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Metal Gear (series)
Encyclopedia
is a series of stealth video games created by Hideo Kojima
and developed and published by Konami
. The first game, Metal Gear
, was released in 1987 for the MSX2
. The player takes control of a special forces operative Solid Snake
who is assigned to find the eponymous superweapon "Metal Gear
", a bipedal walking tank
with the ability to launch nuclear weapons. Several sequels have been released for multiple consoles after requests from Konami to produce new Metal Gear games. The sequels expand the original game's plot adding new characters opposing and supporting Snake, while there have also been a few prequels exploring the origins of the Metal Gear and recurring characters. Various parts were inspired by Hollywood films with character's names, settings and artworks often referencing them.
The series is famous for pioneering the stealth game genre, in which the character initially has only one weapon and has to go through the game to accomplish his mission by himself. Other notable traits are cinematic cut scenes, intricate storylines, offbeat humor and exploration of political
and philosophical
themes. The game franchise has sold over 30 million copies worldwide, with individual installments being critically acclaimed and receiving several awards. The franchise has also been adapted into other media such as comics and drama CDs.
designed the original Metal Gear, which debuted in Japan and Europe in 1987
for the MSX2 computer platform. A separate team created a heavily modified Nintendo Entertainment System
(NES) port of the game that was released in Japan, North America and Europe. Konami then produced a NES sequel
titled Snake's Revenge
—in whose development Kojima was again not involved—that was released in North America and Europe in 1990
. One of that game's designers became acquainted with Kojima and asked him to create a "real Metal Gear sequel". In reaction, Kojima began development of Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake
, which was released in Japan in 1990 for the MSX2.
Following Metal Gear 2s completion, Kojima worked on other projects before directing his third Metal Gear game, Metal Gear Solid
, which was released for the PlayStation
in 1998
. The success of Metal Gear Solid resulted in a series of sequels, prequels, spin-offs, ports and remakes for Microsoft Windows
, the Game Boy Color
, PlayStation 2
, GameCube, Xbox
, PlayStation 3
and PlayStation Portable
. The game was followed by Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty
for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox, and by the prequel Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater
for the PlayStation 2. These games were followed by a sequel to Snake Eater titled Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops
, which was released for the PlayStation Portable in 2006. The series' main storyline was concluded in Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots
for the PlayStation 3 in 2008. The game featured a multiplayer spin-off called Metal Gear Online
. A remake of Metal Gear Solid called Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes
was made for the Nintendo GameCube. The latest game in the series is titled Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker
for the PlayStation Portable, and is set shortly after the events from Portable Ops.
Expanded re-releases of games in the series were produced as well, such as Integral (Metal Gear Solid), Substance (Metal Gear 2: Sons of Liberty), and Subsistence (Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater). The series' portable instalments are usually set outside the main storyline. Metal Gear: Ghost Babel
was released for the Game Boy Color, and several titles were released for Sony's PlayStation Portable. In a departure from the series' style, Metal Gear Acid
and its sequel
used turn-based strategy mechanics based on cards.
On May 18, 2009, a teaser site for the following installment in the Metal Gear series was uploaded by Kojima Production. The site has so far consisted of a series of countdowns leading to several flashing letters and the images of two characters looking like a middle-aged Big Boss and a cyborg Raiden
. An article published in the July 2009 issue of Famitsu PSP + PS3
covers the content of the site and features an interview with Hideo Kojima. The interview, revealing too many details, is heavily censored and was published that way as a request by Kojima, who is directing and designing the new game. Famitsu is to publish the full interview in its following issue. The new game was eventually revealed to be Metal Gear Solid: Rising
, which was announced on June 1, 2009 at E3, during the Microsoft Press Conference.
At E3 2010, a demo entitled "Metal Gear Solid 3D: Snake Eater - The Naked Sample" was shown for the Nintendo 3DS
. The official E3 Kojima site later released screenshots and official art for the demo. Kojima did state however, that this was not a preview for a full game but just a sample of what could be done on the 3DS hardware. Another mobile port of a previous released game was shown at Sony's PlayStation Meeting on January 27, 2011, where Hideo Kojima demonstrated a possible portable version of Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots for the upcoming PlayStation Vita.
On June 2, 2011 Konami announced the Metal Gear Solid HD Collection
would be released in November 2011 for both the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, which will include Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty, Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater, and Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker. The collection will include high definition
graphics, Trophies/Achievements, and remastered audio. On August 15, 2011 UK retailer Zavvi
secured the exclusive right to sell the Metal Gear Solid: Ultimate HD Collection only available for the PlayStation 3, which would be released on November 25.
In November 2011, Kojima discussed with PlayStation Official Magazine (UK)
the series' future commenting a future Metal Gear Solid 5 though further details have yet to be revealed. Kojima stated "I think we'll probably have to make it [a sequel to MGS4] at some point, but what that will be, we have no idea." Kojima said when Konami does get around to building the game, he will have less influence than he had on previous iterations in the series.
, a rookie member of the FOXHOUND
special operations unit. He is sent by his superior Big Boss to the fictional South African fortress Outer Heaven, with the goal of finding the missing squad member Gray Fox and investigating a weapon known as Metal Gear. However, Big Boss is later revealed to be the leader of Outer Heaven. He fights Snake and, although he loses, Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake
reveals Big Boss' survival. The two face off, with Snake once again achieving victory.
Metal Gear Solid
elaborates on the storyline of the earlier games and reveals that Solid Snake is a genetic clone of Big Boss, created from a secret government project. A new antagonist is introduced in the form of Liquid Snake, Snake's long-lost twin brother who takes control of FOXHOUND after Snake's retirement. A third Snake brother known as Solidus Snake is introduced as the United States President
at the end of Metal Gear Solid and serves as the main antagonist of Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty
. The game is set several years after Liquid's death in Metal Gear Solid, and it puts the player in control of Raiden
, a soldier who fights against Solidus. Raiden joins forces with Snake, and later learns that they are all are being manipulated by Revolver Ocelot
, a spy from a group known as The Patriots that controls the United States.
Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater
, which is chronologically the first game in the series, introduces a younger version of Big Boss when he was under the codename Naked Snake during the Cold War
. The game focuses on the rise of Naked Snake from apprentice to legendary soldier as well as the downfall of his mentor and matriarchal figure The Boss whom he kills in a mission. The origins of Metal Gear, The Patriots, and the FOXHOUND unit are also explored in the game. Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops
and Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker
serve as direct sequels to Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater and follow Naked Snake's life until his decision to create Outer Heaven in reaction to the betrayal of his comrades in charge of The Patriots. Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots
is the latest title in the Metal Gear series as it follows an older Solid Snake who is still on his quest to find and defeat Ocelot. His objective later changes to destroying the artificial intelligences of The Patriots and stop their oppression. After he and his allies succeed, Snake decides to live out his life peacefully.
, dealt with the manipulation of soldiers by politicians of the East and West, countered by the concept of "Outer Heaven", a country without politics. Its sequel Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake, which was released in 1990 at the end of the Cold War, expanded on this with themes regarding political intrigue, battlefield ethics, military history, and the negative effects of warfare.
The overarching theme of the Metal Gear Solid series is that of the "gene
, meme
, scene
and sense
" and how people are affected by these factors according to the game's producer Kojima — Metal Gear Solid deals with genetics
and the moral implications of genetic engineering
, Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty deals with how identity can be affected by the philosophies of one's society (a 'meme') and the effects of censorship
on society, Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater deals with how the time and place one lives in (a 'scene') affects their identity and how politics
change along with the times, and Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots deals with the 'sense' that people die, things move on and times change, and that life should not be defined by fighting. The games carry many implicit parallels to Nietzschean philosophy.
In games, players control a character who has to infiltrate into his enemy's area alone to complete his mission. Across the mission, the player receives assistance by a supporting team communicated by Codec. While the team tells the player hints about the mission, it also helps expand the characters through their interactions. A common motif in the series is the use of powerful enemies. As games were released, new concepts were given to the bosses to make them innovative and notice their strength. As the first games used humans with supernatural abilities, for Metal Gear Solid 4, the staff decided to use monsters rather than humans as enemies. A notable boss battle
was The End from Metal Gear Solid 3 that was meant to differentiate it from all the other bosses in the franchise due to its strategic gameplay. Another common motif has been the use of a character dressed as a cybernetic ninja. It started with Kyle Schneider in Metal Gear 2 and several other characters have imitated him.
