Metal Gear Solid

Release Date - September 3, 1998 (JP)
Developer - Konami Computer Entertainment Japan
Publisher - Konami
Platform - PlayStation

Metal Gear Solid was perhaps the most talked about game on the floor of the 1997 Electronic Entertainment Expo (better known as ‘E3’). That was quite the achievement when you consider the competition consisted of heavyweight titles like Quake 2, Unreal, Panzer Dragoon Saga, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, GoldenEye and Banjo Kazooie. All titles are regularly seen on lists of ‘Greatest Games of All Time’; so for Metal Gear Solid to stand out to the journalists in attendance meant it was doing something very special.

Metal Gear Solid had been worked on for at least two years before release, even though the game wasn’t playable to the public until the Spring Tokyo Game Show of 1998. Kumi Sato, the CG artist from Metal Gear Solid, even claimed that she began work on modelling the titular Metal Gear weapon four years prior, back in 1994! While Metal Gear Solid helped the series reach newfound levels of fame, the Metal Gear franchise itself was already well established. The original Metal Gear was released in 1987 for MSX2 home computers. The sequel; Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake, followed in 1990. Despite the games being quite successful commercially and critically, apart from a spin-off title (Snake’s Revenge was released on the NES in 1990), the series had remained dormant until 1998.

*Silent and dangerous, stalking enemies is par for the course in* Metal Gear Solid.

Hideo Kojima, the director both Metal Gear and Metal Gear 2 (as well as the acclaimed Snatcher (1988) and Policenauts (1994)) had always wanted to make a 3D Metal Gear game. It wasn’t until he saw the capabilities of Sony’s PlayStation that he felt he could do the title justice. In fact, the name Metal Gear Solid was chosen as the word ‘solid’ represented the 3D nature of the graphics. With the new technology afforded by PlayStation, Kojima could make a game where it was possible to do things like crawl underneath tables, hide inside lockers and throw enemies over balconies.

Metal Gear Solid throws players into a compelling and complex story of spies, betrayals and action. It’s all a direct continuation from the events of Metal Gear and Metal Gear 2 (don’t worry if you haven’t played them though, as the game is still well self-contained. In fact, players can even view an optional 23 minute ‘Mission Briefing’ to fill in any gaps before playing the game). A nuclear weapon has been stolen by rogue military group Foxhound. Ex-Foxhound member, and legendary soldier ‘Solid Snake’ is tasked with infiltrating their base at Shadow Moses Island to neutralise the threat. The plot moves in thrilling, unexpected and sometimes downright strange directions as the game unfolds. By the time of Metal Gear Solid’s release, the notion of video games becoming the ‘new Hollywood’ was already pervading the tech-world, and Metal Gear Solid would become a major contribution to that trend with some well-directed cut-scenes and extensive amounts of voice acting that was particularly high quality (especially for 1998’s standards). Interestingly, the game’s cinematics are all staged with the in-game graphics, even though pre-rendered CGI cut-scenes had become commonplace at the time. This allowed the game another avenue to show off the impressive technical achievements Konami had achieved.

*A perfect example of the blend of cinema and gameplay. Not only does the dramatic angle give the effect of a tense film, but it allows players to see what’s behind their cover!*

The gameplay itself is a blend of stealthy tactics and intense action (with the game marketing itself as ‘Tactical Espionage Action’ on the box). While the game certainly has cinematic aspects to it, Kojima was also very conscious to not impede the gameplay or interactivity of the game by focusing too much on a cinematic style. Rather, compromises were found to marry gameplay and story. As an example, the camera is generally in an overhead position when controlling Snake, but when taking cover behind a wall the perspective changes to a closer view at ground level to create a dramatic camera angle as you watch for oncoming threats. Something only possible with a 3D game engine! Proof of Kojima’s dedication to ensuring the gameplay wasn’t impacted is also seen in his decision to limit the use of real-time lighting during development, as the inclusion of that feature would have resulted in the game’s frame-rate performance being impacted to an unacceptable degree.

*Snake takes on a tank in one of the games many iconic boss fights! They often required some out-of-the-box thinking as opposed to brute force.*

The ultimate goal of Metal Gear Solid is to complete your mission objectives without being detected. Solid Snake can take out Foxhound guards silently, hide bodies, misdirect guards by creating noise, crawl under vehicles and even travel through air vents. The game pushes you in the direction of a stealthy approach early on, starting players out with nothing but a pair of binoculars and a pack of cigarettes! Players will have to get creative to beat the first few guards (what did you expect? This is a black-ops mission, all weapons and gear must be procured on site!).

Foxhound’s guards make for compelling enemies; they will patrol their routes which players should learn and memorise to safely proceed. The first groups you encounter are lower ranking members of Foxhound so are relatively easy to fool and will even sometimes slack off on the job. As you continue into Shadow Moses island you’ll encounter more and more elite members of the unit. Not only do you need to be on the lookout for guards, but also motion sensors and security cameras sweeping the area.

