Xbox Secured Kojima's Physint for Substantially Less Than Normal, Possibly Under $200 Million

New Xbox CEO Asha Sharma has secured Hideo Kojima's spy-thriller Physint after Sony terminated its publishing deal with the developer. According to The New York Times, Xbox's agreement with Kojima was "substantially below what Xbox would typically spend to develop a premium game."

The deal's exact value remains unclear, though reports suggest it sits well below industry norms. Game Business reporter Chris Dring, who initially reported a $400 million budget figure for Physint at Sony, later clarified he was speculating. Dring now states Xbox is paying "far, far less," and "possibly even below $200 million." Windows Central's Jez Corden cited sources with "direct knowledge of the contracts" claiming the Xbox deal amounts to only a "fraction" of the reported Sony figure.

Sony dropped Physint after the project reportedly fell over budget and behind schedule. Kojima's previous Sony partnership, Death Stranding, barely broke even commercially. Xbox's deal with Kojima covers not only the game but film and TV adaptations as well.

Physint stars Bill Skarsgard, Charlee Fraser, Don Lee, and Minami Hamabe. The game has no release date or footage available yet. Kojima has said the project could become his most commercial game to date, inspired partly by fan demand for a new Metal Gear experience. Since leaving Konami, he cannot develop Metal Gear directly, but that fan interest led him to create the new action espionage title instead.

Xbox is also publishing Kojima's horror game OD alongside Physint. CEO Sharma emphasized that competition and collaboration between Xbox and PlayStation can coexist, with the two companies continuing to work together.