Every Hideo Kojima Game – From Metal Gear to Death Stranding 2

The history of video games is practically littered with influential and legendary minds who helped shape the medium — innovators like Gunpei Yokoi, Shigeru Miyamoto, Hironobu Sakaguchi, and plenty others. But when thinking of the figures who helped shape gaming in the lead-up to the 21st Century and beyond, few are as important as Hideo Kojima. As a game director, Kojima has always included a healthy dose of cinematic qualities in his works, and it's safe to say that the world of gaming might not be the same without his contributions to the medium. After all, Metal Gear Solid was one of the first titles to signal that interactive media could finally stand toe-to-toe with film as a thought-provoking form of entertainment. In celebration of Death Stranding 2's release this week, let's take a look at the storied career of Hideo Kojima.

• Release Date — July 13, 1987
• Developer — Konami
• Publisher — Konami (JP), Ultra Games (NA)
• Review Aggregate Score — N/A
• Platforms — MSX, NES

As far as debut titles go, not many can claim to be as important and groundbreaking as Metal Gear. Kojima, after working as a junior designer on other games for Konami, would take over as the lead on Metal Gear partway through its development, having the idea to transform the title from just another run 'n gun game to a title where players would need to avoid confronting the enemy. The stealth genre as we know it was born. Metal Gear would be a best-selling title on both the MSX and the NES (even though the NES port is inferior to the MSX original), and cement Kojima's legacy as an innovative creator.

• Release Date — November 26, 1988
• Developer — Konami
• Publisher — Konami
• Review Aggregate Score — 82%
• Platforms — MSX2, NEC PC-8801, PC-Engine Super CD-ROM, PlayStation, Sega CD, Sega Saturn

Before coming back to the Metal Gear franchise, Kojima would have the opportunity to indulge in his love for Blade Runner and similar cyberpunk sci-fi with Snatcher. Snatcher is an interesting game that's part RPG, part visual novel, and part point-and-click adventure game, and it was incredibly forward-thinking for its time. In 1988, few creators were taking big risks like Kojima was, which was only made possible due to Metal Gear's overwhelming commercial success. After years of Japanese exclusivity, Snatcher would eventually make its way to the West on the Sega CD, but that add-on's short-lived time in the spotlight meant that this unique game was largely confined to obscurity in North America.

• Release Date — July 20, 1990
• Developer — Konami
• Publisher — Konami
• Review Aggregate Score — N/A
• Platforms — MSX2

Another of Kojima's formative games that would remain exclusive to Japan, Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake is the true sequel to Metal Gear, not to be confused with the awful Snake's Revenge. Metal Gear 2 is a hugely important game in terms of the Metal Gear series' continued pivot toward more mature and thought-provoking storytelling, and it sets the events in motion that would eventually shape the Metal Gear Solid sub-series. It took almost 2 decades, but Western players finally got to experience Metal Gear 2 as an unlockable within Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater.

• Release Date — July 29, 1994
• Developer — Konami
• Publisher — Konami
• Review Aggregate Score — 86%
• Platforms — 3DO, NEC PC-9821, PlayStation, Sega Saturn

That Kojima's Policenauts isn't widely available on modern hardware is almost criminal, as it's one of the creator's best works and a hugely foundational game toward establishing the rest of his output moving forward. This excellent sci-fi detective noir is similar to Snatcher in terms of its gameplay, but it was able to use more advanced technology to include some painstakingly produced cutscenes and story elements that made it feel like playing an interactive anime. The light gun combat sections haven't aged very well, but the rest of Policenauts absolutely has.

• Release Date — September 3, 1998
• Developer — Konami Computer Entertainment Japan
• Publisher — Konami
• Review Aggregate Score — 94%
• Platforms — PlayStation

One of the most important games to release during the 5th console generation and arguably Hideo Kojima's most important work, Metal Gear Solid is nothing short of a paradigm-shifting piece of interactive media. In addition to refining the gameplay and stealth formula of the original two Metal Gear games and successfully translating it into 3D, Metal Gear Solid proved that games could tell mature stories on par with the best films that Hollywood could produce, helping to change the perception of video games from being a niche hobby to being a legitimate form of entertainment.

• Release Date — November 13, 2001
• Developer — Konami Computer Entertainment Japan
• Publisher — Konami
• Review Aggregate Score — 96%
• Platforms — PlayStation 2

Much like how the original Metal Gear Solid had helped move plenty of PlayStation consoles so people could see what the game was all about, the release of Metal Gear Solid 2 was practically like a second launch for the PlayStation 2. Millions of players had waited to upgrade to Sony's new console specifically in anticipation of the Metal Gear Solid sequel, and in classic Kojima fashion, he pulled a fast one on players by tricking them into thinking Solid Snake was the game's hero before pulling the rug to reveal we'd spend most of our time as Raiden. Metal Gear Solid 2 is Kojima at his most unrestricted, and it resulted in a game that, despite its few flaws, is impressive for both its gameplay innovation and its ambition.

• Release Date — November 17, 2004
• Developer — Konami Computer Entertainment Japan
• Publisher — Konami
• Review Aggregate Score — 91%
• Platforms — PlayStation 2

For Metal Gear Solid's swansong on the PS2, Kojima would take the series back in time to show the genesis of its ultimate antagonist, Big Boss. Before he became the world's deadliest soldier and leader of the Outer Heaven military state, Big Boss was Naked Snake — a CIA operative in the covert FOX unit sent to the jungles of Russia to stop the production of the nuclear-equipped tank Shagohod, the prototype that would eventually give rise to the Metal Gear program. Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater is widely considered to be the best game in the series for both its gameplay and story, and it very well may be Kojima's magnum opus.

