The first episode of Konami’s Metal Gear Solid Legacy series is here, fronted by Solid Snake himself, David Hayter. But there’s one thing missing, and that’s any mention of series creator Hideo Kojima.
Metal Gear Solid Legacy is a retrospective look at the Metal Gear series, created in part to promote the upcoming Metal Gear Solid 3 remake and the current Metal Gear Solid Master Collection. And based on the first episode, it comes across as a fun (if not particularly deep) dive into Metal Gear. But as spotted by PC Gamer, Hideo Kojima doesn’t get a shoutout.
It’s not just that Hideo Kojima created the first Metal Gear game and then, after taking an executive producer role on the second game, just drifted off. He’s directed and, for the most part, written all the series’ main entries, from 1987’s Metal Gear through to 2015’s Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain. But Hayter, or whoever penned the script, has apparently been told not to talk about Kojima.
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It’s possible that he might get name-checked in later episodes, but that’s extremely unlikely, given how weirdly Kojima-free Episode 1 is. Hayter talks about a “…handful of elements that make Metal Gear uniquely Metal Gear” but leaves out the man who’s responsible for the series’ existence.
Sure, Metal Gear Solid isn’t a solo effort – countless people have worked on the series. But it’s always been Kojima’s baby, and it’s his sometimes brain-scratching writing that’s made the series stand out. So, to leave him out of the first episode of the series just seems strange.
But Konami and Kojima are far from pals. He left the company in 2015 under mysterious circumstances. There were jokes about him being locked in the basement and being forced to clean chewing gum off pachinko machines, but the split did not seem to be amicable. Konami went to release the online game Metal Gear Survive, but it was a disappointing live service effort that has largely been forgotten.
But the strange thing is – this actually makes me want to watch Metal Gear Solid Legacy more. I’m looking forward to all of the verbal gymnastics Hayter and Co. will have to go to avoid mentioning Kojima. And if you do want a documentary where Kojima isn’t persona non-grata, check out Hideo Kojima: Connecting Worlds on Disney+. It may be a little full of itself, but at least it doesn’t sweep him under the rug.
