Hideo Kojima shared a tweet this morning confirming that his studio, Kojima Productions, will remain an independent developer amid rumors circulating of a potential buyout from Sony Interactive Entertainment. Uh, where did those rumors come from, anyway? Oh, it was Hideo himself—up to his usual old ruses, the legendary game designer shared a photo of a PlayStation Studios banner earlier in the day that featured a piece of key art from Death Stranding, something that immediately fueled speculation of Kojima Productions joining Sony’s already impressive stable of first-party studios that already comprises Naughty Dog, Guerrilla Games, and other industry greats. That doesn’t seem to be happening, if Kojima’s latest tweet is meant to be taken more seriously than his initial effort. Recent rumors did suggest that the Metal Gear maker had already entered into a collaboration with Microsoft for what is presumably an Xbox-exclusive title.
“I’m sorry for the misunderstanding, but KOJIMA PRODUCTIONS has been and will continue to be an independent studio,” Kojima’s tweet reads, confirming that his next masterpiece won’t be restricted to PlayStation consoles.
I'm sorry for the misunderstanding, but KOJIMA PRODUCTIONS has been and will continue to be an independent studio. https://t.co/2M0n4ogRaa
— HIDEO_KOJIMA (@HIDEO_KOJIMA_EN) April 15, 2022
Hideo Kojima Reassures Studio Independence Amid Sony Acquisition Rumors (GameSpot)
PlayStation Studios recently updated its first-party studios banner to include Sam Bridges, the protagonist of Death Stranding, a PlayStation console exclusive. The game utilizes the Decima Engine, which was created by Sony’s first-party studio Guerrilla Games. Death Stranding and its Director’s Cut version were released on both PlayStation consoles and PC.
Kojima posted the banner himself onto his Twitter account without providing any further context, fueling rumors that Sony may have acquired Kojima Productions and that perhaps an official announcement would be coming soon.