Google Stadia cancelled its Hideo Kojima game because it was single-player claims report

metro.co.uk:

A new report backs up claims of Google cancelling a Stadia game by Hideo Kojima, because it thought there was no market for single-player.

Last year, it was suggested that Google had scored a Stadia exclusive game from Hideo Kojima, the revered director of the Metal Gear Solid games and Death Stranding, only to then cancel it.

In the wake of Google’s announcement, that it will be shutting down Stadia, a second report has now not only corroborated the original story but shared more details on the cancelled game.

It was intended to be a follow-up to Death Stranding and so a wholly single-player experience, although apparently that is what led to its cancellation.

Supposedly, Google had a strong case of EA-itis and figured that there wasn’t a market for single-player experiences. So, after seeing some mock-ups during early development in 2020, Stadia’s general manager – ex-PlayStation figurehead Phil Harrison – made the final call to cancel it, which matches with what the original report said.

Google’s logic seems to ignore the fact that Death Stranding, itself a single-player game, was a critical and commercial success at launch. That and the fact there are plenty of single-player games on Stadia, with the service having no special emphasis on multiplayer.

Admittedly, Death Stranding did feature online multiplayer elements where you could find supplies and structures left behind by other players, but that was a fairly minor part of the game.

You also have to wonder what Google was expecting when Kojima is best known for crafting linear single-player experiences, as evidenced by his work on Metal Gear Solid.

9to5Google’s source corroborated another detail from the original report, which is that the project was an episodic horror