So it’s finally happened. Hideo Kojima is finally free from his contract with Konami, a partnership that brought forth new levels of drama throughout 2015. To kick off his newfound freedom, the beloved producer has opened up a new independent studio and is working on a franchise alongside Sony for the PlayStation 4 (though it will later come to PC).
The day of his exodus from Konami was filled with many announcements, but it also left its fair share of questions. One of the most pressing of all concerns a little horror game that players were teased with back in the summer of 2014.
P.T. (which stood for Playable Teaser) sent waves of excitement through the gaming industry with its take on horror, putting players through a psychological test that not many were able to complete. When it was revealed to be the teaser for Silent Hills, a game in the works by Kojima and famed director Guillermo del Toro (Pan’s Labryinth, Pacific Rim), fans of the series were excited to see new life breathed into a dying franchise, and by none other than two geniuses within their mediums. The possibilities were endless and the hype was very real. But then Konami came along and cancelled the project without any warning. Not only did they cancel the game, but they took down P.T. from the PlayStation Store to ensure that it could not be downloaded again in the future.
Needless to say, the decision wasn’t met with open arms by the gaming community and many are still pretty upset about it. The dream of a good Silent Hill game after years and years of absence was gone, and there was nothing anyone could do about it. But with Kojima being free and working with Sony once more the hope is alive again, unfortunately there is a serious hurdle that must be overcome if this is to happen.
You see, Silent Hill (the series that Silent Hills would be a part of) is owned by Konami, the company that Hideo Kojima just had a very public break up with. If their silence in response to fan petitions and their decision to bar Kojima from The Game Awards is any indication, Konami is probably going to keep a very tight grip on anything concerning Silent Hills (or anything else Kojima was involved with, for that matter).
Sony does have really deep pockets though, and over the past couple of years they’ve been committed to reviving games and franchises that players have been dreaming of for years. Final Fantasy VII Remake and Shenmue III are just two games that they’ve managed to help make a reality. With some supreme negotiation and a lot of pressure from fans, some sort of agreement isn’t an impossibility. Will Konami sell the Silent Hills license outright? Probably not, but perhaps a Sony publishing helping hand could work some magic here.
Would Kojima be willing to work on anything that will put money in the pockets of Konami is another question entirely, though. Kojima seems to be a man that is more about his art than he is about grudges. Since his departure from Konami, he hasn’t shared any ill will towards his former employer and seems to be focused on getting right back to creating. He definitely seems set creating something brand new for his loyal fans according to his new Kojima Productions website though, so even if he is willing to work on Silent Hills (or whatever it becomes) it may not be for some time.
But, is Silent Hills a necessity were Kojima to move forward with a different del Toro project? In November of 2014, Norman Reedus spoke out on how something needed to happen between him, Kojima, and del Toro. “I have faith that we’re going to do something though because it just seems like it was one of those things that needs to happen. It’s like destiny, it needs to happen,” he had said all those months ago. And with Kojima finally free to work as he pleases, that destiny may be closer than ever.
Now, we have no idea what this brand new franchise that Kojima Productions is working on with Sony, but chances are that it doesn’t have anything to do with Silent Hills. However, with the freedom to pretty much do as he pleases, there’s nothing stopping him from starting side projects. Of course, he can’t infringe on work he started while at Konami, but he can take the best of the best, those ideas he never put into action, and bring them to the world. All around, there may be an experience as haunting as P.T. in the future for gamers, and that’s definitely exciting.
Things are still very new in the grand scheme of things. Kojima now has time to truly sit down and plan his future, and Sony probably has a lot of work ahead of them in assisting this new endeavor. For all we know, Silent Hills may be the furthest thing from everyone’s mind as the parties involved let the excitement settle down and map out how best to move forward. It’s not every day that something as huge as this happens in the video game industry, so even if Silent Hills isn’t necessarily in the cards at this very moment, whatever does follow is sure to be amazing.
More Kojima
- Was the Sony – Kojima Announcement Meant to be at PSX?
- 5 Themes We Expect to See in Kojima’s Next Game
- New Kojima Productions Website: “We are Homo Ludens. We are those who play.”
- Let’s Discuss Kojima Productions’ Rorschach Test of a Logo
- 4 Reasons Why Kojima and Sony Are a Match Made in Heaven
- We Should All Be as Happy as Andrew House Is With Kojima
- Why Does Kojima Productions’ Team Look Like They’re Gonna Drop the Hottest Album of 2015?
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