Kojima Praises Small Dev Teams: "That's My Ideal" Size

Ever wondered why some of gaming's most innovative titles come from surprisingly compact teams? Hideo Kojima's recent praise for Clair Obscur: Expedition 33's development approach reveals a fascinating philosophy that's reshaping how we think about game creation.

When Kojima spotted Sandfall Interactive's approach to creating this year's highest-rated new game on Metacritic, he couldn't help but gush about their team composition. "They only have like 33 team members and a dog," he noted during a recent roundtable discussion. "That's my ideal when I create something with a team."

This isn't just casual admiration—it's a calculated assessment from someone who's navigated the complex waters of modern game development for decades.

Kojima's journey mirrors the entire industry's evolution. "When I first started, it was like a team of six. You could do everything yourself," he reflects. Those early days offered something precious: complete creative control and intimate collaboration where every team member's voice mattered.

But here's where it gets interesting. As teams expanded beyond his preferred 150-person threshold—Death Stranding 2 ballooned to over 200 developers during the pandemic—Kojima discovered what many veteran developers know all too well: more hands don't always make lighter work.

You've probably experienced this in your own work or creative projects. When you're working with a small, tight-knit group, communication flows naturally. Ideas bounce around freely, and everyone understands the vision. Scale that up to hundreds of people across different departments, and suddenly you're playing telephone with your own creative vision.

"You can't really control each employee, so you delegate," Kojima explains. "But sometimes, the idea doesn't really work out because it's a bigger team."

This resonates deeply with anyone who's watched a promising concept get diluted through layers of interpretation and implementation.

Here's a detail that perfectly captures Kojima's thoughtful approach: Mad Max director George Miller once told him that nomadic sheep herders traditionally kept flocks to 150 sheep—the maximum number humans can effectively track and manage. When Kojima admitted he'd gone "a little over 150" on Death Stranding 2, they both laughed about it, but the underlying truth remains powerful.

There's genuine psychological research backing this up. Dunbar's number suggests we can only maintain stable social relationships with about 150 people. Apply this to creative collaboration, and you start understanding why smaller teams often produce more cohesive, visionary work.

Let's be realistic—sometimes you need those 600-1,000 person teams that Kojima mentions. Modern AAA titles demand incredible technical complexity, from photorealistic graphics to massive open worlds filled with intricate systems. You can't handcraft Cyberpunk 2077 or The Witcher 3 with thirty-three people, no matter how talented they are.

But Kojima's point isn't about dismissing large-scale development entirely. It's about recognizing what gets lost in translation when creative vision has to flow through hundreds of intermediaries.

Sandfall Interactive's achievement with Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 proves Kojima's theory in action. This relatively unknown studio managed to create the year's best-reviewed new game while maintaining creative coherence that larger studios often struggle to achieve.

Sure, they had contractors and additional partners listed in the credits—it wasn't literally just 33 people plus a canine mascot. But their core creative team remained manageable, allowing for the kind of unified vision that makes games truly memorable.

As development costs skyrocket and team sizes balloon to unprecedented levels, Kojima's philosophy offers a compelling alternative path. Instead of throwing more bodies at creative problems, what if we focused on assembling the right team—one small enough for genuine collaboration but skilled enough to punch above their weight?

The most innovative games often come from this sweet spot where technical capability meets creative intimacy. Whether it's Hollow Knight from Team Cherry's three-person core or Hades from Supergiant Games' tight-knit crew, smaller teams consistently deliver experiences that feel personal and cohesive.

Kojima's endorsement of compact development teams isn't just nostalgia for simpler times—it's a strategic insight into how creative vision survives the journey from concept to controller. In an industry obsessed with bigger budgets and larger teams, sometimes the most radical approach is keeping things beautifully, deliberately small.