Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain’s acclaim is due in no small part to the efforts of its creator and game designer Hideo Kojima. As many fans are aware, the final installment in the long-running saga was on decidedly shaky ground after Kojima and Konami’s split during its development. Following the now-famous rift, the Japan-based publisher reacted in a rather rash manner, as the company later completely removed Kojima Productions branding from the box art of the final product. However, now it seems as if the director is getting the last laugh by making a cameo in the game.
GameSpot’s video producer Edmond Tran recently discovered Hideo Kojima in Metal Gear Solid 5 as a recruitable Mother Base worker with an Intel specialty. Apparently, the virtual version of the legendary game designer has an s-rank rating – that is, top-tier classification – as well as an A+ rank for Research and Development skills. As seen below, Tran took a couple of screenshots via PlayStation 4’s share feature and posted them to his Twitter account.
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Tran makes it clear that Kojima can only join players’ Mother Base operations if he was saved during a unique side-quest in Metal Gear Solid 5: Ground Zeroes. Furthermore, MGS 5’s in-game manager of the Mother Base, better known as Benedict “Kazuhira” Miller, clarifies that characters rescued in Ground Zeroes will eventually join fans’ offshore plants in the future. This means that The Phantom Pain has the ability to access save files from Ground Zeroes, and utilize the data to produce special content for owners of both games.
Since the only proof of Kojima in Metal Gear Solid 5 exists in the Mother Base worker profile, it’s unclear as to whether or not an actual model of him has been rendered. Nevertheless, it wouldn’t be too outlandish to see the game’s creator pop up in the title.
Kojima’s made appearances in prior Metal Gear releases, such as the PSP’s Peace Walker, the GameCube remaster Twin Snakes, and the PlayStation 3’s Guns of the Patriots. Not to mention, he was once cast as Solid Snake with a fan-made Ground Zeroes mod. At any rate, along with Tran’s find and the latest spotting of a hidden treat in the stealth-action title involving a reference to Kojima’s work by way of a P.T. Easter egg, there’s no telling what other secret goodies The Phantom Pain holds.
Have you found any evidence of Hideo Kojima in Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain? If so, make sure to share it with us in the comments section.
Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain is available now for PC, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One.
Source: Edmond Tran of GameSpot (via VG 24/7)
