Kojima explains what open-world means to Metal Gear Solid V

Metal Gear Solid creator Hideo Kojima has explained what exactly "open-world" means to Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, the first open-world game in the series.

"I think the term 'open-world' has taken on a life of its own and caused misunderstandings," Kojima said in an interview with Famitsu (via Polygon). "Of course it's not going to be a game where Snake fishes all day or changes jobs and pursues a different life."

Kojima explained while players will be able to freely explore the Metal Gear Solid V gameworld, there will be some semblance of direction.

"The game map is an open world and you have freedom in that way, but in MGS5, it's clear what you're doing," Kojima said. "That may be 'I have to help someone' or 'Destroy this thing' or 'Go gather intelligence at this spot'. Some missions will have time limits, too."

The Kojima Productions studio head further explained that an open-world Metal Gear Solid game has been overdue.

"With MGS up to now, we could only build the interior of wherever you were infiltrating. How you got there was shown in a cutscene, and the player would just suddenly be in front of the entrance," Kojima said. "Once you finished the mission, there'd be another cutscene, a helicopter or whatever would come by, and you'd escape."

"It's not that linear games are bad [...] but really, it'd be fun if you were the one thinking about how and where to infiltrate, what sort of equipment to bring, and how to get out of there," he added.

Also in the Famitsu interview, Kojima said open-world games represent the future of video games.

"I feel that games are interactive media, and the rush comes in being able to use what you're given freely to play," he said. "Open worlds create that for you, and I think the future of gaming lies in them."

Before Grand Theft Auto V was released in September, Kojima said he was "depressed" by Rockstar Games' open-world game because he did not think Metal Gear Solid V could match it.

Metal Gear Solid V is currently in development for Xbox 360, Xbox One, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, and PC. No release date has been set yet.