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Hideo Kojima Demystifies Crazy Countdown Code

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In a Q&A released by Konami, Hideo Kojima finally revealed the madcap logic behind those absurd pre-E3 countdowns on his Metal Gear teaser site.

Hideo Kojima had many of us in the gaming community all up in a speculative tizzy in the weeks leading up to E3 with his godforsaken love of endless cryptic countdowns on his company’s teaser site. After endless silly guesses and the occasional serious speculation, Kojima revealed three games at E3: Metal Gear Solid Rising and Peace Walker, and Castlevania: Lords of Shadow. The mystery was solved.

Or was it? People were quick to forget that Kojima never really explained exactly what all those random letters, symbols and images on the teaser site really meant. Well, in a Q&A released by Konami today, the man finally came clean. Here’s the breakdown of the signs that appeared on the site:

  • 5=it is an MGS5 class game
  • S=Snake
  • 巳=snake in Kanji
  • E=E3
  • R=Raiden
  • 3=3 from 360 and E3
  • 6=6 from 360
  • P and S=PSP and adding 3 makes it PS3

What. So okay, there was no possible way anyone could have logically figured this out unless they were actually Hideo Kojima. 5 meant that Peace Walker is an “MGS5 class” game? S could have meant anything, E could have meant anything. All of it could have meant anything, and people ran with that. Don’t you remember how people took the P, S, and 3 to mean that whatever Kojima is making is a PS3 exclusive?

The guy was clearly playing us for chumps the entire time, and now he’s just laughing at all of us. “So everyone, how did you like it?” he asked. “Were your predictions on the mark?”

Considering I was hoping for a duck riding simulator, I’d say my predictions weren’t on the mark. Let’s just forget any of that ever happened, please.

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