Hideo Kojima Explains How Xbox Took Over Physint After PlayStation Funding Ended

Hideo Kojima has discussed the abrupt publishing change behind Physint-s-first-story-tease-points-to-a-new-cold-war-spy-thriller/">Physint, explaining that PlayStation informed Kojima Productions in June that it would no longer finance the action-espionage project. The game, initially positioned as a PlayStation-backed production and a new original property from the creator of Metal Gear Solid, has since found a new partner in Xbox.

In a wide-ranging interview, Kojima described the news as a deeply alarming moment for his independent studio. He said the immediate concern was not anger toward Sony, but the practical survival of Kojima Productions: its staffing, loans, ongoing commitments to actors and creative collaborators, and the possible consequences of losing one of only two major projects in active development.

Kojima Productions later issued a statement emphasizing that it remains financially healthy, that work on Physint continues with Xbox, and that its relationship with PlayStation remains positive. The studio also pushed back on unverified claims surrounding the change in publishers, including speculation about the commercial performance of the Death Stranding franchise and the planning of Physint.

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A sudden decision with major consequences for Kojima Productions

Kojima said he was asked to join a Zoom call with Sony Interactive Entertainment in June. He was joined by Kojima Productions president Shinji Hirano and head of talent development Aki Saito. During that meeting, he was told PlayStation would no longer fund development of Physint.

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The developer recalled being so surprised that he struggled to process the news in the moment. He said he had assumed Physint was secure, even while recognizing the wider game industry has been going through cancellations, closures, and difficult financial decisions.

For Kojima, the situation carried particular weight because Kojima Productions operates independently and signs contracts on a project-by-project basis. The studio has two core projects: Xbox-backed horror game OD and Physint. Its headcount had expanded to support that workload, reaching roughly 200 people.

He explained that removing one contract created an immediate cash-flow concern. Kojima Productions had borrowed from banks as it expanded following the release of Death Stranding, and Kojima feared that a canceled project could affect how lenders viewed the company. He also worried that the staff assembled for Physint might need to be laid off or might choose to leave.

"My mind went blank," Kojima said of the PlayStation meeting, adding that protecting the studio's employees became his first priority.

There were creative obligations to consider, too. Kojima said work had already begun with actors who had been scanned for the game, while discussions had started with artists about possible collaborations. He did not want to repeat the kind of uncertainty associated with P.T., the canceled playable teaser for the abandoned Silent Hills project.

Physint had become a personal priority

Physint has unusual importance for Kojima beyond its role as a high-profile new game. The project arrives around the 10th anniversary of Kojima Productions and coincides with his 40th year making games. Kojima characterized it as a potential culmination of those decades of work.

He said that health concerns during the pandemic had made him reflect on the amount of time he has left to pursue his most ambitious ideas. Although he cannot make another Metal Gear because that series belongs to Konami, fan requests for a new espionage game encouraged him to revisit the genre in a new form.

He had been developing Death Stranding 2 when he began considering what would come next. With OD already set as a more experimental project, he decided that a fresh action-espionage game would be the right direction. Kojima said former Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO Jim Ryan responded enthusiastically when the idea was raised, and that their agreement set the original PlayStation partnership in motion.

That history made PlayStation's eventual withdrawal especially surprising. Kojima said Sony did not provide a reason during the June call, and that the company had not contacted him afterward to offer further clarification. Still, he stressed that he does not view the situation as a dispute and has no ill will toward Sony, a company with which he has worked for approximately 30 years.

He also declined to identify the Sony executive or executives who delivered the news. While he expressed disappointment that the decision had not been communicated earlier, Kojima spoke warmly about his longstanding connection to Sony and noted that he remains a fan of its products and history.

Xbox's pitch was about more than funding a game

After the PlayStation decision, Kojima said his first act was to return to his desk and add to the Physint concept. He and his leadership team initially kept the issue confidential while they explored alternatives. Rather than simply seeking a replacement publisher to pay for a game, he began refining a wider proposal centered on building a new intellectual property across several kinds of entertainment.

Kojima's vision involves more than a traditional game release. He wants to consider possibilities in film, television, anime, comics, music, merchandise, and eventually technologies such as augmented reality. In his view, games increasingly overlap with the broader entertainment business, and a new property can move across those formats from the beginning rather than waiting for a successful game to be adapted years later.

Several potential partners responded positively, he said, but Kojima Productions also needed more than financial backing. Technical assistance, marketing, playtesting capabilities, and broader production support were all essential. Xbox emerged as the partner that could provide those resources, helped by its existing relationship with the studio through OD.

Kojima said he delivered a full Physint pitch to Xbox, and the reaction was enthusiastic. What most aligned with his own thinking was Xbox's willingness to consider the property beyond the boundaries of one game. Kojima compared that wider outlook to the cross-media expansion Nintendo has pursued with franchises such as Super Mario and The Legend of Zelda, including films and location-based attractions.

The developer also said he had met Xbox leader Asha Sharma in Redmond earlier in the year. Although he had known former Xbox head Phil Spencer for much longer, Kojima said he connected with Sharma and came away believing Xbox was entering a new phase under its evolving leadership structure.

Development continues, but the team is smaller for now

Despite the major change in backing, Kojima said Physint did not fully stop production. The project remains in an early and experimental phase, with Kojima continuing to work on the world, systems, scenario, visuals, design, models, casting, and actor scans.

He explained that systems involving new technologies, including enemy artificial intelligence, are still being tested. Those experiments can influence the story itself, meaning the project is not yet at the stage where a full-scale development team would be executing a locked plan.

Following PlayStation's exit, the studio temporarily reduced the Physint team and shifted some developers to OD. Kojima said a smaller group stayed focused on the project's crucial work. A full team would accelerate development, he acknowledged, but he maintained that the staffing adjustment caused no major delay because many disciplines, including animation work, would be more critical later when performance capture is underway.

Kojima said he feared people might leave after the announcement internally, but no staff departed. The leaders of the Physint team were informed three days after the Sony call and were asked to help build materials for the new pitch. When he returned the following week, he found the team motivated and actively working on it. The wider staff was told before the public announcement of Xbox's involvement, and he described the response as calm and supportive.

Platform plans and technology are still undecided

One major unanswered question is whether Physint will still come to PlayStation. Kojima said he does not know and directed questions about eventual platform strategy to Xbox. He noted Xbox has often talked about reaching as many players as possible across different platforms, but offered no confirmation of a PlayStation version.

Likewise, the game's engine has not been finalized. Kojima said the team is still experimenting, while Xbox has offered significant technological support. He expressed excitement about access to advanced research and development resources, but did not commit to a particular engine or technical stack.

For now, the central message from Kojima Productions is that Physint survived a potentially destabilizing shift. Kojima remains committed to finishing the game and hopes to expand its universe into live-action film as well. He suggested that digital production techniques may someday allow game and film assets to be shared more closely, shortening the usual gap between a game launch and its adaptation.

There is no release window, confirmed platform list, or final technology plan for Physint at this time. But after a period in which Kojima feared for his studio's future, the project now continues under Xbox, alongside OD, with its creator aiming to turn it into a larger entertainment property.