Konami Removes Hideo Kojima’s Name From Metal Gear Solid V Box Art

CraveOnline: "Publisher Konami has removed all reference to Metal Gear series creator Hideo Kojima, and his development team Kojima Productions and their Fox Engine, from Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain‘s box art."

[Jalva]

This comment has been removed on request of Konami®

[NecotheSergal]

Enjoy the downvotes and loss of a bubble for that kind of bad comment.

Your comment was bad and you should feel bad. He is not egotistical as he'd likely be humble and modest in-person. Apparently it's not egotistical of Movie directors to slap their name on posters and the front of a movie box but if a game developer does it, HOBOY! EGOCENTRIC!!

[KryptoniteTail]

"He is NOT egotistical as he'd LIKELY be humble and modest in-person."

Wow, way to contradict yourself within one sentence. How do you know he isn't egotistical if you then state he is LIKELY not? First you speak as if he is your brother-in-law but immediately say you have no clue. Basically you are saying that you have a hardon for him because you're a biased nerd who blows devs and is a Japanophile who probably refers to him as Ohhhhhh Kojima-san!!!^_^

[TomShoe]

Completely removing Kojima's name from the title after all the time he spent working on it. Absolutely shameful. They have lost my business. If I buy any games from them, they're going to be used.

[Baka-akaB]

Come on Kryptonite , sure he doesnt know him personally , and he could indeed be a demon behind closed doors ...

But there are enough interviews , documentary , feeds , and social networks messages and contacts with him ... to know that so far he behave nicely , and isnt attached to any drama and scandal

[aCasualGamer]

Hey, whether you like it or not Konami. He did create the characters and universe inwhich you are making a profit of. You are partnering with him when you assigned him and his team of developers to once again create and release an amazing game to the world. The gamers pay to play the game not because you are publishing it but because Hideo Kojima and his team of developers are creating it. I can see why you removed the name of the producer (although i don't agree with it) but i can't for the love of me understand why you removed the name of the development studio. It seems really out of a puny fallout that they went to that degree of douchebagery.

If i created characters and universe of a specific game and i took part in crafting major parts of that game i would for sure make my name visible if i felt like it, although i probably wouldn't want to since i'm not that egoistic, but i can't blame anyone that would, it's their right as an artist of their creative work. As long as you don't neglect the great talent that helped you make the game, ala the great developers at Kojima productions. And as a founder of the studio, i don't see any fault in naming the company after you, albeit very egotistical thing to do, even for pure existential reasons.

But then again, i haven't heard anything about what kind of fallout that was.

[NecotheSergal]

@Krptonite Tail - Saying that I bet/he's likely to be humble and modest in-person is 'contradicting' how? I don't think you know what that word means.

You see, I wasn't using absolutism and was admitting to not acting so sure of myself since I'm not going to pretend like I know a person I never met - Unlike You and Jalva. Who full-on calls someone arrogant on the grounds of having their name on the front of THEIR game? More archival data and evidence supports me that he's more likely to be humble and modest from Videos, interviews, people who HAVE met him who would state that he's a nice guy rather than a 'bad' guy - but oh do please show me the evidence that supports Jalva's groundless claim that he must be egotistical. I'm not going to wait for a response from you, because you won't find evidence that proves me wrong, which is exactly why I'm comfortable saying that I bet he IS modest and humble without stuttering or doubting myself. Brat.

You're not worth my time or anyone elses, stop acting like a child.

[Tctczach]

I like how you are sticking up for someone you have never met or will ever know. Maybe he is a d*** who gets stuff done the right way.

[scottieleverne]

Not a loss of a bubble!!!

[Army_of_Darkness]

I sign my name on the box of every Macdonald's big Mac I make :-P j/k

[moujahed]

Hold this downvote young man.

[Baka-akaB]

Actually even if obviously not friends or acquaintance , and solely through events , cons , signings and stuff , some of us did meet him .

And i dont see really many people sticking up for him , but at least requesting even tidbits , rumors or reasons to claim he's a douche .

Did we miss some vine when he kicked someone's dog ? Or some interview where he crapped on anyone's favorite console manufacturer ? or something backstage where he imploded Bale style ?

