630°

Hideo Kojima: Creative Genius Or Overrated Weirdo?

It’s no secret that Hideo Kojima loves trolling the gaming community. Has he done the same with his latest release, Death Stranding?

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fortressofsolitude.co.za
Jimboms2048d ago

I think we'll continue to see more polarising experiences from Kojima until he's developed a core fan base of his own. Part of working with Konami meant that he had to make games that appealed to everyone. He doesn't need to do that anymore.

chrisx2048d ago

To me, Kojima is a creative genius, hands down. I can never forget the experience of fighting psycho mantis on the PS1 and many other mind blowing experiences throughout his games. Kudos to the man.

bouzebbal2048d ago

Thanks man..
Articles like this show that the 10year old kids have turned 12.. They have no clue who they're talking about

ilikestuff2048d ago

He definitely was a creative genius, I feel like he’s going down the weirdo road, I could be wrong, guess I’ll know more after I play this new game.

Bleucrunch2048d ago

Word, was that the fight where you had to switch the memory cards to confuse him?? Maaaaaan that such a cool way to fight a boss...only Kojima would think of something so interesting like that....Now I want to go play Metal Gear Solid again lol.....

Wasabi2048d ago (Edited 2048d ago )

@Bleucrunch

"Was that the fight where you had to switch the memory cards to confuse him??"

Not quite,

He read your "mind" from the save data on your memory card then told you to place your controller on a surface. He then moved it using his "powers" (rumble)

You had to plug your controller into port 2 to stop him being able to "read" your movements and make the fight easier.

He also did the trick where the screen went black and looked like your TV had lost signal, but instead of saying VIDEO in the corner of the screen (standard on Sony TV's at the time) it said HIDEO.

Here's the link

https://youtu.be/QDJebjf_Dk...

And to the Twin Snakes version

https://youtu.be/wfThJ6GD05...

Wasabi2048d ago (Edited 2048d ago )

@Bleucrunch

A better example showing Mantis reading the players memory card and the VIDEO / HIDEO screen.

https://youtu.be/caVsV9GxRz...

Epic fight

Fist4achin2047d ago

That fight was outstanding and truly creative with psycho mantis!

As far as Kojima goes, maybe he's a healthy balance of both and that's what makes home great and talented...

rainslacker2047d ago

Genius and insanity often go hand in hand

darthv722047d ago

I'll say he is both... a creative weirdo if you will.

UltraNova2047d ago (Edited 2047d ago )

Name one genious person who wasn't weird in his own unique way, either through his character or work, or both?

The guy is a weird genius who gave us the complex themed, deep, quirky and sometimes unconventional MGS and now DeathS IPs.

Some hate his style, others dont care that much, others like it and many absolutely love it. The point is, Kojima cannot be categorised, he's unpredictable and unconventional, that's so rare these days and I'm happy he is like that so I can play something risky, something unique from time to time.

+ Show (6) more repliesLast reply 2047d ago
fr0sty2048d ago (Edited 2048d ago )

I don't always 100% dig what he does, but I respect the fact that he always marches to the beat of his own drum, even when making games of a well established genre, and he doesn't care what you or anyone else thinks about it.

I'll take that over Call of Duty Modern Ops 502 or Destiny Clone 32 that sells you the other half of the game as DLC any day.

This dude took a single L shaped hallway and made it into a cult classic horror game, after all.

2047d ago
roadkillers2048d ago

None of Kojima’s games appealed to everyone. Very few knew what Metal Gear was until Metal Gear Solid 4. A lot of casual PS3 gamers hated the controls and the movie length cutscenes. ZoE was a bust for me. His games are unique and definitely polarizing

Gaming1012048d ago

ZoE was boring but ZoE 2 was one of the best games ever, I would play it on every new console it came out on, it's that good and it holds up that well.

frostypants2047d ago (Edited 2047d ago )

Dude, you're crazy. Just no. The original Metal Gear was EXTREMELY well known in the NES days. It's an 8-bit classic. And Metal Gear Solid was a PS classic that damn near everyone with a PS1 played. It was a system seller and one of the most defining and well known games of that era.