Much as Metal Gear began as a pastiche of action movies
of the time, characters were pastiches of contemporary action movie heroes. Ever since Metal Gear Solid characters have been designed by Yoji Shinkawa
. Several of their real names and alliases are references to films that Kojima watched. Because of the timeskip between titles, a few of the characters have been redesigned to fit in the game's year. With the improvements from new video games like the PlayStation and PlayStation 2, the staff gave the characters a more realistic look although they initially had doubts about it. Kojima's thoughts regarding Snake's improved abilities by the time of Metal Gear Solid led to the concept of cloned characters who would be able to match him in combat. By Metal Gear Solid 2, Kojima was inspired by the Sherlock Holmes
novels to introduce a sidekick character in order to view Snake from a different perspective. Although the series will continue after Metal Gear Solid 4, such title is Snake's final canonical appearance as Kojima does not want future developers to handle the character.
, he altered the gameplay to focus on a prisoner escaping. In a series of articles written for Official PlayStation 2 Magazine, Hideo Kojima identified several Hollywood films as the primary sources of inspiration for the storylines and gameplay of the Metal Gear series. He further noted that the James Bond
series is what influenced him the most regarding the creation of Metal Gear Solid. The original plot has references to the nuclear war
hysteria during the mid-1980s that resulted from the Cold War
. Following games would revolve around nuclear weapon inspections in Iraq and Iran, but such idea was left out due to growing concern regarding the political situation in the Middle East. Other changes to the series were made in Metal Gear Solid 2 as a result of the September 11, 2001 attacks
.
After Metal Gear: Solid Snake, Kojima planned to release the third Metal Gear rehash in 1994 for the 3DO Interactive Multiplayer
in 1994
. Besides changing the console, the game was renamed, and its subsequent sequels, were given the word "Solid" as the series started using 3D computer graphics
. Games since then were designed to be more realistic to further entertain the players. Metal Gear Solid 3 was initially meant to be made for the PlayStation 3, but due to the long wait for PS3, the game was developed for the PlayStation 2 instead. As previous game's settings were indoors areas due to difficulties with the consoles, ever since Metal Gear Solid 3, Kojima wished to drastically change it despite difficulties. Since Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty had several plot points unresolved, it was originally meant to leave it to players to discuss them to come to their own conclusions. This has led to consistency issues in the English version from Metal Gear Solid and Metal Gear Solid 2 as they mentioned plot elements that were further explored in Metal Gear Solid 4.
was published in 1988 as a part of Scholastic's Worlds of Power
line of novelization
s, which were based on third-party NES
games. It was written by Alexander Frost. The novelization is not based on the game's official storyline, but rather on Konami of America's localization of the plot. The book takes further liberties by giving Solid Snake the name of Justin Halley, and by changing the name of Snake's unit from FOXHOUND to the "Snake Men". In Japan, a Metal Gear gamebook
was published on March 31, 1988, shortly after the release of the game on the Famicom. It is set two years after the events of the original Metal Gear, and is part of the Konami Gamebook Series. A novelization of Metal Gear Solid
was published in 2008. It was written by Raymond Benson
, the author of nine James Bond
novels. Benson also wrote a Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty
novelization, which was published in 2009. Critical reaction to Benson's novelizations has been generally positive, with Bookgasm.com writing that "Benson does a fine job translating the game to the page" with Metal Gear Solid, and MishMashMagazine.com calling Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty "a great companion to the game". A Japanese-language novelization of Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots
by Project Itoh was published on June 12, 2008.
A radio drama
based on the original Metal Gear Solid aired in Japan
from 1998 to 1999 as part of Konami's syndicated clud DB program. Directed by Shuyo Murata and written by Motosada Mori
, the serial lasted over 12 weekly installments spanning three story arcs. The series was later collected as a two-volume set. The series serves as an alternate continuation to the events of Shadow Moses, with Solid Snake
, Meryl Silverburgh, Mei Ling and Roy Campbell going on further missions as FOXHOUND operatives (Mei Ling and Meryl are depicted wearing a battle dress uniform
and a sneaking suit respectively), although the stories are not considered part of the mainstream Metal Gear canon. The Japanese voice actors from the game reprised their roles for the series, while new characters are introduced as well.
A comic book
adaptation of the original Metal Gear Solid was published by IDW Publishing
in 2004. It was written by Kris Oprisko
and with illustrations by Ashley Wood
. The series lasted 24 issues and has been collected in two trade paperbacks as well as a single hardback collector's edition which is currently out-of-print. The entire run of the comic was collected again in a paperback book titled Metal Gear Solid Omnibus and released on June 2010. A comic book adaptation of Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty has also been published by IDW, written by Alex Garner with illustrations by Ashley Wood. A digital version of the first comic book adaptation was released for the PlayStation Portable
titled Metal Gear Solid: Digital Graphic Novel in . A second digital version, titled Metal Gear Solid 2: Bande Dessinée, was released exclusively in Japan as a DVD
release in and features fully voiced versions of both comic book adaptations. All the Japanese voice actors from the games reprised their roles with the exception of those that have died.
Several promotional DVDs have been released detailing the Metal Gear series. Metal Gear Saga vol. 1 was released in 2006 as a pre-order disc for MGS3: Subsistence. It is divided into five chapters, each dealing with one game of the then five-part Metal Gear series in chronological order (beginning with MGS3), and each include discussions by Hideo Kojima. Metal Gear Saga vol. 2 was first shown at the 20th Metal Gear Anniversary Party, and then released as a pre-order disc for MGS4. In this, the video is presented as a pseudo-documentary about Solid Snake and is divided into a prologue and four chapters: Naked Snake-the birth of Snake (chronicling the events of MGS3, MG1, and MG2), Liquid Snake-the second snake (MGS), Solidus Snake-the third Snake (MGS2) and Solid Snake-the first Snake (setting the stage for MGS4).
announced that a film adaptation
of Metal Gear Solid was in development. The film was purported to be in English, said to be released some time in 2011. Kojima also announced at the Electronic Entertainment Expo later that month that he had negotiated a contract with a party in Hollywood to adapt the video game into a film. Kojima also considered Alaska
as the site of the film production, due to the game's setting in the state. David Hayter
, the English voice actor for Solid Snake, had submitted his take for the movie but executives have passed on his script. Kojima also denied claims that German director Uwe Boll
was a possible contender to direct a Metal Gear film.
Producer Michael DeLuca
has expressed interest in having Equilibrium
director Kurt Wimmer
write the script for the movie. Later on Kurt Wimmer was opted to direct the movie adaptation. However, Wimmer will not take part in the directing for the film. He was only approached to pitch a take on adapting the Metal Gear Solid franchise. Konami's Aki Saito had commented that There Will Be Blood
director Paul Thomas Anderson
was interested, but DeLuca dismissed the claim. According to an interview in Nuts Magazine actor Christian Bale
is interested in playing Solid Snake in the film, during an interview for Public Enemies, he stated that he has not been approached for the role.
However, on January 11, 2010, de Luca confirmed that work on a Metal Gear film adaptation has been postponed indefinitely. He said Konami expressed concern that the entire Metal Gear franchise could be seriously affected if a movie version performed poorly.
Additionally, a non-profit fanfilm titled Metal Gear Solid: Philanthropy
, was produced. The film is set in 2007 and somewhere before or after the events of Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty
. The movie was well received by fans and also by Hideo Kojima, who said, after being asked by a fan if he had seen the movie, "Of course I did. It's awesome. I felt like crying for their love towards Metal Gear. It's also a well made movie. I can't wait to see next part."
, with the collaboration of Konami
, launched a series of action figures depicting key characters from Metal Gear Solid
. In 2001, following the success of the first series, and with the release of Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty
, McFarlane Toys and Konami combined their efforts to produce a line of action figures depicting Sons of Libertys main characters. Each character has a piece of Metal Gear RAY, so collecting the entire set is essential to build the robot.
