Hell hath no fury like Konami scorned, apparently. A report in Japanese newspaper Nikkei has revealed that the ongoing feud between the Japanese publisher and Metal Gear creator Hideo Kojima is ongoing – despite him having left the company years ago following the release of Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain.
Back then there were reports that the firm had forced the auteur to work in solitary confinement, isolated from the rest of his team. And now a new article has revealed that the company may still hold a grudge against its former employee. This story is absolutely crazy, so you'll want to buckle up and get comfortable while we dish the details.
It all starts with forgotten co-op title Metal Gear Survive. Last year at the Tokyo Game Show, Kojima was asked about the game as part of a panel. And here’s what he said: “Well, for me, Metal [Gear] is espionage with political fiction. Right? So, because of that, there’s no reason that zombies would show up.”
Harmless? Konami didn’t think so, as it started pulling clips from the panel off the web. Furthermore, it allegedly sent a strongly worded letter directly to Kojima, stating: “You are unfairly sullying the reputation of our company.” Tetchy, but fair enough.
However, here’s where it gets really crazy. According to Nikkei, the new Kojima Productions has been attempting to join the Kanto IT Software Health Insurance Association with little luck. The association spans over 7,000 organisations, offering discounted health insurance to tech industry workers, and other perks like gym and restaurant discounts. Given that it owns various sports clubs, Konami is believed to be a big player in the association. Go figure.
And finally, the newspaper reports that Konami has been smearing many of its ex-employees, informing large game companies to be careful when hiring former staffers, and it’s asked many of its previous workers not to refer to themselves as “ex-Konami” staff.
This is crazy, crazy stuff. It all comes courtesy of Nikkei – via a translation – so of course there’s a chance the information within may not be accurate. But if it is…
[source nikkei.com, via jin115.com, kotaku.com]
Comments 32
Wow!
What the heck did the guy do to them other than make them lots of money? Have I missed something obvious?
I'm really curious as to what all actually happened at Konami. It's sad to think that any of this is true, as they were by far one of my favourite companies back in the 8 and 16 bit eras.
They sound delightful, don't they? Wow...
@Quintumply I doubt we'll ever know the true story to be honest. Some of the stories that have come out of this — true or not — are absolutely mental, though.
I remember reading one about Konami punishing senior staff members by forcing them to clean the toilets in their sports clubs or something. It's just mental.
You do have to take it all with a grain of salt, of course, but Nikkei is a good source.
"Had to work in isolation" god if that happened in the uk, you would be able to take the company for all sorts! Poor guy. No one deserves to be bullied.
Yeesh, Konami needs to stfu and leave Kojima, Igarashi, or any other ex-Konami staff alone.
Vile children, typical immature brat CEO d-bags.
The ongoing feud is ongoing and going and going...
My warnings apply to you as well. -Tasuki-
I thought it was hilarious when Kojima said there was no place for zombies, then remembered the Skulls from MGSV. Sure he can spin a yarn about parasites and all that, but if it looks like a zombie, and walks like a zombie.....
Parp.
Konami is pretty much a zombie of a company at this point.
Absolute scumbags.
Absolute mental, why konami is so terrible?
You don't see these shenanigans in the Yakuza games.
Konami sullied its reputation by turning Metal Gear Solid into a generic coop zombie shooter in the first place.
Thank god Kojima got out of there!
Konami are a joke at the moment, I recently bought their Bomberman for the Switch and its got to be the worst value game I've ever bought, how they had the check to release a £50 game that had fewer features than the most recent in the series (and the 20 year old snes games) which was less than a tenner is beyond me. I don't know if they're bothering to make games anymore but I won't be buying them
Stick to the slot machines Konami, you're tenure as a reputable gaming company has long been tarnished.
Wow, that is crazy lol. Cutthroat industry I guess.
Good thing Kojima got away from Konami. Shame the Metal Gear license is still with Konami and is becoming a brand of pachinko.
“Well, for me, Metal [Gear] is espionage with political fiction. Right? So, because of that, there’s no reason that zombies would show up.”
Boss, it's the Skulls!
Konami sounds like a demon though to be honest. How do you treat someone who made one of your most successful franchises like this?
Can someone say.......petty?
Shouldn't have tried to cut open the goose to get all the golden eggs out konami.
Speaking of Konami, my wife recently discovered the Konami E3 2010 video. She's been quoting, "one. million. troops." 😂
Reading the introduction, I was honestly expecting much, much worse.
Konami is gutted that thay had to fired Kojima, konami is like a woman that pretends to hate you and says nasty thing to you & about you but deep down thay are really in love with you. Kojima MGS games had a big following and sold Konami knows that, Konami probably warned Kojima about delaying his game and make a basic MGS game in the less time possible to make a quick trun around. You now know why we got Ground Zeros, Konami as we know made him work on his own thats a punishment for not doing as Konami says. Thay probably also told him it'll be hard for him to find work outside japan that kind of stuff thay didn't want to but had to fire him and thats why thay are acting like thay are now. If you've followed the gaming industry you would have already seen how some publisher can be all thay care about is getting that game out the door. These are the guys that speak about how can thay make a £50 customer into a £200 customer and will tell there developers to change part of a game or a game altogether into what ever is popular. But note not all publishers are like this some actual do care about the games and developers & making the best possible game.
Oh wow!, I don't know if I see this (the Nikkei Report) as:
-Bad joke
-Cheap gossip note
-Another attempt to discredit Konami
-A "everybody" give a hand to Kojima
or all togheter...
But, Really, much people still many have a hatred, very deep grudge against Konami and too unconditional support for Kojima; oh my, but oh well, I can´t say nothing, why, Really (except Konami and Kojima) "Nobody" know that really happeded there, but oh well...
“Well, for me, Metal [Gear] is espionage with political fiction. Right? So, because of that, there’s no reason that zombies would show up.”
Umm. MGS got more and more surreal and supernatural. MGSV was about as bonkers as it gets. I would not have ever been surprised if a Kojima MGS title had Zombies show up. In that world, anything bizarre makes sense, so the comment was a little bit ironic.
If a company acts like this wow. True or not i think these kind of things make it hard to even hire people. If i hear these things i rather stay away to go work some where else. And put your energy in making better games. The last MGS was horrible they why anyone wants to look at hunger and thirst meter so much its beyond me. 😁
Ah, to me, this is how many Japanese companies really are, especially the bigger one's. I read Japanese news and other sources and there are some crazy stories out there. All I can tell, a lot of Japanese large companies are just bunch of jerks, stuck in the last century. That's why I live in Japan but work for my Australian mates.
I hate the structure and hierarchy that is in all companies. It really brings out the nastiest side in humans.
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