If he's the devil , at least , he is within the confines of privacy . Which is all we could ask

[nX]

If this is real it's beyond ridiculous... if it's a PR stunt it's just as ridiculous. Like WTF leave this guy alone haha

[Bdub2000]

Alright, this whole Kojima thing was shocking news and a big loss... But why are we still talking about it? Wishing for real news

[DevilOgreFish]

What did kojima do to get this? Is there some kind of scandal with his cast? It doesn't seem like kojima would do that or get this treatment. Something must be up.

[Apollosupreme]

In the corporate world it is pretty common to get heartlessly shown the door when they've used up a talent. He's probably a lot better off now that he's out of there in the long run actually. I wish him the best and I hope he's feeling a sense of freedom now.

[PurpHerbison]

"Enjoy the downvotes and loss of a bubble for that kind of bad comment."

People actually care about that stuff?

[Syntax-Error]

only nerds do in which this site is full of

[DC777]

Well you think you know a person but perhaps you don't.

This is a pretty far step for a company to take and it makes me wonder if he did something highly illegal that caused all this. Why else would you go through such great lengths to distance yourself from a man unless he was about to hit the news?

[Mikefizzled]

He may be but one man but he is credited as
Director, Producer, Writer and Game designer in the trailers for TPP. That itself is worthy of some acclaim.

[Gazondaily]

He chucked his name at every possible occasion in Ground Zeroes. It was actually funny. I'm sure he'll leave several traces of his name (aka emblazon his name in the sky)

Heck, you even had a side mission to rescue him in it!

[rainslacker]

I think the name on the box, and all associated media is more marketing than anything else. Kojima is a well known talent, and putting his name up there is no different than when you bill a director or actor for a movie. His name alone can sell games, so taking up a small part of the box is no biggie, and Konami promoting him through the years was for their profit.

I assume Kojima didn't have a contract to have his name on the marketing/boxes/etc because if he did, Konami wouldn't be able to remove it now.

This removing his name from everything now I see more as Konami trying to distance itself from him so as to make things smoother in the future. Or it may just be something petty. Or it may be some huge troll...which would suck because there's more news about this than the actual game nowadays.

[UltraNova]

Septic, can you deny the fact that Konami made money every time Kojima slapped his name or showed his face somewhere?

In all honesty, isn't MGS synonymous with Kojima?

Lets talk about the future for a moment,

If you are fan of the MGS universe you now know the MGS IP will not be developed by Kojima, how do you feel about that? Wouldn't you be skeptical of the final product? Doesn't that translate to decreased sales?

Anw, I think both sides wanted his name/face everywhere prior to the fallout.Whats happening now is just Konami's reaction to a relationship gone really bad since they could wait for MGS5 to get release and then quietly remove Kojima from the picture, as any safe business-minded company would.

[fei-hung]

thehe is one of the main if not the only reason this game exists (if you knew the history of Konami and Kojima). The fans of this game know this which is why most launches of MGS have always had Kojima at the launch signing copies etc.

The fans understand that MGS isn't an MGS game unless it has Kojima attached to it. Not only is he the developer and founder of MGS, but he is also responsible for the Kojima productions (the Dev team that makes the game) and the Fox engine (that the game runs on).

it's not about ego, it's about sales. Konami knows his name is one of the reasons the game sells which is why they had him promote previous games at every opportunity. Now they are trying to wipe away his name in hope of future generations / new comets to the franchise not associating the game with the creator.

[TorpeAlex]

Ironically, if it were up to Kojima this game would not exist. He has tried to end the series multiple times, stating that MGS3 AND MGS4 would be the final entries in the series at the time of each's release.

[Cernunnos]

@TorpeAlex Actually, MGS2 was also supposed to be the last one. MGS3 was not supposed to be the last, but Kojimas last, he wanted someone else to make MGS4. Both MGS2 and 4 were meant to end the series though.

[umair_s51]

Well he is the writer, director and producer of the MGS saga, not every developer out there is doing the same

[Jdoki]

In interviews I have never seen him come across as egotistical.. Although I'm not a fan of slapping the name across the box. Same with Sid Meier. I think Richard Garriott used to do it as well.