Konami has also released 4" scale blind-box figures based on MGS2 released in Japan, Sons of Liberty in 2002 and Substance shortly after in 2003; the Substance series was eventually brought to the US and UK markets packaged on card rather than blind boxed. During the release of MGS3, Medicom released 12" figures of Snake as part of their Real Action Heroes line. Medicom continued to support the franchise with the release of Kubrick figures for Snake Eater and Guns of the Patriots, which also included seven- and 12-inch versions of the game's characters.
Square Enix
also joined the production of toys based on the series by creating replicas of the boss vehicles and characters from Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker
. The toys, which are from Square's Play Arts Kai line were released in 2010.
and texture
to the currently playing track, instead of switching to another pre-recorded track. Although these features could not be achieved at that time, they were implemented in Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty. Hideo Kojima chose Harry Gregson-Williams
, a Hollywood
film composer
from Hans Zimmer
's studio, as the composer for Metal Gear Solid 2 was highly publicized in the run-up to the game's release. Gregson-Williams would reprise his role in Metal Gear Solid 3 and Metal Gear Solid 4. Starting with Metal Gear Solid, theme songs have been provided by popular artists such as Rika Muranaka
. Several soundtracks based on the games have also been published.
, Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots was the second fastest-selling PlayStation 3 title in the United Kingdom after Grand Theft Auto IV
. The PlayStation Portable games were met with notably lower sales, but it has been analyzed that this was because of the low sales of the console when the games were released.
Several games have been universally acclaimed by critics. Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty currently possesses the highest score of the series, with 95.04% on GameRankings and 96% on Metacritic
. In 2002, IGN's editors ranked it as the best PlayStation game ever. In Game Informer Magazines list of top 200 games of all time, Metal Gear Solid 2 ranked at #50 on the list. Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater was also voted as fifth greatest PlayStation title ever released in a poll from PlayStation Official Magazine (UK)
. Metal Gear Solid and Metal Gear Solid 2 will be featured in the Smithsonian American Art Museum
's "The Art of Video Games" exhibition, taking place from 16 March to 30 September 2012.
Metal Gear Solid is often recognized as one of the key titles involved in popularizing the stealth game genre with the player starting the game unarmed. Several boss fights have been praised for their variety and strategy required to beat them. The series has been notorious for its fourth wall
breaking scenes. The storyline was commented to give characters "rich characterization" as well as to touch several controversial themes. Hideo Kojima's ambitious script in Metal Gear Solid 2 has been praised, some even calling it the first example of a postmodern
video game. Cutscenes have often been praised for its graphics and stunts the characters perform. Nevertheless, a common criticism was the scenes' length which tend to last for a long time, as well as some parts from the storyline. Raiden's unexpected introduction in Metal Gear Solid 2, due to his lack of appearances in the games' trailers and how he replaces fan-favorite character Solid Snake, have been deemed as one of the most controversial parts of the entire series.
Game archive and review sites
Hideo Kojima
is a Japanese game director originally employed at Konami. He is currently the director of Kojima Productions and was promoted to Vice President of Konami Digital Entertainment in early 2011...
and developed and published by Konami
Konami
is a Japanese leading developer and publisher of numerous popular and strong-selling toys, trading cards, anime, tokusatsu, slot machines, arcade cabinets and video games...
. The first game, Metal Gear
Metal Gear (video game)
is an overhead military action-adventure video game originally released in by Konami for the MSX2 computer standard in Japan and parts of Europe. Considered to be the progenitor of the stealth game genre, it was also the first video game designed by Hideo Kojima, who also directed many of the...
, was released in 1987 for the MSX2
MSX2
MSX2 may refer to:* Msh homeobox 2, a human gene* The second generation of the MSX home computers...
. The player takes control of a special forces operative Solid Snake
Solid Snake
Metal Gear, initially released in 1987, introduces Solid Snake, the rookie recruit of the elite special-forces unit FOXHOUND. Snake is sent by team leader Big Boss into the rogue nation Outer Heaven to rescue his missing teammate Gray Fox and discover who or what the "METAL GEAR" mentioned is, and...
who is assigned to find the eponymous superweapon "Metal Gear
Metal Gear (weapon)
is the name for a series of fictional mecha in the Metal Gear series. In the series, a Metal Gear is defined as a bipedal nuclear equipped tank, but in the case of Metal Gear RAY, is a large bipedal tank designed to destroy other Metal Gear...
", a bipedal walking tank
Mecha
A mech , is a science fiction term for a large walking bipedal tank or robot, including ones on treads and animal shapes.-Characteristics:...
with the ability to launch nuclear weapons. Several sequels have been released for multiple consoles after requests from Konami to produce new Metal Gear games. The sequels expand the original game's plot adding new characters opposing and supporting Snake, while there have also been a few prequels exploring the origins of the Metal Gear and recurring characters. Various parts were inspired by Hollywood films with character's names, settings and artworks often referencing them.
The series is famous for pioneering the stealth game genre, in which the character initially has only one weapon and has to go through the game to accomplish his mission by himself. Other notable traits are cinematic cut scenes, intricate storylines, offbeat humor and exploration of political
Politics
Politics is a process by which groups of people make collective decisions. The term is generally applied to the art or science of running governmental or state affairs, including behavior within civil governments, but also applies to institutions, fields, and special interest groups such as the...
and philosophical
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
themes. The game franchise has sold over 30 million copies worldwide, with individual installments being critically acclaimed and receiving several awards. The franchise has also been adapted into other media such as comics and drama CDs.
Games
Hideo KojimaHideo Kojima
is a Japanese game director originally employed at Konami. He is currently the director of Kojima Productions and was promoted to Vice President of Konami Digital Entertainment in early 2011...
designed the original Metal Gear, which debuted in Japan and Europe in 1987
1987 in video gaming
-Notable releases:* January 14, Nintendo releases Zelda II: The Adventure of Link in January for the Famicom Disk System in Japan only. The game would go unreleased in America for nearly two years afterwards.* February 20, Konami releases Contra...
for the MSX2 computer platform. A separate team created a heavily modified Nintendo Entertainment System
Nintendo Entertainment System
The Nintendo Entertainment System is an 8-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America during 1985, in Europe during 1986 and Australia in 1987...
(NES) port of the game that was released in Japan, North America and Europe. Konami then produced a NES sequel
Sequel
A sequel is a narrative, documental, or other work of literature, film, theatre, or music that continues the story of or expands upon issues presented in some previous work...
titled Snake's Revenge
Snake's Revenge
Snake's Revenge is a stealth action game by Konami released for the Nintendo Entertainment System in 1990. The game was produced as a sequel to the NES version of the original Metal Gear, made specifically for the North American and PAL market following the success of the first NES game...
—in whose development Kojima was again not involved—that was released in North America and Europe in 1990
1990 in video gaming
-Notable releases:*Bonk's Adventure is released for NEC's TurboGrafx-16 and is the first US appearance of Bonk, the mascot of the TurboGrafx-16.*February 12 — Nintendo releases the NES game Super Mario Bros. 3 in North America...
. One of that game's designers became acquainted with Kojima and asked him to create a "real Metal Gear sequel". In reaction, Kojima began development of Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake
Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake
is an overhead stealth action game that was originally released by Konami in for the MSX2 computer standard exclusively in Japan. Metal Gear 2 was directed and written by Hideo Kojima, who also designed the MSX2 version of the original Metal Gear...
, which was released in Japan in 1990 for the MSX2.
Following Metal Gear 2s completion, Kojima worked on other projects before directing his third Metal Gear game, Metal Gear Solid
Metal Gear Solid
is a videogame by Hideo Kojima. The game was developed by Konami Computer Entertainment Japan and first published by Konami in 1998 for the PlayStation video game console. It is the sequel to Kojimas early MSX2 computer games Metal Gear and Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake...
, which was released for the PlayStation
PlayStation
The is a 32-bit fifth-generation video game console first released by Sony Computer Entertainment in Japan on December 3, .The PlayStation was the first of the PlayStation series of consoles and handheld game devices. The PlayStation 2 was the console's successor in 2000...
in 1998
1998 in video gaming
-Events:*Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences hosts 1st Annual Interactive Achievement Awards; inducts Shigeru Miyamoto of Nintendo to the AIAS Hall of Fame*British Academy of Film and Television Arts hosts the 1st annual BAFTA Interactive Entertainment Awards...
