Hideo Kojima, I'm sure, needs no introduction. He rose to fame as the creator of the Metal Gear Solid franchise before leaving Konami to establish his own independent studio, Kojima Productions, which has since gone on to create Death Stranding.
Another thing that needs no introduction is the long-rumored Xbox layoffs, restructuring, and everything that comes with them. While that could reportedly lead to studio closures and Microsoft pulling out of publishing agreements, as we've already seen with IO Interactive's Project Fantasy, there is at least one game that appears to have avoided the chopping block.
To say pulling funding for Kojima's OD would have been beyond idiotic is probably the understatement of the year. Then again, we live in a time where PlayStation has decided to abandon physical media, with Xbox seemingly poised to follow suit, so at this point I'm kind of at a loss and feel like just about anything could happen.
Fortunately, according to a new report from IGN, Kojima's OD is still safe. We actually heard about the game quite recently following the Xbox Games Showcase, when Entertainment Weekly published a full page of interviews and details regarding all things Xbox, and within that, it also included some words from Kojima that gave us a few fresh details. Nothing major, mind you, but enough to confirm the game is progressing well, and perhaps more importantly, that Xbox CEO Asha Sharma remains fully behind the project.
We've also heard reports that Xbox isn't actually reducing its overall investment in games. Instead, it's becoming far more selective about where that money goes. Here's what Xbox told Bloomberg:
"[Xbox is] taking a fresh look at where we invest so we're focusing on our highest priorities... We're not reducing our overall investment in games. We expect to invest about the same in content as we did last year. What's changing is where we're investing and the kinds of projects we're backing."
Despite being a bit of a wimp when it comes to horror games, I'll definitely be keeping an eye on OD. It is Kojima after all, and I'm glad it's reportedly managed to survive the Xbox funding chopping block. With that said, let me know your thoughts in the comments below, and as always, be sure to take part in our poll!
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