Xbox boss gifts Hideo Kojima mysterious box and fans reckon it’s Project Helix

Metal Gear creator Hideo Kojima has been pictured with Xbox’s new leadership, which has left fans speculating over a mystery present.

Xbox boss Asha Sharma has only been in charge for two months but she’s already overseen several big announcements, between confirmation of Microsoft’s next console, codenamed Project Helix, and a price drop for Xbox Game Pass.

Microsoft hasn’t officially revealed the console yet, but it has confirmed it will run PC and Xbox games.

Additionally, they announced last month that devkits (the modified consoles needed to make games for the format) will be sent out starting in 2027, with a launch date expected later in the year.

However, a new picture showing Sharma, Xbox chief content officer Matt Booty, and Metal Gear creator Hideo Kojima has sparked speculation over whether the latter is getting some advanced access to Project Helix.

The grey box has a sticker emblazoned with the words ‘Xbox for Kojima’, which has naturally led to speculation that it’s a devkit for Project Helix.

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However, the box itself looks way too small to be a devkit, as they’re usually hefty machines, at least the size of the final console.

It’s also unclear why Kojima would receive one this early, unless his upcoming Xbox-published title, OD, is a launch title.

So what are the other possibilities?

Many believe it could be a new Xbox controller, after a revision was rumoured earlier this year.

Alternatively, it could be a special controller for OD specifically, which sounds like a very Kojima-esque thing to do.

If you want to be boring, there’s a chance it could just be an innocuous gift for Kojima.

However, the fact the box is clearly labelled in this way, and considering the photo seems very staged to begin with, it suggests there’s something interesting inside.

There have been no clues about the box from Kojima or Sharma, but the latter did describe the meeting on X as a ‘wonderful way to close my first 60 days’ in charge of Xbox.

We still don’t know much about OD, but Kojima has suggested it is an anthology horror game, with different segments written by various directors, including Get Out’s Jordan Peele.

The game is set to star Sophia Lillis, Hunter Schafer, and the late Udo Kier.

We last heard about OD in September last year via a new trailer, but there’s no release date yet.

It’s also unclear if it will remain an Xbox exclusive, in light of Microsoft’s multiplatform shift.

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