Kojima Bequeaths Ideas to Staff on USB Drive

Shortly after unveiling several abandoned video game concepts — including a 'Forgetting Game' in which the protagonist gradually loses vital memories and skills if players take extended breaks — Kojima has now disclosed that he has prepared a USB drive filled with game ideas for his team to use after he passes away.

As VGC reported, Kojima shared this somber detail with Edge magazine, reflecting on how his mindset shifted during the pandemic.

“Reaching 60 wasn’t as much of a milestone for me as going through the pandemic,” he explained. “At that time, I became seriously ill and also underwent eye surgery. Before then, I never really felt my age — I believed I could keep creating for the rest of my life.

“But then illness struck, and I couldn’t produce anything. I witnessed many people around me dying, which brought me face to face with mortality. Of course, I eventually recovered, but it made me wonder, ‘How many years do I actually have left to develop games or films?’ Maybe just ten?”

This personal reflection not only drove Kojima to launch multiple new projects, but also motivated him to create the USB drive, which he describes as “a sort of will,” intended to safeguard the future of Kojima Productions after his death.

“I handed a USB drive containing all my ideas to my personal assistant, almost like a will,” he said. “Maybe Kojima Productions could keep creating even after I’m gone... That’s a real concern for me: what becomes of the studio without me? I don’t want them to simply manage our existing intellectual property.”

This week, IGN covered Kojima’s thoughts on integrating the passage of real-world time into video games. He not only discussed time-based mechanics from his previous work but also shared unused concepts — including one that was ultimately cut from the upcoming Death Stranding 2: On The Beach.

“I’ve considered having characters' hair grow in games,” Kojima said during a recent episode of his Japanese podcast KOJI10. “In the original plan for Death Stranding 2, Sam’s beard would gradually grow over time, requiring players to shave it. If they didn’t, he’d end up looking disheveled,” he noted. “But since Norman Reedus is such a major star, I didn’t want him to look unkempt!” Still, the director mentioned he might implement this idea in another game someday.

Kojima also unveiled three game concepts where real-time aging plays a central role. The first is a life simulation: “You begin as a newborn, grow into a child, then gradually become an adult. Throughout the game, you battle various enemies. As with earlier examples (like MGS3’s The End), if you keep playing, your character will eventually reach 70 or 80 years old. At that age, you’d become weaker, with worsening eyesight. As a teenager, you can run faster, but by 60, you’d slow down,” Kojima explained. While younger characters have sharper physical abilities, older ones possess more knowledge and experience. Aging would influence your combat and decision-making strategies. “But would anyone actually buy it?” Kojima joked, though the podcast’s other participants expressed excitement about such a uniquely Kojima-style experience.

Another of his ideas involves a game where you craft products like wine or cheese that mature over time. This would encourage players to engage with the game gradually over an extended period, resembling a background or idle-style experience.

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Finally, Kojima proposed a “forgetting game” that players would need to “rush through.” In this concept, the protagonist slowly loses critical knowledge and abilities if the player takes extended breaks from the game. For instance, skipping daily play could cause the character to forget “how to fire a weapon or the nature of their mission.” This memory loss compounds over time, ultimately leaving the character immobilized. “Players might have to take a week off from work or school just to finish it,” Kojima laughed.

This is an exceptionally busy period for Kojima and Kojima Productions — now we understand why! In addition to Death Stranding 2, Kojima is collaborating with A24 on a live-action Death Stranding film. A24, the studio behind Oscar-winning titles like Everything Everywhere All At Once, adds significant prestige to the project. He is also developing OD for Xbox Game Studios and Physint, a hybrid video game and movie project, with Sony.

No release dates have been announced for OD or Physint. In fact, in January, Kojima indicated that the ongoing video game actors strike had impacted both titles, suggesting it may be some time before further updates arrive.