@Neco
In most movie posters there are the names of many people, director, producer, actors and others. But there are some directors who take it to the next level like 'M Night Shyamalm's Piece of Crap Movie' etc.

Edit, on topic: This is very petty of Konami. I wonder if there is some sort of additional royalty payment they are avoiding by removing reference to Kojima and his team.

[deadpoolio316]

He actually is kind of a one hit wonder for Konami...They attach his name to other projects like Lords of Shawdow even though he had ZERO to do with it...

Konami had practically written him off before they handed him Metal Gear just to get him to go away, everything he worked on before that was a flop. Even he knew ZOE was a flop, hence why HE personally didn't want to make another one...

Its amazing how everyone is ready to throw themselves on their knees and take a golden Kojima shower, when the guy could be a complete and total ass when he is out of fans site..Hell the guy could secretly be just like Itagaki, but of course the fanboys will pretend they met him at cons or things like that and he was just so nice.....

We don't know the whole story about what happened between him and Konami and likely never will but its pretty pathetic to just be ready to assume its all greedy Konami and not Kojima....It takes 2 to tango

[isa_scout]

Why should a game director be any different than a movie director? Thousands worked on the Star Wars franchise yet the name everyone associates with Star Wars is its creator George Lucas. Hideo Kojima like George Lucas,Steven Speilberg, and Martin Scorsese has earned the right to have his name attached to anything Metal Gear. Having created and sheparded a critically acclaimed franchise for decades he has earned the right to be egotistical and entitled. He directed,produced, and wrote Phantom Pain. He should be recognized for his accomplishments. Let's face the facts, most people won't give a crap about the next MGS because his name won't be attached to it, myself included. When he leaves MGS for good the franchise will be dead to me sadly. I've never known Konami to treat any of it's franchise with respect, and MGS will be no different when Kojima leaves.

[Kingdomcome247]

I'm sorry for the disagree. *stupid phone* I wholeheartedly agree with your comment.

[Bleucrunch]

@Isa_scout you are wise beyond your years brother. Konami will NEVER win this war they are raging with Kojima because the one thing about the gaming community that is consistent and irrefutable is that players like Developers more than Publishers. Konami will destroy the Metal Gear Franchise because most Metal Gear fans (myself included) will not support anything Metal Gear if we do not see the Kojima name slapped on the box. I am also inclined not to purchase Metal Gear Solid V at launch and wait until its a used copy to purchase it. I hate publishers and their arrogance. All I need is for Kojima to tell us not to support the game and I will jump on that bandwagon.

[deadpoolio316]

And he will get his name in the credits...There is nothing that states Konami has to print his name on the cover art....Again just more people talking out of their ass when nobody actually knows the complete story...The dude could be Itagaki x10 behind closed doors for all anyone knows....

HE is the reason there was never a ZOE 3 both games flopped the HD collection flopped yet Konami wanted Kojima to make another one and HE constantly said NO..Hell they even attached his name to Lords of Shadow knowing he had zero to do with the game, even Mercury Steam confirmed that. But there could come a time where you just need to cut ties...We wont ever actually know for sure

[Baka-akaB]

It's actually Konami that was very happy to put forward his name on those games .

And he's not even the first to do so ...
You're just making stuff up about his ego because you dont like him

[lelo2play]

Dammm... Kojima really pissed the Konami people.

[kparks]

I do agree with this. somebody on one side of this thing must of extreamly pissed off the wrong person, because i dont ever recall anything like this happening before and to be honest is pretty ridiculous for a company to do this to someone who has made them tons of money for years. If i would have to guess i would put my money on konami trying to force something kojima said no they said yeah or were gonna do this he prolly responded go to hell and now this is happening atleast in my mind thats the most logical explanation.

[Why o why]

Part of me still believes this is an extinction level troll......my guard is still up.....I'm not having it

[rainslacker]

@Why

I'm inclined to agree. There is really no logical reason other than Konami trying to distance itself from Kojima for long term reasons for them to be doing so many things that are so seemingly hateful towards a well loved and respected game developer.

On the other hand, the troll has gone on for too long, and there is more talk about this stuff than there is about the game. I know it keeps the game in the media, but still, it's pissing off a lot of people, which isn't something that I can imagine is good.