*You don’t want to find yourself in this situation too often…*

Guards have a vision cone that players can see on their mini maps. While you might be able to avoid being seen, guards also recognise fallen comrades, or even more subtle hints to your presence like footprints in the snow! Not to mention they also can hear you if you’re making noise while moving about or firing your weapon within earshot. The more competent guards will even lob grenades to try and force you out of cover when they find you! It all goes towards making the game extremely immersive and fun.

While you do eventually collect a decent arsenal of weapons to aid you in your mission, you also have some great gadgets that can help you with stealth and more. There’s the standard spy stuff of night vision goggles and chaff grenades (complete with a delightful and iconic visual and audio effect when used), you also get some more exotic toys like a remote guided missile. Not to be forgotten of course, is the infamous cardboard box that has become iconic of the series! You’ll need these tools to progress, especially when it comes to avoiding booby traps.

*The Nikita missile launcher allows you to remotely guide a projectile from an overhead view. Incredibly handy to get through tough sections.*

If you find yourself caught short, or just prefer another silent way to take out enemies, Snake also has a variety of unarmed combat techniques with punches and kicks, and the ability to catch unsuspecting enemies and choke them unconscious with a sleeper hold. For a more fun option, he can also knock them down flights of stairs or over railings for a more lethal, and flashy, takedown.

If all this sounds a bit complex to get your head around, feel free to dip into the ‘VR Training option, which puts Snake into a simulation to teach players all the important techniques. This ‘training’ mode was so popular and fun that an expanded version even got a stand-alone release later with Metal Gear Solid: VR Missions (1999)!

*One of the many VR Missions available to players in the game, both for learning and fun as you try to best your score.*

As you progress through the facility, you’ll come to understand the importance of your ‘Codec’ (a sophisticated radio) and staying in contact with your support team. There are eight different comrades that Snake can contact for advice on weapons, technology, mission tactics or whatever their field of knowledge might help with. The best part is, all the conversations are contextual according to your progress in the game! Call your weapons expert during a boss fight and they might give you some insight into the enemy's strengths and weaknesses, call while you’re navigating a booby trapped hallway and they might give you some tips on how to detect the trip-lasers. There is a truly impressive amount of conversations to be had, and the advice given is very genuinely helpful to making progress or just making your mission that little bit easier. More than this, the Codec also provides essential in-game functions, such as calling data analyst Mei Ling to save your progress. If it’s been a long time since you last saved, she’ll even give you a call to remind you!

*Immersive, technically impressive and oh-so iconic. The Codec can be used at any point in the game to get various bits of advice and information.*

Something that Metal Gear Solid is remembered fondly for is the novel ways the game would interact with players outside of the four corners of the television screen. Going beyond the video game itself, Metal Gear Solid will have the player needing to unplug their controllers, pick up the game’s box to find a code or even put the controller on the floor. At release this kind of interaction was met with mixed results, with many players reportedly not liking those moments as they took the player out of the immersion. While it might not have been popular at the time, these moments certainly made up some of the more memorable moments of the game and are mostly now looked back on as features that made Metal Gear Solid an incredibly unique title.

*You can use some very lateral thinking to defeat the imposing Psycho Mantis boss.*

Inside the realm of the screen, the game had some incredible attention to detail for players that experimented or paid close attention. Starting with the obvious, SWAT teams were consulted for advice on tactics and movements and the developers visited gun ranges to get a feel for the guns. Former French Foreign Legion member, Motusada Mori, was brought on as an advisor to ensure the game was as authentic as could be. Beyond that, there were multiple little touches that were included to make the game world frighteningly detailed at times; hand dryers in the bathroom actually worked, rats scurry around under tables and vehicles. Gameplay can be affected by these things too, smoking a cigarette will calm Snake’s nerves and allow him better aim with the Sniper Rifle for a while, and allowing a wolf to urinate on you (trust me) will mean that wolves encountered later will pick up that scent and be less aggressive. Even the trusty cardboard box can be used to hide on a cargo truck long enough for it to drive off and transport you elsewhere on the base.

*A variety of weapons and tools are available and all have their place in the game.*

Metal Gear Solid was a thunderous success, with the game reportedly selling over 6 million copies by 2001. This came as a surprise to Kojima, who revealed in an interview in 2014 that he had low expectations for the game’s sales before launch. The reviews were no less spectacular with overwhelmingly positive reception from the gaming press around the world, and winning multiple awards. In time, it would become recognised by many gaming publications as one of their favourite Playstation games ever released. Unsurprisingly, the series would thrive in the years to come, with multiple sequels and spin-offs being released, mostly to similar success, with the Metal Gear franchise reportedly garnering over 57 million games worth of sales over its lifespan.

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