The famed developer will step aside from the series after Metal Gear Sold 4, but who will be taking his place?

During this year's Tokyo Game Show Hideo Kojima has revealed that Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots for the PlayStation 3 will be his last game in the series. So, who is going to step in to take his place? A rather surprising possible candidate is Kirby creator Masahiro Sakurai. Kojima has stated that the one time Hal Laboratory developer is one of the best game designers in the industry, and has jokingly offered the next Metal Gear Solid game to him. It's unlikely to ever happen, but stranger things have occurred in the past.

More seriously, Kojima also talked about where he wants take the Metal Gear Solid franchise. He has plans to make more games for handheld systems and to take the franchise online. While Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence has a competitive online game mode, could Kojima be hinting at something more? Perhaps a Metal Gear Solid MMO?

Should any shock announcements be made we'll let you know.