6 ms·

It's rather the other way around: Kojima was fed up with Konami's new management. The new CEO didn't really know anything about videogames or who Mr. Kojima was

It's rather the other way around: Kojima was fed up with Konami's new management. The new CEO didn't really know anything about videogames or who Mr. Kojima was. He treated Mr. Kojima very disrespectfully, telling him that he wasn't really all that important to the Metal Gear franchise. The new management is strictly business-focused. They believe that free-to-play mobile titles are the future. From a business standpoint, such reorientation may be the right thing to do. From a creative standpoint, this is unacceptable to someone like Mr. Kojima. I don't know what you mean by "look at what was finally released of MGS5", either. The title was very well received by critics and sold very well, too - unlike Duke Nukem Forever.

kenkam 11y ago
Just to add to the above comment: you cannot compare Duke Nukem Forever with Hideo Kojima, who has a proven track record of releasing games. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hideo_Kojima#Works https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hideo_Kojima#Works He has produced more games than I have written pet programs.
WatchDog 11y ago
As a long time MGS fan I can tell you that MGS5 was an unfinished mess. The rushed release and the unfinished product was much heavily criticised and discussed among the fanbase. The most publicised issue is that the last chapter that was completely cut from the game, but the issues with the game go much further then that. One of the hallmarks of the MGS franchise is it long dialogue and cinema like cutscenes, however MGS5 has hardly any dialogue or significant cutscenes. Towards the end of the second chapter, the game forces you to replay old missions to progress with the main story. Many scenes just feel janky and unfinished, like the car ride with skullface where you sit and stare at each other for a few minutes while the theme music plays. One of the major overarching plot points is your characters descent into becoming a "demon", yet I feel that the game really failed to convince me that any decision I made was particularly evil. If Kojima had more time, maybe he could of done a better job with that. The best scenes are the ones that made it to the trailer, if the rest of the game could of been at that quality it would of been fantastic. Perhaps the most disappointing thing about the game is that it clearly had a lot of promise and if Kojima was given the time he needed, it could of been an amazing game.
- rangibaby 11y ago
  I was happy with the lack of cutscenes. MGS4's narrative basically collapsed under it's own weight in a (misguided, IMO) attempt to explain everything, which is a shame because the short gameplay segments in-between the cutscenes were quite fun. I think splitting the prologue mission off from the main game and releasing it as it's own game hurt TPP. The core game mechanics are polished and fun in MGSV, so I'm happy with that. It was obviously released in an incomplete state, but it looks like that wasn't Kojima's fault. Maybe in a few years he'll be able to do a "director's cut" of it.
  - talmand 11y ago
    The cutscenes are there, sort of, and entirely optional. They are presented as cassette tapes (quite a few in fact) obtained throughout the game that tell the whole story.
  - cholantesh 11y ago
    I think that balancing plot and gameplay segments has been a problem with the series as far back as the second entry - I seem to recall there being a half-hour long, unskippable cinematic fairly early on in that game. And the plot itself is kind of a mess, which sapped a lot of my motivation to commit to the series.
    - rangibaby 11y ago
      At least MGS2 only has epic cutscenes at the beginning or end of each "chapter". That's actually bearable compared to MGS4. MGS2 is my favorite entry in the series. It certainly had the most ambitious plot (about information control, and how being a soldier in a game is nothing like being a real soldier.), the mixed reaction to which made Kojima dial it back for all of the subsequent games. It also has incredible production values, being one of the best looking games on the PS2 while holding an almost-solid 60FPS. The series certainly has it's ups and downs, but on the whole I enjoy it. The worst parts are a silly science fiction-themed soap opera, but the best parts are some of the most compelling and exciting gaming I've ever experienced.
- 11y ago
k__ 11y ago
Many companies have that problem. You have a skilled employee and suddenly they become a diva. Now you have to put up with the stuff you don't like about them, but you need their skill. For example: "Hideo Kojima originally wanted the boss fight to last one to two weeks but was told that this was impossible and not recommended." - http://www.ign.com/videos/2014/03/21/hideo-kojimas-top-5-metal-gear-characters http://www.ign.com/videos/2014/03/21/hideo-kojimas-top-5-met...
- bovermyer 11y ago
  A boss fight that lasts for weeks sounds intriguing, depending on how the gameplay was handled. Obviously you wouldn't be sitting at your console for the entire time, so the "fight" must be broken up into large sections, each requiring hours to complete. In this case, where it's supposed to be a battle against a sniper hidden in a jungle... I can see how it would take weeks to find and end the bastard (no pun intended).
  - coldpie 11y ago
    That boss fight was where I quit playing MGS3 and MGS as a series (yes, I know about the elapsed-time easter egg). I loved MGS1 and MGS2, but MGS3 lost me. I really liked the video-gamey gameplay in 1 and 2, where each room is more-or-less a puzzle to figure out and work your way through, with the radar telegraphing the puzzle's parameters. MGS3 made a major switch away from puzzle gameplay towards slow action, removing the essential radar and replacing it with careful player observation. The sniper boss fight was the epitome of this pivot, requiring you to slowly trundle through a huge jungle and look for a few tiny clues to find your enemy's position. For better or worse, I just don't have that kind of patience, especially when I want to be having fun. I think it fits the style of the story more, and certainly it was well-received by players, but for me personally, I found it interminable. I watched a friend play MGS4, and its story was completely bonkers. Ground Zeroes literally made me sick to my stomach. I'm done with MGS and while I'll watch for what Kojima puts out next, I'm pretty nervous about it.
    - brobinson 11y ago
scott_s 11y ago
You sound confident in your narrative of the internal conflict inside Konami, treating is as established fact and not speculation. But, everything I have read about the internal conflict has not had the internal narrative of the individual players. (For example, this comprehensive piece at Polygon does not mention what steps Kojima took internally: http://www.polygon.com/2015/12/16/10220356/hideo-kojima-konami-explainer-metal-gear-solid-silent-hills http://www.polygon.com/2015/12/16/10220356/hideo-kojima-kona.... It does not have a narrative from inside Konami about who got fed-up with who, who initiated what, and how the power struggles played out.) What have you read which gives more insight into what happened inside Konami? I think it's reasonable to assume that the changing direction of the company lead to the rift, but based on what I know, I cannot conclude that Kojima initiated his departure.
- fsociety 11y ago
  There was a report released on the conditions of working with Konami from Nikkei: http://kotaku.com/report-konami-is-treating-its-staff-like-prisoners-1721700073 http://kotaku.com/report-konami-is-treating-its-staff-like-p... Likely won't be able to gain insight on exactly what happened inside Konami, and even those are personal anecdotes. I'm sure everyone has a good reason for what they did.
  - scott_s 11y ago
    The insight from that report was included in the Polygon piece, and it does not include who-initiated-what between Kojima and Konami executives.
turnip1979 11y ago
I'm a fan of DDR and there are many others on the Internet. It seems like Konami doesn't want to take our money (no new products for home consoles in a few years). I'm very confused why that is. My guess was that they make more money in the arcade, and home machines were canabalizing that. It doesn't seem like a plausible theory. Very strange company. I wish they sold the IP if they didn't care about it and let someone else give fans what they want.

