collaboration

“I originally had no plans to add a character like that.”

“I've probably looked at 10,000 candidates myself at this point, and I've never seen anyone who I immediately wanted to give an S until Shinkawa. He's the only one, and it was an instant hanamaru (the Japanese equivalent of a "gold star").”

“Up to now—in Policenauts, for example, I used to give the designers very specific instructions [...] but this game was different.”

“after Policenauts I came to the conclusion that controlling everything myself wasn't necessarily a good thing. Because if everything has to ultimately pass through me, then my abilities—and limitations—become a bottleneck.”

“among the preliminary sketches I drew, one of them looked like a dinosaur, and Kojima did single that one out. "Let's go with this."”

“Ultimately, I feel the game design part of the development should be done by the game designers. If I start tinkering with the work they've done it would be weird. [...] it would be like punching holes in the foundation of a building. "This column looks funky—take it out!" And then the whole thing collapses.”

“If I direct the same team, it will only lead to the same game being made.”

Upon learning that Yuriko Hishimi would attend the premiere of a Mamoru Oshii film, Kojima wrote to Kenji Kamiyama pleading that he introduce him to her. Onstage at the premiere, Oshii confessed through a megaphone his own youthful love for Anne, and Kojima felt relieved, as if Oshii were speaking for him; although Kojima did not get to speak with Hishimi backstage, after forty years he saw his first love as a real woman, and at age forty-four he wrote the essay as the love letter he should have mailed forty years earlier.

“There were a lot of surprises - the way the Western developers do things are so different! What I'm thinking now is, OK, we need to be a global studio.”

“I wouldn't dictate to them - "you should do things this way, use this color, change this..." - I'd have to really try to help them do what they do best as production studios. That's how I plan to do it in the future, and to give them freedom.”

Comparing his fathering to Early Autumn, Kojima admitted he could not teach his children carpentry, boxing, and cooking like Spenser. He drew from the novel that one can only teach the things one knows how to do, the world one has seen, and one’s own way of living; yet he believed that the exchange of teaching and learning broadens the future and that conveying confidence can connect children with their destiny.

When Kojima reread Shibumi in 2006 as part of his research for Metal Gear Solid 4, he was startled by parallels with ideas he had already used: a combat discipline similar to CQC, the heightened threat perception he learned in scout/tracking training, and the merciful murder of a parental figure, which he related to Big Boss and The Boss. His reappraisal led him to recommend the novel to the development team.

“First, come up with something you like, and then show it to as many people as you can. Tweak it, and get their opinions.”

Kojima distinguished in Hyoryu between passive survival and regaining a human goal: returning home. He was struck that the shipwrecked men combined physical strength, artisan memory, and cooperation to make, from driftwood and remnants, things as basic as a reservoir and ultimately a ship, and that when they left they left tools and instructions for future castaways. He saw in that two meanings of survival—enduring adversity and making it back alive—and the passing on of something human beyond mere genes.

What set I Spy apart for Kojima was that searches started from word clues rather than from a pictured model: the player had to abandon a preconceived notion of how, for example, a frog should look, accept shadows, reflections and objects that are cut off at the page edge, and mentally shift the scale within a toy-like world. The books did not include answers; instead they replaced that certainty with extra challenges and prompts to invent one’s own riddles, to be played alone or with a child.

“Shinkawa was born to be a video game artist.”

“Lost World was the first project I was assigned to and the game was cancelled after six months.”

“Without that encounter I probably wouldn't have pursued a proper sequel, and there might never have been a Metal Gear Solid.”

“We had so much more budget so we were able to go to Hollywood and hire a composer.”

In 2012, while preparing to open Kojima Productions Los Angeles, Kojima envisioned the Tokyo and LA teams not as two separate sides but as a studio located in a third space between the two cities. He wanted a global goal to render location irrelevant and for the outcome to be not merely a patchwork of Japanese memes with something American, but a creation global in the truest sense.

“That said, I think Silent Hill has a certain atmosphere. I think it has to continue, and I'd love to help it continue, and if I can help by supervising or lending the technology of the Fox Engine, then I'd love to participate in that respect.”

“Personally I love adventure games, and I'd love to see other chapters in the Snatcher or Policenaut series. But from a business perspective it's pretty hard to make that work. I think it's my job to push forward, so I don't think I could make it.”

Kojima described Satoshi Itoh as one of the fans who most deeply understood his works, to the point Itoh became known as a “Kojima fundamentalist.” After Itoh’s literary debut as Project Itoh they became friends and respected each other as creators with similar tastes; Itoh’s death in the spring of 2009 made Kojima feel he had lost both a recipient of his memes and a precious son.

