Ever since he was a child, Metal Gear Solid and Death Stranding creator Hideo Kojima was a voracious consumer of movies, music, and books. They ignited his passion for stories and storytelling, and the results can be seen in his groundbreaking, iconic video games. Now the head of independent studio Kojima Productions, Kojima’s enthusiasm for entertainment media has never waned. This collection of essays explores some of the inspirations behind one of the titans of the video game industry, and offers an exclusive insight into one of the brightest minds in pop culture. -- VIZ Media

An exploration of the influential work of Hideo Kojima, creator of cinematic titles such as the blockbuster Metal Gear Solid franchise, which has moved over 50 million units globally, as well as Snatcher, Policenauts, and Death Stranding. As the architect of the Metal Gear Solid franchise, Kojima is synonymous with the “stealth game” genre, where tension and excitement is created from players avoiding enemies rather than confronting them. Through the franchise, Kojima also helped to bridge the gap between games and other forms of media, arguing that games could be deep experiences that unearthed complex emotions from players on the same level as films or novels. Drawing on archives of interviews in English and Japanese with Kojima and his team, as well as academic discourses of social/political games and cinematic narrative/world-building, this book examines Kojima's progressive game design as it applies to four key areas: socially-relevant narratives, cinematic aesthetics, thematically-connected systems, and reflexive spaces.

This volume provides an in-depth examination of the video game Death Stranding, focusing on the game’s exploration of ruin, nostalgia, and atonement as its primary symbolic, narrative, and mechanical language. Offering the first close examination of Death Stranding’s narrative, the book also incorporates a strong foundation in game studies, most especially related to the concepts of immersion and embodiment. The focus of the book lies in considering how Death Stranding expands on the themes of ruin, longing, and the need for connection, and whether a reconciliation—on a community level, national level, or even global level—might be possible. This book will appeal to scholars in a variety of disciplines in the Humanities and the Social Sciences, from video game studies and media studies to English, history, philosophy, and popular culture.

How far would you go to break the chains of destiny? In the case of HIDEO KOJIMA, way past the point of madness! What else would you call gambling your own multi-million dollar franchise on an elaborate secret scheme to prove you're smarter than your adoring fans? Or creating the biggest media sensation in modern history just so you could spike your own product into the ground and use it as proof that you shouldn't trust advertising? (Or promising to make up for that betrayal of consumer trust only to do it again with an even more venomous bite?) There's nothing else to call it but madness -- unless you understand THE KOJIMA CODE. A mind-blowing, huge budget, multi-layered plot to create a jaw-dropping masterpiece secretly engineered to upset the world. Hey, maybe that's what it takes to make people question the lies we're told in the 21st Century's age of confirmation bias. This book tracks the lonely personal life, daring career, and radical game design philosophy of one of the most enigmatic, polarizing, and devious minds in entertainment. Only by understanding the man and the corporate world he struggled with can we illuminate the unbelievable story behind one of the greatest works of postmodern art ever made. It's a story that has never been detailed, despite an entire generation of gamers begging for answers! A must-read for anyone who has played the series or just wondered why so many people still love and hate HIDEO KOJIMA to this day! The answers await.

The official art book for Hideo Kojima's BAFTA-winning DEATH STRANDING. After the collapse of civilization, Sam Bridges must journey across a ravaged landscape crawling with otherworldly threats to save mankind from the brink of extinction. From legendary game creator Hideo Kojima comes an all-new, genre-defying experience for the PlayStation®4 system, nominated for the DICE Game of the Year Award. In the near future, mysterious explosions have rocked the planet, setting off a series of supernatural events known as the Death Stranding. With spectral creatures plaguing the landscape, and the planet on the verge of a mass extinction, it's up to Sam Bridges to journey across the ravaged continent and save mankind from impending annihilation. The Art of Death Stranding is packed with hundreds of pieces of concept art for the characters, equipment, locations and creatures featured in the game, as well as early and unused concepts, including artwork by acclaimed artist Yoji Shinkawa.

The first volume of the official novelization of the best-selling and award-winning videogame Death Stranding, created by legendary game-creator Hideo Kojima. Mysterious explosions have rocked the planet, setting off a series of supernatural phenomena known as the Death Stranding. Spectral creatures that devour the living have pushed humanity to the brink of extinction, causing countries to fall and survivors to scatter and live in pockets of isolation. Sam Porter Bridges, the legendary porter with the ability to return from the world of the dead, has been entrusted with a critical mission by the President of the United Cities of America. He must journey across this ravaged landscape crawling with otherworldly threats to reconnect cities and people and rebuild America one step at a time.

Witness the concept and design behind the genre-defining science fiction military action and drama with The Art of Metal Gear Solid V! Chronicling the development of Kojima Productions's magnum opus, and featuring hundreds of pieces of never-before-seen art, this beautifully assembled volume is an essential addition to any gamer's collection. Dark Horse is proud to offer a piece of gaming history with The Art of Metal Gear Solid V!

Play is a vital component of the social life and well-being of both children and adults. This book examines the concept of play and considers a variety of the related philosophical issues. It also includes meta-analyses from a range of philosophers and theorists, as well as an exploration of some key applied ethical considerations. The main objective of The Philosophy of Play is to provide a richer understanding of the concept and nature of play and its relation to human life and values, and to build disciplinary and paradigmatic bridges between scholars of philosophy and scholars of play. Including specific chapters dedicated to children and play, and exploring the work of key thinkers such as Plato, Sartre, Wittgenstein, Gadamer, Deleuze and Nietzsche, this book is invaluable reading for any advanced student, researcher or practitioner with an interest in education, playwork, leisure studies, applied ethics or the philosophy of sport.

Photographer Liam Wong’s debut monograph, a cyberpunk-inspired exploration of nocturnal Tokyo. Featuring evocative and stunning color photographs of contemporary Tokyo, this book brings together the images of an exciting new photographic talent, Liam Wong. Born and raised in Edinburgh, Scotland, Wong studied computer arts in college and, by the time he was twenty-five, was living in Canada and working as a director at one of the world’s leading video game companies. His job took him to Tokyo for the first time, where he discovered the ethereality of floating worlds and the lurid allure of Tokyo’s nocturnal scenes. “I got lost in the beauty of Tokyo at night,” he explains. A testament to the deep art of color composition, this publication brings together a refined body of images that are evocative, timeless, and completely transporting. This volume also features Wong’s creative and technical processes, including identifying the right scene, capturing the essence of a moment, and methods to enhance color values—insights that are invaluable to admirers and photography students alike.