Back in 2015, we watched the drama between Hideo Kojima and Konami begin to unfold and it appears as though Kojima has yet to escape the wrath of Konami. This time, it's not just Kojima that Konami has spurned, but everyone who worked with him at Konami and the folks who work with him at his new studio.
According to Nikkei (via Kotaku), Konami sent Kojima a letter last year claiming that he has been "unfairly sullying the reputation of our [Konami] company.” Since then, Konami has been making things difficult for Kojima's new game studio, Kojima Productions, to join the Kanto IT Software Health Insurance Association.
Apparently, Konami is a major participant in the organization which has refused the Kojima Productions application. If Kojima Productions was able to join, it would give its employees a number of benefits, such as discounted health insurance to tech industry workers as well as hotel, restaurant, and gym discounts.
Whether or not Konami has blocked Kojima Productions from joining this association has not been verified.
The Nikkei article went on to detail that former Konami employees are not supposed to refer to them as 'Formerly of Konami' when discussing their career history publically, which can definitely put a damper on their future prospects. Additionally, Konami has allegedly told large game companies (as well as Japanese TV stations) to 'disregard' their former employees.
Again, the Nikkei report on this has not been verified. Konami has not responded to the allegations.
