Metal Gear Solid 5 may be "open-world" but it has a clear path, says Kojima

Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain creator Hideo Kojima has said while the game is "open-world", don't expect Snake to "fish all day or change jobs and pursue a different life."

Speaking in the latest issue of Famitsu, via Polygon, Kojima said the term open-world has "taken on a life of its own and caused misunderstandings," when it comes to MGS5.

"The game map is an open world and you have freedom in that way, but in MGS5, it's clear what you're doing," said Kojima. "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

"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. 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. I think the way that MGS is combined with an open world here is something that we haven't really communicated very well yet.

"In particular, with this game, we're building the control system and working the visual expressions for a global market to meet the needs of the North American market; that may have an impact on things too. But once you try it out, you should be able to feel like 'Yes, this is MGS.'

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

Metal Gear Solid 5 is in development for PC, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One.