In a new interview with Time Extension, a former employee with game developer Konami has revealed that directors of The Matrix, Lana and Lilly Wachowski, asked Metal Gear‘s Hideo Kojima to adapt the film into a video game in the late 1990s.
Kojima wrote, designed and directed the original Metal Gear game, and is known as a pioneer of the stealth genre.
The Wachowskis were reportedly big fans of his work at Konami, and asked to meet with the developer around the Japanese premiere of The Matrix in August 1999.
Hideo Kojima and The Matrix – quick links
What happened to the potential Hideo Kojima-led Matrix video game?
Konami’s former Vice President of Licensing, Christopher Bergstresser, said the Wachowskis met with Kojima along with Konami executive Kasumi Kitaue and fellow developer Aki Saito, to raise the idea of a Matrix video game.
‘The two of them came in with their concept artist and effectively they said to Kojima, “We really want you to do the Matrix game. Can you do that?”‘ Bergstresser said.
The idea was reportedly shot down immediately. At the time, Konami was well into development on Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty and it’s likely the request was declined due to the scale and ambitions of the game.
‘Aki translated this [request] into Japanese for Mr. Kitaue and Kitaue just looked at them and told them plainly, “No.”‘
According to Bergstresser, the team did still get the chance to attend the after party for the premiere of The Matrix, but there was likely some disappointment on the part of the Wachowskis. According to an anonymous former Konami employee, speaking to Time Extension, that might’ve also been shared by Kojima.
Per this source, Kojima continued to ‘show strong interest’ in the idea of developing a Matrix video game and there was reportedly ‘immense’ disappointment among other members of Konami. While unconfirmed, it’s in line with what we know of Kojima’s interest in cinema.
It inspires plenty of thought about what a Kojima-led Matrix video game could have been and how his wildest creative ideas could’ve transformed and expanded the franchise.
Update 30/10: In the wake of this report hitting the internet, Hideo Kojima has come forward to clarify the circumstances described. According to the developer, he was ‘surprised’ by media reports, and claimed nobody had ever told him a conversation had taken place.
‘When I arrived at the headquarters, [The Wachowskis’] meeting with Mr. Kitaue, the head of the CS Division, had just ended,’ Kojima said on X. ‘I joined them afterward, and we chatted for about an hour without an interpreter (Aki wasn’t even there). I think John Gaeta, the visual effects supervisor, was also present … At that time, I was already extremely busy with MGS2 and probably couldn’t have accepted the offer right away. But if someone had told me, maybe there could’ve been a way to make it work.’
A history of The Matrix in video games
Regardless of this obstacle, the Wachowskis plowed ahead with their own plans to bring the world of The Matrix to video games.
Enter the Matrix remains a highly-regarded action-adventure game that was groundbreaking in its time. While its sequel, Path of Neo, was slightly less successful, it remains a solid example of how tie-in media enhanced film properties of the early 2000s.
The Matrix Online was another success for the franchise, delivering an MMORPG that extended the story of The Matrix films and allowed players to become their own cyberpunk hero.
More recently, we also saw The Matrix adapted into a tech demo by Epic Games, with this showing off the vast potential of an open world The Matrix experience.
The Matrix Awakens – Unreal Engine Tech Demo Trailer
With Hideo Kojima now running his own studio – which has an array of major projects including the Death Stranding franchise, horror game OD and stealth-action title Physint – perhaps a return to a Matrix video game isn’t outside the realm of possibility.
For now, it appears to be an idea that simply got away.
Also on ScreenHub: Aussie game Dead Static Drive set to launch on 5 November
After several years in development, the Aussie-made survival-horror adventure Dead Static Drive is set to launch for PC and Xbox Game Pass on 5 November. The highly-anticipated game has been a standout at showcases in recent times, with its cool, creepy vibes inspiring plenty of fervour. While keen folks have been asked to wait patiently, good things take time – and as the old adage goes, good things come to those who wait.
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