For the past few years, it has felt like Hideo Kojima and Konami have been at loggerheads. Even last month, the saga seemed to be endless. In a new interview, however, Kojima discusses what was good about his Konami days—namely, letting him make the games he wanted to.
“What I’m grateful Konami for is that when I proposed something I wanted to make, they let me make it,” Kojima tells website Toyokeizai. “Conversely, I wasn’t bound by them saying, ‘You need to do it like this.’”
In Japanese, Kojima says “kansha shite iru” (感謝している), which refers to “being appreciative,” “being grateful,” or “being thankful.”
Kojima joined Konami at the dawn of the gaming industry, and he recalls how there were only five people on his dev team when he started. It was hard work. “I remember how I only sleep three hours everyday,” Kojima says. No doubt he was able to have more opportunities as a new recruit than a fresh hire today, working on a massive title. Kojima, however, appears to see how fortunate he’s been to have that opportunity.
According to Kojima, when he would ask to be allowed to make a game, submitting a proposal describing the aim, giving the development period and saying the approximate number of staff needed, he’d get the green light. “It was like that from when I joined to the end,” says Kojima. “Because of that, I’m the person I am today.”
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