Despite talk that Fox Engine that was developed for the next Metal Gear Solid would be used to power other games in the near future, word comes from Hideo Kojima that at least for the time being it is off the table, but Kojima and Konami will still meet with those that might want to license the engine.

Apparently despite the fact that the Fox Engine has been shared internally around Konami, the engine really isn’t in a workable state to license it. Kojima says that significant maintenance would be involved in order to get the Fox Engine into a state that it would be workable enough to license it.

The news is interesting as it was thought based on previous comments that the Fox Engine would be used to power a number of projects at Konami, including perhaps a new Silent Hill offering as well as an undisclosed FPS project said to have been talked about as well.

The news now raises the question if Konami will continue to license engine technology for other titles or develop something else. Some publishers have moved toward developing their own engine technology rather than paying licensing fees to use an externally developed solution. As we have seen with the investment that EA has made with DICE’s development of the Frostbite engine technology, it is paying dividends with the publisher using the engine to power the majority of its upcoming releases. It was thought that the Fox Engine would be doing the same thing for Konami based on the initial information when news of the Fox Engine was first disclosed.

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