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Sutherland: “An Honor And A Privilege” To Work With Kojima

Ben-Dutka 10 Comments

The new voice of Snake in the venerated Metal Gear Solid franchise is accomplished actor Kiefer Sutherland.

Some long-time fans are upset that Kojima and Co. dumped David Hayter as the voice for the iconic protagonist, but Sutherland has been nothing but impressed and honored with the gig.

It seems he's also quite enthusiastic about the future of the gaming industry, as indicated by his recent post in the celebrity comments section of the game's official website:

"This is arguably one of the most exciting new frontiers in entertainment. It was an honor and a privilege to work with [Metal Gear Solid creator Hideo Kojima] who is at its forefront."

These comments were just added to the MGSV site , and they join other Hollywood celebrity comments concerning that awesome E3 trailer for The Phantom Pain . Sutherland may not have a ton of experience working in video games, but it sounds like he may become a fixture in the industry in the near future…

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Grand Theft Auto V Just Keeps Depressing Hideo Kojima

Ben-Dutka 19 Comments

Last year, Metal Gear Solid creator Hideo Kojima said Rockstar's Grand Theft Auto V looked so good that it actually "depressed" him.

He wasn't sure he could get his own upcoming game, Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain , to reach that level of graphical brilliance. Now, after GTAV was announced for next-gen consoles and PC, well…the poor guy is depressed all over again.

During a recent CVG interview , Kojima said:

"What Rockstar has created and the world they have created is super impressive, and actually when I saw the PS4 version a few days ago I got depressed again. And this is not game design-related it's just me. The quality that they showed in the PS4 trailer was really impressive."

We saw a pretty awesome trailer for The Phantom Pain during Sony's show as well, so he shouldn't be selling himself short. Kojima also said the Rockstar went in a "very different direction" as compared to the game he's trying to make. Honestly, this is someone who shouldn't be feeling outclassed in the world of video game development.

But hey, that's the hallmark of the perfectionist.

Related Game(s): Grand Theft Auto V , Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain

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Kojima: Future MGS Entries May Have A “Different Theme”

Ben-Dutka 17 Comments

Maybe a different theme wouldn't be a bad idea.

Usually, Hideo Kojima says he wants to quit doing Metal Gear Solid and work on something else. He's been saying that for years; we're used to it.

But in a recent 4Gamer interview (as translated by DualShockers ), the MGS guru actually says he isn't ready to stop telling Snake stories. He might, however, want to change the setting and theme and honestly, I can't blame him.

He says that the series has always depicted a period of time when the US was at the top of its strength. Now, however, Kojima thinks the concept of a "strong America" is changing, so we may see a different MGS theme in the future. …man, that's a pretty sad commentary, isn't it? Of course, it's tragically accurate, as we just continue to eat and medicate ourselves into comas, and all we do to combat it is try to pass laws and programs that further enable and even encourage sloth and laziness.

Gee, I can't imagine why our strength might be fading. 'rolling eyes'

Related Game(s): Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain

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Are Ground Zeroes Review Scores Doomed Due To Length?

Ben-Dutka 76 Comments

It has been a hot topic of debate for weeks now: The surprisingly short length of Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes .

Granted, it's an introduction, a prelude of sorts to the main course, The Phantom Pain . However, the latter may not be out until later next year, and the pricing for Ground Zeroes (despite a $10 price drop for the physical PS4 and Xbox One versions) still isn't agreeable to most gamers. That's because of the reported length: Some are saying the game can be completed in less than an hour now. That's not good news.

Personally, I've always felt that critics put an inordinate amount of emphasis on a game's length. I understand the concept, of course; you want as much bang for your buck as possible. Not every game can be Journey , but I think that's an example of how length is essentially irrelevant when determining the overall quality of an artistic product. Even so, a lot of people are upset about the length and price of Ground Zeroes , and that could be reflected in the review scores we see this week.

The million-dollar question is, of course: Is that fair?

Related Game(s): Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes

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Kojima: Youngsters Losing Interest In “High-End Games”

Ben-Dutka 34 Comments

Are there fewer hardcore gamers among the new generation of players? Is that the implication here?

The mobile explosion has been part of the ongoing casual trend in gaming today. More and more people are playing, but perhaps fewer are embracing the AAA cutting-edge productions. Maybe the young'uns are too busy playing smaller bite-size games on their smartphones and tablets.

This is what Metal Gear Solid creator Hideo Kojima believes, as evidenced by his statements to GamesTM :

"We've seen a phenomenon around the world. Young people are losing interest in high-end games and focusing on mobile and social titles, especially in Japan."

Kojima added that part of his vision for MGSV is to show people that "high-end games" are still viable. He also wanted to make it plain that big-budget Japanese productions aren't going anywhere. As for the upcoming MGSV, Kojima explained why the game is broken into two parts: The controversial prelude, Ground Zeroes , and the full game, The Phantom Pain :

"I'll be honest, [splitting MGSV up] wasn't necessarily a strategic move," he said. "The Phantom Pain is roughly 200 times bigger than Ground Zeroes. A game that big wouldn't be ready for next-gen launch windows, and we didn't have any Japanese titles that would be available. At that time, the Ground Zeroes portion was almost complete and a lot of fans were asking for a prologue, so that’s the decision we came to. That was the reasoning behind the move."

Do you accept that reasoning? Bear in mind that Kojima is in a difficult position, as he's attempting to prove that Japanese developers still have what it takes to compete on a global scale. As for his comments concerning younger players and their interest in high-end games…I'm afraid he's probably right.

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Kojima Considered an “80s Filter” For Metal Gear Solid V

Ben-Dutka 12 Comments

Metal Gear Solid V is set in 1984 and originally, series creator Hideo Kojima wanted the game to really have that 80s feel.

According to what the MGS guru said on Twitter , MGSV was going to include an 80s filter screen effect, as inspired by Ron Howard's film, "Rush." The latter is set in the 70s and features the texture and style indicative of that decade.

So, Kojima and Co. thought about using an 80s filter in MGSV, but it turned out to be "too heavy" and slowed down the performance of the game. "So we had to take it out," finished the designer. That's too bad, though, 'cuz it could've been a super cool addition. However, I'm not sure the young'uns would've wanted it; they don't care about retro the same way we didn't care about old-fashioned stuff when we were kids. Nostalgia doesn't logically exist in the early years, you know?

Still, I at least wanted to see it.

Related Game(s): Metal Gear Solid V

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