Beloved video game designer and industry icon Hideo Kojima has hurt his back again. For those of you who are not closely monitoring the situation, Kojima first publicly reported back pain on 24th September. While we are not medical doctors, in our opinion, this could be a flareup of that original injury, but the auteur creator seems to think it's a separate thing. In both instances, many, many fans suggested that this targeted pain was the direct consequence of Kojima having borne the weight of the entire video game industry on his broad, capable shoulders for so many long years.
We trawled through hundreds of replies across the two posts, with dozens of well-wishers suggesting the same thing: that Kojima's pain stems from a repetitive strain injury caused by the heavy lifting done first at Konami (Metal Gear Solid) and later at Kojima Productions (Death Stranding). One fan memorably suggested that perhaps the creator, known for his fourth-wall-breaking marketing stunts, was heralding the inclusion of a new character, "Back Hurtman", in the upcoming Death Stranding 2: On the Beach, and we'd believe it.