With the success of the esoteric action delivery game Death Stranding, Hideo Kojima's new production company, Kojima Productions, has already cemented itself as a strong independent studio. Many have been curious as to what Kojima's next game might be, given the unique nature of Death Stranding, and the video game director's penchant for complex stories. Fans may just get their answer soon, as Kojima Productions appears to be hiring for a number of positions in order to fill out the team for a new, unannounced video game.
Hideo Kojima is likely among the most well known video game developers of all time. Best known for his work on the massively popular Metal Gear Solid franchise, he worked closely with Konami for nearly 30 years, leaving the studio in 2015 to create his own production company, just four years after being appointed the vice president of Konami Digital Entertainment. His unique approach to storytelling has netted him many dedicated fans, and the curiosity around his releases has heightened after Death Stranding showed that his studio would be continuing his legacy of quintessentially 'Kojima' games.
It appears that Kojima Productions has begun development of something new, with job postings for a variety of different positions. There are listings for character artists, animators, producers, and sound designers, all for an unannounced title. The listings ask applicants to talk about the most interesting games they have played recently, as well as what technological trends they are following in the industry. Considering there are jobs for designers and network programmers, as well as project managers, it seems possible that this is a completely new title, rather than something operating in Death Stranding's universe.
The listings are for full-time positions, with the job descriptions giving a window into Kojima Productions' work day, stating that "Working hours are basically at 10:00, and are left to the discretion of the individual," suggesting a fairly unstructured work schedule. Many are pointing out that due to the wide array of job listings for the game, as well as the types of listings, it is likely that the game is in extremely early development. This theory is somewhat backed up by the fact that the jobs were posted to LinkedIn only two weeks ago, although many applications have already been put in.
While the jobs posted seem to indicate that Kojima Productions is working on something else entirely, there is a faint possibility that they are working on a sequel to Death Stranding. Given how the game wrapped up though, and considering the soon-to-be-released Death Stranding Director's Cut it would likely have to be a story that takes place in the same universe, but not necessarily focused on the same characters. If Hideo Kojima has a brand new game in store for fans though, this could mean there will be some exciting announcements from the studio in the coming years.
Source: Kojima Productions/LinkedIn