Kojima is definitely paying close attention to social media regarding Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes. He has tweeted a response to criticism that the game can be cleared in as short as 2 hours.
Kojima’s statement is in English, but as we know from the Quiet incident, these statements can still be easily misunderstood. For the purposes of clarity, we have adapted his statement for better clarity below:
Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes includes the main mission, alongside 5 Side Ops missions. All missions include elements such as “Trial Records”, where players can compete against each other online.
This is not a linear game like past Metal Gear Solid games. Ground Zeroes offers freedom in how you approach the game and what playstyle you use. We hope players will enjoy playing it over and over without finding it boring.
I believe people will be satisfied with the playtime of Ground Zeroes, and they will not worry about the clear time, which is the standard for linear games.
So there you go, the game is meant to be nonlinear in the same way that Saints Row and Grand Theft Auto are nonlinear. Of course, those games offer more than 2 hours in the main story mode as well, so it’s not a fully satisfying statement either. What do you think of Kojima’s reply?