Metal Gear Solid and Death Stranding creator Hideo Kojima has reflected on turning 63 and what he wants to do next, in the years he has left remaining.

Amid birthday congratulaitons from other industry creatives, Kojima reflected upon the passing of time and Kojima Productions' own 10th anniversary celebration, while noting that he would continue to focus on game development despite various other "opportunities."

"As I get older, the things I 'have to do' and the things I 'want to do' continue to increase," Kojima wrote via posts on both his Japanese and English X/Twitter accounts. "At the same time, the time I 'have to do them' continues to decrease. I constantly need to reassess how I use my time and how I live my life."

Still, Kojima said that his main goal will still be making games — and noted that once he took on a project, he needed to see it through to the end. (Was this a reference to his upcoming Xbox horror project OD, which we've not seen more of in a little while?) "While I continue to receive various opportunities and offers, I would like to remain focused on creating games," he continued.

Apparently, Kojima spent his birthday morning listening to Ultravox’s Vienna single on vinyl. His Kojima Productions colleagues, meanwhile, gave him a custom cake featuring a photo of himself, dressed in police uniform. Why? Well, this is an image of Kojima as he appeared in Japanese TV drama Vivant, in which he had a recent cameo

as Tokyo’s police chief. Reportedly, he was digitally aged up for this bit part — as apparently he looked "too young" for the role.

Vivant's director Yohei Miyazaki (who previously guested on Kojima's radio show KOJI10) also

wished

Image credit: Hideo Kojima

Verity Townsend is a Japan-based freelance writer who previously served as editor, contributor and translator for the game news site Automaton West. She has also written about Japanese culture and movies for various publications.