Hideo Kojima has finally spoken in detail about Sony’s decision to back away from Physint, his tactical espionage project — and the Metal Gear creator says he still doesn’t know why it happened.
Sony walked away from publishing and funding the game in June, and Xbox stepped in to pick up the project. Now, in an interview with IGN, Kojima has revealed how abruptly the split happened: as Kotaku reported, Sony canceled Physint over a Zoom call — and Kojima claims he still doesn’t know the reason why, though the relationship is apparently still okay.
Will Physint Come to PS5? “A Question for Xbox”
One of the biggest open questions is platforms: is Physint now an Xbox exclusive, or will it still ship on PlayStation? “I don’t know the answer to that — that would be a question for Xbox,” Kojima told IGN. “In previous updates from Xbox, I thought that they have this kind of stance where they want to deliver to as many gamers as possible, no matter what the platform is.”
That multi-platform stance has shifted since new Xbox CEO Asha Sharma took over: Xbox recently confirmed that Gears of War: E-Day and Clockwork Revolution won’t release on PlayStation. But Forza Horizon 6 and Fable are still in the works for PS5 — so hope remains for Physint. “I think all of that will be announced at a later time,” Kojima added. “I’m not sure yet, and I can’t really say.”
Undecided on the Engine — Maybe Not Decima
There is also uncertainty under the hood. When Kojima went independent, Sony’s Guerrilla Games handed him its internal engine — later named Decima — which powered both Death Stranding games. But when asked whether Physint will keep the engine after Sony’s exit, Kojima said: “Well, I haven’t really decided yet. I’m still experimenting.”
He did sound energized about Xbox’s technical backing. “After we decided to team up with Xbox, they said they will give us a lot of technological support,” he said, recalling an earlier visit to the company’s labs: “There are so many Doc Browns from Back to the Future here! So I want to use all this new technology.”
Notably, Kojima Productions’ other Xbox-funded project, OD: Knock, is being built on Unreal Engine 5 — so Epic’s engine could yet win out for Physint. With OD: Knock itself having no release target, the wait may be a long one. Physint stars Bill Skarsgård in the lead role, confirmed at Tokyo Game Show this month.