One and a half years before Project Itoh’s death, Kojima commissioned Itoh to write the novelization of Metal Gear Solid 4—not to make use of an up-and-coming author, but so that another bearer of his memes would connect the video game’s story to a different medium. Kojima considered that Itoh did not merely trace the game’s plot and scenes: he transformed the material into a work of his own that could convey Kojima’s ideas even to readers unfamiliar with the game; Kojima described it as not novelized but Itoh-ized.

“I'll do whatever the (expletive) he wants”

At The Game Awards in December 2016, Kojima presented the second Death Stranding trailer, revealing Mads Mikkelsen and Guillermo del Toro as appearing in the game.

“couldn't even talk to them – he had to talk through someone else. That's how that game was finished.”

“I’m back”

“It is not directly related to DEATH STRANDING but I wanted to let them know the direction and the world of Lynch.”

Kojima linked the speed and quality of his work to teams small enough to let him walk through the studio, spot problems where they arise, and give directions directly. He compared that method to visiting bookstores: solutions do not come from an automatic search, but from his own judgment, which he must keep refining with his eyes, head, and body.

Gen Hoshino said he admires that Kojima takes a very specific humorous detail—one that might otherwise end as a laugh during a meeting—and has the conviction to make it part of the game and share the joke with the player. Encountering that humor in Kojima’s work reminds Hoshino that if he wants to make an interesting idea real, he must not give up on it.

Kojima stated that creating the new company was more difficult than developing Death Stranding: upon becoming independent he had to recover credibility, financing, people and a place to work. Fans of his earlier games helped him in unforeseen ways, and he was able to deal directly with Hollywood actors who appreciated Metal Gear and wanted to participate out of mutual affinity.

Kojima said he never runs out of things he wants to do because technology keeps advancing and ideas come to him effortlessly. Although his team sometimes puts the brakes on proposals for having no precedent, he maintained that almost nothing is impossible; he added the inverse limit that if he himself perceives an idea will not be interesting, he must stop it even when it is already highly developed.

“I first met Hideo when Guillermo del Toro called me and said, 'Hey, there's a guy who's going to call you and wants to do a video game with you. Just say yes.' I said, 'Who is he?' And he said, 'Trust me, just say yes.'”

“I first met Hideo when Guillermo del Toro called me and said, 'Hey, there's a guy who's going to call you and wants to do a video game with you. Just say yes.'”

To launch Kojima Productions after going independent in December 2015, Kojima rented an office of under nine square meters and conducted an international search for staff, software tools, and engines while the studio began production on a new game.

“I really respect Mr. Oshii as a creator, but as a person too. I've known him for 26 years and owe him for a number of things. Thanks to this show, I was able to meet with him again.”

“At that time, actually, we had a plan for Mr. Oshii to come to my studio and get a 3D scan done of him so he could appear in Death Stranding. But he had a broken bone at that time, so I didn't get to see him.”

“I can't just be like, whoops, sorry about last year. That's the scariest part of it all.”

“She's not motivated by money. She doesn't do anything that she doesn't want to do. If that wasn't the case, she wouldn't have worked on my project.”

“Then for episode 1, I'll direct the opening and you'll direct the rest of the story. For episode 2, you'll direct the opening. And I was like, what kind of nonsense is this?”

“There also aren't many people who can understand the creator, especially with something like this. Something that they've never seen before.”

“It was my dream to work on a project with him one day. I tried buying the synthesizers that he used to make some music, but the sound is different.”

“It'll be like RRR and H for Hideo, so RRR HHH or RH RH RH, we should call it RH Games.”

“It was 100% out of my pocket. No funding from anyone whatsoever. So we're independent.”

“People think that its purpose is to present the game to everyone around the world, but actually, it's not. It's to show the staff.”

“Since the pandemic has gotten somewhat better, I was planning to ask him to do some more music for us. And then this news came in.”

“It's a song that has been used in movies and I actually thought about using it for the ending of Death Stranding. The lyrics and the vibe would have fit really well, so I had that song in mind when I made the ending.”

“I built up the world of Death Stranding in parallel with Ryan's music, and I talked to him about how I wanted to use his music in the game too, not just the teaser.”

“So yeah, after going independent, I had nothing. All I had were connections with people, so I followed those connections to make the game.”

“So people told me to go with Keanu, but I was always for Mads. I made that character for Mads.”

“And so, just in case Death Stranding became my last work, I wanted Lindsay to be a part of it.”

“For instance, real-life Matt smokes, but Cliff's character at that time wasn't a smoker. But after meeting Matt in person, we went through the process of solidifying his character together.”

“There was one incident that was really tough. The 2016 SAG strike. I thought it would end in two or three months, but it went on for a year.”

“There needs to be trust between myself and the actors in order to see it through, because it can get pretty tough.”

“And it's said that the weight of the soul is 21 grams. […] When I thought about this character, I instantly thought of Nicolas.”

“Well, I'm not an actor, so I'm just kind of there for presents. […] I've played the role of an assassin before too.”