. The success of Metal Gear Solid resulted in a series of sequels, prequels, spin-offs, ports and remakes for Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
, the Game Boy Color
Game Boy Color
The is Nintendo's successor to the 8-bit Game Boy handheld game console, and was released on October 21, 1998 in Japan, November 19, 1998 in North America, November 23, 1998 in Europe and November 27, 1998 in the United Kingdom. It features a color screen and is slightly thicker and taller than...
, PlayStation 2
PlayStation 2
The PlayStation 2 is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Sony as part of the PlayStation series. Its development was announced in March 1999 and it was first released on March 4, 2000, in Japan...
, GameCube, Xbox
Xbox
The Xbox is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Microsoft. It was released on November 15, 2001 in North America, February 22, 2002 in Japan, and March 14, 2002 in Australia and Europe and is the predecessor to the Xbox 360. It was Microsoft's first foray into the gaming console...
, PlayStation 3
PlayStation 3
The is the third home video game console produced by Sony Computer Entertainment and the successor to the PlayStation 2 as part of the PlayStation series. The PlayStation 3 competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
and PlayStation Portable
PlayStation Portable
The is a handheld game console manufactured and marketed by Sony Corporation Development of the console was announced during E3 2003, and it was unveiled on , 2004, at a Sony press conference before E3 2004...
. The game was followed by Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty
Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty
is a stealth action video game directed by Hideo Kojima, developed by Konami Computer Entertainment Japan and published by Konami for the PlayStation 2 in 2001....
for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox, and by the prequel Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater
Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater
is an award-winning stealth action video game directed by Hideo Kojima. Snake Eater was developed by Konami Computer Entertainment Japan and published by Konami for the PlayStation 2, and was released on November 17, 2004 in North America; December 16, 2004 in Japan; March 4, 2005 in Europe; and on...
for the PlayStation 2. These games were followed by a sequel to Snake Eater titled Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops
Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops
is a stealth game directed by Masahiro Yamamoto and written by Gakuto Mikumo, with series creator Hideo Kojima acting as a producer. Portable Ops was developed by Kojima Productions and published by Konami in 2006 for the PlayStation Portable. It is the third Metal Gear title for the PSP and the...
, which was released for the PlayStation Portable in 2006. The series' main storyline was concluded in Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots
Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots
is a video game developed by Kojima Productions for the PlayStation 3 console. The game was directed by Hideo Kojima and made its worldwide release on June 12, 2008, ten years after the release of Metal Gear Solid and twenty years after the North American release of Metal Gear.Guns of the Patriots...
for the PlayStation 3 in 2008. The game featured a multiplayer spin-off called Metal Gear Online
Metal Gear Online
Metal Gear Online, abbreviated MGO, is a PlayStation 3 exclusive online multiplayer spin-off of the Metal Gear video game series. Τhe Starter Pack of MGO is available worldwide bundled with regional versions of Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots, with a standalone release only for Japan...
. A remake of Metal Gear Solid called Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes
Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes
Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes is a stealth action video game developed by Silicon Knights and Konami that was published in for the Nintendo GameCube video game console...
was made for the Nintendo GameCube. The latest game in the series is titled Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker
Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker
is a video game produced by Konami and Kojima Productions that was released for the PlayStation Portable in 2010. Peace Walker is the fourth Metal Gear title for the PSP, although it is only the second to be considered part of the series' main canon, following Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops...
for the PlayStation Portable, and is set shortly after the events from Portable Ops.
Expanded re-releases of games in the series were produced as well, such as Integral (Metal Gear Solid), Substance (Metal Gear 2: Sons of Liberty), and Subsistence (Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater). The series' portable instalments are usually set outside the main storyline. Metal Gear: Ghost Babel
Metal Gear: Ghost Babel
Metal Gear Solid, released as in Japan and Asia, is a 2000 stealth action game produced by Konami for the Game Boy Color. Based on the PlayStation game of the same title, the Game Boy Color version of Metal Gear Solid is not a conversion of the previous game, but an original game produced...
was released for the Game Boy Color, and several titles were released for Sony's PlayStation Portable. In a departure from the series' style, Metal Gear Acid
Metal Gear Acid
is a turn-based collectible card video game developed by Konami Computer Entertainment Japan for the PlayStation Portable handheld game console. The game was first unveiled at E³ 2004 in May, and was released in Japan on December 16, 2004, in North America on March 22, 2005 and in Europe on...
and its sequel
Metal Gear Acid 2
is a turn-based collectible card video game developed by Kojima Productions and published by Konami for the PlayStation Portable. It is the sequel to the original Metal Gear Acid, with the story set sometime after the events of the previous game...
used turn-based strategy mechanics based on cards.
On May 18, 2009, a teaser site for the following installment in the Metal Gear series was uploaded by Kojima Production. The site has so far consisted of a series of countdowns leading to several flashing letters and the images of two characters looking like a middle-aged Big Boss and a cyborg Raiden
Raiden (Metal Gear)
, whose real name is , is a video game character in the Metal Gear series of stealth games by Konami. Created by Hideo Kojima and designed by Yoji Shinkawa, Raiden was introduced in the series as the main playable character of Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty...
. An article published in the July 2009 issue of Famitsu PSP + PS3
Famitsu
is a line of Japanese video game magazines published by Enterbrain, Inc. and Tokuma. Currently, there are five Famitsū magazines: Shūkan Famitsū, Famitsū PS3 + PSP, Famitsū Xbox 360, Famitsū Wii+DS, and Famitsū Wave DVD...
covers the content of the site and features an interview with Hideo Kojima. The interview, revealing too many details, is heavily censored and was published that way as a request by Kojima, who is directing and designing the new game. Famitsu is to publish the full interview in its following issue. The new game was eventually revealed to be Metal Gear Solid: Rising
Metal Gear Solid: Rising
is an upcoming action video game under development by Kojima Productions as a spin-off to the Metal Gear series. The game is in development for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. The series' regular tagline, "Tactical Espionage Action", will be opted out for this entry in favor of...
, which was announced on June 1, 2009 at E3, during the Microsoft Press Conference.
At E3 2010, a demo entitled "Metal Gear Solid 3D: Snake Eater - The Naked Sample" was shown for the Nintendo 3DS
Nintendo 3DS
The is a portable game console produced by Nintendo. The autostereoscopic device is able to project stereoscopic 3D effects without the use of 3D glasses or any additional accessories. The Nintendo 3DS features backward compatibility with Nintendo DS series software, including Nintendo DSi software...
. The official E3 Kojima site later released screenshots and official art for the demo. Kojima did state however, that this was not a preview for a full game but just a sample of what could be done on the 3DS hardware. Another mobile port of a previous released game was shown at Sony's PlayStation Meeting on January 27, 2011, where Hideo Kojima demonstrated a possible portable version of Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots for the upcoming PlayStation Vita.
On June 2, 2011 Konami announced the Metal Gear Solid HD Collection
Metal Gear Solid HD Collection
Metal Gear Solid HD Collection is remastered port of Metal Gear Solid 2: Substance, Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence and Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker, for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. A PlayStation Vita version is also set to be released. The games were originally developed by Kojima...
would be released in November 2011 for both the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, which will include Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty, Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater, and Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker. The collection will include high definition
High-definition video
High-definition video or HD video refers to any video system of higher resolution than standard-definition video, and most commonly involves display resolutions of 1,280×720 pixels or 1,920×1,080 pixels...
graphics, Trophies/Achievements, and remastered audio. On August 15, 2011 UK retailer Zavvi
Zavvi.com
Zavvi.com is an online retail company owned by The Hut Group, formed in 2009, after the demise of the high street Zavvi stores.- Zavvi Retail :...
secured the exclusive right to sell the Metal Gear Solid: Ultimate HD Collection only available for the PlayStation 3, which would be released on November 25.
In November 2011, Kojima discussed with PlayStation Official Magazine (UK)
PlayStation Official Magazine (UK)
The Official UK PlayStation Magazine is a now-defunct magazine, launched in November 1995 to coincide with the launch of the PlayStation console. It ran for 108 issues, with the last hitting news stands in March 2004. The first issue sold 37,000 copies...
the series' future commenting a future Metal Gear Solid 5 though further details have yet to be revealed. Kojima stated "I think we'll probably have to make it [a sequel to MGS4] at some point, but what that will be, we have no idea." Kojima said when Konami does get around to building the game, he will have less influence than he had on previous iterations in the series.
