Indonesian Bemani fan petitions local arcades to upgrade their games

Bemani games have been in Indonesia game centres since the beginning. Titles like Dance Dance Revolution, GuitarFreaks, and DrumMania. These games have existed for more than a decade and a lot of people are playing, but no game centre has taken it to the next level to acquire eAmuse connection from Konami themselves, which will allow people to play online.

There are a lot of BEMANI fans in Indonesia…it’s just that the games are poorly maintained and rarely upgraded, and people get bored and would rather play new music games. Please consider, with Technika 3’s online feature ending, maybe it’s time for game centres to let BEMANI shine.”

This heartfelt plea written in Bahasa Indonesia, made its way onto my newsfeed a while back. It prefaced a petition started by Bemani player Joshua Pamintori for Indonesian arcades to have better support for Konami’s Bemani games.

Bemani is the name of Konami’s music game division, and includes arcade games like Dance Dance Revolution, Beatmania, Jubeat, GuitarFreaks and Drum Mania. Konami has perpetuated this sub-brand since 1997, and Indonesian players love it.

Unfortunately Bemani games are not well maintained in Jakarta arcades, and they aren’t upgraded, either. The latest games available in the division are lacking in many arcades as they require internet connections as well as a partnership with Konami or a licensed distributor.

A Beatmania machine’s console.

And because of that, there’s a lot that Indonesian Bemani players are missing out on. Konami’s eAmuse card system allows players to store song unlocks, scores, ranking, and is required for participation in the annual Konami arcade championships. Without an online connection and an eAmuse card, a Bemani player won’t be able to do all that, let alone participate in events that require an eAmuse card and connection, like the ‘Bemani Gakuen’.

It’s not that arcades don’t want to upgrade, though. Pamintori believes that they just don’t know what the consumers want. He cited Jakarta’s Amazone arcade as an example: the company actively opens new branches, buys new games, and engages the community.

The Mai Mai community, for example, is getting a lot of support from Amazone. “[Amazone] holds events all over Jakarta, and tournaments, or even just small events where you get a prize,” he said. “If only they did this for Bemani players.”

Could it really be a case of arcade owners simply not being in touch with the scene? Pamintori went on to talk more about the Bemani community in Indonesia.

An eAmuse card.