Hideo Kojima may already be planning his retirement. Kojima is naturally best-known for Metal Gear, a pioneering stealth action franchise with decades of lore and some bizarrely accurate predictions for modern times. More recently, though, after his bad-blood departure from Konami, Kojima founded his own studio, which has been hard at work since on Death Stranding and its upcoming sequel. Kojima is an industry legend, arguably gaming’s greatest auteur — and he says his time in the industry is running out.
It’s not terribly surprising: Kojima is 61, after all, and game design takes a lot of time and energy. Even so, the nature of game design and distribution today often necessitates that a game be announced several years before it’s anywhere even close to release. That means that Kojima may have already revealed details (albeit not many of them) of what he intends to be his final game before retirement. We’re still a ways away from its release, but it’s hard to imagine a gaming industry without Kojima — but even for that, the pseudo-prophetic director has a prediction.
After Physint, Kojima May Retire From Making Games
"What I Am Most Afraid Of Is Time"
In a new interview with British GQ, Kojima touches on many subjects — his upcoming games, his health struggles, what’s on the horizon. But he also talks about his age, his experience, and his plans for the future. He’s got a clear timeline plotted out: Death Stranding 2 comes out at the end of this month. After that, he’ll resume work on OD, his bizarre mixed-media horror game-that-may-not-actually-be-a-game with Jordan Peele. Finally, he’ll turn back to Physint, his Metal Gear successor stealth game, which, at this early stage, we know even less about.
But after that, Kojima says, he’s not sure. «How old will I be after I finish Physint? Late sixties? I haven’t really said anything about the future projects — I do have ideas — but I’m thinking I should direct a film after Physint because I’ll be too old in the future.«
If you’ve ever played one of his games, you’ve undeniably encountered his love for film in one form or another. The Bond pastiche of Metal Gear Solid, the movie recommendation codecs in Snake Eater, the cavalcade of real-life actors he’s scanned into Death Stranding. But it clearly goes beyond fandom for Kojima. He wants to direct a film of his own, to join his personal pantheon of director-gods, among whom he counts Martin Scorsese and Max Miller. But he recognizes that, like game development, film production takes time and energy. He wants to achieve that while he still has both.
Like game development, film production takes time and energy. He wants to achieve that while he still has both.
But while Kojima says he plans on coming back to Kojima Productions to develop another game after making a film, he’s aware that time is a major consideration. Physint could very well be the last game he ever directs, but he’s not too worried — he’s got other things in mind.
Kojima Still Wants To Create, Even After His Retirement
Although It May Not Always Be Games
GQ quotes Kojima as saying, «I want to die making something.» He later elaborates to explain that even the end of his game development career won’t signal the end of his creative life. He plans on pursuing other projects for as long as he lives, and that doesn’t end at making a movie.
At the same time, he’s realistic about it. Kojima doubts he’ll be making games at 90, but he promises that, as long as he’s able, he’ll still be creating. «I go to the museums almost every weekend. And you see, like [he imitates a brushstroke with a flick of his hand] a brush. I could do that when I’m 90.«
As much as I’d love to witness Kojima’s blue period, I think he’s speaking in metaphor here — I could see him going down a bit more of a writing rabbit hole once he leaves the game development world, be it screenplays, short stories, or novels. The point is, Kojima has an insatiable desire to create. More so than his individual games, that’s what makes him such a legend, and an enduring force for innovation in the video game field.
Kojima Has Already Left His Mark On The Industry
Not Passing The Baton, But Sharing The Flame
When he eventually does retire, Kojima will always be remembered for his greatest creations — Metal Gear and Death Stranding will endure throughout the ages as great classics of gaming. One thing is abundantly clear: there’ll never be another Hideo Kojima, a point that he acknowledges.
«I don’t need to give ‘Hideo Kojima’ to anyone. If I pass the baton to my staff and tell them to make things the same way I do, the company will not succeed and will go out of business.» It’s true enough — Kojima’s name is so recognizable, his style so distinct, that if you were to try to make a game to succeed him, it’d inevitably fail to live up to expectations. So, Kojima says, he doesn’t intend to pass the baton, at least not exactly.
Instead, it’s more important that other creators, at any stage in their career, draw inspiration from Kojima’s body of work. That doesn’t have to be direct — you don’t have to make a surreal military drama with stealth gameplay to in his footsteps. What’s really important is the boldness and singularity of Kojima’s vision. Over the course of his storied career, he’s continuously refused to compromise on his artistic intentions, or to make games for anyone other than himself. Kojima calls that kind of inspiration a «fire,» to be shared from one visionary artist to the next.
So sure, I’ll be sad to see Kojima go whenever he retires — but he reminds us here that he’s not carrying the entire gaming industry on his back, even though it sometimes seems that way. There’ll never be another Hideo Kojima, but that’s okay, as long as we learn the right lessons from his creative output.
Source: GQ
Hideo Kojima
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