UPDATE 9/11/26: Bloomberg reports Sony dropped the game over budget overruns, missed deadlines, and Death Stranding’s sales. Read it here: Death Stranding Didn’t Make Sony Enough Money: Why PlayStation Dropped PHYSINT
Hideo Kojima’s PHYSINT is alive, and it’s an Xbox game now.
Kojima Productions and Xbox announced the deal on September 9, with Xbox stepping in to publish the action-espionage title three months after PlayStation Studios canceled it.
The news also lands while Sony is still catching heat from its own fans over killing physical discs.
PlayStation Canceled PHYSINT In June
Kojima confirmed the timeline himself on X.
“As confirmed earlier through our official channels, in mid-June of this year, we unexpectedly received notice from PlayStation Studios that they would cancel the PHYSINT project,” he wrote.
“Determined to keep the project alive, we have spent the last three months searching tirelessly for a new partner,” Kojima continued. “We found in XBOX a partner with whom we share a common vision for the future, and we have decided to team up with them once again.”
PHYSINT was announced at PlayStation’s State of Play in January 2024 as Kojima’s return to the action-espionage genre, the lane Metal Gear Solid built.
It now joins OD, the horror project with Jordan Peele, at Xbox. Both of Kojima’s games in development are Xbox titles.
“Creators have choices about where and how they bring their ideas to life. We’re honored that Kojima-san has chosen XBOX to work with KOJIMA PRODUCTIONS on PHYSINT,” said Xbox CEO Asha Sharma.
The deal goes past games. Xbox says the partnership will also cover film and television projects “to bring new stories to broader audiences.”
Xbox added on X: “We started with OD. Now, our partnership with KOJIMA PRODUCTIONS is expanding to PHYSINT. We’re just getting started.”
Xbox Keeps Courting The Fans Sony Keeps Angering
Sony announced in July that it is ending physical disc production for new PlayStation games in January 2028, replacing discs with download codes in boxes.
A petition to reverse the decision passed 172,000 signatures in six days. Fans organized boycotts, including a planned one-week PlayStation blackout.
Sony’s answer came on its July 31 earnings call. CFO Lin Tao said the company is “going to cautiously move this forward” and that the backlash has had no impact on sales.
On September 1, Sony Japan rolled out a new customer harassment policy, warning it will cut off support over abusive complaints tied to the disc decision.
Xbox has spent the same stretch working the other side. In August, Xbox began testing a program that lets players insert a disc and claim a digital copy tied to their account.
The disc anger follows PlayStation everywhere right now. Even the launch trailer for Marvel’s Wolverine got flooded with physical disc comments.
Kojima built his name on PlayStation. Metal Gear Solid, Death Stranding, decades of it.
Now his next two games are at Xbox, along with whatever he and Xbox make for film and TV.
Sony spent the summer saying the digital future is happening no matter what. Xbox spent it testing a disc-to-digital program and signing Hideo Kojima.
Related: “It’s Time to Sue Sony”: Stop Killing Games Backs PlayStation Monopoly Lawsuit
