Turns out I don’t have to do a write-up about the Metal Gear Solid 5 fiasco. semprafi rather nicely covers it here:

Destructoid: “Metal Gear Solid 5 is NOT confirmed … yet”, November 21st, 2011

Kotaku: “Is Metal Gear Solid 5 Coming? “Probably…At Some Point”, November 21st, 2011

GameInformer: “Metal Gear Solid 5 Confirmed [Update]”, November 21st, 2011

Giant Bomb: “Turns Out Metal Gear Solid 5 Talk Was a False Alarm”, November 21st, 2011

NowGamer: “Kojima: Wants No Involvement In Metal Gear Solid 5”, November 21st, 2011

VG247: “Kojima: “We’ll probably have to make” Metal Gear Solid 5”, November 21st, 2011

CVG: “We’ll probably have to make Metal Gear Solid 5,’ admits Kojima”, November 21st, 2011

IGN: “MGS5: “We’ll Have To Make It,” Says Hideo Kojima”, November 21st, 2011

Shacknews: “Kojima has ‘no idea’ what MGS5 will be”, November 21st, 2011

Joystiq: “Kojima on MGS5: ‘We’ll probably have to make it at some point”, November 21st, 2011

Just a sampling of the sites covering this and/or backpedaling on their acts of journalism erroneous assumptions (something that’s an increasingly big problem), as a result of Official PlayStation Magazine UK deciding to “address” their conjecture-filled, incredibly misleading-so-it-would-spread-like-wildfire cover article tease earlier this month:

When asked about the sequel to MGS 4 the series’ creator replied “I think we’ll probably have to make it at some point, but what that will be, we have no idea”. Once again, though, Kojima is downplaying his involvement. “As far as my involvement in the project is concerned, [it] probably won’t be as much as it was with MGS1 – maybe I can do just one stage! For MGS1 I made the maps myself, laid out the enemy routes myself, did everything hands-on – that level I can’t do again.”

Now, compare to these same outlets’ original take on the now confirmed non-story.

Destructoid: “Kojima cover story in OPM confirms Metal Gear Solid 5”, November 17th, 2011

Kotaku: “Snake? Snaaaake?!: Is Hideo Kojima Helming Metal Gear Solid 5?”, November 17th, 2011

GameInformer: “Metal Gear Solid 5 Confirmed”, November 17th, 2011

GiantBomb: “Metal Gear Solid 5 Is Apparently Happening”, November 17th, 2011

NowGamer: “Kojima Confirms Plans For Metal Gear Solid 5”, November 18th, 2011

VG247: “Hideo Kojima to discuss plans for MGS5, Project Ogre in next issue of OPM”, November 17th, 2011

CVG: “Kojima talks MGS 5, Rising in new OPM”, November 17th, 2011

IGN: “Kojima ready to talk Metal Gear Solid 5”, November 18th, 2011

Shacknews: “Hideo Kojima to discuss plans for MGS5, Project Ogre in next issue of OPM”, November 17th, 2011

Joystiq: “Tactical Espionage Announcement: Kojima working on Metal Gear Solid 5”, November 17th, 2011

You seriously have NO idea how hard I am laughing at this. Sure, a large part of the blame can and should be placed on OPM UK’s doorstep for how this played out, as print gaming magazines — especially European ones, and especially those under Future Publishing — are mostly reliant upon speculatory/conjecture laden/hypothetical/sensationalist features to sell their out-of-date wares to the public anymore, who are vastly ahead of them thanks to the web.

But you’d think after the countless, borderline embarrassing examples in recent memory, enthusiast press would have figured that out by now.

At least the folks at Giant Bomb have seemingly acknowledged this, and vow to “refrain from publishing anything from OPM UK again anytime soon,” so as to not “encourage what was purely link bait.”

Too bad that’s not an industry-wide accepted practice.