Kojima feared studio collapse after Sony cut Physint funding in June

In his first exclusive interview since PlayStation walked away from Physint, Hideo Kojima told IGN that Sony Interactive Entertainment ended funding for the action-espionage project on a June Zoom call — leaving him so stunned his “mind went blank.” Kojima said Kojima Productions is project-funded as an indie, so losing Physint risked cashflow, bank loans, and ~200 staff (some moved temporarily to OD). He kept the news to a tiny circle at first, then told Physint leads he would find a new partner — and that he “didn’t want to do the same thing we did for P.T.” He pitched Xbox on a broader IP vision (game, film, anime, comics, music), not just a funded title; Xbox snapped it up. Work never fully stopped; engine choice still undecided. Whether Physint ships on PlayStation is “a question for Xbox.” A Kojima Productions statement (also covered by VGC) urges skepticism toward an unnamed report’s claims on Death Stranding performance and Physint planning: none came from official on-the-record sources. The studio says it is “healthy, profitable,” Physint continues with Xbox, and its PlayStation relationship “remains strong.” Sources: https://nordic.ign.com/hideo-kojima-xbox-project/113093/hideo-kojima-reveals-what-happened-with-sony-in-exclusive-first-interview-since-playstation-ditched https://www.videogameschronicle.com/news/kojima-productions-asks-players-to-treat-report-on-why-it-switched-from-playstation-to-xbox-with-a-dose-of-scepticism/ Does Sony’s silent June cut change how you see Physint’s Xbox reboot? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NzzdyORdg80