kenkam 11y ago

Just to add to the above comment: you cannot compare Duke Nukem Forever with Hideo Kojima, who has a proven track record of releasing games. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hideo_Kojima#Works https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hideo_Kojima#Works He has produced more games than I have written pet programs.

WatchDog 11y ago

As a long time MGS fan I can tell you that MGS5 was an unfinished mess. The rushed release and the unfinished product was much heavily criticised and discussed among the fanbase. The most publicised issue is that the last chapter that was completely cut from the game, but the issues with the game go much further then that. One of the hallmarks of the MGS franchise is it long dialogue and cinema like cutscenes, however MGS5 has hardly any dialogue or significant cutscenes. Towards the end of the second chapter, the game forces you to replay old missions to progress with the main story. Many scenes just feel janky and unfinished, like the car ride with skullface where you sit and stare at each other for a few minutes while the theme music plays. One of the major overarching plot points is your characters descent into becoming a "demon", yet I feel that the game really failed to convince me that any decision I made was particularly evil. If Kojima had more time, maybe he could of done a better job with that. The best scenes are the ones that made it to the trailer, if the rest of the game could of been at that quality it would of been fantastic. Perhaps the most disappointing thing about the game is that it clearly had a lot of promise and if Kojima was given the time he needed, it could of been an amazing game.