“Yes, he visited and we got to do the long-awaited 3D scan of him. […] He could be someone just walking around and you run into him if you're playing offline. He won't be part of the story.”

“Yes, to put it simply, he gets me. There aren't a lot of people like that out there. We don't have a language barrier.”

“I did scan him. […] Yeah, you'll probably show up getting a shoulder ride. If you see someone on a shoulder, you'll know it's him. Maybe I'll be the one carrying him in the CG.”

“But I really wanted to put in an Asian character, and if I'm going to use an Asian actor, I wanted them to be Japanese because, well, um, I'm Japanese.”

“Well, compared to like Clint Eastwood, I might be more stubborn. There are some people who will do 30 takes. James Cameron does over 30. […] Well, I think the first two or three takes are the best ones.”

“And actors can't do exactly the same thing every time, every take. Their expression may change slightly and that little nuance makes me really happy.”

“In my case, I think about the world setting, then create the story. The character settings are pretty vague at first. The details aren't refined yet.”

“I need to check whether I can love this person or not, whether or not I can work together with them.”

“I think I'm gonna re-write the script now, I have new ideas after meeting you.”

“One of my favourite movies is Mary Shelley. I saw that in theatres, and that did it for me. I knew it right there and then.”

“So I change stuff during performance captures and whatnot, but on top of that, I want the actors, like Elle for example, to be a part of the creative process by participating as a creator.”

“Putting Elle in a video game is a big responsibility on my part, so I wanted to make something that will live up to her expectations.”

“But I don't remember exactly how we first met. I feel like I've known him from ages ago.”

“In MGS5, Snake isn't really Snake, and Ocelot becomes kind of like the storyteller. And this was really difficult and playing the part of Ocelot was risky, but Troy did an amazing job, so I'm really grateful.”

“For instance, when Higgs turns to the player and speaks in their direction, he looks at the camera all of a sudden, sort of breaking the fourth wall. Something like that is hard for movie actors to understand, but Troy gets it right away.”

“I was basically scammed. I didn't know anything. I didn't even know how recording worked.”

“I was roaming in the dark and you were like the beacon of light leading the way with your smile and everything.”

“And I would ask them to do another take, but they would say, there wasn't anything wrong with that take and everyone would kinda agree, but Kikuko, you would stand up for me.”

“So this is why I started going to dinners with cast members. […] But this kind of work style of mine started from here.”

“Yeah, well, Kayumi-san is like a god to me.”

“I realized you had to do it directly, which is my current style. If the actual person says they can't do it, then I will give it up.”

“The boss is kind of mysterious. She's maternal, but she's also like the father figure.”

“But I wanted to see a Kikuko version of Lindsay. So I asked you to play the two roles of Amelie and Brigitte.”

“It actually wasn't Amelie. It was Mama and Lakne, the twins, played by Margaret Qualley.”

“Your name will be Seventeen. […] There'll be an oi oi button. If the players press that, they get a like. But they have to press it at just the right timing.”

“Since I was a fan of theirs, I didn't want to kill their sound. I wanted to make the most out of what makes CHVRCHES special and create something that'll match Death Stranding.”

“I didn't know his work at the time but we met up and did introductions and right away he let me listen to a sample of his latest album. One listened to that, and I was captivated.”

“I can't say what project it is, although I'm sure you all can guess. But there was a song that fit perfectly in this one scene. So I asked him, hey, can I use this?”

“People often describe it as like a chemical reaction. Like A and B react to create C or D. What Woodkid and I are doing is like a DNA modification. It's like something completely new that doesn't exist in this world is born every time.”

“And Sony, as far as I know, basically said, "We're going to bet on you, Hideo Kojima, as a creator." We don't even need to know what the game is. We're just in.”

“They were the kind of people that I wanted to work with. ... I wanted to do something with them that probed slightly deeper.”

“When you are creating things, you need references from other genres.”

“We've taken a first step, a giant leap in the entertainment industry.”

“I work as closely as possible to my staff and make detailed adjustments every day. ... But I don't think this way of working is common these days.”

“a new form of media”

“so this collaboration will be really awesome”

“The films they are delivering to the world are high in quality and very innovative. I have been attracted to their creations and they have even inspired my own work.”

“When I had just started my own studio and had nothing, I pitched the DS project to Norman at a sushi restaurant and asked him if he would like to do it with me. He instantly said yes even though I didn't even have a script.”

For Death Stranding 2, Kojima had to turn down around half of the cameo requests from famous people: scanning each person in the studio took about fifteen minutes, and the team ran out of space on the project.

“We met before the pandemic, and he used some of my songs in the first episode [Death Stranding], but it was songs from my previous records. He used "Goliath" and "Pale Yellow" in the gameplay.”

“It was almost like planting seeds, and then he would grow the garden.”

