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So, legendary Japanese developer Hideo Kojima is starting from "zero" in 2009, and wants Kojima Productions on an equal footing with western studios. From the great man himself: "We're currently reviewing everything - from the team structure to tools and our staff - in order to make Kojima Productions a team that can challenge foreign creators and software houses. So, because of that, 2009 is going to be a very important year for us.
"I've come to understand that the way we've made games up until now won't translate globally, and I've come to think that I need to make Kojima Productions a team that can compete alongside the rest of the world.
"I've thought a lot about how Western games have been winning, looking it from a global perspective, and there are things that I've noticed. So 2009 will be a year of change, a year where we start from zero again.
"With games, you've got to use cutting-edge techniques, and doing so costs money - so I don't think you can make games that just appeal to the Japanese market. So, 2009 will see us continuing to think how to create a team that can take on the world."
Interesting words indeed. The big question is, what does this mean for Metal Gear Solid 5, a game Kojima himself has confirmed he is already thinking about? Is this the beginning of the Westernification of Metal Gear? What does that even mean? We've donned our Octocamo suit and climbed into our cardboard box to bring you what we reckon Kojima's words mean for the Metal Gear Solid franchise and its army of fans.
5. Metal Gear Solid 5 will be released for the Nintendo Wii
That's right Metal Gear fans, we said the Wii. So successful is Nintendo's motion-sensing phenomenon that it simply can't be ignored by any publisher or developer that wishes to not only remain profitable, but survive, especially in times of recession. Now obviously the Metal Gear games as we know and love them won't be an appropriate fit for the graphics-light Wii, so we're not suggesting Kojima will attempt to cram the next-gen version of MGS5 into the family-friendly console. Instead, Kojima will create a separate team within Kojima Productions dedicated to making the most of the Wii Remote's potential. Remember, by then the Wii MotionPlus add-on will be out, which should ensure much more accurate and less frustrating waggling. We expect a game built from the ground up for the Wii, one that is intended to compliment the next-gen version, not copy it, with a separate plot and perhaps a different central character. It'll have mini-games, yes, and poorer graphics, but it'll be a Metal Gear game at heart, and, dare we say it, could actually be really good.
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Greedy companies like Ubisoft, EA etc. go with multi-platform only for the sake of money, sacrificing quality in the process.
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What Hideo means; My next game will feature a muscle bound retarded American.
What Hideo said;"I've thought a lot about how Western games have been winning, looking it from a global perspective, and there are things that I've noticed. So 2009 will be a year of change, a year where we start from zero again."
What Hideo means; I'm going to make a game solely for mentally challenged people so Americans can understand what is going on.
What Hideo said; "With games, you've got to use cutting-edge techniques, and doing so costs money - so I don't think you can make games that just appeal to the Japanese market. So, 2009 will see us continuing to think how to create a team that can take on the world."
What Hideo means; I'm hoping Microsoft will give me $50m for a few extra levels of DLC and since the game will be on the 360 and not just PS3 we'll be a cert for 10/10 review scores the world round. I hope MS weren't pissed off when everyone thought that we were gonna bring an MGS out for the 360 and it turned out to be for the Ipod touch. Who seen that coming? I mean they only advertised in MGS4.
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From the little I gathered from Kojima which includes everything he's said in past interviews, he's more interested in the engine tech and general pipeline of American and European developers when they make their games. Basically the efficiency and innovation that don't seem to be happening in Japan any longer. While the Japanese still retain superior art direction, their engines and tech aren't great with the rare exception of Kojima Productions, Capcom and Square Enix who are teh only ones pushing the envelope and are actualy taking notes from outside developers in the states and Europe.
Kojima's comments mean nothing about cutscene length or exclusivity or whatever... Just that he's restructuring to compete on an efficiency level in the same way that American developers work in. The Japanese ethic is much different and seems to be suffering in this day and age. Also it is true that the market has changed and JRPGs are less popular outside of Japan which is a bigger market. Also Japan itself is not as interested in HD consoles and is more into handhelds.
Remaining exclusive to any console is not something Kojima is afraid of doing. Anone who's followed the marketing of MGS4 from the KP websites and trailers and what not know that MGS4 is also a subtle stand on where Kojima wants to fit in with the whole console war. He's more interested in utilizing the best tech available and likes the PS3's cell and blu-ray drive. Heck he found the 50GB disc too limiting! Anyway I expect Kojima to make excluive games for all three consoles. He'll definately do something on the Wii, and he' open to trying something for the 360. As for an 'MGS5' it's likely this willl still be big budget and exclusive to PS3. The engine they built for MGS4, much like how much effort Sony is putting into Killzone 2 is for a bigger pay off down the road. That same engine will continue to be improved and used for a variety of PS3 games that they want to make. And since they already have invested heavily into the MGS4 engine on PS3, that means that development on a future installment of MGS will be easier and cheaper! They don't just throw it all out and start from scratch. You can't take Kojima's comment about going back to 'zero' literally... Its a reference to MGS4, and basically sounds like Kojima saying he's going to approach developmen differently, not that they are throwing everything they've invested in out and starting all over.
Kojima will create some new franchises for a worldwide audience. And MGS will continue to be developed in the manner he wants, whether with the old or new approach. MGS4 was already catering to a worldwide audience anyway... Heck MGS3: Subsistence was also made with a modified camera and online to try this out.
Anyway, let' not start blowing things out of proportion...
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I am a massive metal gear fan. And i would love a new metal gear. But i agree wiv Mgs Master. Mgs3 New upgraded graphics bigger gameplay more features. think how brilliant that would be ! I loved the mgs3 the things i could do.. Walk into jungle and eat and hunt to survive. MGS3-Mgs1 on ps1 were the best.
I love them all. But if they make a new metal gear. I hope they make short cutscenes. And more snake.. but not old.
Jus my opinion
Dan :)
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Just had to add quickly, that the Gears franchise is owned by Epic, not Microsoft. I presume MS fund the development of each game in return for console exclusivity, but at some point in the future it is not inconcievable that the series could appear on the PS3 (or Wii...).
Anyway, I liked the article and I think it made a lot of sense; from an economic perspective it seems foolish for Konami to keep the series platform exclusive unless Sony make it very worth their while (i.e. tens of millions of dollars). I haven't played MGO yet, but even as a 'core' gamer and a big fan of the series I've always found the cutscenes and pretentiousness a little alienating, and if these aspects are toned down I wouldn't see that as a bad thing.
However, this has made me think about wider issues of western games vs. eastern games, and the technologies that drive both. Japanese games tend to be significantly behind European/American/Canadian games when it comes to the physicality of the gameworlds they create. Asian companies can design beautiful graphics but they seem very apathetic when it comes to physics and presence of their worlds. To pick up on this example, MGS4 has probably the best physics of any Japanese game I've ever played (I feel Dead Rising might be a better example but I haven't played it), but even so it's years behind the technology driving many western games - it doesn't even have proper ragdoll. I think as technology progresses and companies will live and die by their core series, Japanese companies need to make the effort to catch up and put their technology on a level playing field with western developers. And I would just like to re-iterate that I'm not talking about graphics, but physics.
Although, to answer my own point, the majority of games which push this technology forward tend to be FPS, and since most Japanese developers don't bother with that genre, that's probably a big part of the reason for this situation.Last edited on Wed 7 January 2009 by Triggerhappytel
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Hideo dude should move on with a new franchise but he has no balls.
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