Is Hideo Kojima the most overrated video game storyteller out there?

[Chazore]

JackHandy said:

JuliusHackebeil said:

I was expecting this sort of comment earlier. Now I think we should not dismiss intelligent gamers who get it and don't like it as much as we should not dismiss gamers who don't get what Kojima is trying to say (with mgs for example) and still think it is just cool shit.

But I would be curious to hear what you appreciate and get out of Kojima games, since quite a few comments in this thread (mine included) were rather negative.

Kojima's games are brilliant because they are to gaming what Hemingway's novels are to literature. He utilized the iceberg theory, whereby there's the main, easily-digestible (and quite good in its own right) story and game and also things happening underneath which reflect the game's real story. And while some might disagree with that sub-level stuff, it's hard to deny its brilliance... especially considering how deep and thought-provoking the subject matter is. 

Of course, again, the risk you run is a lot of people walking away wondering, what was that? But as an artist myself, I think it was worth it. After all, those first MGS titles are some of the highest-reviewed, and critically-acclaimed games of all time.

Oh, and they also sold well.

As a former artist (wishing to draw again someday), I feel like there is no artist out there who is flawless and perfect, everyone has their flaws and I strongly feel that Kojima is not without his flaws.

You say he is underrated, but I disagree and think that he is fine with his storytelling, but that he suffers from injecting pieces into his stories that really didn't need to be there, or were made for fan service (which to some normie folk can be distracting and immersion breaking, and that is fine to think that, even if said normies aren't artists, you don't need to draw to be able to notice this).

I also feel like his reliance of celeb connections is something that gets in the way of him wanting to tell a story, because usually artists wish to tell their own stories, not "oh I need curt Russel to star in this or my story will never be epic" (because let's be honest, that's Kojima's inner fanboy coming out, and I see this as a common trope amongst my artists friends who wish to collab with other artists).