Storyline
The nine games in the Metal Gear series continuity reveal a narrative that spans five decades. Of these nine titles, three are prequels set decades before the events of the original Metal Gear.Plot
The first Metal Gear game for the MSX follows Solid SnakeSolid Snake
Metal Gear, initially released in 1987, introduces Solid Snake, the rookie recruit of the elite special-forces unit FOXHOUND. Snake is sent by team leader Big Boss into the rogue nation Outer Heaven to rescue his missing teammate Gray Fox and discover who or what the "METAL GEAR" mentioned is, and...
, a rookie member of the FOXHOUND
Foxhound
A foxhound is a type of large hunting hound. Foxhounds hunt in packs and, like all scent hounds, have a strong sense of smell. They are used in hunts for foxes, hence the name. When out hunting they are followed usually on horseback and will travel several miles to catch their target. These dogs...
special operations unit. He is sent by his superior Big Boss to the fictional South African fortress Outer Heaven, with the goal of finding the missing squad member Gray Fox and investigating a weapon known as Metal Gear. However, Big Boss is later revealed to be the leader of Outer Heaven. He fights Snake and, although he loses, Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake
Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake
is an overhead stealth action game that was originally released by Konami in for the MSX2 computer standard exclusively in Japan. Metal Gear 2 was directed and written by Hideo Kojima, who also designed the MSX2 version of the original Metal Gear...
reveals Big Boss' survival. The two face off, with Snake once again achieving victory.
Metal Gear Solid
Metal Gear Solid
is a videogame by Hideo Kojima. The game was developed by Konami Computer Entertainment Japan and first published by Konami in 1998 for the PlayStation video game console. It is the sequel to Kojimas early MSX2 computer games Metal Gear and Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake...
elaborates on the storyline of the earlier games and reveals that Solid Snake is a genetic clone of Big Boss, created from a secret government project. A new antagonist is introduced in the form of Liquid Snake, Snake's long-lost twin brother who takes control of FOXHOUND after Snake's retirement. A third Snake brother known as Solidus Snake is introduced as the United States President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
at the end of Metal Gear Solid and serves as the main antagonist of Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty
Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty
is a stealth action video game directed by Hideo Kojima, developed by Konami Computer Entertainment Japan and published by Konami for the PlayStation 2 in 2001....
. The game is set several years after Liquid's death in Metal Gear Solid, and it puts the player in control of Raiden
Raiden (Metal Gear)
, whose real name is , is a video game character in the Metal Gear series of stealth games by Konami. Created by Hideo Kojima and designed by Yoji Shinkawa, Raiden was introduced in the series as the main playable character of Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty...
, a soldier who fights against Solidus. Raiden joins forces with Snake, and later learns that they are all are being manipulated by Revolver Ocelot
Revolver Ocelot
, also known as is a fictional character and antagonist of the Metal Gear series. He was originally introduced as a gunslinger-themed member of FOXHOUND from the former Soviet Union in Metal Gear Solid and was revealed to be an agent for The Patriots in Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty...
, a spy from a group known as The Patriots that controls the United States.
Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater
Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater
is an award-winning stealth action video game directed by Hideo Kojima. Snake Eater was developed by Konami Computer Entertainment Japan and published by Konami for the PlayStation 2, and was released on November 17, 2004 in North America; December 16, 2004 in Japan; March 4, 2005 in Europe; and on...
, which is chronologically the first game in the series, introduces a younger version of Big Boss when he was under the codename Naked Snake during the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
. The game focuses on the rise of Naked Snake from apprentice to legendary soldier as well as the downfall of his mentor and matriarchal figure The Boss whom he kills in a mission. The origins of Metal Gear, The Patriots, and the FOXHOUND unit are also explored in the game. Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops
Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops
is a stealth game directed by Masahiro Yamamoto and written by Gakuto Mikumo, with series creator Hideo Kojima acting as a producer. Portable Ops was developed by Kojima Productions and published by Konami in 2006 for the PlayStation Portable. It is the third Metal Gear title for the PSP and the...
and Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker
Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker
is a video game produced by Konami and Kojima Productions that was released for the PlayStation Portable in 2010. Peace Walker is the fourth Metal Gear title for the PSP, although it is only the second to be considered part of the series' main canon, following Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops...
serve as direct sequels to Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater and follow Naked Snake's life until his decision to create Outer Heaven in reaction to the betrayal of his comrades in charge of The Patriots. Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots
Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots
is a video game developed by Kojima Productions for the PlayStation 3 console. The game was directed by Hideo Kojima and made its worldwide release on June 12, 2008, ten years after the release of Metal Gear Solid and twenty years after the North American release of Metal Gear.Guns of the Patriots...
is the latest title in the Metal Gear series as it follows an older Solid Snake who is still on his quest to find and defeat Ocelot. His objective later changes to destroying the artificial intelligences of The Patriots and stop their oppression. After he and his allies succeed, Snake decides to live out his life peacefully.
Tone and themes
The original Metal Gear, which was released in 1987 during the Cold WarCold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
, dealt with the manipulation of soldiers by politicians of the East and West, countered by the concept of "Outer Heaven", a country without politics. Its sequel Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake, which was released in 1990 at the end of the Cold War, expanded on this with themes regarding political intrigue, battlefield ethics, military history, and the negative effects of warfare.
The overarching theme of the Metal Gear Solid series is that of the "gene
Gene
A gene is a molecular unit of heredity of a living organism. It is a name given to some stretches of DNA and RNA that code for a type of protein or for an RNA chain that has a function in the organism. Living beings depend on genes, as they specify all proteins and functional RNA chains...
, meme
Meme
A meme is "an idea, behaviour or style that spreads from person to person within a culture."A meme acts as a unit for carrying cultural ideas, symbols or practices, which can be transmitted from one mind to another through writing, speech, gestures, rituals or other imitable phenomena...
, scene
Scene (perception)
In the field of perception, a scene is information that can flow from a physical environment into a perceptual system via sensory transduction....
and sense
Sense
Senses are physiological capacities of organisms that provide inputs for perception. The senses and their operation, classification, and theory are overlapping topics studied by a variety of fields, most notably neuroscience, cognitive psychology , and philosophy of perception...
" and how people are affected by these factors according to the game's producer Kojima — Metal Gear Solid deals with genetics
Genetics
Genetics , a discipline of biology, is the science of genes, heredity, and variation in living organisms....
and the moral implications of genetic engineering
Genetic engineering
Genetic engineering, also called genetic modification, is the direct human manipulation of an organism's genome using modern DNA technology. It involves the introduction of foreign DNA or synthetic genes into the organism of interest...
, Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty deals with how identity can be affected by the philosophies of one's society (a 'meme') and the effects of censorship
Censorship
thumb|[[Book burning]] following the [[1973 Chilean coup d'état|1973 coup]] that installed the [[Military government of Chile |Pinochet regime]] in Chile...
on society, Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater deals with how the time and place one lives in (a 'scene') affects their identity and how politics
Politics
Politics is a process by which groups of people make collective decisions. The term is generally applied to the art or science of running governmental or state affairs, including behavior within civil governments, but also applies to institutions, fields, and special interest groups such as the...
change along with the times, and Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots deals with the 'sense' that people die, things move on and times change, and that life should not be defined by fighting. The games carry many implicit parallels to Nietzschean philosophy.
Characters
Boss (video games)
A boss is an enemy-based challenge which is found in video games. A fight with a boss character is commonly referred to as a boss battle or boss fight...
was The End from Metal Gear Solid 3 that was meant to differentiate it from all the other bosses in the franchise due to its strategic gameplay. Another common motif has been the use of a character dressed as a cybernetic ninja. It started with Kyle Schneider in Metal Gear 2 and several other characters have imitated him.
Much as Metal Gear began as a pastiche of action movies
Action film
Action film is a film genre where one or more heroes is thrust into a series of challenges that require physical feats, extended fights and frenetic chases...
of the time, characters were pastiches of contemporary action movie heroes. Ever since Metal Gear Solid characters have been designed by Yoji Shinkawa
Yoji Shinkawa
is a Japanese artist. He is most famous for his character, environment and mechanical designs for the Metal Gear and Zone of the Enders series....
