Although Hideo Kojima has participated in a number of interviews since announcing Kojima Productions and their deal with Sony, he hasn’t given any insight into his departure from Konami. According to the New Yorker, this is because he’s ‘contractually forbidden from talking about the prior split.’
Kojima is able to talk about the new studio though, which currently has four members: himself, Metal Gear artist Yoji Shinkawa, former Konami Producer Kenichiro Imaizumi, and, most likely, his personal assistant Ayako Terashima. As they begin working on their debut PlayStation 4 title, Kojima Productions is hiring for over 20 positions right now.
In his interview with the New Yorker, Kojima revealed that he sees every game as the last one he’ll make:
Every time I create a game, I think it’s going to be the last time. In much the same way that a mother isn’t thinking about her next pregnancy during childbirth, I can’t think of the next game till the one I’m working on is out.
Without actually mentioning Konami specifically, Kojima said the management team behind a project “needs to have a keen sense for what will work, and be willing to take risks” in order to target the global market. “If you’re only focused on the profits immediately in front of you, the times will leave you behind,” he added. “It becomes impossible to catch up again.”
According to Kojima, when you work in a big company, especially a Japanese one, “every little thing has to be approved beforehand, and you need paperwork to do anything.” Now that he’s independent, he doesn’t have to “invest time in unnecessary presentations,” he can work more quickly, and all the risk is on him.
[Source: The New Yorker, Kojima Productions via VideoGamer]
