Metal Gear Solid 5 Was Originally Meant to Be Episodic, Says Kojima

Acclaimed video game director Hideo Kojima has said that the fifth mainline installment in the Metal Gear Solid series was originally meant to be episodic. Today happens to mark the ninth anniversary of Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes, which ended up becoming the prologue to the eventual Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain. And while fans were a bit puzzled with Ground Zeroes when it was initially released, Kojima has now said that he was attempting to "experiment" with a new format. 

In a recent series of messages on Twitter, Kojima looked back on Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes and its arrival back in 2014. In doing so, Kojima said that Ground Zeroes was at first thought to be the initial installment in an ongoing slate of titles that would be tied to Metal Gear Solid V. However, Kojima said that Ground Zeroes seemingly ended up confusing fans, which led to him abandoning the idea and going on to only release The Phantom Pain as a follow-up.

"The development of a full game takes [four to five years]. Times change during production," Kojima said. "So I thought of offering an episodic format, like a streamed drama, where one episode is produced and distributed. [Ground Zeroes] was meant to be an experiment. [...] Nevertheless, after the launch, many people seemed to expect [Ground Zeroes] to be 'full game' and did not get my intention. It was felt to be too early."

In fact, it was my big intention to launch GZ. The development of a full game takes for 4-5 yrs. Times change during production. So I thought of offering an episodic format, like a streamed drama, where one episode is produced and distributed. GZ was meant to be an experiment. https://t.co/EeyJAs2HCR

— HIDEO_KOJIMA (@HIDEO_KOJIMA_EN) March 20, 2023

It's a bit fascinating to hear Kojima talk about his initial plans for Metal Gear Solid V, especially given how the project ended. While Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain ended up being well-received by both fans and critics, it also happened to be the final game that Kojima ever developed at Konami. His eventual exit from the company also seemingly impacted the development of Metal Gear Solid V as certain elements of The Phantom Pain never ended up being finished. It's hard to know how this situation might have shaken out if MGSV was episodic, but it's probably for the best that things went down as they did. 

Do you think that Kojima's initial idea for Metal Gear Solid V could have worked? Or would this have been met poorly by fans of the series? Let me know what you think either down in the comments or reach out to me on Twitter at @MooreMan12.