If this is a troll, and Kojima is complicit in it, I would actually be very disappointed, as it's not clever and won't come out as something funny later. It's just mean to troll the community like that, and I think even more people would be pissed if Kojima, the consummate troll, did something like this.

[hiredhelp]

What the Beep is going on somert real bad cos this is getting worse.
A guy A icon a Assett to Konami loyal for many years..

[_LarZen_]

Let's bubble up Jalva for being funny while others act like sad little nerds.

[Xman2K]

Final state in the gAme you infiltrate konami hq as kojima san. Really though wonder if they'll take his name of credits. This has me wondering if they did this because this will be greatest game ever or an overbudgeted glitch fest

[1Victor]

I will not buy the game on the first day/week as I feel konami is putting their foot on their mouth after stepping on dog 💩 with this blatant disrespect of a great game producer as Kojima is and after all the work his team and Kojima team have done on this game.

[Dangiroud]

Oh Snap!

[DevilishSix]

That is an insult to Kojima and the Metal Gear fans. It truely is over between them. Konami is trying to make it look like Kojima had nothing to do with the game. Konami has sunken pretty low in my eyes. Whats next will they remove him from the game credits. It's sad and petty Konami, it really is.

[ginsunuva]

What if he actually did nothing for this game?
We have no way of knowing.

What if he didn't do anything for MGS4 either, other than advertise it?

[Dangiroud]

What if you were never born?

[Whitefox789]

Are you kidding? He tried on two occasions to leave major MGS releases to a younger team (MGS3 and MGS4) they couldn't pull through so Konami forced Kojima to get deeply involved in those games so that they would actually get made.

So yeah, I would say Kojima is an integral part in these games.

[mac_sparrow]

There are enough images on the net for me to create my own case wrap for this game and when I do it will feature both Kojima's name and production logo.

Shameful practice Konami, if the golden goose wants to try laying differently shaped eggs you don't break it's wings and throw it in a ditch.

[Jalva]

"There are enough images on the net for me to create my own case wrap for this game and when I do it will feature both Kojima's name and production logo."

So let me get this straight... you're gonna print out the original MGSV box art on an A4 page, cut off the edges with a pair of scissors and slip it inside the case in place of the one that doesn't have Kojima's name and production logo? lmao!

[mac_sparrow]

Not the original art, no.

I will create my own case wrap from all the promo shots. I create case wrap artwork for short films I produce with a student charity so it won't exactly take me long. I've been creating wraps since I decided the mgs2 demo needed it's own box on my shelf.

Yes it will be trimmed A4, but on heavy gloss paper and printed on a large scale xerox, making it hard to tell it wasn't from a factory.

Still, glad I could bring some joy, however fleeting, to your life with my comment ;-)

[WESKER2015]

the game will flop anyway, so konami are doing kojima a favor

[Revengeance]

Lol he said this game will flop

LMAO

[TheOneWhoIsTornApart]

Metal Gear Solid is one of the most successful and popular gaming series of all time and you think this is going to flop? wow. This will most likely sell better than any other MGS game and score the highest.

[Inzo]

Score higher than MGS4? I seriously doubt that.

[_-EDMIX-_]

Agreed. MGS as a series is one of the very few series that has been allowed to remain completely about being a great game vs a yearly cash in. I don't think many game fans really understand just how pimped out this series could have been.

Every major MGS was done on 1 system then ported later, every main MGS came years after the other, not some 2 year or years event.

As a result, yes...MGS doesn't do huge numbers, doesn't set the world on fire like a COD release, but its one of the highest quality game series in existence and I'm not even sure I can name you another series that is as well made as a MGS.

This would be the first MGS EVER to be made with 5 systems in mind all at once, is a huge undertaking and I feel it should reflex that in sales. I hope it does well and I feel its easily going to be the greatest selling MGS.

Consider this fans....Konami for a long, long time has kept MGS the way Kojima has wanted it to, Square, Capcom etc haven't done that with many of their directors, in fact those directors now work else where.

Though I'm mad at Konami for the abuse of the director and this IP, I commend them for actually treating MGS like this for as long as they did.

Look at Resident Evil, look at Final Fantasy...all those IPs at one point have succumb to what I call the "West syndrome" in terms of trying to appeal to the west and legit changing core genre features just to get more sales.

