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Hideo Kojima says “I’m happy with the scores, thank you” as Death Stranding 2 settles at 90 on Metacritic, overcoming his fears that it might be too likable

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As Death Stranding 2 scores make it one of the most popular games of the year, everyone’s making the same joke about Hideo Kojima

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Hideo Kojima clears up “misunderstanding” around Death Stranding 2, says cutscenes “are not pre-rendered, they’re basically all in real-time” and that’s been the case since Metal Gear Solid

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Death Stranding 2

Hideo Kojima didn’t actually respond to Death Stranding 2 fan feedback by “deliberately” making it weirder, he only made it “more playable and fun”

Kaan Serin

20 September 2025

Surprise, surprise

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

(Image credit: Kojima Productions)

Before Death Stranding 2: On the Beach hit store shelves, co-composer Woodkid said that director Hideo Kojima, ever the unconventional creator, went back and made the game weirder in response to early player feedback that was apparently “too good.” Kojima himself has now clarified that’s not quite how development went. In fact, Kojima made the still-odd sequel even “more playable” after focus testing.

Speaking to The Washington Post, the Metal Gear Solid creator set the record straight and said “the nuance of what Woodkid said didn’t really go through.” According to Kojima, he didn’t “really deliberately make [Death Stranding 2] weird or anything” – that’s just a side effect of, well, this being a Hideo Kojima game.
“What I said was it can’t be a game that is digestible,” he explained. “Something that is not digestible stays in that person for a long time. So that’s what I meant by, ‘I want to do things differently.'”

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Hideo Kojima says “I’m happy with the scores, thank you” as Death Stranding 2 settles at 90 on Metacritic, overcoming his fears that it might be too likable

As Death Stranding 2 scores make it one of the most popular games of the year, everyone’s making the same joke about Hideo Kojima

Hideo Kojima clears up “misunderstanding” around Death Stranding 2, says cutscenes “are not pre-rendered, they’re basically all in real-time” and that’s been the case since Metal Gear Solid

The reality of development, according to Kojima, was quite the opposite as the famed director and writer said he actually “changed the game accordingly [after focus tests] to make it more playable and fun to the users.” Kojima toning down his eccentric sensibilities? Color me surprised.

Elsewhere in Kojima Land, the creator recently hyped up next week’s 10th anniversary event for his studio Kojima Productions, calling it more of a gathering for “the ‘connections’ we’ve built together with all the ‘Sam-ones’ and everyone involved.”
Hideo Kojima reveals secret Death Stranding 2 cutscene was only half of the motion capture shoot, which ended with him surprising Elle Fanning with a cake on her actual birthday

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Kaan freelances for various websites including Rock Paper Shotgun, Eurogamer, and this one, Gamesradar. He particularly enjoys writing about spooky indies, throwback RPGs, and anything that’s vaguely silly. Also has an English Literature and Film Studies degree that he’ll soon forget.

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Hideo Kojima says “I’m happy with the scores, thank you” as Death Stranding 2 settles at 90 on Metacritic, overcoming his fears that it might be too likable

As Death Stranding 2 scores make it one of the most popular games of the year, everyone’s making the same joke about Hideo Kojima

Hideo Kojima clears up “misunderstanding” around Death Stranding 2, says cutscenes “are not pre-rendered, they’re basically all in real-time” and that’s been the case since Metal Gear Solid

Death Stranding 2 director Hideo Kojima says “DLC is not a trendy space because if you start doing that, you’ll never finish the project”

As Hideo Kojima celebrates Death Stranding 2’s release, he says “there were moments when I truly felt like we might never finish this game”

I’m glad the heatwave is over, because if it wasn’t I’d think I hallucinated these weird Death Stranding 2 moments, from dancing dolls to sci-fi directors fighting while making pizza

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