Hideo Kojima wants people to know that he is a staunchly independent video game developer. That means his studio not only “doesn’t have anything to do with anyone,” but also “every day.” death stranding auteur rejects takeover bids from other companies.
“Some of these offers have ridiculously high prices,” Kojima said on his latest installment of Brain Structure, a podcast available via Spotify. (For the record, Kojima speaks Japanese with an English overdub). “But it’s not like I want money. I want to do what I want to do. That’s why I created this studio.”
Kojima hosts the podcast, and his guest this week was his good friend Geoff Keighley, himself a host of The Game Awards — so Kojima reportedly led the discussion. (Disclosure: Kojima serves on the Game Awards Advisory Board.)
However, Keighley quickly took on the role of interviewer, quizzing Kojima on recent developments in the gaming industry. “There are so many rumors about games, especially on social media, and I thought maybe we’d talk about some of the rumors that are out there and a little bit of the truth behind those rumors,” Keighley said.
The two then had a lengthy discussion about rumor culture, entertainment products, and social media. After mentioning this summer’s announcement that Kojima was working on a game for Microsoft’s Xbox Game Studios, Keighley brought Kojimas close collaborations with PlayStation and Sony Interactive Entertainment (death stranding was and is a PlayStation console exclusive) and whether it had made any commitments to any console manufacturer over the years.
“I think a lot of people have a misconception about Kojima Productions,” he said. “I started this company in 2015 after leaving Konami. It was 100% out of my pocket. No funding from anyone. So we are independent.”
Kojima acknowledged that his studio’s actual physical proximity to both Sony’s global headquarters (in Shibuya, Tokyo) and Sony Interactive Entertainment’s headquarters means that “people tend to think we’re part of Sony.” But as this summer’s announcement in regards to Microsoft shows, “We’re indies. We have no affiliations and we are not endorsed by anyone. […] And every day I get offers from all over the world to buy our studio.
“Some of these offers have ridiculously high prices, but it’s not like I want the money,” Kojima said. “I want to do what I want. That’s why I created this studio.”
In other words, for those expecting Kojima Productions (and mascot Ludens) to be the latest acquisition by a big name in a year riddled with them, don’t hold your breath. “As long as I live, I don’t think I’ll ever take up those offers,” Kojima said.
Kojima’s stance is believed to stem from how his tenure at Konami ended in 2015, when the publisher ditched him and his ideas in favor of making pachinko machines and burning Pro Evolution Soccer.
But Kojima also speaks as an artist (35 years in the medium) who understands creative capital and knows how much he’s earned.
