A New LA developmental studio will be home to Metal Gear Solid developers Kojima Productions
The new studio will house dedicated teams from Kojima Productions, which will focus on Metal Gear Solid iterations, including the upcoming Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, launching on Xbox 360, PS3, Xbox One and PS4 in 2014. Working under the Konami banner, the team have previously worked on a variety of Metal Gear titles such as Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance, Metal Gear Solid HD Collection and Metal Gear Solid IV: Guns of the Patriots, and the team will continue to be the main developers of the MGS series.
Hideo Kojima, creator of Metal Gear Solid and Director of Kojima Productions, said that the opening of the LA studio was a matter of evolution for the company:
“As gaming takes the world stage as one of the greatest forms of entertainment, it’s only natural for us to expand our operations across the globe. And since Los Angeles is ground zero for the best studios, facilities and world-class talent, we are leaning on of these local resources to build an incredible team to create gaming experiences that are just as compelling as any film or television show.”
The President of Konami Digital Entertainment, Tomoyuki Tsuboi, seemed to be equally excited about the potential offered by the LA studio:
“The Los Angeles studio emphasizes Konami and Kojima Productions commitment to expanding our development footprint. The new studio will put Kojima Productions in the heart of the west which will benefit future releases as it will introduce new talent and creativity to the development teams.”
At the opening of the new studio, Kojima also revealed some new details about Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes, which is to serve as a prologue to The Phantom Pain. The protagonist of Ground Zeroes is Big Boss, also known as Naked Snake or Punished Snake in The Phantom Pain, and the game picks up just after Peace Walker. One of the most intriguing features of Ground Zeroes is that it is billed as moving away from the previous cinematic, linear style of gameplay, and providing players with an open world approach starkly different from anything really seen before in the series.
See the trailer for The Phantom Pain below:
While no firm release date has been announced yet, Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, and the prologue, Ground Zeroes, are both expected at some point in 2014.
