The problem with creating an incredibly popular and successful franchise is that fans and the publisher will always want more. And more.
Hideo Kojima has faced this issue numerous times with the Metal Gear series, repeatedly saying that this release would be his last. Or this one. Ok, this one, but that’s it.
With the next generation of powerful consoles fast approaching, Kojima wanted to be able to invest heavily in creating a new engine, but he was only able to gain the funds by making a Metal Gear game with it. He told EGM:
I’m often misinterpreted. I’ve always said that I want to work on original properties, but Metal Gear offers plenty of benefits. The Fox Engine, for example, took a lot of time and money [to create]; we were only able to develop it because it was intended for the next Metal Gear. In the next game, I’m introducing concepts intended for entirely new intellectual properties using the Metal Gear brand.
He also hinted at what is influencing the development of the game, likely Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes, although he wouldn’t confirm that was the title he was talking about:
Grand Theft Auto III came out the same year as Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty, and it seemed the thought processes behind the two games were completely different. It was beyond game design; the area a player could explore was so vast that not even the game designer could predict all possible outcomes. That title definitely opened my eyes.
Whatever the outcome, he doesn’t want people to view it as a Metal Gear game by Mr Metal Gear, and rather by Mr Kojima:
I’ll admit that I hope my future endeavors are thought of as ‘works by Hideo Kojima’ rather than ‘from the creator of Metal Gear’. I haven’t really shown the world what else I might be capable of yet. This may sound pretentious, but I don’t like being thought of as ‘the Metal Gear guy.’ There’s a lot more I can do.
Do you want to see more original content from the creator of Metal Gear Kojima? Or do you want him to keep refining his biggest creation? Share your thoughts in the comments below, and let us know what you want to go down in history as the creator of.