• Release Date — June 12, 2008
• Developer — Kojima Productions
• Publisher — Konami
• Review Aggregate Score — 94%
• Platforms — PlayStation 3

Several years after the release of Metal Gear Solid 3, Konami and Kojima would release what was supposed to be the final game in the Metal Gear Solid series with Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots. His aging rapidly advanced by the FOXDIE virus, Metal Gear Solid 4 takes the series back to the not-too-distant future to chronicle Solid Snake's last hurrah as he attempts to put a stop to Liquid Snake/Ocelot's plans once and for all. MGS 4 is mostly remembered for having some of the longest cutscenes in video game history, but it also features some impressive stealth action gameplay and a fantastic, fitting ending to the saga of Solid Snake.

• Release Date — April 29, 2010
• Developer — Konami Digital Entertainment Co.
• Publisher — Konami
• Review Aggregate Score — 89%
• Platforms — PlayStation Portable (PSP)

Kojima's return to the Metal Gear franchise would also see the creator return to reveal more of Big Boss' past, with Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker laying both the narrative and gameplay foundations for Metal Gear Solid V. To many players, Peace Walker represents one of the Metal Gear Solid series' peaks, and its place as a console-exclusive on the PSP undoubtedly helped Sony move several additional units of the handheld.

• Release Date — August 12, 2014
• Developer — Kojima Productions
• Publisher — Konami Digital Entertainment
• Platforms — PlayStation 4

Before Kojima ever revealed that he and Guillermo del Toro were collaborating on a new game set in the Silent Hill universe, players were treated to the mysterious P.T. on PSN, which almost immediately took the gaming world by storm. This first-person horror experience (short for "Playable Teaser") gave players a brief glimpse of what they could expect from the meeting between one of film's great visionaries with one of gaming's, and it was genuinely terrifying. The very small slice of gameplay on offer in P.T. is so good that, more than a decade later, players are still sore about the eventual Silent Hill game from Kojima getting canceled.

• Release Date — March 18, 2014
• Developer — Konami Digital Entertainment
• Publisher — Konami
• Review Aggregate Score — 75%
• Platforms — PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One

The tension between Kojima and his longtime employer, Konami, was reaching a head around the time of P.T.'s release. But before Kojima could leave Konami once and for all, he announced that he still had one more Metal Gear Solid game in him, revealing that the title would be split into two parts. The first of these was Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes, a prologue game that introduces players to the new Metal Gear Solid V stealth and combat systems while also filling in the narrative gaps left after Peace Walker.

• Release Date — Canceled
• Developer — Kojima Productions
• Publisher — Konami Digital Entertainment

One of the greatest casualties of Kojima's pending split from Konami would end up being the cancellation of Silent Hills, the collaboration between Hideo Kojima and filmmaker Guillermo del Toro. Again, all players ever really saw of Silent Hills was the P.T. demo, but it was such a strong proof of concept that survival horror fans still lament never getting to play the full product.

• Release Date — September 1, 2015
• Developer — Konami Digital Entertainment
• Publisher — Konami
• Review Aggregate Score — 93%
• Platforms — PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One

Looking back, the wait between Ground Zeroes and The Phantom Pain wasn't really all that long, but the cliffhanger at the end of Ground Zeroes made it feel like an eternity. Despite The Phantom Pain shipping with some unfinished content that was cut as Kojima left Konami, it still mostly delivers a compelling package that successfully modernizes and improves the general gameplay loop from Peace Walker. The Phantom Pain also fills in some important gaps in the Metal Gear canon, establishing important details about Big Boss that have far-reaching ramifications and showing how Outer Heaven was born.

• Release Date — November 8, 2019
• Developer — Kojima Productions
• Publisher — Sony Interactive Entertainment
• Review Aggregate Score — 82%
• Platforms — iOS, PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox Series X/S

It's wild to look back and see that Death Stranding released just a few months ahead of the COVID-19 pandemic, telling a story about the search for human connection in the aftermath of a great plague that forever changed the world. Death Stranding deals with a lot of the same themes that have fascinated Kojima throughout his career, but for the first time, it does so with a persistently online world featuring asymmetrical multiplayer, hammering home the need for cooperation and connection with others. Sure, it might be a delivery simulator with some light combat, but Death Stranding's story, atmosphere, and message are the kind of top-tier stuff that we expect from an auteur like Kojima.

• Release Date — June 26, 2025
• Developer — Kojima Productions
• Publisher — Sony Interactive Entertainment
• Review Aggregate Score — 90%
• Platforms — PlayStation 5

As of the time of writing, Death Stranding 2 is one of Kojima's most critically acclaimed titles, earning a 90% positive review aggregate score from more than 100 reviews and staking a claim as one of 2025's best-reviewed titles. Critics praise the game for refining the gameplay of the first and fixing some of the pacing issues that were present in its predecessor, all while telling a story that, while at times bleak, is ultimately a story about hope. Thursday can't come soon enough.

• Release Date — TBA
• Developer — Kojima Productions
• Publisher — Microsoft Game Studios
• Platforms — Xbox Series X/S

Kojima wouldn't give up on his dream of partnering with a director after Silent Hills' cancellation, instead pivoting to a new project with a different collaborator. Stepping in for del Toro is director and comedian Jordan Peele, who, together with Kojima, is developing OD for Kojima Productions as an Xbox exclusive. We don't know much about OD other than the actors who will be starring in it, but Kojima himself is on record saying that it will blend elements of film and interactive media in a way that no other title before it has.