Hideo Kojima has responded obliquely to rumors that a second Death Stranding game has entered production.
In an interview with digital publication Leo, Death Stranding star (and personal friend of Kojima's) Norman Reedus said he'd "just started the second one." Here's the full exchange:
Interviewer: "Okay, so you got the book going on, you've got the final season coming out, then the spinoff, and youâre filming Death Stranding, the video game."
Reedus: "We just started the second one."
Interviewer: "How did that come about?"
Reedus: "Guillermo Del Toro, who gave me my first movie, called me up and said, 'Hey, thereâs a guy named Hideo Kojima, heâs gonna call you, just say yes.' And I go, 'What do you mean just say yes?' He goes, 'Stop being an asshole, just say yes.' Then I was in San Diego and Hideo came with a big group of people, heâs from Tokyo, and he showed me what he was working on on a game called Silent Hill. I was blown away by what he was showing me, and I was like, 'Yes, letâs do this.' Itâs not Ms. Pacman; itâs so realistic, itâs so futuristic, itâs so complicated and beautiful, and I was completely blown away. It took me maybe two or three years to finish all the MoCap sessions and everything. It takes a lot of work. And then the game came out, and it just won all these awards, and it was a huge thing, so we just started part two of that.
Reedus' comments set off the standard rumor tornado that accompanies any news of a Kojima project, and now the developer himself has responded by appearing to chastise Reedus.
"Go to your private room,my friend" Kojima tweeted, followed by a thumbs up and a heart-eyes emoji. The tweet also included a photo of the two of them posing as though Kojima were about to hit Reedus with a bat.
Kojima Productions has yet to confirm a sequel to Death Stranding, but these events combined with the success of the first one make a strong case that a second game is on the way. The first Death Stranding was released in November 2019, and Kojima followed it up with a Director's Cut in 2021.