Angry fans accuse Hideo Kojima of betrayal for collaborating with Xbox, Kojima clarifies studio is just pursuing all possibilities

Microsoft held the Xbox and Bethesda games showcase last weekend and had some really cool announcements to make including Forza Motorsport, Starfield, Overwatch 2, Diablo IV, a Halo Pelican addon for Microsoft Flight Simulator, and a whole lot more. Amidst these announcements, Xbox chief Phil Spencer and Hideo Kojima announced a new collaboration that would leverage Xbox's cloud gaming infrastructure.

Though Kojima seemed optimistic that this collaboration would result in a game that "no one has ever experienced or seen before", a section of PlayStation fans isn't too happy and even labelled Kojima's collaboration with Microsoft as "betrayal". For those not knowing, Kojima is the developer behind popular Sony PlayStation titles such as the Metal Gear Solid franchise and Death Stranding — the latter has been ported to the PC as well with some help from Nvidia.

Angry fanboys started a petition on Change.org accusing Kojima of being "blinded by greed". The petition reads,

Kojima is betraying his most loyal fans. He has been blinded by greed. We must help him get back towards the winning side. PLEASE SHARE THIS PETITION EVERYWHERE.

Not everyone has good enough internet connection to stream games. Not everyone has enough money to buy a new console or build a new PC. Please Kojima, don’t abandon us."

The reason for this angst seems unwarranted. Firstly, Kojima's dream game is still being conceptualized and doesn't actually exist. Next, given that he emphasized using Xbox Cloud, it could be a cloud-only title. This, of course, means that even those petitioners will be able to play the game on their personal devices. Or, it could also be a multi-platformer and may eventually make its way to the PlayStation.

Fans getting worried even before Kojima could conceptualize the game in the first place feels somewhat weird.

Nevertheless, Kojima has clarified that as an independent studio they will continue to explore various opportunities and creative avenues for their fans. He said,

As an independent creative studio, #KojimaProductions will continue pursuing work on creations for our fans. We will explore various possibilities with games, movies, and music through platforms that evolve with time and technology. We look forward to your continued support!"

In a follow-up tweet, he confirmed that the partnership with Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE) will continue as well.

After the announcement of our partnership with Microsoft using the cloud technology, many people have asked us about our collaboration with SIE. Please be assured that we continue to have a very good partnership with PlayStation® as well. #KojimaProductions"

So, there you have it. It's just an independent studio exploring all possible options.  Heck, Sony themselves are at the forefront of going multi-platform with a booming PlayStation to PC port business.