# A Hideo Kojima Game > A Hideo Kojima Game is a 2015 protest meme originating when Konami removed Hideo Kojima's directorial credit from Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, with fans flooding Steam reviews, tweets, and retail displays to reclaim the phrase. "A Hideo Kojima Game" is a branding tagline that appeared on the box art and title screens of games directed by Hideo Kojima, most notably the Metal Gear Solid series. When publisher Konami stripped the credit from Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain in March 2015 amid a high-profile split with Kojima, fans turned the five words into a protest meme. The phrase flooded Steam reviews, trended on Twitter, and even got hand-written onto Australian retail displays by defiant store employees. ## Origin On March 19, 2015, users on Reddit and NeoGAF noticed that Konami had quietly removed Hideo Kojima from its executive officer list and scrubbed his branding from the company's Metal Gear Solid website[4]. The "A Hideo Kojima Game" tagline was gone from promotional images for Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain and Ground Zeroes, along with the Kojima Productions logo[2]. Konami had also renamed Kojima Productions Los Angeles to "Konami Los Angeles Studio" and folded the studio's Twitter account into a generic Metal Gear feed[1]. Multiple gaming outlets reported on the changes the same day. Eurogamer noted that Kojima no longer appeared on Konami's latest list of corporate officers, effective April 1[2]. Konami issued a carefully worded statement: "Konami Digital Entertainment, including Mr. Kojima, will continue to develop and support Metal Gear products"[1]. A follow-up attributed the changes to a shift toward "a headquarters-controlled system"[2]. Kojima himself stayed quiet. On March 16, the day the restructuring took effect, he had tweeted a photo of Metal Gear Solid V with the caption "heading off"[1]. An anonymous source told GameSpot that a power struggle had led to senior staff at Kojima Productions having their corporate communications and internet access restricted[3]. On July 14, 2015, NeoGAF user Love Deterrence posted the final retail box art for Metal Gear Solid V, confirming Kojima's branding had been completely removed from the finished product[5]. - **Platform:** NeoGAF / Reddit (discovery), Twitter / Steam (viral spread) - **Creator:** Hideo Kojima (branding creator), Jasmin Lee (viral JB Hi-Fi campaign photo) - **Date:** 2015 ## Overview "A Hideo Kojima Game" originally functioned as an auteur credit, similar to how film directors stamp their names above their work. It appeared on loading screens, box covers, and title sequences across Kojima-directed titles from Metal Gear Solid onward. The five words were so closely tied to the franchise that removing them felt like erasing an artist's signature from their own painting. The meme version took off when Konami tried to scrub the tagline from Metal Gear Solid V in 2015. Fans weaponized the phrase, repeating it everywhere Konami couldn't delete it: Steam comments, hashtags, review sections, and physical store shelves. What started as corporate branding became a fan-driven protest chant. ## How It Spread The hashtag #AHideoKojimaGame launched on Twitter and Tumblr as fans rallied behind Kojima, spreading across 4chan and Steam discussion boards[5]. The most visible act of fan rebellion came on August 19, 2015. JB Hi-Fi, an Australian electronics retailer, began adding Kojima's credit to their Metal Gear Solid V store displays across the country[7]. JB employee Jasmin Lee tweeted a photo from the Chatswood Westfield location with the caption "YER take that Konami," and Kojima himself retweeted it[6]. The tweet picked up over 400 favorites and 350 retweets, and the story was covered by Kotaku, Polygon, IGN, and Metro[7][11][12]. Kotaku noted it was not just one rogue store but shops throughout Australia joining the cause[7]. When Metal Gear Solid V launched on September 1, 2015, the protest moved to Steam reviews. Users inserted "A Hideo Kojima Game" into their write-ups regardless of whether they recommended the game or not. Some stuck the phrase at the end of earnest critiques. Others submitted reviews consisting of nothing but the tagline. Even negative reviews conceded the point: this was a Hideo Kojima game[8]. ## How to Use The meme typically takes a few forms: 1. **Protest attribution:** Attach "A Hideo Kojima Game" to any mention of Metal Gear Solid V or Kojima titles where Konami stripped the credit. Sometimes applied to Konami products in general. 2. **Ironic auteur credit:** Label any random thing, from a home-cooked meal to a work spreadsheet, as "A Hideo Kojima Game" to mock self-important branding or to give something an air of dramatic weight. 3. **Steam review tradition:** Include the phrase in a game review regardless of the game being reviewed, as a callback to the 2015 protest reviews. 