“When we started working on the song with Hideo, he's like, "Should we have her sing it?" It was like, "Yes, I was dreaming for you to ask for it."”

“People sometimes have the fake impression that Hideo is very egotistical, [but] he's someone that changes his mind very intelligently based on what people bring him.”

“I was listening to Caroline Polachek last year and became a big fan of hers. After I put that on my Instagram, she contacted me, and then she DM'ed. We kept in touch and then eventually met up in Paris, and that's when she told me she wanted to write a new song for Death Stranding 2.”

“I put all of these things in. Even if I said to the staff, 'Please put them in!', they would just say, 'Huh?' and pretend not to know (laughs).”

“Hideo kept pushing me to make something even more deconstructed and crazy and industrial and radical and I went way further than I thought I would be able to do in my music and still recognize my music.”

“I don't play games so much. I watch movies, read books, meet people and go to museums, and I'm not copying anything from a game. And there are lot of game creators just watching other games,”

“I keep my ears open for music for my games and then reach out to musicians. If we click, then we work together.”

“I'm not a fan of scarves. I don't like stuff around my neck. However, this neck gaiter is an exception. ... I received this neck gaiter back in the day, and I've been using it ever since. I keep it in my bag”

“I'm not especially partial to wireless Bluetooth earbuds. These are from a Chinese brand called NICEHCK. Their sound quality is just superb. It was always my ultimate go-to pair and the brand reached out to collaborate.”

“This watch is a collaboration piece by Seiko and Kojima Productions. My first watch was a Seiko. It brings back memories. ... To sync it on a business trip ... I have to go outside but it doesn't always work. Hence my collaboration watch with Hamilton. ... I adjust this manually.”

“We've been collaborating for a long time. We devised a few pairs that consolidates into one. In the past, we made one where the lenses open to the side. But they were unstable when it was windy. ... The visors that change color from "2001: A Space Odyssey" would be cool but hard to achieve.”

In mid-June 2026, PlayStation Studios notified Kojima and KOJIMA PRODUCTIONS that it would cancel PHYSINT. The project was important both to Kojima and to his studio. After three months of searching for a new partner, Kojima and his team found a shared vision with XBOX and decided to work together again. Development of PHYSINT continues.

KOJI10 is tentatively coming back with a special one-off podcast that, in VIVANT style, they are calling Episode 36. Kojima and Yanpi had been working on a comeback plan for some time and are rebooting KOJI10 with this standalone episode for now.

“But the number one priority is my staff. We have about 200 people, and I expanded because we had Physint. […] I didn't want to do the same thing we did for P.T.”

“I'm making this new IP, and I want to consider everything like movies, dramas, anime, TV, comics, music. Let's create a new IP with all of this included.”

“I predicted that people might leave, but no one did.”

“They haven't contacted me ever since. But I'm not fighting with Sony. We're not in a dispute. […] So if this was the conclusion, I would've wanted to hear it a little earlier.”

“I want to do something new. But I saw so many people requesting it. And I was thinking, maybe I only have 10 years left. […] And we shook hands and that's how the partnership started.”

In a statement supplied to IGN after the interview, Kojima Productions urged scepticism toward unofficial explanations for Physint’s change of partner. The studio said it was healthy and profitable, that development was continuing with Xbox and that its relationship with PlayStation remained strong.

Kojima found in his storage the booklet included with the MGS2 limited edition, the MGS3 pamphlet he and his team handed out at E3, and the booklet included with the ANUBIS limited edition. He recalled that they used to make everything in-house at the time. The early visual concept for MGS3 was designed by Kyle. Harry was born in 1961, Kyle in 1962, and Kojima in 1963; MGS3 is set in 1964.

“Before someone calls "Action!" she seems like an ordinary person. Then the camera rolls, and she transforms. She'll do anything. It's remarkable.”

“With Norman, since we’re working with him, of course we’re going to handle with care how he looks, down to every baby hair.”

“I pitched him the game, and he agreed to do it.”

“I pitch the projects myself, too.”

“I asked who would be good for the lead. He said, "Sophia Lillis, obviously!"”

“I knew I wanted to work with Udo, but where in the world was he? […] Then Guillermo del Toro suddenly... sent him an email. […] And he answered right away.”

“She looked after Udo throughout the three-day scan.”

Besides Metal Gear, at Konami Kojima produced or supervised other games: he was producer of Zone of the Enders (2001) and of Boktai (2003), executive producer of Castlevania: Lords of Shadow (2010) and supervising director of Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance (2013).

Kojima wrote that Policenauts was also a meeting place: thanks to that magnetic field he met Shinkawa and the rest of the core staff of what would later become his studio, and many people inside and outside the company who still support him; he concluded it is a road that connects to the present and a past he can no longer return to, but that work still shines with a strong light.