Hideo Kojima has moved on from Metal Gear Solid, but he’s getting back into the action-espionage space with Physint, a mysterious stealth game slated for a release exclusively on PlayStation. Physint is only one of several new IP from Kojima Productions since it became independent of Konami, having previously released the two Death Stranding games, and currently at work on OD for Xbox.
With Kojima at the helm, it’s no surprise that Physint has inspired a great deal of hype from gamers the world over. Virtually nothing has been revealed about the game aside from its genre trappings, though the small intel pool has recently grown thanks to Physint‘s first official poster, unveiled at Kojima’s Beyond the Strand anniversary event. The poster depicts a man clad in dark, technical apparel, holding a submachine gun in one hand, an urban or industrial setting, and the tagline “Here Comes the Feeling.” It also confirms that Physint is just a working title, and will almost certainly be changed ahead of launch. On the surface, it’s certainly an aesthetically appealing, compelling image, but it has more meat on its bones than one might first assume.
Breaking Down Physint's New Poster
Physint's Protagonist and Setting
The skyscrapers in the background suggest that Physint will take place, at least in part, within an urban environment, as opposed to the more untamed settings of games like MGS5 and MGS3. Additionally, the poster’s subject, who is presumably Physint‘s protagonist, is wearing what appears to be a high-collared trench coat—a far cry from the slick, minimalist sneaking gear of Solid Snake. This indicates that there may be elements of social stealth ala Assassin’s Creed, with the game prompting players to don less conspicuous attire in order to blend in with civilians.
Fans have theorized that the man on Physint‘s poster is Robert Pattinson, due to the shape of his face and the fact that Kojima has alluded to secretive conversations with the actor in the past. This has been neither confirmed nor denied by any relevant parties, at the time of writing.
Even the character’s clothing may not be as straightforward as it first appears. On the right side of his body, his coat appears to fade away, revealing a much more tactical, military-esque outfit: it’s tighter-fitting, and has pouches for ammo and the like. This could be gesturing toward a sort of active camo for social stealth operations, one that projects a hologram of more casual apparel. Alternatively, this could simply be an artistic choice to convey the duality of the character’s operations. Either way, the “splitting” of the outfit in this way seems to indicate that Physint will have players wearing both tactical and civilian attire, which could say a lot about its stealth gameplay.
What Does 'Physint' Even Mean?
As previously mentioned, Physint is only a working title, but that doesn’t mean that it’s irrelevant to the game’s plot or themes. “Physint” isn’t a real word, though it appears to be a portmanteau of the words “physical” and “intelligence,” which could mean any number of things. Perhaps this combination of words is in reference to which traits the protagonist will need to exercise to complete his mission, or maybe it refers to some broader aspect of Physint‘s worldbuilding. The tagline “Here Comes the Feeling” seems to suggest that sensation will play a significant role in either gameplay or narrative, but the working title hints that these sensations may be more than just physical.
One particularly interesting element of the Physint poster is the presentation of the title itself. It appears to be broken into three sections:
- PH
- Y
- SINT
Like the jacket, this could simply be a stylistic choice, or it could be some sort of message. Something that stands out is the fact that the letter “Y” is alone here: perhaps the Y is meant to signify a fork in the road, a bifurcation or splitting of man’s body and mind. Ph is how the acidity of a substance is measured, while “sint” is the Norwegian word for angry, though it’s hard to say whether these word segments actually carry any concrete or relevant meaning. When more information is revealed about Physint, this compartmentalization could make more sense.