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Before Death Stranding, Kojima made an obscure delivery game for a Microsoft computer
Before Death Stranding became gaming’s most realistic interpretation of an underpaid Amazon delivery courier, creator Hideo Kojima made another game about delivery. No matter how you feel about telepathic infants, being over-encumbered and Mads Mikkelsen, there’s no denying that the works of...
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No matter how you feel about telepathic infants, being over-encumbered and Mads Mikkelsen, there’s no denying that the works of Hideo Kojima are unique. From the over the top espionage of the Metal Gear series to the ominous hype behind Death Stranding, Kojima, for better or for worse, constantly places doubt on the convention of what a video game can be. What players might not be aware of, however, is that this new adventure featuring more walking than your mum with a new Fit-Bit holds resemblance to the eccentric developer’s first-ever title.
Before Kojima creeped out players with Psycho Mantis’ mind games, he worked as a developer with Konami on games for the MSX computer, a hardware standard created by Microsoft that aimed to compete with the likes of Commodore and Atari. It was during this time that Kojima was handed the keys to Metal Gear, a project that he saved using his love of cinema and alternative take on gameplay. Before that, however, Kojima learned the ropes of game design working with a character far removed from the husky, stubbly aesthetic of Solid Snake, in an adventure that involves delivering an item from one place to another. Sound familiar?
An example of just one version of an MSX computer.
For a game from the 8-bit era, Penguin Adventure pushed the boundaries of what could be done with a simple premise. Just like with Death Stranding, a task as simple as delivering an item from one place to another was transformed into an elaborate conquest, with much to consider along the way. Both characters also endure a journey featuring a great deal of struggle, which might sound like a silly comparison to make, but it definitely can’t be easy running that fast when you’re a penguin. Sure, Kojima’s latest game might be far more complicated than just retrieving a golden apple to cure a penguin princess, but many aspects of Penta’s quest act as a similar type of innovation – where Death Stranding throws the conventions of its own genre into question, Penguin Adventure does the same.
Kojima also conceptualised the idea of alternative endings with Penguin Adventure, with good and bad endings being a possibility. Kojima later used this same mechanical form of narrative in Metal Gear Solid 2, which just goes to show how much this zany little project influenced his approach to his development style. That being said, where Penguin Adventure differs is that it isn’t natively Kojima’s idea for a game, but rather an adaptation of the first titles original premise. This is important as it meant that Kojima didn’t have to invent any primary mechanics or concepts, yet it left him plenty of scope for interpretation, even if that does include Penta being able to purchase a gun from a beardy fisherman.
It might be wild to try and compare an 8-bit game about a ridiculously fast penguin to the madness that is Death Stranding. However, it does serve as a good example of how Kojima’s development roots have stayed with him throughout his career. The radical changes made to Penguin Adventure’s depth are similar to how Death Stranding aims to change the very fabric of action games. Adding layers of innovation into a genre can either make or break a game conceptually, but when it sticks, it can completely change the industry as we know it. Whether people love or hate the unconventional approach of Death Stranding, implementing genre-defining mechanics is what keeps the video game industry in motion, for better or for worse.
) and at one weekend , i arrived there to find a crowd formed around of one of the MSX computers.. They where playing Penguin Adventure, sharing tips and tricks (warpholes, secrets) and talking how this was something they never played before... maybe a few months later i saved enough money to buy my own cartridge of it. played it religiously. completed it after many months with the princess saved.... and i cant forget finding out years and years later Hideo was involved.. already a bigtime metal gear fan by then after the PSX release..