But you're right in that even the original was rather polarizing. In an age where people were used to mindless shooter games like Contra and Ikari Warriors, Metal Gear's gameplay confused the hell out of a lot of young gamers, especially at the beginning.

roadkillers2046d ago

^ I meant on a casual level. Everyone who purchased EGM or GameInformer knew what Metal Gear was, no one else did. Games are great to the point where I will say MGS3 had one of the best, If not the best boss fight.

Muzikguy2047d ago

I don't believe that his games with Konami appealed to everyone. I would say genius but I admire his sense of humor and dedication. I am patiently waiting to check out the new game.

Vandamme212047d ago

I like hideo kojma but i do feel like he is overrated. his games are good. But they not all that.

carcarias2047d ago

Yeah, that's a good point, the fact that he used to be reined in by Konami. We'll get a better idea now he's independent.

Anyway, creative genius might be a tad much but if I have to choose between that and 'overrated weirdo' then yes, genius it is. As @chrisx mentioned, Psycho Mantis was, for example, amazing and certainly a moment of genius.

However, I understand completely that many of his games won't be loved by everyone. Also, as designers get older, they don't necessarily always get better. Peter Molyneux anyone?

AK912047d ago

You don’t think Kojima has a core fan base of his own? Lol

SolidGamerX2047d ago

"Polarizing", really? Sitting at an 85 on metacritic with 63 positive reviews many being perfect scores, 11 mixed and only 1 negative bomb review with the clear intention to bring down the overall meta score. This is not the definition of polarizing, for any other game that many positive reviews would just be called a success but becasue its Sony related we get constant articles like this questioning the man who created it and calling it "polarizing" which its not, the problem is there s a vocal minority of haters who should just be ignored, not referring to you.

+ Show (6) more repliesLast reply 2046d ago
CoNn3rB2048d ago

It's all about perspective really, he's most likely both in his own way

2048d ago Replies(3)
zackeroniii2048d ago

i choose the latter of the title...it's pretty evident.

ChrisW2047d ago

Once MGS5 Quiet's reason for her skimpy clothes came out... It's pretty evident which Kojima is

MrDead2048d ago ShowReplies(1)
the_dark_one2048d ago

What about a creative weird genius?

2048d ago
2048d ago
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70°

Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun 2 devs praise games like Space Marine 2 for "lowering the barrier"

Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun 2 developers discuss the huge success of Space Marine 2 and its effect on the series as a whole.

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videogamer.com
Jingsing11h ago

How about an official level editor for Boltgun?

220°

Phil Spencer Teases 2026 As A "Really Special Year" For Xbox

2026 will mark the 25th anniversary of Xbox, and Phil Spencer has teased it as a "really special year" for the games division.

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twistedvoxel.com
TheEroica1d 2h ago (Edited 1d 2h ago )

You got downvotes by pathetic gamers for feeling hopeful about good games coming out next year. Imagine how small your brain must be to downvote someone excited for future gaming joy? It is pretty neat to see people's world view blow up in front of them as they realize Microsoft has put themselves in a driver's seat that Sony hasn't been able to touch all generation.... What's even more pathetic is the same people downvoting you are the same people wishlisting Microsoft games on their ps5s 😂

P_Bomb23h ago

“Imagine how small your brain must be to downvote someone excited for future gaming joy?”

My dude your post history shits on EVERYTHING. You never have a good thing to say about anything lol! 🤣

PanicMechanic15h ago(Edited 15h ago)

“Getting ready for those GaaS reveals! Sony is a shadow of themselves this gen.”

You literally said this a couple of days ago. Start applying the clown make up, you hypocritical jester

derek1d ago

Yep we'll see, they have alot releasing next year.

RaidenBlack20h ago

NGL, next year might be one of the best years in gaming ... starting off with RE9 and GTA VI ...
and then all the good games that's been cooking
Pragmata, Sands of Time, Saros, Gears E-Day, 007 First Light, Blood of Dawnwalker,
Mortal Shell II, Onimusha, Marvel1943: Rise of Hydra
current-gen only Infinity Ward's CoD, Duskbloods
+ My guess: Wolverine, Exodus, Mudang, Crimson Desert, Clockwork etc ...
~ seems like it might get too stacked

1Victor18h ago

@rokos:”Hopefully “
I downvoted you not for been hopeful but because I have seen the same “NEXT YEAR WILL BE SPECIAL “ comment for the last 10+ and hasn’t seen anything special from Microsoft.
I hope next year will be the one that everyone been waiting for since the last 3 years of the Xbox 360, it have to be after over $80 billions spent on acquisitions.

