Hideo Kojima has left Konami and created his own studio in preparation for a brand new video game venture.
This year-long drama seems to be coming to an end fittingly near the end of 2015 itself. In what might be the final shared chapter for the company and Metal Gear creator, he has apparently not only split – not on vacation this time – but begun to cultivate his own studio called Kojima Productions. No other staff has been revealed via a translated report from Japanese publication Nikkei that first broke this news.
The extra layer to this report is that the new studio is also partnering with Sony to bring their next franchise to their platforms first, if not exclusively. These talks are apparently far enough along to be in the “final negotiations” phase, indicating that this has been baking for a few weeks at least. Kojima revealed that his contract with Konami is up as of yesterday, and the video above reveals the partnership with Sony is already picking up a lot of momentum.
Konami, from a public relations standpoint, has crashed their plane long ago and let the flames continue to grow. From The Game Awards legal ban of Kojima from receiving an award for his own game to their insistence that the company take precedent over the man, it’s all felt like a circus without victory. Meanwhile, the main tent held Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain as one of the best games of the year, and arguably the only good thing Konami has done this year.
No specifics were revealed on Kojima Productions’ first title beyond that it will be innovative, and that Sony has the new founder’s back 100 percent.