For such a long time, MGS has kept its integrity and core concept the same and its really a rarity to see that in Japanese gaming now days (besides at Sega where they keep things Japanese damn it lol).

I see this being the best selling MGS very easily! If not in the first couple months, over time it will very much be.

[maximus1985]

Flop?! hehee heha hahaa ha HAAAAAAAHAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH AHAHA!!!

[Bleucrunch]

You might want to elaborate on such an interesting post? Kojima just doesn't make bad Metal Gear games so I highly doubt this will be a flop. But kudos for trying to make us laugh....IT WORKED!!!!!

[rainslacker]

If I had to guess, I'd say 3 out of 4 people who have played past MGS games, or will be interested in this one, have no clue that all this is going on, or have any clue that all this drama is going on.

Those 3 out of 4 people will still buy the game, and despite a lot of people not being happy with Konami, the rest of the 1 out of 4 will still buy it, as it could potentially be Kojima's last MGS game(maybe his last AAA game if he decides to go indie like some other big devs have), and it looks to be amazing.

[Dangiroud]

Even on psp mgs sold millions soooooo

[Jason_Plays_PC]

I highly doubt an mgs game will flop....

[DarXyde]

To the guys with less than 3 bubbles (Jalva and WESKER2015),

How is that narcissistic? He's basically just signing his art. And I would sincerely doubt others put as much into these games as him. There's a reason they take so long to come out and why they're so polished. It's him. He's incredibly anal about his games' quality. Wait for the next Metal Gear title. You'll be introduced to some lovely glitches, I'm sure. I have yet to find a single glitch in Ground Zeroes, MGS4, Snake Eater, and the games going back. Zone of the Enders might be a bit of an exception, but we haven't seen any new releases there, have we? It also helps differentiate between the garbage Konami puts out (such as Snake's Revenge).

And sorry, the game won't flop. You probably hope it will, but it won't. I'm feeling pretty sure about that.

[Ratty]

About the glitches, he didn't direct ZoE so it's not really one of his games per se. He did produce it but that was it. It was actually Shuyo Murata who directed the second ZoE and some other guy who directed the first. Murata is another great director IMO but sadly lives in Kojima's shadow. He also co-directed most of the Metal Gear Solid games since MGS2 or 3 if my memory serves. If anyone could take over it'd be this guy... but I don't really think anyone could take over. I'm not interested in MGS without Kojima.

But you're right about the rest. His games are extremely polished and detailed. It's also interesting to note that Snake's Revenge prompted Kojima to make a real sequel to the first game.

With that said, Snake's Revenge really was garbage.

Hey maybe the next MGS after that will be a sequel to it xD

[BlackPhillip666]

Not buying it if they ain't giving the creator the recognition he deserves they can get rekt.

Like saying Shigeru Miyamoto doesn't make Mario get rekt konami. Piracy here i come for this game.

[Batzi]

Well technically, Miyamoto hasn't been hands-on in any of his games since N64 probably. You can't really give much credit to Miyamoto when it comes to the latest Mario games. However, with Kojima, he has been FULLY hands-on since 1987.

[spacedelete]

i don't understand removing his name. if anything his name actually sells the game. his name is actually bigger than Konami. almost everyone who games in the east and west knows his name. his name is like a seal of quality.

[MegaRay]

Beats me. It look like Konami doesn't want MGS V to sell

[ABBAJESUS]

Why japanese people have to be such a drama queen's some time? :D

[InTheLab]

Activision, West, Zampella.....

[KryptoniteTail]

So is he not working on this game anymore? I guess this will be his last Metal Gear for real. I wish we could get another MGS1 remake and a Metal Gear Acid 3 eventually plus Metal Gear Acid 1 & 2 HD remasters.

[Ryan741]

Must of been some failing out. At a guess I'm thinking he kept asking for money and they finally had enough.

[jznrpg]

My guess is they wanted him to make more MGS games and Kojima said this would be his last. I know he said this before ,but maybe this time he couldn't be paid to and they said they would make them regardless of he was involved and gave him the boot. Kojima can go wherever he wants at this point, and I feel Konami made a big mistake.

