PS3 News: Kojima Believes Player Freedom Is The Future Of MGS - PS3 News

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Kojima Believes Player Freedom Is The Future Of MGS

Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes will provide the gamer with more choice and freedom than ever before, which is precisely what franchise creator Hideo Kojima is trying to do.

In speaking at a British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) event, the master spoke about the future of the esteemed franchise. And when asked about the "ultimate version" of Metal Gear, Kojima responded by saying that if you give the player the power to decide how to approach a mission, that results in more drama. He said he wants the player to "do things in a way that feels natural to them." Essentially, he's not necessarily talking about open-world; he's talking more specifically about freedom.

"Up until this point, if you had a hundred people and you made them play a game, they’d all basically arrive at the same time, take the same route, use the same equipment to get the job done. But what I want to do from this point on is give people the freedom, so if you have a hundred people and you give them this mission then they’ll all come back with a hundred different stories.

They may arrive at a different time, use a different route to get into the base, use different weapons and equipment. So rather than having one great, dramatic story you have a hundred. That’s really what I want to accomplish. So it’s not necessarily that I’m aiming for open world, that’s not the [be all and] end all, what I want to do is give people the freedom to create their own stories and create something that’s very personal to them. That’s what I want to accomplish."

Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes is one of Kojima's new projects, and was recently revealed to a highly appreciate crowd of fans. Do you like this new direction in Kojima's vision?

Related Game(s): Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes

Tags: metal gear solid ground zeroes, hideo kojima, metal gear solid sequel, mgs ground zeroes

10/3/2012 11:36:52 AM Ben Dutka

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Comments (18 posts)

Beamboom
Wednesday, October 03, 2012 @ 11:51:49 AM
Reply

Ok so *now* I am starting to figure out why you all oldtimer PS-fans are calling this man a visionary and all.
What he describes here is essentially how to properly use the unique properties of the gaming medium. Yup, he's speaking the gospel. :)

Last edited by Beamboom on 10/3/2012 11:58:19 AM

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Ludicrous_Liam
Wednesday, October 03, 2012 @ 12:10:38 PM

If you ask me MGS4 already did this, where you had tons and tons of options in terms of how you complete this mission. But of course, the main level design is - *SHOCK HORROR* - linear, so umn...you won't like it. :p

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WorldEndsWithMe
Wednesday, October 03, 2012 @ 12:46:11 PM

That's Koji, he doesn't do something just to do it.

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WorldEndsWithMe
Wednesday, October 03, 2012 @ 12:49:02 PM
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I'd say he has the right idea ya know? Instead of starting with "Hey we need open world, total choice! Story? Who cares about that!"

He's all like "Let's stick to a great story and make gamer's approach open and add numerous story consequences to that approach."

Sounds like Metal Gear Solid could become what Alpha Protocol hoped to be at least in the freedom sense.

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Beamboom
Wednesday, October 03, 2012 @ 3:46:50 PM

I must say that it also sounds a lot like what Bioware always strives for. But it *is* the right idea. It is where gaming should be heading.

Not that I mind the Fallout/RDR/GTA approach either, where the sandbox itself becomes the experience. But they can't all be like that. However all games *should* give the player freedom to act within the game, not just be a puppet on a string.

"Player Freedom". Such a wonderful, wonderful term. :)
Last edited by Beamboom on 10/3/2012 3:47:58 PM

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tes37
Wednesday, October 03, 2012 @ 1:08:26 PM
Reply

I think his vision is partially evident in some of his past games. There is some freedom given to you as to how you handle certain situations in MGS4, but I'd like to see him bring his full vision to completion with future game releases.

Hideo Kojima is starting to make me want a PS4 and any game he chooses to make for it.

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slugga_status
Wednesday, October 03, 2012 @ 2:26:40 PM
Reply

Sounds like elements of MGS4 just a lot more open ended..In Kojima I'll always trust..

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daus26
Wednesday, October 03, 2012 @ 9:45:40 PM

Yeah, for sure. Interesting enough, my friend and I discussed how we got passed through certain chapters, and our "stories" and method was way different.