4. **Image overlay:** Photoshop the tagline onto box art, screenshots, or real-world photos where it clearly doesn't belong. ## Cultural Impact The Konami-Kojima split became one of 2015's biggest gaming industry stories and raised serious questions about creator credit in an industry where publishers typically own the IP[1][2][3]. The meme gave ordinary fans a visible, participatory way to push back against a corporate decision. The JB Hi-Fi campaign showed how internet sentiment could spill into physical retail spaces. When outlets like Polygon and IGN covered a store employee's tweet about handwritten signs, it blurred the line between grassroots fan protest and legitimate news[6][11]. Metro called the controversy part of a broader pattern of Konami self-inflicted damage that included cancelling Silent Hills and pivoting to mobile games[12]. Kojima's departure and successful independent career gave the meme a triumphant arc. Death Stranding's 2019 release, proudly branded as a Kojima Productions title, read as vindication for the fans who had spent years insisting the five words mattered[9][13]. ## Fun Facts - Kojima's cryptic "heading off" tweet was posted on March 16, 2015, the exact day Konami's corporate restructuring took effect[1]. - IGN speculated that the removal of Kojima's name from the box art may have been foreshadowed by Kojima himself in a Ground Zeroes mission[11]. - Kojima defines "A Hideo Kojima Game" as covering at least twelve distinct roles including concept, story, script, game design, casting, directing, and merchandise oversight[9]. - In his 2021 book *The Creative Gene*, Kojima uses the word "memes" in its original Richard Dawkins sense of transmissible cultural ideas, not viral internet images[10]. - The Kojima Productions website was redirected to Konami's Metal Gear portal site as part of the March 2015 restructuring[4]. ## Frequently Asked Questions ### What is "A Hideo Kojima Game"? It's a branding tagline that appeared on box art and title screens of games directed by Hideo Kojima. It became a protest meme in 2015 when Konami removed the credit from Metal Gear Solid V[1]. ### Where did the "A Hideo Kojima Game" meme come from? Users on Reddit and NeoGAF discovered in March 2015 that Konami had stripped Kojima's name and branding from all Metal Gear Solid V promotional materials, sparking the meme[4]. ### What does "A Hideo Kojima Game" mean? As a branding credit, it signified Kojima's personal involvement in a game's concept, direction, script, and design[9]. As a meme, it became a protest phrase reasserting Kojima's authorship after Konami tried to erase his connection to Metal Gear Solid V. ### How do you use the "A Hideo Kojima Game" meme? People typically insert the phrase into Steam reviews, overlay it on images, or attach it to unrelated content as an ironic auteur credit[8]. ### Is "A Hideo Kojima Game" still popular? It's a classic gaming meme. Its peak activity was during the 2015 Konami split, but it resurfaces whenever Kojima releases new titles or when publisher-developer credit disputes make news. ### Why did Konami remove Kojima's name from Metal Gear Solid V? Konami said it was shifting to "a headquarters-controlled system" as part of corporate restructuring[2]. Anonymous sources pointed to a power struggle between Kojima Productions and Konami's corporate leadership, with senior staff having their communications restricted[3]. ### What did Kojima say about his own branding? In September 2019, Kojima tweeted that the label covered his work on concept, production, story, script, game design, casting, directing, and more. The tweet drew criticism from some industry figures who felt it minimized team contributions[9]. ### What happened at JB Hi-Fi in Australia? In August 2015, employees at JB Hi-Fi hand-wrote "A Hideo Kojima Game" on store displays for Metal Gear Solid V across multiple locations. Kojima retweeted a photo from one store, making it go viral[6][7]. ### How did Steam reviews play into the meme? When Metal Gear Solid V launched on September 1, 2015, users flooded the review section with the phrase. It appeared in positive reviews, negative reviews, and standalone posts as a form of protest[8]. ### Did Kojima actually leave Konami? Yes. Kojima re-established Kojima Productions as an independent studio in December 2015 and partnered with Sony to develop Death Stranding, which launched in November 2019[13]. ## References 1. [Konami removes Kojima name from Metal Gear games, Kojima rumored to leave (update)]() 2. [Retailer reminds us that Metal Gear Solid 5 is, in fact, a Hideo Kojima game]() 3. [Sci-Fi, Tragedy and Memes: Hideo Kojima's Book Gives Poignant Insight Into His Mind]() 4. [A Hideo Kojima Game - Know Your Meme]() 5. [Hideo Kojima]() 6. [A Hideo Kojima Game - Urban Dictionary]() 7. [Hideo Kojima Explains The Concept of "A Hideo Kojima Game" and Faces Backlash]() 8. [Kojima name vanishes from Metal Gear Solid 5 materials [Updated] | PC Gamer]() 9. [Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc.| METAL GEAR SOLID]() 10. [Steam :: METAL GEAR SOLID V: THE PHANTOM PAIN :: MGSV PC Launch Date Sep 1st]() 11. [Australian Retailer Sticks It To Konami - Kotaku]() 12. [Why People Think Hideo Kojima Is No Longer At Konami - Kotaku]() 13. [Hideo Kojima's name removed from Metal Gear Solid 5 branding | Eurogamer.net]() 14. [Hideo Kojima's Metal Gear Solid V credit put back by Australian shop | Metro News]() 15. [Australian Store Adds Kojima's Name Back to Metal Gear Solid 5 - IGN]() 16. [Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, As Told by Steam Reviews - Kotaku]() 17. [Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc.| METAL GEAR SOLID]() 18. [#ahideokojimagame | Tumblr]() --- Source: https://meme.com/memes/a-hideo-kojima-game Published by meme.com — The Internet Meme Library