[Jan55oni]

in all of our hearts there allways reads Kojiman name at the cover :)

[George Sears]

I'll be using the flip side cover from Ground Zeroes then.

Had Hideo's name and the amazing work of Yoji Shinkawa

[WeAreLegion]

Guess I'll buy it used. Screw you, Konami.

[TheDreamCorridor]

I'm sure Kojima would appreciate that, fool.

[Batzi]

Not buying it would hurt Kojima too. You want to punish Konami? Boycott their future games.

[Paytaa]

I've never played any of the MGS games before (Plan on getting the collection on PS3 before MGSV drops) but it's very disrespectful to Kojima that they are basically removing any trace of him from the MGS franchise. Kojima was without a doubt the sole reason that Konami is still afloat. I know it, the fans know it and it's only going to bite Konami in the ass if they proceed to milk MGS dry following TPP.

[OUROSMAG]

Such a slap in the face to Kojima, regardless of his standing with the company if there was no Kojima there would be no MGS...

[sigfredod]

Thats low, he is no longer an employee is just a contractor now but that doesn´t change the fact that he made the game konami should be ashamed

[InTheLab]

Out of respect for Kojima, I'll pass on MGS5. The guy iresponsible for some of my greatest moments. Meanwhile, Konami has been terrible for years.

[hasamalaha]

Out of respect for him you won't buy the game he created?

[InTheLab]

He's being sh*t on by Konami And boxed out. Name erased from the game.

I know some of you don't know what loyalty is this is how I choose to show it.

Screw Konami...

[hasamalaha]

Like others said, the proper thing to do his buy HIS GAME. After that abandon all things Konami if you wish.

Refusing to buy his work because Konami is making stupid decisions, doesn't show any loyalty to him.

I bet if you asked him if he wanted people to buy his game, he would say yes.

[Spyroo]

that logic. LOL

[jznrpg]

Don't buy the next MGS that he doesn't make, that would make more sense. Show Konami that without Kojima Metal Gear is not the same, and doesn't create the same sales.

[ps360s]

:) that's the way

I am sure the next MGS will be out next year!

but yes, support MGS5 and Kojima and teams hardwork

Can't wait for MGS5

[Baka-akaB]

Yeah i'm not following that logic . And quite frankly , i will not write off any MGS without him , as it was bound to happens eventually . he was already prepared his successors within Koji Pro

I just remain cautious about who will be doing it , how , and if it's worth playing .

[Hellsvacancy]

You could atleast rent it or buy it used

[Bleucrunch]

@InTheLab yes a lof of these so called gamers do not know anything about Loyalties....I am with you FUCK KONAMI!

[TXIDarkAvenger]

Well it doesn't change the fact that Kojima still worked on the game so I will still buy this.

[Ozmoses]

I wouldn't necessarily call it being egotistical..

I would say years of being a game developer, especially one in the spotlight have caused Kojima to be more involved then the typical game director, writer, creator, etc.....

Kojima always wanted to make his own games his own way.. But now since video games are "big business" it's not that easy anymore to complete a vision that is unscathed by corporate minds that know nothing about gaming.

That is most likely the dilemma.. Kojima has gotten too big for his own good in the eyes of Konami..

Konami wants to keep the Konami bosses in charge.

[Chard]

I'm guessing Kojima is remaining silent on this whole konami conflict issue until the game releases, so we have to wait until September to find out exactly what's going on?

[Batzi]

Konami and Kojima won't discuss the details, not now at least. They both know what's at stake. Konami didn't expect anyone to notice these small changes. Trust me, had they known it would result in angering the most dedicated fans in gaming history, they wouldn't have done it. The only thing they can do now is to make sure MGSV will rock at E3 one last time before release! Another awesome E3 trailer would keep our minds off this mess for a while. The trailer has to be edited by Kojima of course.

[Captain_Wormy]

These comments are giving me FOXDIE.

[F0XHOUND]

This is a disgrace imo. Would you remove a movie director from a headline advertising it, if he then left the company after that movie was made.

Something must be going on, conflicting issues such as Kojima starting his own studio imo. You couldn't have a new "a game by hideo kojima" under a konami title, then under his new studio.... which may even simply be "a game by hideo Kojima" stating the same thing.

