Hideo Kojima’s PHYSINT Moves to Xbox After PlayStation Steps Away From the Project

One of gaming’s most surprising publishing changes of the year has just happened.

Xbox and Kojima Productions are expanding their partnership to include PHYSINT, Hideo Kojima’s upcoming action espionage project that was previously being developed in collaboration with Sony Interactive Entertainment.

Xbox announced the move on September 9, confirming that its relationship with Kojima Productions will now extend beyond the upcoming horror game OD and into PHYSINT.

At roughly the same time, PlayStation confirmed that it had made the decision to step away from its collaboration with Kojima Productions on the project. Sony stressed that it still has strong respect for Kojima and expects its relationship with his studio to continue in other ways.

PHYSINT itself, however, is not being cancelled.

Kojima Says PHYSINT Is Still Moving Forward

The publishing shake up raised an obvious question for anyone following the project: what happens to PHYSINT now?

According to Kojima, development will continue.

Xbox CEO Asha Sharma said the company is honored that Kojima chose Xbox to work with Kojima Productions on PHYSINT, describing his willingness to challenge conventions as the kind of creativity Xbox wants to support.

Kojima also confirmed that the move expands his studio’s relationship with Xbox beyond OD.

“As we move forward with the development of PHYSINT, we remain committed to redefining the action espionage genre for players around the world,” Kojima said in Xbox’s official announcement.

Kojima later explained that his studio had spent months searching for a new partner after Sony informed the company that it was stepping away from the project. Xbox ultimately emerged as the new partner for the game.

A Major Change for a Game Originally Connected to PlayStation

PHYSINT was originally announced in 2024 as a new action espionage game being created by Kojima Productions in cooperation with Sony.

That partnership immediately attracted attention because Kojima is one of the creators most closely associated with the stealth and espionage genre through his work on Metal Gear.

The new arrangement represents a major shift for the project.

Xbox Game Studios is now set to publish PHYSINT, while Sony Interactive Entertainment is no longer involved in the project.

However, there is one detail players should be careful with.

Xbox and Kojima Productions have not announced PHYSINT’s platforms or release date. That means it would be premature to call the game an Xbox console exclusive until the companies officially confirm where it will launch.

Xbox and Kojima Productions Are Getting Even Closer

The deal is bigger than a single game.

Xbox confirmed that its relationship with Kojima Productions will also expand into film and television, with the companies planning to collaborate on stories outside traditional games.

That gives Xbox two major Kojima Productions projects under its growing relationship with the studio: OD and now PHYSINT.

OD remains Kojima Productions’ experimental horror project being developed with Xbox, while PHYSINT is positioned as a return to the action espionage genre that Kojima helped define during his career.

The combination gives Microsoft a considerably deeper relationship with one of gaming’s most recognizable creators.

What Happens Next?

For now, PHYSINT remains a project with far more questions than answers.

No release window has been announced, no confirmed platform list has been revealed, and detailed gameplay has not yet been shown.

What has changed is the company helping bring the project to market.

PlayStation is out, Xbox is in, and Kojima Productions says PHYSINT remains in active development.

For a game designed to revive Kojima’s particular flavor of espionage action, its journey to release has already picked up a plot twist of its own.