OD Game: Everything We Know About Hideo Kojima’s New Horror Game
One of the most exciting moments of The Game Awards 2023 was undoubtedly the official reveal of OD Game, Hideo Kojima’s new horror game for Xbox created in collaboration with director Jordan Peele. On the stage of the event presented by Geoff Keighley, the father of Metal Gear Solid described his new project as a sort of new medium that intends to blur the boundaries between video games and films to create a unique and engaging experience. So, let’s take a look at the first trailer of the game, trying to summarize, thanks to the first details released, everything we know about OD, Hideo Kojima’s new horror game.
OD Game: A Terrifying Experience Halfway Between Video Game and Film!
The first trailer for OD has finally raised the curtain on Hideo Kojima’s rumored new horror project, initially known as “Overdose”. We knew that the author of Death Stranding was collaborating with Xbox to create an innovative cloud-based game and now it is clear that that project corresponds precisely to OD. The video, in itself, does not show anything about the game but emphasizes the creative tools used by Kojima PrODuction to bring this new interactive experience to life. The video, in fact, only shows the versions scanned in digital photogrammetry of the protagonists of the game which promises to offer an advanced technical sector thanks to the advanced tools made available by MetaHuman and Unreal Engine 5 technology.
Let’s Go in Order: What is OD Game?
OD is a video game. It may seem strange to have to specify it, but when it comes to Hideo Kojima nothing is ever obvious. According to Kojima himself, OD will create a unique, immersive, and new style in the way of playing, so much so that it leads him to speak of “a new form of media”. According to the final message of the trailer shown at The Game Awards – “for all the players and screamers” – OD will be a horror film, which, in the words of Kojima Productions, will analyze how the concept of fear is born. The attention to underlining that OD is a video game was reiterated several times by Kojima himself, who declared that “OD is a video game, but also a film; and at the same time a new form of media”; Words also reiterated by Jordan Peele, who is collaborating with Kojima on the creation of OD.
The OD Trailer
Although the trailer shown at The Game Awards doesn’t last long, there are many clues in it regarding what could be the themes covered by Overdose. The trailer shown at The Game Awards shows the 3 actors mentioned above reciting a holoalphabetic sentence, that is, a sentence containing all the letters of the alphabet; which made many think that the game will deal with the topic of artificial intelligence given that this type of sentence is also used to train AI. The characters seem to have to repeat the same phase in different terrifying situations. If the first character repeats the phrase without any problem and without showing any emotion, it is different for the other 2 characters who repeat the phrase showing sensations such as terror and fear, until reaching the last character, younger, who is petrified so as not to be able to utter a word.
Another huge detail of the trailer is in the eyes of the various characters. The first three characters, capable of reciting the phrase despite varying levels of fear, have a series of black dots in their eyes, which in medicine shows that the body contains a high level of toxins. The last character, who cannot utter a word, shows clean eyes. The question related to toxins, eyes, levels of fear, and the title Overdose can open up hundreds of assumptions; however, there isn’t enough detail at the moment to favor one in particular.
A Stellar Cast
The short teaser also reveals the presence of the usual stellar cast which boasts names of the caliber of Sophia Lillis, best known for playing Beverly Marsh in the horror film series It, and Hunter Schafer, known for the role of Jules Vaughn in the TV series Euphoria and Udo Kier, the famous German actor who starred, among other things, in horror films of the caliber of Suspiria (1977). The three actors in the film filmed in close-up obsessively repeat a phrase: ” The hungry purple dinosaur ate the kind and lively fox, the chatty crab, and the crazy whale and began to harass and squawk”. Subsequently, a door is seen reflected in Sophia Lillis’ eyes as it opens with a dark figure attempting to approach amidst the actress’ screams.
It therefore seems clear that the game wants to push for a more psychological and disturbing type of horror. It is no coincidence that the game will also be made in collaboration with Jordan Peele, the director of Get Out and Us, two horror productions that contributed to redefining the genre with original and highly relevant solutions. Speaking on stage at The Game Awards alongside Hideo Kojima, Peele was enthusiastic about participating in the project, describing the game as a unique experience of its kind, capable of terrifying players like never before, reaching new degrees of involvement.
A Cloud-Based Xbox Exclusive!
Only a year ago, Hideo Kojima confirmed the news of the partnership with Xbox Game Studios for the creation of a new game. At the time, the famous Japanese author described his new project as “a concept never seen before”, a cutting-edge experience created only thanks to the possibilities offered by Microsoft’s cloud technology. At the moment, there are no details either on the release period or the reference platforms. The game is produced by Xbox Game Studios, but given the atypical nature of the project, it may be a different form of distribution. We just have to wait for more information on the matter.
OD Game: Release Date And Platforms
The trailer shown by Kojima does not show any date or console; consequently,, we can imagine that the game will take at least 2 years to be published. At the same time, last year’s leak showed a video game in an advanced stage of development, with polygonal models and ready environments; consequently,, it is really complicated to estimate how much time separates us from publication. As for possible upcoming consoles, given the collaboration with Xbox Game Studios, it seems clear that Overdose is unlikely to arrive on PlayStation ; however, the choice to create a game in the cloud and Microsoft’s latest declarations of wanting to bring its games to any screen do not exclude the possibility that even Sony players will be able, in a transversal way, to enjoy the terror offered by Overdose in the future.
