“Hollywood continues to present the US army as being the good guys, always defeating the aliens or foreigners. I am trying to shift that focus,” said creator and director of Metal Gear series, Hideo Kojima.
In an interview with The Guardian, Kojima says “In the past the US was the center of the world, where everything was happening.
I think my stories have always sought to question this, maybe even criticize it. But the situation is changing.
America is not seen as the center of the world any more. So the focus of my stories is shifting alongside with that change in the real world.”
He adds “[Guantanamo] was definitely something that I made decision to address in the game. Hollywood continues to present the US army as being the good guys, always defeating the aliens or foreigners.
I am trying to shift that focus. These movies might not be the only way to view current affairs. I am trying to present an alternate view in these games.”
Kojima says that he tries to keep the players focused and keep them entertained (for example Fulton). “With a movie it’s probably easier to sustain intensity and seriousness over the 90-minute duration.
But in an open-world game it becomes exhausting, demotivating and even uninteresting for the player. In order to avoid that fatigue, I try to interrupt that heaviness with visual jokes in the world, something to provide the player with some comic relief and change the mood dynamically.”
Kojima is portrayed as a frustrated film director. He joined Konami in the late 1980s because of less opportunities in the Japanese film industry and today he makes games ‘due to the unique opportunities the medium presents for narrative and systems to work in concert.’
“I love movies but if I was to create a film I’d use different methods. I make games. That’s what I do.
So I think about ways that I can use the game systems to reinforce my story, or do things that simply aren’t possible in other media.”
He goes on by giving an example of Snake’s military base in the forthcoming game. “The message is anti-nuclear weapons. But it’s not just about shouting that message at the player.
Through the game, the player is motivated to make a base and build up their military center. But at some point, when it reaches a certain size, the world begins to take notice and, in that sense, you become the threat. Countries begin to attack you.”
“At this point I give the player the option to think about acquiring a nuclear weapon, in order to deter these attacks, a kind of threat.
It illustrates the cycle of nuclear weapons, what inspires people and nations to enter into that system. It’s something that you can only really do in video games,” he concluded.
Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain is currently in development for PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360 and Xbox One, it is expected to release in 2015.
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Source: The Guardian.