. Several of their real names and alliases are references to films that Kojima watched. Because of the timeskip between titles, a few of the characters have been redesigned to fit in the game's year. With the improvements from new video games like the PlayStation and PlayStation 2, the staff gave the characters a more realistic look although they initially had doubts about it. Kojima's thoughts regarding Snake's improved abilities by the time of Metal Gear Solid led to the concept of cloned characters who would be able to match him in combat. By Metal Gear Solid 2, Kojima was inspired by the Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes is a fictional detective created by Scottish author and physician Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The fantastic London-based "consulting detective", Holmes is famous for his astute logical reasoning, his ability to take almost any disguise, and his use of forensic science skills to solve...
novels to introduce a sidekick character in order to view Snake from a different perspective. Although the series will continue after Metal Gear Solid 4, such title is Snake's final canonical appearance as Kojima does not want future developers to handle the character.
Development
The first Metal Gear game was intended to be an action game that featured modern military combat. However, the MSX2's hardware limited the number of on-screen bullets and enemies, which Hideo Kojima felt impeded the combat aspect. Inspired by The Great EscapeThe Great Escape (book)
The Great Escape is an insider's account by Paul Brickhill of the 1944 mass escape from the German prisoner of war camp Stalag Luft III for British and Commonwealth airmen. As a prisoner in the camp, he participated in the escape plan but was debarred from the actual escape 'along with three or...
, he altered the gameplay to focus on a prisoner escaping. In a series of articles written for Official PlayStation 2 Magazine, Hideo Kojima identified several Hollywood films as the primary sources of inspiration for the storylines and gameplay of the Metal Gear series. He further noted that the James Bond
James Bond
James Bond, code name 007, is a fictional character created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short story collections. There have been a six other authors who wrote authorised Bond novels or novelizations after Fleming's death in 1964: Kingsley Amis,...
series is what influenced him the most regarding the creation of Metal Gear Solid. The original plot has references to the nuclear war
Nuclear warfare
Nuclear warfare, or atomic warfare, is a military conflict or political strategy in which nuclear weaponry is detonated on an opponent. Compared to conventional warfare, nuclear warfare can be vastly more destructive in range and extent of damage...
hysteria during the mid-1980s that resulted from the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
. Following games would revolve around nuclear weapon inspections in Iraq and Iran, but such idea was left out due to growing concern regarding the political situation in the Middle East. Other changes to the series were made in Metal Gear Solid 2 as a result of the September 11, 2001 attacks
September 11, 2001 attacks
The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks (also referred to as September 11, September 11th or 9/119/11 is pronounced "nine eleven". The slash is not part of the pronunciation...
.
After Metal Gear: Solid Snake, Kojima planned to release the third Metal Gear rehash in 1994 for the 3DO Interactive Multiplayer
3DO Interactive Multiplayer
The 3DO Interactive Multiplayer is a video game console originally produced by Panasonic in 1993. Further renditions of the hardware were released in 1994 by Sanyo and Goldstar. The consoles were manufactured according to specifications created by The 3DO Company, and were originally designed by...
in 1994
1994 in video gaming
-Events:*Nintendo calls this year "1994: The Year of the Cartridge".*Nintendo Australia Pty. Ltd, the Australian subsidiary of Nintendo Co., Ltd is established and opened by Hiroshi Yamauchi and effectively ends Mattel Australia's distribution of Nintendo's products throughout Australia.*"Project...
. Besides changing the console, the game was renamed, and its subsequent sequels, were given the word "Solid" as the series started using 3D computer graphics
3D computer graphics
3D computer graphics are graphics that use a three-dimensional representation of geometric data that is stored in the computer for the purposes of performing calculations and rendering 2D images...
. Games since then were designed to be more realistic to further entertain the players. Metal Gear Solid 3 was initially meant to be made for the PlayStation 3, but due to the long wait for PS3, the game was developed for the PlayStation 2 instead. As previous game's settings were indoors areas due to difficulties with the consoles, ever since Metal Gear Solid 3, Kojima wished to drastically change it despite difficulties. Since Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty had several plot points unresolved, it was originally meant to leave it to players to discuss them to come to their own conclusions. This has led to consistency issues in the English version from Metal Gear Solid and Metal Gear Solid 2 as they mentioned plot elements that were further explored in Metal Gear Solid 4.
Adaptations
A novel adaptation of the original Metal GearMetal Gear (video game)
is an overhead military action-adventure video game originally released in by Konami for the MSX2 computer standard in Japan and parts of Europe. Considered to be the progenitor of the stealth game genre, it was also the first video game designed by Hideo Kojima, who also directed many of the...
was published in 1988 as a part of Scholastic's Worlds of Power
Worlds of Power
The Worlds of Power books are a series of novelizations of video games for the Nintendo Entertainment System released in the early 1990s. The series was created by Seth Godin and is characterized by the fact that they are mostly "male-oriented titles," that take creative liberties with their source...
line of novelization
Novelization
A novelization is a novel that is written based on some other media story form rather than as an original work.Novelizations of films usually add background material not found in the original work to flesh out the story, because novels are generally longer than screenplays...
s, which were based on third-party NES
Nintendo Entertainment System
The Nintendo Entertainment System is an 8-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America during 1985, in Europe during 1986 and Australia in 1987...
games. It was written by Alexander Frost. The novelization is not based on the game's official storyline, but rather on Konami of America's localization of the plot. The book takes further liberties by giving Solid Snake the name of Justin Halley, and by changing the name of Snake's unit from FOXHOUND to the "Snake Men". In Japan, a Metal Gear gamebook
Gamebook
A gamebook is a work of fiction that allows the reader to participate in the story by making effective choices. The narrative branches along various paths through the use of numbered paragraphs or pages...
was published on March 31, 1988, shortly after the release of the game on the Famicom. It is set two years after the events of the original Metal Gear, and is part of the Konami Gamebook Series. A novelization of Metal Gear Solid
Metal Gear Solid
is a videogame by Hideo Kojima. The game was developed by Konami Computer Entertainment Japan and first published by Konami in 1998 for the PlayStation video game console. It is the sequel to Kojimas early MSX2 computer games Metal Gear and Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake...
was published in 2008. It was written by Raymond Benson
Raymond Benson
Raymond Benson is an American author best known for being the official author of the adult James Bond novels from 1997 to 2003. Benson was born in Midland, Texas and graduated from Permian High School in Odessa in 1973...
, the author of nine James Bond
James Bond
James Bond, code name 007, is a fictional character created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short story collections. There have been a six other authors who wrote authorised Bond novels or novelizations after Fleming's death in 1964: Kingsley Amis,...
novels. Benson also wrote a Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty
Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty
is a stealth action video game directed by Hideo Kojima, developed by Konami Computer Entertainment Japan and published by Konami for the PlayStation 2 in 2001....
novelization, which was published in 2009. Critical reaction to Benson's novelizations has been generally positive, with Bookgasm.com writing that "Benson does a fine job translating the game to the page" with Metal Gear Solid, and MishMashMagazine.com calling Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty "a great companion to the game". A Japanese-language novelization of Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots
Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots
is a video game developed by Kojima Productions for the PlayStation 3 console. The game was directed by Hideo Kojima and made its worldwide release on June 12, 2008, ten years after the release of Metal Gear Solid and twenty years after the North American release of Metal Gear.Guns of the Patriots...
by Project Itoh was published on June 12, 2008.
A radio drama
Radio drama
Radio drama is a dramatized, purely acoustic performance, broadcast on radio or published on audio media, such as tape or CD. With no visual component, radio drama depends on dialogue, music and sound effects to help the listener imagine the characters and story...
based on the original Metal Gear Solid aired in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
from 1998 to 1999 as part of Konami's syndicated clud DB program. Directed by Shuyo Murata and written by Motosada Mori
Motosada Mori
is a former mercenary, military expert and author from Japan. A native of Hiroshima Prefecture and graduate of the Hiroshima Prefectural Itsukaichi High School, he began traveling the world at the age of 19 and participated in various regional conflicts and provided protection to the 14th Dalai Llama...
