Physint, Hideo Kojima’s spy-action follow-up to his Metal Gear work, still doesn’t run on a decided game engine. Kojima has confirmed he hasn’t locked in the technology that will power the project, calling the whole thing a work in progress after PlayStation walked away from funding it and Xbox stepped in as publisher.
Quick answer: No engine has been chosen for Physint. Kojima says he is still “experimenting,” and the Decima engine used for Death Stranding is widely expected to be off the table.
What Kojima said about Physint’s engine
Asked directly whether Physint would use Decima, the engine behind Death Stranding and its sequel, Kojima said he “hadn’t really decided” and is still testing options. He tied that indecision to the studio’s new relationship with Xbox, which he says has opened the door to fresh technology.
Our Xbox partnership includes a promise of extensive technical support. While visiting during Don Mattrick’s tenure, I saw numerous labs filled with experiments involving advanced, genuinely new, cutting-edge technology. I want to put to use anything that can help, though I still haven’t chosen the engine.
The short version: is that the engine question is genuinely open. Kojima wants to pull in whatever Xbox can provide, and nothing about the underlying tech is settled.
Why Decima is probably out
Decima is developed by Guerrilla Games, a studio owned by Sony. With PlayStation no longer funding Physint, continuing to build the game on Sony-owned technology would be awkward at best. Kojima notably sidestepped naming Decima when the question came up, which lines up with the expectation that the engine stays a PlayStation asset.
Kojima has been clear that his relationship with Sony remains cordial, but a shared engine is a different matter from a friendly parting. The reasonable read is that Decima was likely the original plan before Sony exited, and the change in publisher forced a rethink.
Unreal Engine 5 is the obvious candidate
Kojima Productions already has hands-on Unreal Engine 5 experience through OD, the horror project made with Jordan Peele that runs on Unreal. A large chunk of staff was reassigned to OD, meaning the team has been building fluency with that toolset.
There’s another signal pointing the same way. Physint’s actor scanning is tied to 3Lateral’s studio in Novi Sad, Serbia, which is owned by Epic Games. That relationship makes Epic’s MetaHuman facial technology far easier to use, and the 3Lateral logo has appeared on Physint’s promotional material. None of this is a confirmation, but Unreal Engine 5 is the most likely destination given the studio’s current pipeline.
Where Physint actually stands right now
The missing engine tells you a lot about how early this game really is. Physint is not in full production. Kojima has done the creative groundwork, and the technical build is only just beginning.
- Plot and game concept are written, with full storyboards ready.
- The team has started creating 3D models.
- Cast members are being scanned, including newly confirmed lead Bill Skarsgård.
- No engine, gameplay, or working build exists yet.
The cast is unusually stacked for a project this early. Bill Skarsgård leads, joined by Charlee Fraser, Ma Dong-seok (Don Lee), and Minami Hamabe. Kojima has called Physint the “biggest selling title” he could create, and he has framed it as the culmination of his career.
Kojima has previously placed Physint as roughly five to six years from release, and the publisher upheaval makes a long timeline even more likely. Treat any near-term expectations with caution.
The Sony-to-Xbox shift behind it all
Physint was announced in January 2024 as a partnership between Kojima Productions and PlayStation, a continuation of the collaboration that produced the Death Stranding games. Sony pulled its funding in June 2026, and Xbox Game Studios was later named as the new publisher that September.
Kojima has said he was informed of Sony’s decision on a Zoom call and never given a formal reason. He has repeatedly stressed that he “loves” Sony and that the studio’s relationship with the platform holder stays strong. Whether Physint ever reaches PlayStation hardware is now a question he defers to Xbox rather than answering himself.
For now, the game is listed for PC and Xbox Series X and S, with no release window. The engine decision is one of the biggest technical calls left, and until it’s made, everything downstream of it stays in flux.
