Hideo Kojima, the acclaimed creator of the Metal Gear Solid series, appears to be notably absent from the credits in the new Metal Gear Solid collection re-release. Despite his pivotal role in shaping – and basically creating – the franchise, it’s an nasty and targeted omission that has caught the attention of fans and enthusiasts.
Kojima’s relationship with Metal Gear publisher Konami has been rocky since the development of Metal Gear Solid 5. The game director later cut ties with the publisher and eventually established his own studio, Kojima Productions. This was one of the uglier break-ups in game industry history, and it shows.
It seems Konami is now leaving out Kojima’s name in the credits of Metal Gear Solid Master Collection Vol 1. The omission of Kojima’s name in the credits has been confirmed by multiple players who have gotten an early copy of the compilation. Many of these players are currently streaming the game on Twitch ahead of its launch.
To be clear, Kojima’s name still appears in the credits for the individual games in the compilation as these are just ports of the original games with a few minor changes. However, the wrapper for each of the game, which also contain their own credit screens, do not mention Kojima at all.
The credits also fail to mention the names of David Hayter and the rest of the voice cast. Konami instead opted to simply thank “all original Metal Gear series staff and fans.” Fans see the omission as an effort by Konami to distance itself from Kojima.
Metal Gear Solid Master Collection Vol 1 isn’t the first game compilation that has left out the original team in its credits. Earlier this year Metroid Prime Remastered left out Retro Studios staff from the credits and simply stated that the remaster was “based on the work of Metroid Prime original Nintendo GameCube and Wii Version development staff.
The controversial decision to leave out names like Kojima and Hayter will likely cause division within the Metal Gear fanbase. However, Konami is under no obligation to add new name credits to the re-release and Kojima’s name still appears in the source material.
Interestingly, a few months back Konami did make a reference to Kojima in the compilation without naming him directly. A warning message appears when the compilation loads and reads:
“This game contains expressions and themes which may be considered outdated.”
“However, these elements have been included without alteration to preserve the historical context in which the game was made and the creator’s original vision. Player discretion is advised.”
The Metal Gear Solid Master Collection Vol 1 is now available for PC, Xbox Series X/S, PS 4, PS5, and Nintendo Switch.