[tjg59]

Just because they took it off the box doesn't mean it won't be in the credits. I just hope silent hills isn't canceled

[Avernus]

Konami coming across as being salty lol...yea yea it's business but the extents they're going through to remove Kojima from anything doing with Konami is incredible.

I would think leaving Kojima's name there would be better since people affiliate him with brilliant work.

[trywizardo]

All the games that have "Kojima" logo on them rocks
Kojima > Konami , yes I know I just compared person to a studio , but that person is the reason behind the success of MGS and a lot of games

[TheJacksonRGN]

Could have sworn this was already brought up weeks ago.

[SovereignSnaKe]

It was but Konami being the bi-polar, shifty company they are added his name back to the games and products and now removed it (again.)

[TheJacksonRGN]

Lame as f.

[rainslacker]

Before he was just taken off the website stuff. Now he's being taken off the box art.

[holdmyown83]

This game is not coming out!!!

[jznrpg]

They should put his name back on it, his name helps sell more copies. He has made great games besides Metal Gear.

[sonic989]

Yeah but I thought it was about MGS V ads not the game boxart if I remember correctly.
Konami wanted to get things under check they didn't believe in kojima's future vision I guess so they decided to play boss on him.
I think kojima would have faced same problems at companies like capcom sega and square enix.

[rainslacker]

If I had to guess, Kojima's future vision is not with MGS, and Konami needs that franchise because it's one of their best selling franchises and makes them tons of money. They've already started branching out with the MG universe with Rising, and I'm sure Konami would have been perfectly content with a new MGS every 2 years...if not annually like some other publishers have(AC, COD, etc).

I'd imagine after a couple decades making pretty much the same game Kojima wanted to do something different and finally put his foot down, and that didn't work out too well, or at least didn't work out the way Kojima wanted.

[sonic989]

exactly what i was thinking in terms of disagreement .
but also with a little bit deeper thinking we start to realize that the problem might be a little bit bigger than just MGS disagreement kojima was the chief creative director of the company if i am not mistaken he had a say at everything at komani this huge problem between him and the board caused them to erase all his involvement with the company it just shows how big it is .
MGS is indeed part of it but there are still some missing stories to tell or figure out .

[rainslacker]

There was this thing where Konami was consolidating all it's development teams and studios into a single entity(or building). They were basically disbanding the unique teams/studios approach and putting whoever they needed on a particular project that they needed resources on.

It's quite possible, given that Kojima's studio was his own making, and partially owned by him, that this set up didn't agree with him at all, and there was some conflict that resulted because he resisted, and the head guy(can't remember his name), pushed to the point that caused all this to flare up in the first place....which means Kojima decided to leave, or he was fired so the board could save face instead of realizing that sometimes, in business, you have to realize where you're money is, and there are always people who are more important and should be given some consideration, despite the idea that business is a team and every one is equal....stupid business mantras.

Biggest thing to take away from all this nonsense right now is that no one really knows except the people involved. We're all just speculating, and for the most part, any of us could be right.

[RealFry]

LAME! this dastardly move by Konami has diminished my potential trade in value from gamestop when they inevitably SPAM my inbox with reminders that I should sell my game to them from $0.50 to $0.10, to then turn around and put it back on the shelf for $50. Guess I'll be keeping it then!

And I already paid it off in Full! Damn you Konami for denying me Gamestop's exceptionally generous 40 cent difference!!

On a side note: Everyone should draw a doodle with Kojima pulling his drawers down and using his own teabags to teabag the Konami logo in the users manual, if it includes one. Viva La Resistance!

[Dirtnapstor]

I really wish somebody would just come out and make an official statement as to what has happened. Or is Kojima just punking us?
No more from the rumor mill please.

And I am going to buy this game. Silly to boycott in this case. It's still Kojima at his finest. He'll still reap for his efforts. Kudos to him!

[SaveFerris]

Dare I say it...

http://i57.tinypic.com/14cv...

[RealFry]

@ SaveFerris

https://www.youtube.com/wat...

There added some audio to enhance your post, lol.

[SaveFerris]

Neat!

[Enigma_2099]

.. but you should still buy the game to show support for him, right?

