Hideo Kojima didn't actually respond to Death Stranding 2 fan feedback by "deliberately" making it weirder, he only made it "more playable and fun"

Before Death Stranding 2: On the Beach hit store shelves, co-composer Woodkid said that director Hideo Kojima, ever the unconventional creator, went back and made the game weirder in response to early player feedback that was apparently "too good." Kojima himself has now clarified that's not quite how development went. In fact, Kojima made the still-odd sequel even "more playable" after focus testing.

Speaking to The Washington Post, the Metal Gear Solid creator set the record straight and said "the nuance of what Woodkid said didn't really go through." According to Kojima, he didn't "really deliberately make [Death Stranding 2] weird or anything" - that's just a side effect of, well, this being a Hideo Kojima game.

"What I said was it can't be a game that is digestible," he explained. "Something that is not digestible stays in that person for a long time. So that's what I meant by, 'I want to do things differently.'"

The reality of development, according to Kojima, was quite the opposite as the famed director and writer said he actually "changed the game accordingly [after focus tests] to make it more playable and fun to the users." Kojima toning down his eccentric sensibilities? Color me surprised.

Elsewhere in Kojima Land, the creator recently hyped up next week's 10th anniversary event for his studio Kojima Productions, calling it more of a gathering for "the 'connections' we’ve built together with all the 'Sam-ones' and everyone involved."

Hideo Kojima reveals secret Death Stranding 2 cutscene was only half of the motion capture shoot, which ended with him surprising Elle Fanning with a cake on her actual birthday