PlayStation has walked away from Hideo Kojima's Physint, and Xbox has stepped in to publish it. The action-espionage game — billed as Kojima's return to Metal Gear Solid-style stealth — was revealed as a PlayStation exclusive in 2024, but Sony cancelled the project in mid-June, and Microsoft's gaming division will now fund and release it instead.

Kojima broke the news himself, writing on X that Kojima Productions received notice from PlayStation Studios in mid-June that Physint would be cancelled. "Physint is an important project both to me personally and to Kojima Productions," he said. "Determined to keep the project alive, we have spent the last three months searching tirelessly for a new partner." After negotiations across the industry, he said, the studio found in Xbox "a partner with whom we share a common vision for the future." Development, he added, "is ongoing and will continue moving forward."

Sony confirmed the split in a rare public statement, saying it had made "the difficult decision to step away from collaborating with Kojima Productions on its project Physint," while praising Kojima's vision and pledging continued collaboration. Xbox CEO Asha Sharma welcomed the deal, posting "Physint and OD! Proud to build both with Kojima in Japan. A big moment for Xbox," and Xbox said the partnership extends beyond games into film and television.

Why Sony pulled out is now coming into focus. A Bloomberg report says the two Death Stranding games did not meet Sony's revenue expectations, that Physint had missed deadlines and was on track to run well over budget despite being years from release, and that the project was headed to other platforms at a time when Sony has retreated toward console exclusivity. The report also points to the stricter production milestones Sony imposed after the Concord flopped, and to rising console costs driven by the AI industry's demand for hardware.

The upshot is an unusual reversal: both of Kojima's active projects — Physint and the horror game OD — are now Xbox titles, from a designer whose studio has been synonymous with PlayStation for decades. Kojima has said Physint is still years away, and it is not yet clear whether it will keep using the Sony-owned Decima engine.

Sources: Eurogamer | PC Gamer | Xbox