Hideo Kojima says Sony's exit from Physint left him "shocked and surprised"
Kojima told The Washington Post Sony told Kojima Productions in June it would stop funding Physint, and Xbox later agreed to publish the project.
Physint was left without Sony funding after a June meeting in which Sony told Kojima Productions it would no longer back the project, a move Hideo Kojima said left him "shocked and surprised," and one that Xbox later agreed to take on as publisher.
Kojima, speaking to The Washington Post, said Sony informed studio president Shinji Hirano, Kojima himself, and head of talent development Aki Saito of the decision in a Zoom call in June. He added he felt "no anger or sadness," and that he immediately began searching for a new partner to protect the project and the studio's staff.
He told The Washington Post he had not expected Physint to be at risk because, in his view, it is "the biggest selling title I could possibly create." Kojima also warned that, as an independent studio, losing funding could threaten the studio's survival, saying, "We're an independent studio. That means if they can't fund us, our studio could collapse."
After Sony's announcement earlier this month, Xbox confirmed it would publish Physint and said it would also publish Kojima Productions' already-revealed horror title, OD.
