Rumors of the closure of Konami Los Angeles Studios began appearing yesterday, as various developers sounded off on the matter on social media. The official confirmation comes directly from Konami, with promises to continue supporting the Metal Gear Online mode in Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain, one of the main functions of Konami Los Angeles Studios before its closure.
Konami released this statement on the matter to Polygon:
The closure of Konami Los Angeles Studios should come as no surprise to anyone that has been following the issues between Hideo Kojima and Konami, which began earlier this year with the abrupt cancellation of Silent Hills. Everything seemed to unravel from there, with Hideo Kojima reportedly fired from Konami in the middle of developing Metal Gear Solid 5 not long after the death of Silent Hills.
However, what makes this situation so bizarre is Konami’s behavior. Shortly after Kojima’s apparent firing, the company took great pains to attempt to erase Kojima’s name from the covers of all Metal Gear Solid games, past and present. This rebranding effort included renaming Kojima Productions Los Angeles to Konami Los Angeles Studios, so it’s odd that Konami would go through the trouble of renaming the studio, only to shutter it shortly thereafter.
Furthermore, despite numerous reports that Hideo Kojima is gone from Konami, Konami insists that he is just on vacation. This latest development is just yet another strange move by Konami, though at this rate, the erratic behavior is not all that surprising.
In any case, with the rocky launch of Metal Gear Online, hopefully Konami is adequately equipped to keep the game stable without the help of Konami Los Angeles Studios. Fans are already frustrated with the company, and if Metal Gear Online is negatively impacted by this decision, they will be even more irate. At this point, it’s doubtful that Konami’s reputation can be salvaged, but it would be wise for the company to avoid burning any more bridges with their community.
Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain is currently available for PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One.
Source: Polygon
