Hideo Kojima’s next act with Xbox is getting bigger.
Xbox announced Wednesday that it will publish “Physint,” the upcoming action-espionage game from Kojima Productions that had previously been aligned with Sony’s PlayStation. The move expands Microsoft’s relationship with the “Death Stranding” and “Metal Gear” creator beyond the already announced “OD,” and it also opens the door to collaboration between Xbox and Kojima Productions in film and television.
According to Xbox’s announcement, the expanded partnership will “extend beyond games,” with the companies working together “across film and television to bring new stories to broader audiences.”
The publishing switch is a major turn for “Physint,” which Kojima has described as an important project for himself and his studio. Shortly after Xbox’s post went live, Kojima said on X that the move followed PlayStation Studios’ decision to cancel its involvement with the project earlier this year.
“As confirmed earlier through our official channels, in mid-June of this year, we unexpectedly received notice from PlayStation Studios that they would cancel the PHYSINT project,” Kojima wrote. “PHYSINT is an important project both to me personally and to KOJIMA PRODUCTIONS. Determined to keep the project alive, we have spent the last three months searching tirelessly for a new partner. In the course of seeking advice and pursuing negotiations with people across many fields, we found in XBOX a partner with whom we share a common vision for the future, and we have decided to team up with them once again. Please rest assured that development of PHYSINT, our genre-defining action-espionage title, is ongoing and will continue moving forward.”
PlayStation also addressed the decision in a statement on X, saying it had “made the difficult decision to step away from collaborating with KOJIMA PRODUCTIONS on its project PHYSINT” after “careful consideration.”
“We continue to have great admiration for Hideo Kojima’s vision for the game,” PlayStation said. “Our relationship remains strong after three decades of industry-leading, genre-defining creative cooperation, and we look forward to continued close collaboration with Hideo Kojima and his award-winning independent studio in the future.”
A bigger Xbox-Kojima slate
“Physint” is not the first project currently tying Kojima Productions to Xbox. Microsoft’s gaming brand is already set to publish “OD,” a horror game made in collaboration with Jordan Peele. “OD” does not yet have a launch date.
“Physint” is positioned as the Kojima title that will follow “OD.” The shift is especially notable because of Kojima’s long-running relationship with PlayStation, including the companies’ work together on the “Death Stranding” franchise.
Xbox CEO Asha Sharma framed the new deal as a sign of support for Kojima’s creative ambitions.
“Creators have choices about where and how they bring their ideas to life,” Sharma said. “We’re honored that Kojima-san has chosen Xbox to work with Kojima Productions on ‘Physint.’ His ambition to challenge conventions reflects the kind of creativity we want to support at Xbox.”
Kojima said the deal builds on the companies’ existing work together.
“This expands our relationship with Xbox beyond ‘OD,’” Kojima said. “As we move forward with the development of ‘Physint,’ we remain committed to redefining the action-espionage genre for players around the world.”
The announcement lands during heightened discussion around PlayStation after its July announcement that it will stop producing physical discs for its games beginning with new titles releasing in 2028. However, the talks between Kojima and Xbox were already underway earlier in the year, after Sharma took over as CEO from Phil Spencer.
Over several months, Sharma and Kojima held in-person meetings and continued discussions about his creative plans, including potential work across platforms and intellectual property development for television and film.
Kojima’s screen ambitions come further into focus
The Xbox announcement puts fresh emphasis on Kojima’s interest in storytelling beyond games. “Death Stranding” is currently being developed into a film at A24, and Kojima has expressed ambitions for more transmedia projects.
In a 2024 interview about his decision to sign with Hollywood talent agency WME, Kojima discussed how the divide between games and film has narrowed.
“Back in the day, movies and games were two different worlds. It was like analog vs digital. It didn’t mix well, like oil and water,” Kojima said. “Nowadays, movies are also digital, like being shot on digital cameras instead of film. The pre-production and post-production phases are digital, too. It’s even streamed digitally. There seems to be more understanding in the conversations I have with people in the filmmaking industry. That wasn’t always the case. Now, there are movies that use Unreal Engine to create their backgrounds and environments. They also use performance capture [PCap] like we do, so the technology is almost the same up to a certain point.”
For Xbox, the expanded Kojima alliance could also carry market significance beyond the U.S. The partnership is expected to bolster the brand’s presence in Japan and other Asian markets, areas that have historically been weaker for Xbox.
For now, the confirmed next step is continued development on “Physint” under Xbox publishing, while “OD” remains the next Kojima Productions release on the Xbox slate without a launch date.