Konami lawyers stopped Kojima accepting MGS 5 award

Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain won several awards tonight at The Game Awards, but series creator Hideo Kojima was apparently blocked from attending to receive them thanks to a business contract with Konami.

The situation between Kojima and his employer has been complicated, and though mounting evidence suggests that would be his former employer, it's not actually been outright confirmed where the two stand with regards to one another. Host Geoff Keighley called the situation "inconceivable" as the audience booed loudly over the news.

"Mr. Kojima had every intention of being with us tonight, but unfortunately he was informed by a lawyer representing Konami just recently that he would not be allowed to travel to tonight's award ceremony to accept any awards," Keighley said. "He’s still under an employment contract and it’s disappointing."

Whether he's with Konami any longer or not, Kojima's fate seems to be in their hands. For better or worse. We've reached out for comment and will let you know what, if anything, we hear back.

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Sam Prell

Sam is a former News Editor here at GamesRadar. His expert words have appeared on many of the web's well-known gaming sites, including Joystiq, Penny Arcade, Destructoid, and G4 Media, among others. Sam has a serious soft spot for MOBAs, MMOs, and emo music. Forever a farm boy, forever a '90s kid.