"Even when I am asleep, sometimes I play by leaving some games open with a turbo controller auto-firing a button, to score points or repeat an action over and over.
He takes his Vita to work for moments when he gets bored, and at times, he's even taken his PS4 with him. If that sounds like it doesn't sync up with the obsessive gaming schedule you'd imagine for the world's Platinum leader, Hakoom explained how his job at a large financial company gives him the flexibility he needs. "It's the day I unlock the least trophies." "Thursdays, I have friends come over and we play multiplayer games." A pause. "I go to work then get back home, eat lunch and play for a few hours, spend some time with my family, go out a bit and then get back to gaming again and sleep," he says. Where does he find the time for all this?Īsking him for a breakdown of his routine, Hakoom makes Platinum-hunting seem very routine, for lack of a better word. Even so, Hakoom threw himself into the task with a determination and obsession that will seem foreign to all but the most hardcore of players, taking two and a half days of sustained play just to grab that single trophy. Despite Gun Smoke only having two trophies and taking roughly 30 minutes to complete, the second trophy is incredibly hard to unlock, requiring a perfect run against the game's 10 bosses. One example he's particularly proud of is Gun Smoke, one of the real throwbacks in the Capcom Arcade Cabinet collection. I do not pay attention to such things and that's what makes top trophy hunters shine." They are afraid of what people will say about them. Other users might feel ashamed to play many games because they are weak and have no spirit. "I grind the hell out of the game until I am able to beat and Platinum it. "I have no limits when it comes to playing and earning trophies," he tells me. Hakoom has already unlocked the trophies for all three games. Massagy and Albedo: Eyes From Outer Space might not mean much to you but they're the bread and butter of every Platinum trophy-hunter. Recent releases like Eekeemoo: Splinters of the Dark Shard, Mr. Not only does it cover niche Japanese releases that never make their way to the west, it's littered with curios that are released here but nonetheless fly under the radar. His PSN profile is essentially a complete guide to PlayStation's gaming library. To stay ahead of the chasing pack, Hakoom has to play everything.
It shows how much of a pro gamer you are." It makes a big difference when, for example, you have 10,000 trophies and 200 of those are Platinums rather than 50 of those being Platinums. So for me, Platinums are the most important part of your profile. "Most people look at the Platinum count before they look at anything else. "Platinums stand out on your profile," explains Hakoom. It reminded me of the days I used to play MMOs."Īnd if you're a trophy-hunter with an urge for glory, there's only one place to look. Once I broke into the top 10, I knew I could take the top spot because I was unlocking trophies at a very fast pace. "I wanted to compete and be in the top 10 in the world. "As soon as I read about the PlayStation trophy patch, I was excited," he explains to me. Hakoom has led the Platinum race since late 2009, only briefly giving up his number one spot around the 200-Platinum mark before doubling down on his efforts and quickly regaining it. Only a handful of people have crossed the 1,000 Platinum threshold and only one other, roughdawg4, has broken the 1200 mark. Unsurprisingly, that staggering figure of Hakoom's puts him in rare company. But this has encouraged a hardcore and passionate subculture dedicated solely to unlocking Platinums to emerge. When every trophy on a game's list has been unlocked, the final prize is yours - the Platinum trophy.īecause of their elusive nature, demanding excessive skill and time, PlayStation owners with Platinum counts in the double-digit figure are still a minority eight years after Sony made trophies mandatory for every PlayStation game. The best of these tasks offers a new viewpoint on the game and its world. Each PlayStation 4 release has a trophy list, a set of tasks outlined by the developer. Trophies, as with Xbox's own achievements, have become an intrinsic part of gaming's fabric. It was the ping that announced he had unlocked the Platinum trophy for Nioh.Īnd the Platinum trophy for Nioh was Hakoom's 1200th Platinum. But it was worth it, and that ping proved it. It's a tough one, a real endgame number, the kind of trophy that requires hours of farming, the kind of trophy people write guides about. Hakoom had spent the last few hours unlocking the 'Master of Quality' trophy in Nioh. On April 9th 2017, Hakam Karim - moderately better known to the world as Hakoom - heard a 'ping' that shook his world to its core.