Hideo Kojima has revealed that many major companies considered his upcoming horror game, OD, to be too ambitious or unconventional, labeling the concept as "crazy." The game, a collaboration with director Jordan Peele and starring Sophia Lillis, Hunter Schafer, and the late Udo Kier, is being developed under Xbox Game Studios.
Kojima described OD as something "no one has ever seen before" and a "new game system." He explained that he had been developing the concept since his work on Death Stranding. Despite his reputation as an auteur behind franchises like Metal Gear Solid and Death Stranding, Kojima found significant resistance when pitching OD. "I pitched to many people, to the big companies, and also to the up-and-coming companies. All of them said the same thing," Kojima stated in a feature with Entertainment Weekly. "They said that I'm crazy, and that they really don't understand the concept—that they will not be able to do it."
Phil Spencer, the former head of Xbox, reportedly showed enthusiasm for Kojima's vision. This support aligns with Xbox's strategy to secure exclusive titles, especially given Kojima's historical ties to PlayStation. While many Metal Gear Solid games were not initially Xbox releases, they have since been reissued on the platform. Death Stranding and its sequel were PlayStation exclusives, with the first installment eventually reaching Xbox, though the second has yet to do so.
Currently, Asha Sharma, the new head of Xbox, has also expressed support for OD, referring to it as "deeply moving" and indicative of "another kind of game." Sharma emphasized Xbox's commitment to maintaining an open platform for creators. "We need to make sure our platform is sufficiently open so more creators and developers can come on board and be successful, because the next Kojima is yet to be known," she remarked.
Kojima elaborated on his design goals for OD, aiming to push the boundaries of horror beyond what current games offer. He described it as a single-player experience intended to be as terrifying as possible, while also incorporating a system to assist players who might find the scares too intense. He remains tight-lipped about specific details of this mechanic to avoid revealing too much about the game's core systems.
OD does not yet have a confirmed release date.