Moby Dick Studio appeared out of nowhere, but has captured the attention of gamers around the world thanks to its trailer for
The Phantom Pain. The trailer poses questions of its own, but the real questions have come from fans who are trying of uncover the mystery of what this game is and, most importantly, how it is connected to the
Metal Gear Solid universe.
There are very obvious connections to Metal Gear Solid including the overall aesthetic. However, the character at the heart of the trailer is missing his left hand and has a bandage covering his right eye. The obvious implication being that this is Big Boss. The teaser image for the upcoming Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes reads, “From ‘FOX,’ two phantoms were born.” This could indeed be hinting at the development of Phantom Pain.
Users on Neogaf have pushed the detective work an extra step, but this piece of evidence could be based on hope. The logo for The Phantom Pain has some extended brush strokes and, if filled in, reads Metal Gear Solid V.
As for the studio itself, there is very little information available. Moby Dick Studio is a new upstart and founded by CEO Joakim Mogren, who previously worked with a “major American developer.” A disclaimer on its website states that the company and its representatives do not post on social media other than
YouTube. It seems strange that a “company” wouldn’t protect itself by snapping up relevant usernames, especially as one imitator has already become Joakim Mogren on
Twitter. The studio doesn’t state who has come to work with it and no-one attached to Moby Dick Studio, including Joakim Mogren, has a presence on LinkedIn.
There are, of course, theories to link the studio to Metal Gear Solid as well including the fact that Joakim is an anagram of Kojima. Another is that the tale of Moby Dick saw Ahab on a quest for revenge after previously losing his leg to the whale; parallels are being drawn with the presence of a hook for a hand.
Many are hoping that this is indeed the first glimpse at Metal Gear Solid V, but either way this has been a work of marketing genius. Can you remember the last time that there was so much speculation, detective work and frame-by-frame analysis of a trailer?