Hideo Kojima admits references to himself in Death Stranding 2 are all his own doing, even if it "might cause certain people to cringe hard"
Kojima cameos have been in his games going on 30 years now
Weekly digests, tales from the communities you love, and more
You are now subscribed
Your newsletter sign-up was successful
Want to add more newsletters?
Every Friday
GamesRadar+
Your weekly update on everything you could ever want to know about the games you already love, games we know you're going to love in the near future, and tales from the communities that surround them.
Every Thursday
GTA 6 O'clock
Our special GTA 6 newsletter, with breaking news, insider info, and rumor analysis from the award-winning GTA 6 O'clock experts.
Every Friday
Knowledge
From the creators of Edge: A weekly videogame industry newsletter with analysis from expert writers, guidance from professionals, and insight into what's on the horizon.
Every Thursday
The Setup
Hardware nerds unite, sign up to our free tech newsletter for a weekly digest of the hottest new tech, the latest gadgets on the test bench, and much more.
Every Wednesday
Switch 2 Spotlight
Sign up to our new Switch 2 newsletter, where we bring you the latest talking points on Nintendo's new console each week, bring you up to date on the news, and recommend what games to play.
Every Saturday
The Watchlist
Subscribe for a weekly digest of the movie and TV news that matters, direct to your inbox. From first-look trailers, interviews, reviews and explainers, we've got you covered.
Once a month
SFX
Get sneak previews, exclusive competitions and details of special events each month!
Hideo Kojima loves to drop little references to Hideo Kojima in his games – and Death Stranding 2 is no different – but he's admitted that it's all him, and that his team at Kojima Productions won't humor him.
Kojima-themed Easter eggs have been a thing in the director's games for decades at this point. From Policenauts onward, almost every single Kojima game has had some form of cameo from the man himself, from the posters in Metal Gear Solid 1, to becoming a recruitable staff member in Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker and The Phantom Pain. But as it turns out, Kojima himself puts these in much to the chagrin of his staff at Kojima Productions.
Speaking to GameSpark (and translated by Automaton and machine translation), Kojima is asked if the Easter eggs surrounding him in Death Stranding 2 were something his development team snuck in, but Kojima admits: "All of that stuff was added by me."
He says that when he would ask his staff to add these self-referential bits into the games that they would pretend not to hear him. Kojima admits that the references "might cause certain people to cringe hard," but clearly that won't stop him, otherwise he would've given up on it 30 years ago.
Granted, the references in both Death Stranding and Death Stranding 2 aren't quite as in-your-face as the cameos Kojima had in the last few Metal Gear Solid titles, so I'm sure people will be able to stomach a character name-dropping Kojima Productions and having the words "phantom pain" said multiple times during the Moby Dick monologue.
Check out our Death Stranding 2 review if you're still on the fence, or you have Death Stranding 2's ending explained if you've beaten the game and are still a bit lost.
Weekly digests, tales from the communities you love, and more

Scott has been freelancing for over three years across a number of different gaming publications, first appearing on GamesRadar+ in 2024. He has also written for the likes of PC Gamer, Eurogamer, VG247, Play, TechRadar, and others. He's typically rambling about Metal Gear Solid, God Hand, or any other PS2-era titles that rarely (if ever) get sequels.
You must confirm your public display name before commenting
Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.


