“Making war games felt uncomfortable as my parents had experienced war. ... so that's why I tried putting in the anti-war, anti-nuclear themes into my games.”
Kojima said that when he began his career in 1986 there were many war games, and making war games felt uncomfortable because his parents had experienced war; he had heard stories about air raids and real-life experiences. He did not want to portray combat as heroism — he did not accept not questioning why there was a war or who was fighting whom — and therefore he tried to put anti-war and anti-nuclear themes into his games.
“Going back a bit, in 1986 when I started my career, there were lots of war games. Making war games felt uncomfortable as my parents had experienced war. I heard all kinds of stories about air raids and real-life experiences. I didn't want to portray combat as heroism. ... so that's why I tried putting in the anti-war, anti-nuclear themes into my games.”