Metal Gear Survive is now out in the wild, and by most accounts, it doesn’t hold a candle to the games directed by long-time Konami developer Hideo Kojima. Kojima was forced out of the company shortly after the release of Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, but some current Konami employees haven’t forgotten him, and they’ve included a tribute in Metal Gear Survive.
At the beginning of the game, several mercenaries’ names are visible on a clipboard, including your own character near the middle. If you look directly above that name, you’ll see the last initials of the next three characters spell out “KJP.” Underneath your name, the next seven spell out the word “forever.”
The last two names on the list are “Bastard Yota” and “Cunning Yuji,” referring to director Yota Tsutsumizaki and producer Yuji Korekado. Presumably, they’re the two responsible for the Easter egg.
“KJP” is an obvious reference to Kojima Productions, the studio responsible for making the Metal Gear series before Kojima left Konami. A new studio with the same name has since opened, and is now partnered with Sony to develop the PlayStation 4 game Death Stranding. A number of former Konami employees, including character designers and artists, have also joined Kojima Productions.
Metal Gear Survive has attracted negative attention ever since it was first announced, and the game didn’t manage to make much of an impact on the sales charts. In the United Kingdom, the retail version of the game debuted in sixth place, with first-week sales down 85 percent compared to 2013’s Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance.
The game’s use of an always-online connection and microtransactions haven’t helped its case. If you wish to have a second character without deleting your original one first, you’ll have to spend 1,000 “Survival Coins.” This currency is purchased with real money, and buying enough to unlock the character slot will set you back $10. The game itself is below full retail price, selling for $40.
Metal Gear Survive is available for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC. On a standard Xbox One console, performance issues have been reported, and some framerate issues also remain when played on the Xbox One X.
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