, the serial lasted over 12 weekly installments spanning three story arcs. The series was later collected as a two-volume set. The series serves as an alternate continuation to the events of Shadow Moses, with Solid Snake
Solid Snake
Metal Gear, initially released in 1987, introduces Solid Snake, the rookie recruit of the elite special-forces unit FOXHOUND. Snake is sent by team leader Big Boss into the rogue nation Outer Heaven to rescue his missing teammate Gray Fox and discover who or what the "METAL GEAR" mentioned is, and...
, Meryl Silverburgh, Mei Ling and Roy Campbell going on further missions as FOXHOUND operatives (Mei Ling and Meryl are depicted wearing a battle dress uniform
Battle Dress Uniform
The Battle Dress Uniform were the fatigues that the armed forces of the United States used as their standard uniform for combat situations from September 1981 to April 2005. Since then, it has been replaced in every branch of the U.S. military. Only the U.S. Navy currently authorizes wear of the...
and a sneaking suit respectively), although the stories are not considered part of the mainstream Metal Gear canon. The Japanese voice actors from the game reprised their roles for the series, while new characters are introduced as well.
A comic book
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
adaptation of the original Metal Gear Solid was published by IDW Publishing
IDW Publishing
IDW Publishing, also known as Idea + Design Works, LLC and IDW, is an American publisher of comic books and comic strip collections. The company was founded in 1999 and has been awarded the title "Publisher of the Year Under 5% Market Share" for the years 2004, 2005 and 2006 by Diamond Comic...
in 2004. It was written by Kris Oprisko
Kris Oprisko
Kris Oprisko is an author who worked for Wildstorm from 1995–1999, and was one of the four founders of Idea and Design Works, LLC/IDW Publishing, where he continues to work. He has written many books such as the original Metal Gear Solid series, Case Files, the CSI series, and more...
and with illustrations by Ashley Wood
Ashley Wood
Ashley Wood is an Australian comic book artist and illustrator who is well known for his cover art, concept design and his work as an art director....
. The series lasted 24 issues and has been collected in two trade paperbacks as well as a single hardback collector's edition which is currently out-of-print. The entire run of the comic was collected again in a paperback book titled Metal Gear Solid Omnibus and released on June 2010. A comic book adaptation of Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty has also been published by IDW, written by Alex Garner with illustrations by Ashley Wood. A digital version of the first comic book adaptation was released for the PlayStation Portable
PlayStation Portable
The is a handheld game console manufactured and marketed by Sony Corporation Development of the console was announced during E3 2003, and it was unveiled on , 2004, at a Sony press conference before E3 2004...
titled Metal Gear Solid: Digital Graphic Novel in . A second digital version, titled Metal Gear Solid 2: Bande Dessinée, was released exclusively in Japan as a DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
release in and features fully voiced versions of both comic book adaptations. All the Japanese voice actors from the games reprised their roles with the exception of those that have died.
Several promotional DVDs have been released detailing the Metal Gear series. Metal Gear Saga vol. 1 was released in 2006 as a pre-order disc for MGS3: Subsistence. It is divided into five chapters, each dealing with one game of the then five-part Metal Gear series in chronological order (beginning with MGS3), and each include discussions by Hideo Kojima. Metal Gear Saga vol. 2 was first shown at the 20th Metal Gear Anniversary Party, and then released as a pre-order disc for MGS4. In this, the video is presented as a pseudo-documentary about Solid Snake and is divided into a prologue and four chapters: Naked Snake-the birth of Snake (chronicling the events of MGS3, MG1, and MG2), Liquid Snake-the second snake (MGS), Solidus Snake-the third Snake (MGS2) and Solid Snake-the first Snake (setting the stage for MGS4).
Film
In May 2006 Metal Gear series creator Hideo KojimaHideo Kojima
is a Japanese game director originally employed at Konami. He is currently the director of Kojima Productions and was promoted to Vice President of Konami Digital Entertainment in early 2011...
announced that a film adaptation
Film adaptation
Film adaptation is the transfer of a written work to a feature film. It is a type of derivative work.A common form of film adaptation is the use of a novel as the basis of a feature film, but film adaptation includes the use of non-fiction , autobiography, comic book, scripture, plays, and even...
of Metal Gear Solid was in development. The film was purported to be in English, said to be released some time in 2011. Kojima also announced at the Electronic Entertainment Expo later that month that he had negotiated a contract with a party in Hollywood to adapt the video game into a film. Kojima also considered Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
as the site of the film production, due to the game's setting in the state. David Hayter
David Hayter
David Hayter is a Canadian-American voice and screen actor and screenwriter. He is best known for providing the English voices of Solid Snake and Big Boss in the Metal Gear video game series, and for writing the screenplay for X-Men and co-writing the screenplay for The Scorpion King and X2...
, the English voice actor for Solid Snake, had submitted his take for the movie but executives have passed on his script. Kojima also denied claims that German director Uwe Boll
Uwe Boll
Uwe Boll is a German director, producer and screenwriter, whose work includes several films adapted from video games. He finances his own films through his Boll KG production company. He is often cited as the worst director of all time.-Early life:...
was a possible contender to direct a Metal Gear film.
Producer Michael DeLuca
Michael DeLuca
Michael De Luca is an American movie producer and screenwriter.-Life and career:De Luca was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, the son of a worker at ConEdison. De Luca was exposed to motion pictures by his father, who would sneak the youngster into movie theaters...
has expressed interest in having Equilibrium
Equilibrium (film)
Equilibrium is a 2002 American science fiction action film written and directed by Kurt Wimmer. It stars Christian Bale as John Preston, a warrior-priest and enforcement officer in a future dystopia where both feelings and artistic expression are outlawed and citizens take daily injections of drugs...
director Kurt Wimmer
Kurt Wimmer
Kurt Wimmer is an American screenwriter and film director.Wimmer is of German descent, he attended the University of South Florida and graduated with a BFA degree in Art History. He then moved to Los Angeles where he worked for 12 years as a screenwriter before making his 2002 film, Equilibrium...
write the script for the movie. Later on Kurt Wimmer was opted to direct the movie adaptation. However, Wimmer will not take part in the directing for the film. He was only approached to pitch a take on adapting the Metal Gear Solid franchise. Konami's Aki Saito had commented that There Will Be Blood
There Will Be Blood
There Will Be Blood is a 2007 drama film written, co-produced, and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson. The film is based on Upton Sinclair's 1927 novel Oil!. It tells the story of a silver miner-turned-oilman on a ruthless quest for wealth during Southern California's oil boom of the late 19th and...
director Paul Thomas Anderson
Paul Thomas Anderson
Paul Thomas Anderson is an American film director, screenwriter, and producer. He has written and directed five feature films: Hard Eight , Boogie Nights , Magnolia , Punch-Drunk Love and There Will Be Blood...
was interested, but DeLuca dismissed the claim. According to an interview in Nuts Magazine actor Christian Bale
Christian Bale
Christian Charles Philip Bale is an English actor. Best known for his roles in American films, Bale has starred in both big budget Hollywood films and the smaller projects from independent producers and art houses....
is interested in playing Solid Snake in the film, during an interview for Public Enemies, he stated that he has not been approached for the role.
However, on January 11, 2010, de Luca confirmed that work on a Metal Gear film adaptation has been postponed indefinitely. He said Konami expressed concern that the entire Metal Gear franchise could be seriously affected if a movie version performed poorly.
Additionally, a non-profit fanfilm titled Metal Gear Solid: Philanthropy
Metal Gear Solid: Philanthropy
Metal Gear Solid: Philanthropy is a 2009 non-profit fan made movie series created by , a team of Italian students and filmmakers. It is a film based on the highly successful Metal Gear video game series...
, was produced. The film is set in 2007 and somewhere before or after the events of Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty
Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty
is a stealth action video game directed by Hideo Kojima, developed by Konami Computer Entertainment Japan and published by Konami for the PlayStation 2 in 2001....
. The movie was well received by fans and also by Hideo Kojima, who said, after being asked by a fan if he had seen the movie, "Of course I did. It's awesome. I felt like crying for their love towards Metal Gear. It's also a well made movie. I can't wait to see next part."
