Publishers thought Kojima's next project was "mad," but not Microsoft

Hideo
(Image credit: Xbox)

Hideo Kojima has shed slightly more light on his collaboration with Microsoft.

Earlier this year, in June, Kojima announced Kojima Productions was partnering with Microsoft for a brand new project. Details were scant on the project, but Kojima said it would take advantage of Microsoft's cloud-based technology and would be something "no one has ever experienced." 

"The project required infrastructure that was never needed before, so I discussed it with lots of different big companies and gave presentations, but they really seemed to think that I was mad," Kojima says in a new interview with IGN of the Microsoft project. 

"It was ultimately Microsoft who showed that they understood, and now we're working together on the project, including the technology front," Kojima adds. Kojima also says he's been "thinking about for five or six years already."

Kojima asserts in this interview passage that new technology drives him and that he gets "easily bored." The Death Stranding 2 director points to technology as the driving force of the new project with Microsoft.

Elsewhere, Kojima is busy developing Death Stranding 2, unveiled earlier this month at The Game Awards 2022. However, the game's title of Death Stranding 2 is merely a working title, and what's more, Kojima revealed he wrote the entire game after experiencing the COVID-19 pandemic. Given the development timeline, it's likely we'll be playing Death Stranding 2 before this Microsoft project.

Here's why we're hoping Death Stranding 2 is a smarter, leaner adventure this time around. 

Hirun Cryer

Hirun Cryer is a freelance reporter and writer with Gamesradar+ based out of U.K. After earning a degree in American History specializing in journalism, cinema, literature, and history, he stepped into the games writing world, with a focus on shooters, indie games, and RPGs, and has since been the recipient of the MCV 30 Under 30 award for 2021. In his spare time he freelances with other outlets around the industry, practices Japanese, and enjoys contemporary manga and anime.