When I think about one of the inciting incident that got me interested in following game stories, it wasn't some grand in-depth article that was full to brim with details and interviews, like a Jason Schrier article, but rather the exact opposite. For me it was a story cloaked in this mysterious aura and 'She said, he said' speculation which was borne from real world consequences, but ultimately was too personal a tale to ever hit the public. (I made things sound a little more sordid than I intend there. Then again, some of the rumours did get a little spicy...) The tale in question would be the mysterious yet vindictive manner with which Konami cut ties with their legendary director Hideo Kojima just before the launch of 'Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain' (Or was it Kojima cutting ties with Konami? The rumours travel all directions.)
Perhaps the most striking thing about this to everyone in my circle of information was the manner in which all this was handled, and I think that is owed in part to the plain cultural differences for how business is handled in the Eastern world as opposed to the West. In Japan, for example, the inner workings of a businesses are strictly private affairs and it's practically unheard of for them to publicly discuss their inner workings. Whilst this isn't exactly common place in occidental companies either, that's still an oft accepted way for companies to work a PR angle. (Just look at how much rapport CDPR built with it's audience simply by sharing their methods of how they handle employee burnout.) As such it's inconceivable for any discourse to leak regarding an internal conflict between CEOs and star talent, and yet Konami sort of did that to themselves anyway.
You see, that whole saga might have played out entirely behind the scenes without anyone being the wiser like how it happens everyday over here. They might have had their disagreements, maybe screamed at each other a little, and then they would post a little tweet about how much they love the company and how they are leaving 'to pursue smaller projects/ other opportunities', likely in exchange for a good reference. That might have happened, if people didn't start spotting Konami quietly removing the 'A Hideo Kojima Game' tag off of all the Metal Gear box art. That's a big no-no in the fandom world, you see. That's George Lucas levels of reformist history and there ain't nobody down for that. The Metal Gear series is inspired and distinct for being the brain child of Hideo Kojima. Yes, he worked alongside a full staff of Konami workers and with their money, but he was the visionary director who stunned audiences with his strange narratives and movie-esque camera work. Removing his signature felt like a sin and that was something the gaming world would not simply lie down and forget about.
What followed was the flowing nectar of any and all online discussions or debates; rumours. Rumours are those special little pixies that allow just about anyone to say anything and have it remain in the plausible realms of reality. And rumours are very much what ruled the roost, so to speak, when it came to figuring out exactly what was going on to deprive the Metal Gear franchise of Kojima's name. There was talk of rampant abuse of staff happening at Konami, whispers of a huge scaling down of the video game department, suppositions around embezzlement, and even one curious rumour that Kojima had slept with the wife of a prominent Konami board member, thus prompting all these troubles. I know we're talking about Japanese business men here, but I don't think that means the situation has to devolve into netorare guys. (I can't believe I just wrote that.)
Of course, the biggest casualty of this very private yet somehow very public breakup was the death of the single most promising horror game of all time; Silent Hills. This was a project that had been successfully teased through P.T., a horror-themed teaser that worked so well that it inspired a whole generation of different copycats. (Think Fnaf but... actually, they are just as shameless as the Fnaf rip offs.) This was the game that would star Norman Reedus, be engineered alongside visionary director Guillermo Del Toro and would serve as a soft reboot to the hugely popular Silent Hill franchise. What we had seen of the game was a brief run through of imagery so striking that I can still see it know in my minds eye without even having to look up any reminders; and PT was released 6 years ag- (Wait what! Oh no... the existential dread is coming again...) But once Kojima officially split from Konami that also spelt the end of the project that would be Silent Hills. (Although not the end of Kojima and Norman Reedus' working relationship, evidently.) But from that whole sage was born my curiosity in all things behind the silver screen of gaming, because I wanted to know exactly how it was that the industry ticked. (Then, maybe when my favourite director of all time is about to be canned, I'll at least see it coming.)
"But what bought all this up?" You might be wondering. "You don't tend to get this pensive without an inciting incident." True, and may I say that's very insightful of you, dear reader. You see the reason I've thought about this all over again, seemingly out of the blue, is because against all odds there has been a potential development regarding Kojima and Konami's relationship. Website Rely on Horror and some independent leakers have spoken out about news they've received from their sources; news that Kojima and Konami are willing to get into bed together once again. (What?) Apparently this developed from the news that Konami were working on trying to bring the Silent Hill franchise back to life and compounded to them actually conducting talks to specifically revive Silent Hills. (Guess after 'Death Stranding' Kojima went and earned himself some clout.)
'Wait- none of this makes sense' was my initial thoughts upon hearing all this, and can you blame me? I mean when Kojima and Konami first went their separate ways, it wasn't just a case of contracts ending, Konami went after the guy's legacy! They scrubbed his name from their box art, allegedly blacked listed his name across their network and released a terrible Metal Gear titled game after he left in order to sully any remnant goodwill that his franchise still had. (At least, that's my best excuse for why Metal Gear Survive exists) Konami seemed to have ratified my misgivings with their recent statement in which they unequivocally denounced these rumours as false; but the leakers still remain confident in their sources right now. It's this interesting conundrum of whether or not I believe the company that is known to lie and make terrible decisions, although who seem to adhere to the world of logical reason on this matter; or whether I throw all conventions of reality out of the window and believe the leakers with several accurate scoops under their belt so far. (I mean, if Konami treated you like that would you go back to them?)
At the end of the day the most infuriating thing about rumours is that most of the time they never get resolved, sort of like conspiracy theories in that sense, I guess. Maybe Kojima is 'in talks' with the current Konami management right now, but things might fall apart and we'll never hear about whether it really happened or not. I suppose all we can do is check his Twitter and see if he starts to get really cryptic with no provocation. (If so: then Half Life 3 is confirmed.) It seems insane to admit it, but right now, living in as weird times as we do, I'm willing to believe practically anything. You could tell me that Kojima was replaced with a Martian War Princess who wants to make this partnership work in order to assert subtle control over the human populace, paving the way to world domination, and I would dust down my Edgar Rice Burroughs novels and give you the time of day. Who knows what's up and what's down in this backwards world we live in? All I know for sure is one thing; nothing will ever make the song of rumours stop, so you might as well hear the melody out.
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