Direct quote 1999
“But the sense of identity a player has with their avatar in an action game is something amazing. It's really what video games are all about.”
What it documents
In 1999 Kojima explained why he returned to action games with Metal Gear Solid: of all genres, action games probably evoke the strongest sense of immediacy and identification with the on‑screen character, whereas in adventure games there is always a time lag —which he said was what allowed him to present difficult dialogues and complex stories, because the player has time to think—; he added that the sense of identity a player has with their avatar in an action game is something amazing and is really what video games are all about.
Source
shmuplations.com; Kojima interview in Nice Games (1999), unofficial English translation. View source ↗
“Of all genres, action games probably evoke the strongest sense of immediacy and identity with the on-screen characters. With adventure games there's always a time lag”