Lightning7718h ago

So the new excuse is they don't count because it's from the ABK now huh. I guess all those 3rd party games count even less because they don't own them. According to your always crappy logic.

InUrFoxHole9h ago

Lol. You haven't seen anything special? Do you even game?

OtterX1d 6h ago

Always with the "next year..."! 😂

neutralgamer19921d 4h ago

I don't know they have delivered this year and even last year. And they have a lot more content in the pipeline right now than anyone else. We can't just keep hating on MS

Indiana Jones
South of midnight
Avowed
Flight simulator
Hell Blade 2
Minecraft update
Gears of war reloaded
Indian Jones:expansion
Gears E day
Clockwork revolution
Fable
Doom the dark ages
The outer worlds 2
Grounded 2
Call of duty

OtterX1d 4h ago

How many of those titles were just buyouts of companies that were going about making their games anyways? *Throws cash - "Oh look what we made!"

dveio1d 4h ago (Edited 1d 4h ago )

This list, that's been posted again, and again, and again in every single topic like this, contains almost nothing, literally almost nothing from Microsoft's own creational thoughtprocess.

It's a bunch of former 3rd party IPs.

Now even slowly returning to Playstation in some cases like Indiana, Hellblade, probably Starfield soon too, after they were made exclusively to Xbox on purpose.

Due to Microsoft's lack for own IP material except Halo & Forza. Which, the lack of, was the sole reason for all of it to happen in the first place anyway. Please don't pretend it wasn't.

And just look at all the games that come from Obsidian alone.

You really think Obsidian wasn't already working on Avowed and South of Midnight even without Microsoft buying Zenimax?

Microsoft delivered nothing but cheques.

OtterX1d 4h ago (Edited 1d 4h ago )

@dveio THIS. Lol, this dude thinks Call of Duty wouldn't exist without Microsoft! smh 😂

neutralgamer19921d 4h ago (Edited 1d 3h ago )

Common narrative I see often — that Microsoft shouldn’t get credit for the games its studios release because they “just bought them.” But this viewpoint ignores key context and sets a double standard that other platform holders aren’t held to

No one is saying these games wouldn't exist at all without Microsoft. But let’s not pretend that having a trillion-dollar company backing a studio doesn’t make a massive difference. Obsidian never had AAA funding before the Xbox acquisition. Pillars of Eternity was crowdfunded, and their resources were always stretched thin. Now they’re working on Avowed, with proper support behind it.

Ninja Theory’s Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice was made by around 20 people, using borrowed equipment and doing mocap in a boardroom. It was a passion project held together by tape and willpower. Today, Hellblade II exists because they were given resources, time, and freedom — something many developers don’t get unless they’re owned by a company that believes in their vision.

ZeniMax (Bethesda’s parent company) was in real financial trouble before the Microsoft acquisition. Reports and insider accounts have pointed out how much they needed a cash infusion. And while some people want to write off Xbox’s ownership of Bethesda titles, they forget the alternative could have meant layoffs or even closures.

The same goes for Activision Blizzard. Would you really prefer the company to stay under Bobby Kotick, after all the documented workplace misconduct and toxic leadership issues? Say what you want about Microsoft, but their acquisition brought accountability and change to a company that desperately needed it.

At the same time, Xbox gets hated on for doing what every major company does. Sony bought Housemarque, Bluepoint, Insomniac — but no one says Spider-Man 2 “doesn’t count” because of that. Why does Xbox get treated differently for acquiring struggling or undervalued developers and giving them a chance to thrive?

And the idea that Xbox locks games away is outdated. They're pushing cross-platform releases, cloud gaming, Game Pass, and backward compatibility more than any other platform holder. They're not forcing all studios into live service. If anything, their upcoming lineup is less GAAS-heavy and more focused on narrative and creativity — Avowed, South of Midnight, Clockwork Revolution, Fable, Perfect Dark, Towerborne, and others show real variety.

Whether people like it or not, Xbox is now the biggest publisher in the industry and owns the most gaming IPs. But what matters more is how they treat their studios. Most of these teams were previously stuck making AA games with limited scope — now they’re getting the tools and support to aim higher.

