Only Hideo Kojima would look at overwhelmingly positive feedback and think, “We have a problem.” While most developers would see high praise during internal testing as a green light, Kojima saw it as a warning sign.
The legendary game creator known for embracing the strange, the bold, and the deeply personal, decided to rework Death Stranding 2 because, in his eyes, it was too well received.
In a recent interview with Rolling Stone, Kojima’s longtime collaborator and composer Yoann Lemoine (aka Woodkid) shared a surprising behind-the-scenes story about the game’s development.
“There’s a key moment where we had a discussion, probably halfway [through] when we were doing the game, where he came to me and he said, ‘We have a problem.’
“Then he said, ‘I’m going to be very honest, we have been testing the game with players and the results are too good. They like it too much. That means something is wrong; we have to change something.’
And he changed stuff in the script and the way some crucial stuff [happens] in the game because he thought his work was not polarizing and not triggering enough emotions. And he said, ‘If everyone likes it, it means it’s mainstream. It means it’s conventional. It means it’s already pre-digested for people to like it. And I don’t want that.
“I want people to end up liking things they didn’t like when they first encountered it, because that’s where you really end up loving something.’ And that was really a lesson for me; not doing stuff to please people, but to make them shift a little bit and move them.”
It’s a very Kojima philosophy, one that fits perfectly with his legacy of crafting deeply strange yet emotionally rich games that often divide audiences. Death Stranding was already a litmus test for patience and curiosity.
On paper, it was a “walking simulator” where you delivered packages through rain-soaked landscapes haunted by invisible spirits. In practice, it became one of the most talked-about and debated games in recent memory.
With Death Stranding 2, it looks like Kojima isn’t looking to course-correct for the masses. In fact, quite the opposite as he’s steering even harder into the idea that his work should challenge players rather than comfort them.
Interestingly, Norman Reedus, who returns to play Sam Porter Bridges, hinted that the sequel’s story might be easier to follow. He said he found it more digestible this time around, which might suggest a tighter narrative.
But, don’t mistake clarity for compromise. Kojima’s still pushing boundaries; he’s just making sure that what he’s building can’t be described as “conventional.”
So what do you think of Kojima’s decision to rewrite his game because people liked it too much?
