or writing an email is free...and although it might seem impossible at first, reaching out to a large potential sponsor...planting some seeds...only takes a few minutes.  $1k, $5k, $10k is a drop in the bucket for big companies.  If everyone makes a few calls I would have to think we could nab at least a couple sponsors.