

Shortly thereafter, Kojima came up with an idea for a military video game that, unlike all the other military games of its time, wasn't about fighting people. "Instead of saying 'Hi,'" Kojima told G4, " would say, 'At least create ONE game before you die!'" Kojima's bosses also canceled his first project, "Lost Warld," which gave his co-workers more ammo. His co-workers felt he was a fraud-some huckster who had talked his way into a sweet game development gig without possessing any actual knowledge of the process. His job title was "planner," and he was the first person at Konami to hold it. Which was great, except he had no idea how to make video games. with his vast knowledge of film, Kojima thought, he could make something fantastic. If he could combine the fun of Super Mario Bros.

Almost instantly, Kojima fell in love with video games and the possibilities they presented. In college, Kojima got his hands on a Nintendo Famicom, the system that would eventually make its way to American shores as the Nintendo Entertainment System, and played Super Mario Bros. "When I was a baby boy," he said in an interview with G4, "I was forced by my parents to watch movies, even before I knew who I was.