So when people say “Microsoft didn’t make those games,” they’re missing the point. It’s not about who started the studio — it’s about who enabled them to do their best work. You don’t have to love Xbox to admit they’ve helped a lot of developers and are taking a player-first approach.

Instead of writing off everything they do, maybe try recognizing the good they’re doing for both devs and gamers. At the end of the day, we should want more studios to succeed — no matter who owns them

BeHunted1d 3h ago

I'm surprised Clockwork Revolution (BioShock meets Dishonored) isn't getting more media attention. The game looks interesting and reminds me of the old RPG games.

anast1d 2h ago

The only good game on that list is Flight sim. The rest are either average or will be average. It's not a good look for MS.

TheEroica1d 2h ago

My god.... Look how many comments are upset about microsoft's successes... 😂 This may be my new favorite thread. Not one gamer saying thanks for all the goodness coming their way, just bitter anger and downvoting the very games they themselves will purchase throughout 2026.... Sony really worked you guys over this generation.... Condolences.

DivineHand1251d 1h ago

@neutralgamer1992 You said what needed to be said.

I have heard for years from older gamers that fanboys are the biggest issue with any fanbase. They will defend or gloss over negative news as long as the correct logo is on the box and they bash the competing platform no matter how much good they are trying to bring.

Right now their advocacy for PlayStation is elevating that platform so high that Sony no longer believes they need to do anything to satisfy their loyal fanbase like they did in the PS4 days.

I just hope most of them will eventually start advocating for themselves and encourage others to do the same. No one should blindly support one platform because these companies do not care about anything other than profit.

neutralgamer19921d 1h ago

Hunted

And first proper game done by the studio with proper AAA budget and saying it will be released when ready

Anast

I believe we went through this before that you are objectively wrong. Meta critic, user reviews, game sales. In Playstation top 10 best selling games were 5 from Microsoft studios

Otter

No this dude is saying so many other studios wouldn't be thriving without MS money and people would be getting abused physically and mentally with Bobby kotick and his side kicks

Also maybe look up how the original founder of Bethesda and zenimax was kicked out of his own company by his best friend lawyer. So that was always a shady place and had been struggling financially before MS paid a premium of almost 7 billion

Eroica

I use to be a die hard Playstation fan and now I only have a Pc. I see how these fans are so toxic. They just can't handle any positive news regarding Xbox. When the best selling games on playstation are Xbox titles. Look at Forza horizon being best seller and that's years old game by MS. I guess ms don't deserve credit for that success too since they are the only company in gaming making acquisitions

Forget the fact Sony paid 3.6 billion for bungie and MS 6.9 for zenimax. Which investment has turned out better

Destiny and marathon with a lot of controversy

While zenimax output is nothing short of amazing compared to what bungie has released

crazyCoconuts1d ago

Yeah it's tricky. "Xbox" has morphed to mean different things to different people.
Console, now Windows, GamePass, and the cross platform games. There's a mix of attitudes towards all those things individually, and maybe an overarching attitude towards MS. But can't argue that the game companies MS recently bought continue to flourish, and GamePass PC has been a great value over the last year.

InUrFoxHole9h ago

@OtterX
You're the dude mad at your exes new guy. She's with someone else... get over it.

+ Show (8) more repliesLast reply 9h ago
Lightning771d 2h ago (Edited 1d 2h ago )

They've had good output so far. So waiting for those games shouldn't be a problem.

Who cares if they're buy outs of companies or whatever excuse you want to make. They're games that are being distributed to other console. Play the games and enjoy it instead of fanboying or complaining.

ocelot071d 3h ago

They going to be a he best and biggest publisher on Xbox, Playstation and PC next year. They not really said anything about Switch 2 though spite claiming to be big supporters.

quenomamen1d 3h ago

If you call making one last Xbox before going full Sega, as Great. Then yea.

TheEroica1d 2h ago

Doesn't feel like you're paying attention to what's happening.

RhinoGamer881d 3h ago

It will be, his net work will hit 50 million and he plans to buy a new mansion in Cape Cod. Thanks everyone! #failup

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80°

The Witcher 3 Immerse Gamepack — Product Introduction with Marcin Przybyłowicz

Join Marcin Przybyłowicz, Expert Composer at CD PROJEKT RED and the mind behind The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt OST, as he sets up Immerse Gamepack on PC and dives into Geralt's adventures like never before — with spatial audio powered by Embody.

3d ago