Game creator Hideo Kojima is celebrating his 63rd birthday, marking another year in a career spanning nearly four decades of game development. Known for exercising strict creative control over every aspect of his projects, Kojima's catalog includes foundational stealth-action titles and surreal open-world adventures.
His work began with the release of the original Metal Gear 40 years ago, establishing the stealth genre and eventually leading into the Metal Gear Solid series. Over the decades, his output expanded through landmark titles like Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain in 2015, which introduced players to a sprawling, postmodern military sandbox.
Following his departure from Konami and the establishment of Kojima Productions as an independent studio, his creative output shifted toward new intellectual properties. Death Stranding, originally subject to debates over its mechanics and labeled a "walking simulator" prior to launch, eventually found an audience for its post-apocalyptic setting, featuring concepts like Timefall and Beached Things. Development is currently continuing on its follow-up, Death Stranding 2.