rangibaby 11y ago
I was happy with the lack of cutscenes. MGS4's narrative basically collapsed under it's own weight in a (misguided, IMO) attempt to explain everything, which is a shame because the short gameplay segments in-between the cutscenes were quite fun. I think splitting the prologue mission off from the main game and releasing it as it's own game hurt TPP. The core game mechanics are polished and fun in MGSV, so I'm happy with that. It was obviously released in an incomplete state, but it looks like that wasn't Kojima's fault. Maybe in a few years he'll be able to do a "director's cut" of it.
- talmand 11y ago
  The cutscenes are there, sort of, and entirely optional. They are presented as cassette tapes (quite a few in fact) obtained throughout the game that tell the whole story.
- cholantesh 11y ago
  I think that balancing plot and gameplay segments has been a problem with the series as far back as the second entry - I seem to recall there being a half-hour long, unskippable cinematic fairly early on in that game. And the plot itself is kind of a mess, which sapped a lot of my motivation to commit to the series.
  - rangibaby 11y ago
    At least MGS2 only has epic cutscenes at the beginning or end of each "chapter". That's actually bearable compared to MGS4. MGS2 is my favorite entry in the series. It certainly had the most ambitious plot (about information control, and how being a soldier in a game is nothing like being a real soldier.), the mixed reaction to which made Kojima dial it back for all of the subsequent games. It also has incredible production values, being one of the best looking games on the PS2 while holding an almost-solid 60FPS. The series certainly has it's ups and downs, but on the whole I enjoy it. The worst parts are a silly science fiction-themed soap opera, but the best parts are some of the most compelling and exciting gaming I've ever experienced.
11y ago

k__ 11y ago

Many companies have that problem. You have a skilled employee and suddenly they become a diva. Now you have to put up with the stuff you don't like about them, but you need their skill. For example: "Hideo Kojima originally wanted the boss fight to last one to two weeks but was told that this was impossible and not recommended." - http://www.ign.com/videos/2014/03/21/hideo-kojimas-top-5-metal-gear-characters http://www.ign.com/videos/2014/03/21/hideo-kojimas-top-5-met...

bovermyer 11y ago
A boss fight that lasts for weeks sounds intriguing, depending on how the gameplay was handled. Obviously you wouldn't be sitting at your console for the entire time, so the "fight" must be broken up into large sections, each requiring hours to complete. In this case, where it's supposed to be a battle against a sniper hidden in a jungle... I can see how it would take weeks to find and end the bastard (no pun intended).
- coldpie 11y ago
  That boss fight was where I quit playing MGS3 and MGS as a series (yes, I know about the elapsed-time easter egg). I loved MGS1 and MGS2, but MGS3 lost me. I really liked the video-gamey gameplay in 1 and 2, where each room is more-or-less a puzzle to figure out and work your way through, with the radar telegraphing the puzzle's parameters. MGS3 made a major switch away from puzzle gameplay towards slow action, removing the essential radar and replacing it with careful player observation. The sniper boss fight was the epitome of this pivot, requiring you to slowly trundle through a huge jungle and look for a few tiny clues to find your enemy's position. For better or worse, I just don't have that kind of patience, especially when I want to be having fun. I think it fits the style of the story more, and certainly it was well-received by players, but for me personally, I found it interminable. I watched a friend play MGS4, and its story was completely bonkers. Ground Zeroes literally made me sick to my stomach. I'm done with MGS and while I'll watch for what Kojima puts out next, I'm pretty nervous about it.
  - brobinson 11y ago

scott_s 11y ago

You sound confident in your narrative of the internal conflict inside Konami, treating is as established fact and not speculation. But, everything I have read about the internal conflict has not had the internal narrative of the individual players. (For example, this comprehensive piece at Polygon does not mention what steps Kojima took internally: http://www.polygon.com/2015/12/16/10220356/hideo-kojima-konami-explainer-metal-gear-solid-silent-hills http://www.polygon.com/2015/12/16/10220356/hideo-kojima-kona.... It does not have a narrative from inside Konami about who got fed-up with who, who initiated what, and how the power struggles played out.) What have you read which gives more insight into what happened inside Konami? I think it's reasonable to assume that the changing direction of the company lead to the rift, but based on what I know, I cannot conclude that Kojima initiated his departure.

fsociety 11y ago
There was a report released on the conditions of working with Konami from Nikkei: http://kotaku.com/report-konami-is-treating-its-staff-like-prisoners-1721700073 http://kotaku.com/report-konami-is-treating-its-staff-like-p... Likely won't be able to gain insight on exactly what happened inside Konami, and even those are personal anecdotes. I'm sure everyone has a good reason for what they did.
- scott_s 11y ago
  The insight from that report was included in the Polygon piece, and it does not include who-initiated-what between Kojima and Konami executives.

turnip1979 11y ago

I'm a fan of DDR and there are many others on the Internet. It seems like Konami doesn't want to take our money (no new products for home consoles in a few years). I'm very confused why that is. My guess was that they make more money in the arcade, and home machines were canabalizing that. It doesn't seem like a plausible theory. Very strange company. I wish they sold the IP if they didn't care about it and let someone else give fans what they want.