Hideo Kojima Offers Rare Glimpse Into His Complicated Health History — Detail

You can really tell a lot about a person based on their introduction to Hideo Kojima. He is much more than a groundbreaking video game designer, though that's how many people first got to know him. The year was 1987 and Hideo took over the design of a game called Metal Gear. It may not seem like much, but he changed the trajectory of gaming by changing the purpose of the game itself. Instead of focusing on fighting, Metal Gear became about surviving. America got a taste the following year.

This seemingly banal choice changed Hideo's life forever. He went on to design more Metal Gear games, including most people's favorite: Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater. Hideo's games later took on a cinematic quality and were directly inspired by films he loved. It makes sense that the technological genius would seamlessly shift into films. Throughout his career, Hideo has been somewhat private, inviting very few into his inner circle. He is also protective of his health. Here's what we know.

In a lengthy interview with GQ from June 2025, Hideo gave us a rare look into the man behind the Metal Gear creator. Weeks away from the release of Death Stranding 2, the designer is thinking about a lot of things, including his health. In 2020, he was nearing the age of 60 and like many people throughout the world, Hideo got COVID. "I thought that I could never recover,” he said. "I felt like I might not ever be able to create a game again."

Hideo revealed that in those moments, he finally understood why people die by suicide. For him, it was the "end of the world." While battling COVID, Hideo started suffering from severe eye pain. It got so bad that he couldn't leave the house. He usually watches at least one film a day but he found himself unable to look at a television. Desperate for relief, he chose to have eye surgery, but it damaged his optical muscle, which is the part of the eye responsible for focusing.

He was assured by his doctor that eventually his brain would adjust, but Hideo was unconvinced. The iconic game designer told GQ that he was almost entirely recovered, but still has some lingering trauma from the experience. Hideo thinks about what it would be like if his consciousness could be uploaded to AI. "Maybe I might find a vampire in Romania or something," he said smiling. "They bite me, I become one."

When asked about what Kojima Productions might look like after his death, Hideo said he is not going to pass the baton. "I will rather crush the baton," he said while laughing. "I don’t need to give 'Hideo Kojima' to anyone." The beloved designer is of the mind that if he instructs his predecessors to create the same kind of art he did, it would fail miserably.

Hideo prefers to traffic in inspiration versus copying. He explained that on an almost daily basis, some actor or director will let him know they became a "creator" because of his games. There was no baton passing but rather, a fire being lit from his flame. "And they’ll probably give that to someone else," he said.