GDC Festival of Gaming is thrilled to announce that acclaimed creator and studio founder Hideo Kojima is heading to the Main Stage to give the event's first keynote address in five years.
Widely regarded as the father of the stealth genre, Hideo Kojima is credited with revolutionizing storytelling and cinematic presentation in video games, and pushing the boundaries of the medium in the process. His keynote address, “Restarting from Zero: A Message to Creators Considering Independence,” reflects on the bold leap to establish KOJIMA PRODUCTIONS 10 years ago.
“Hideo Kojima is one of the most influential creative voices of our time, his work has shaped how the world experiences games,” said Nina Brown, President of GDC. “Having Kojima-san headline the GDC Festival of Gaming sets the perfect tone for what this new era is all about: fearless creativity, bold ideas, and elevating the entire game-making ecosystem. His journey embodies the spirit of reinvention that so many in the industry are navigating right now.”
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Hideo Kojima's development studio quickly established itself with its debut title, DEATH STRANDING (2019), which earned numerous awards and global acclaim. Its sequel, DEATH STRANDING 2: ON THE BEACH, which launched on PlayStation®5 in 2025, continues Hideo Kojima’s bold creative vision, blending emotional storytelling with a cinematic ensemble cast.
Other projects include the title OD, in partnership with Xbox Game Studios, as well as numerous projects for the DEATH STRANDING franchise, including a live-action film adaptation with independent entertainment company A24, an animated series and film, as well as a completely new and original action-espionage IP, PHYSINT (working title).
In 2009, Hideo Kojima received the Lifetime Achievement Award at the Game Developers Choice Awards in recognition for his work pioneering the stealth genre and furthering in-game narrative. That was followed by BAFTA Fellowship in 2020, the highest accolade bestowed by BAFTA upon an individual in recognition of exceptional contribution to film, games, or television.
Hideo Kojima’s keynote address takes place the morning of Thursday, March 12—reflecting on the creation of KOJIMA PRODUCTIONS with personal insights into building a studio, developing projects, establishing a brand, and connecting with fans. From early creative concept development to finding a physical office space to work from and finding world-class talent to occupy that space, Hideo Kojima will share his journey, the pitfalls and the creative fulfillment of starting all over again.
The keynote marks GDC’s first in five years and signals the event’s transformation into the GDC Festival of Gaming, returning to San Francisco on March 9–13, 2026.
GDC Festival of Gaming is a week-long industry celebration featuring immersive experiences inside the Festival Hall, expanded networking through new activities like GamePlan, a nightly lineup of community-driven events with GDC Nights, and a new executive-level content program, the Luminaries Speaker Series. It’s designed to drive connection, discovery, and collaboration for everyone who imagines, builds, ships, markets, scales, and sustains the world’s most impactful, successful games.
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For a deeper dive into what attendees can expect at the GDC Festival of Gaming, please visit the newly relaunched Festival of Gaming website, or subscribe to regular updates via LinkedIn, Facebook, X or BlueSky. Official photos are available via the Official GDC Flickr account.