Assassin's Creed producer Jade Raymond recently interviewed crazy genius Hideo Kojima for Famitsu magazine, discussing of course the upcoming Metal Gear Solid 4 and violence in videogames. Kojima had some very interesting things to say on the latter:

"I don't think there are many games that tackle violence head on. When you hit someone or inflict pain, faces get disfigured for example, and I want to make games that show that sort of thing. If you don't see the pain, you can't understand what you've done, and you'll pass through battles without taking responsibility for your actions. I don't want to ignore that. I want players to think, even if it's just a little, about what violence and war are."

A noble endeavor, but of course we mainly play games to escape the horror of real life and to act without consequence. That said, deep and intelligent games that actually make you think about troublesome issues like human violence should certainly be encouraged as well, and Hideo is exactly the kind of opinionated madman to make it work. Speaking of opinions,  Kojima had nothing but good things to say about Jade's own game:

"I've got to choose my words carefully so that I'm not misunderstood, but I think there are fewer developers around today who think about making a good game. As a creator, I find that sad, but when I see teams like the Assassin's Creed team it gives me confidence. I want Assassin's Creed to sell well."

The game is certainly selling well, but opinions on the game are divided and Assassin's Creed is a very polarizing title within the gamer community. An endorsement from Hideo himself, however, is high praise indeed. Well done Jade and Ubisoft!