Toys
In 1999, McFarlane ToysMcFarlane Toys
McFarlane Toys, a subsidiary of Todd McFarlane Productions, Inc., is a company started by Todd McFarlane that makes highly detailed models of characters from movies, comics, musicians, video games, and sport figures...
, with the collaboration of Konami
Konami
is a Japanese leading developer and publisher of numerous popular and strong-selling toys, trading cards, anime, tokusatsu, slot machines, arcade cabinets and video games...
, launched a series of action figures depicting key characters from Metal Gear Solid
Metal Gear Solid
is a videogame by Hideo Kojima. The game was developed by Konami Computer Entertainment Japan and first published by Konami in 1998 for the PlayStation video game console. It is the sequel to Kojimas early MSX2 computer games Metal Gear and Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake...
. In 2001, following the success of the first series, and with the release of Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty
Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty
is a stealth action video game directed by Hideo Kojima, developed by Konami Computer Entertainment Japan and published by Konami for the PlayStation 2 in 2001....
, McFarlane Toys and Konami combined their efforts to produce a line of action figures depicting Sons of Libertys main characters. Each character has a piece of Metal Gear RAY, so collecting the entire set is essential to build the robot.
Konami has also released 4" scale blind-box figures based on MGS2 released in Japan, Sons of Liberty in 2002 and Substance shortly after in 2003; the Substance series was eventually brought to the US and UK markets packaged on card rather than blind boxed. During the release of MGS3, Medicom released 12" figures of Snake as part of their Real Action Heroes line. Medicom continued to support the franchise with the release of Kubrick figures for Snake Eater and Guns of the Patriots, which also included seven- and 12-inch versions of the game's characters.
Square Enix
Square Enix
is a Japanese video game and publishing company best known for its console role-playing game franchises, which include the Final Fantasy series, the Dragon Quest series, and the action-RPG Kingdom Hearts series...
also joined the production of toys based on the series by creating replicas of the boss vehicles and characters from Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker
Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker
is a video game produced by Konami and Kojima Productions that was released for the PlayStation Portable in 2010. Peace Walker is the fourth Metal Gear title for the PSP, although it is only the second to be considered part of the series' main canon, following Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops...
. The toys, which are from Square's Play Arts Kai line were released in 2010.
Soundtracks
Soundtracks for the first two games were produced by Iku Mizutani, Shigehiro Takenouchi and Motoaki Furukawa. For Metal Gear Solid, Kojima wanted "a full orchestra right next to the player"; a system which made modifications such as tempoTempo
In musical terminology, tempo is the speed or pace of a given piece. Tempo is a crucial element of any musical composition, as it can affect the mood and difficulty of a piece.-Measuring tempo:...
and texture
Texture (music)
In music, texture is the way the melodic, rhythmic, and harmonic materials are combined in a composition , thus determining the overall quality of sound of a piece...
to the currently playing track, instead of switching to another pre-recorded track. Although these features could not be achieved at that time, they were implemented in Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty. Hideo Kojima chose Harry Gregson-Williams
Harry Gregson-Williams
Harry Gregson-Williams is a prolific British composer, orchestrator, conductor, and music producer. He is best known for his film scores, of which he has composed over sixty using electronic music and orchestral pieces...
, a Hollywood
Hollywood, Los Angeles, California
Hollywood is a famous district in Los Angeles, California, United States situated west-northwest of downtown Los Angeles. Due to its fame and cultural identity as the historical center of movie studios and movie stars, the word Hollywood is often used as a metonym of American cinema...
film composer
Film score
A film score is original music written specifically to accompany a film, forming part of the film's soundtrack, which also usually includes dialogue and sound effects...
from Hans Zimmer
Hans Zimmer
Hans Florian Zimmer is a German film composer and music producer. He has composed music for over 100 films, including critically acclaimed film scores for The Lion King , Crimson Tide , The Thin Red Line , Gladiator , The Dark Knight and Inception .Zimmer spent the early part of his career in the...
's studio, as the composer for Metal Gear Solid 2 was highly publicized in the run-up to the game's release. Gregson-Williams would reprise his role in Metal Gear Solid 3 and Metal Gear Solid 4. Starting with Metal Gear Solid, theme songs have been provided by popular artists such as Rika Muranaka
Rika Muranaka
Rika Muranaka has composed and arranged and sung many vocal songs for the popular Konami video game series, Metal Gear Solid.Some of her works include "Can't Say Goodbye to Yesterday" , "The Best Is Yet To Come" and "Don't Be Afraid"...
. Several soundtracks based on the games have also been published.
Reception and legacy
The Metal Gear franchise has achieved great success, selling more than 30 million copies as of early 2011. Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty shipped over 7 million copies worldwide, and is followed in sales by Metal Gear Solid with over six million and Metal Gear Solid 4 with five million. According to Chart-TrackChart-Track
Chart-Track is a market research company that monitors music, videos and software sales in the United Kingdom, Ireland and Denmark and was formed in 1996. In July 2008 GfK took a majority stake in the company....
, Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots was the second fastest-selling PlayStation 3 title in the United Kingdom after Grand Theft Auto IV
Grand Theft Auto IV
Grand Theft Auto IV is a 2008 open world action video game published by Rockstar Games, and developed by British games developer Rockstar North. It has been released for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 video game consoles, and for the Windows operating system...
. The PlayStation Portable games were met with notably lower sales, but it has been analyzed that this was because of the low sales of the console when the games were released.
Several games have been universally acclaimed by critics. Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty currently possesses the highest score of the series, with 95.04% on GameRankings and 96% on Metacritic
Metacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
. In 2002, IGN's editors ranked it as the best PlayStation game ever. In Game Informer Magazines list of top 200 games of all time, Metal Gear Solid 2 ranked at #50 on the list. Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater was also voted as fifth greatest PlayStation title ever released in a poll from PlayStation Official Magazine (UK)
PlayStation Official Magazine (UK)
The Official UK PlayStation Magazine is a now-defunct magazine, launched in November 1995 to coincide with the launch of the PlayStation console. It ran for 108 issues, with the last hitting news stands in March 2004. The first issue sold 37,000 copies...
. Metal Gear Solid and Metal Gear Solid 2 will be featured in the Smithsonian American Art Museum
Smithsonian American Art Museum
The Smithsonian American Art Museum is a museum in Washington, D.C. with an extensive collection of American art.Part of the Smithsonian Institution, the museum has a broad variety of American art that covers all regions and art movements found in the United States...
's "The Art of Video Games" exhibition, taking place from 16 March to 30 September 2012.
Metal Gear Solid is often recognized as one of the key titles involved in popularizing the stealth game genre with the player starting the game unarmed. Several boss fights have been praised for their variety and strategy required to beat them. The series has been notorious for its fourth wall
Fourth wall
The fourth wall is the imaginary "wall" at the front of the stage in a traditional three-walled box set in a proscenium theatre, through which the audience sees the action in the world of the play...
breaking scenes. The storyline was commented to give characters "rich characterization" as well as to touch several controversial themes. Hideo Kojima's ambitious script in Metal Gear Solid 2 has been praised, some even calling it the first example of a postmodern
Postmodernism
Postmodernism is a philosophical movement evolved in reaction to modernism, the tendency in contemporary culture to accept only objective truth and to be inherently suspicious towards a global cultural narrative or meta-narrative. Postmodernist thought is an intentional departure from the...
video game. Cutscenes have often been praised for its graphics and stunts the characters perform. Nevertheless, a common criticism was the scenes' length which tend to last for a long time, as well as some parts from the storyline. Raiden's unexpected introduction in Metal Gear Solid 2, due to his lack of appearances in the games' trailers and how he replaces fan-favorite character Solid Snake, have been deemed as one of the most controversial parts of the entire series.
External links
Official sites- Konami Entertainment
- Kojima Productions
- Metal Gear Solid
- Metal Gear Solid: Integral
- Metal Gear: Ghost Babel
- Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty
- The Document of Metal Gear Solid 2
- Metal Gear Solid 2: Substance
- Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes
- Metal Gear Acid
- Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater
- Metal Gear Acid 2
- Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence
- Metal Gear Solid: Digital Graphic Novel
- Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops
- Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops+
- Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots
- Metal Gear Solid Touch
- Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker
- Metal Gear Solid: Rising
Game archive and review sites