**** you, Konami.

[wynams]

will be buying this used so that these grubs dont see a cent for me on this, but no way I miss this great title

[Father__Merrin]

MGS was doing fine as exclusive I feel it will go down the pan now.

[D3athc3ll]

This doesn't make any sense.... I mean mgs iv ended Solid Snake's story (or so it seems). This game will focus on big boss and maybe solid snake killing him at the end of the game..

So why the hate on Kojima? MGS IV summed up the whole mgs story imo and focussed on our fav caracter of the series being DARPA CHIEF!! uhh i mean Solid Snake.

I HOPE AND BELIEVE Solid Snake will be in TPP! Even if we just get a glimpse of him at the end staring in Big boss's eyes like that gay vampire movie called Baywatch! or I cant remember, that diamond glowing vampires... anyways MGS is dead if Kojima aint part of it anymore. He made the best caracter in history (imo) and an epic story. So i'LL buy this game out of respect for the greatest Director in gaming ever (imo).

Kojima where ever you are, God Bless and know that ur fans love u even if this sounds gay, so please dont stop creating, writing and directing games!

[Elda]

Evidently something bad went down between Konami & Kojima.Whatever it is it seems it has a lot to do with people's ego's.First to mind is Konami knowing Kojima is the mastermind behind the MG series why would they exclude his name or production company.Konami better know this is the last hurrah knowing if they plan on doing another MG...without Kojima it will not be or sell the same.

[nagalaga31]

Y'all know good and well that some of the art covers will have the Kojima name on them by mistake and those will become instantly collectible.

[Kurylo3d]

This game is literally the last game i ever buy from konami.

[Edito]

Konami simple don't know what to do with the fact that Kojima is gone... Deal with MGS is not COD and will never be... and deal with the fact that everything Kojima will do after leaving Konami will be great and fresh...

[MoveTheGlow]

Konami's really looking like the new Atari at this point. Throw out the creators, burn bridges, protect and possibly outsource IP, call it a day...

At least they have all kinds of other shady parts to their business.

[ironmonkey]

Well this pretty sums as the end of metal gear games like most studios where the great visions leave and the games quality have gotten worse like square enix. We all know the next metal will be shit from now and expect more games like metal gear rising junk. If this is true..

[OmegaFM]

Shouldn't be a surprise to anyone. Konami forced Kojima to make more and more MGS games while he wanted to do something different since MGS2. I met Kojima once, he sounded like he's captured by his own creation's popularity without a chance to try something else.

[ShiranaiJittai]

This is NOT news in any way shape or form. This has been known for about a month.

My own opinion what Konami is doing is absolutely despicable. Though Konami has made plenty of games and has been a gaming company for quite awhile there are really only 3 successful series that push their business.
Metal Gear, Castlevania, DDR

They have made plenty of other successful games but as a series those are the only ones that have made it. I wouldn't include DDR but the fact remains that it still remains popular in Japan to this day and though we haven't seen a console DDR in quite awhile it is still alive and kicking in arcades along with the many ripoff's and variations.

I don't know what happened between Konami and Kojima. Seems like he is being forced into silence in some kind of contract dispute. Every statement from Kojima seems as if it comes straight from Konami PR. Hell some of those statements have been directly "on behalf of Kojima"

Unless Kojima blatantly stole the rights to the game from Konami or some such nonsense there is no reason I can find why they can just strip his name from their biggest series when he has been instrumental in every facet of said series for over 20 years.

I genuinely hope Kojima sues Konami into oblivion.

[ScorpiusX]

Comes off as a childish behaviour , really sad .

[Kalebninja]

I'll write his name on the god damn box myself if I have to.

[hkgamer]

i understand removing kojima productins logo since that studio doesnt exist anymore, it is probably rnamed to something else. i know the la studio has been changed to konami something la.

his name being removed is just to prepare people for a game without his name tagged everywhere. its harsh but its for konamis future in making mgs games.

however, it is annoying that konami cant seem to make up their mind. or their marketing team are just not getting the right images. its annoying but they should have done this in a smarter way,

[BudokaiGamer]

I already wasn't going to buy it, just because I think Konami is the reason for a lot of changes in MGS already, but now I honestly can't buy it!

[ajax17]

Could it still be possible that this is just Hideo's greatest prank to date?