Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker Is A “Next-Gen Game On A Portable Device”

We already know Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker was designed as a) "Metal Gear Solid 5," and b) a T-rated game. Earlier today, Hideo Kojima reinforced both points on his Twitter feed. According to Kojima, Peace Walker started out as a PSP game, but eventually evolved into a "next-gen game on a portable device."

"Our goal was to create a traditional MGS game for PSP in the beginning. How do we translate it over on the PSP…but once we started the planning the direction slowly shifted toward a "MGS that evolves on a handheld." We did not think about the low specs, moreover we decided to make a Next-Gen game on a portable device."

He then noted that, although changes were made to the game’s systems and characters, the development team made sure not to stray from the "core" of Metal Gear. Also, since the game is aimed at a broader audience than MGS4, some design choices were based on the preferences of younger players.

"We studied what young people liked and without changing the MGS world, added different elements for gameplay. System, characters, story, voice acting, etc. We just made the entrance into the MGS world bigger without changing the core. A product with a serious story along with a strong message."

It’s interesting that Peace Walker was originally going to be Metal Gear Solid 5 on a portable platform, but that Konami decided to strip the "5" out of the title. Was it so that people wouldn’t turn their noses up at Metal Gear Solid: Rising on the Xbox 360, or were they afraid to give fans the impression that Peace Walker was the new direction for the franchise?