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Excelsior1
Wednesday, October 03, 2012 @ 2:45:07 PM
Reply

Uh oh the infamous "L" word. Is linear gameplay enough of a reason to hate on a game? For me, yes but I know others might feel differently. I have never been that much into the Uncharted series because they are so linear. Give me a Fallout 3 game any day of the week instead. I think about Killzone 3's sp campign a lot when it comes to my hatred of linear gameplay. So many times in that flawed campign you were forced down narrow paths with only ONE single way to appoach the enemies. There was an almost "on rails" quality to that campign that I grew to despise. I just hate games that have tiny little maps with only one way to appoach a target. I just find that type of gameplay so tedious and boring.

So I guess I'm saying yey to player freedom. I just think that incorporating player freedom is better from a game design point. There have been some great games released that incorporate player freedom like Skyrim, The Fallout series, and even Batman Akram City to some degree so I think things are looking up for gamers like Beamboom and I that place a premium on player freedom. It would seem game designers are moving away from linear gameplay somewhat and I think that's a good thing.

In Hideo I trust. He's not perfect...yes he went batsh!t crazy on the cutscenes in MGS4 but I still loved the game. He just needs a decent editor that has the balls to tell him "cut".
Last edited by Excelsior1 on 10/3/2012 2:54:19 PM

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Kiryu
Wednesday, October 03, 2012 @ 3:53:09 PM
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Yeah I like that but enemies should also be smarter than ever for finding snake.
I think as he said in the pax conference,he said he's back and helping in the game design.
I think he didn't do the game design for MGS4.

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Knightzane
Wednesday, October 03, 2012 @ 4:15:41 PM
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In MGS4 i used the first sniper you get, i put silencer on it, and i headshot every single enemy before moving on. Im not sure how many people did that too but if he's adding some new elements than awesome. I just hope those little robots don't make a return because they have no heads to shoot. Those cow robots were annoying too. Anyway hideo may post nothing but food pictures on twitter, but he clearly knows what hes doing.

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SmokeyPSD
Wednesday, October 03, 2012 @ 7:19:24 PM

I love him on Twitter haha.

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Rogueagent01
Wednesday, October 03, 2012 @ 7:27:48 PM
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Just about any game that has the kind of freedom he is talking about is a game that I will love. I don't like linear games for the most part, and I also hate when I am nothing but a puppet.

Go Hideo, MGS4 already layed the groundwork for this kind of game so I have absolute confidence that he can pull it off.

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daus26
Wednesday, October 03, 2012 @ 9:46:35 PM
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I can't wait for this game!

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Twistedfloyd
Wednesday, October 03, 2012 @ 9:58:56 PM
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This is what drives my own game design that I already took notice of when I first played MGS3/MGS4. It's something I try to do (in different ways obviously), but I feel like having that choice to play however you want to and pick and choose your strategy through different attacks/equipment/weapons, and especially paths to take is very important and adds a lot of diversity, and dynamism to game design.

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DeusExMachina
Wednesday, October 03, 2012 @ 10:58:00 PM
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Uh, oh. Im a bit worried. I mean I know this is Kojima the legend we are talking about. But everyone knows that once you bring choice into the narrative, the narrative breaks, its a simple law of writing and storytelling.

I dont know if this choice in narrative is the right direction for MGS. MGS has always been about the story, about the narrative. If we get a watered down (albeit unique), create your own story template I dont know how well it would gell with MGS. I mean I dont mind it at all in anything else like a new IP or something, but this is MGS it needs an epic story. And the only way to have that is to keep the narrative linear.

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Rogueagent01
Thursday, October 04, 2012 @ 2:28:30 AM

I really believe you missed the point Hideo was making.

"so if you have a hundred people and you give them this mission then they’ll all come back with a hundred different stories."

The key words within that are "give them this mission"...The freedom he is refering to is how "you" will accomplish said mission. The narrative is still in place you just have more options in the way that you reach it. I have to ask did you play MGS4? I am not trying to be rude with that question, but if your answer is yes then you really shouldn't be worried at all, and you should already understand that this would/will be just a more in depth approach.

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Twistedfloyd
Thursday, October 04, 2012 @ 12:52:04 AM
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The narrative can remain linear despite the choice. MGS4 still told an epic story and had a bunch of different ways to go (most of the time) and choices to make in terms of how you played the game, but the game still worked on a narrative level. The choice in it did not diminish the story.

This story template relates only to gameplay and how you advance the story in terms of how you got to your destination, not in the actual MGS narrative.

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