With the Western release of Metal Gear Solid Happening on this day 20 years ago, we revisit last month’s celebratory article for Hideo Kojima’s classic.
The PlayStation had been out for a little under four years come September 3rd of 1998; it was on that day that Metal Gear Solid would make its debut in Japan. While there had been previous Metal Gear entries beforehand, Metal Gear Solid would end up becoming one of the most significant titles in gaming history.
Developed by Konami and directed by the prestigious Hideo Kojima, the action-stealth adventure placed gamers in the role of Solid Snake; a special-ops soldier entrusted with a mission to break into a secret facility and rescue hostages, all while stopping a nuclear crisis. What starts out as a typical espionage game, however, quickly changes pace, as Snake finds himself up against supernatural forces and deadly mechs.
Metal Gear Solid received immense applause from critics and fans alike. Since its inception, it has spawned numerous sequels and prequels, with the majority receiving their own outstanding acclaim. From their riveting stories to their unique characters and their exploration of philosophies, the Metal Gear Solid series has become one of gaming’s proudest achievements.
Today marks the 20th anniversary of Metal Gear Solid (with August being the 31st anniversary since the first ever Metal Gear game). To celebrate this entry in the series, I’m going to take a look back at Metal Gear Solid and what makes it such an astounding work in video game history.
The Dawning of The Stealth Genre
While there are plenty of thrilling moments, including gun-toting action, Metal Gear Solid (MGS) puts much of its focus on stealth. Providing gamers with a small radar at the bottom of the screen, they are able to keep track of not only where enemies are walking, but in what direction they are facing in.
Stealth throughout the game is further affected due to the setting. While taking place in a large facility known as Shadow Moses, the outside environment of MGS has lots of snow; walking through said snow leaves footprints, alerting enemies to suspicious movement. These sorts of small details make MGS all the more interesting, providing an extra level of awareness when playing stealthily.
On a similar note, in regard to the game’s stealth, MGS starts players out with a tranquilizer gun. You can go ahead and pick up other weapons, but the tranquilizer gun is significant to MGS. Even though future Metal Gear titles have leaned towards more action-oriented gameplay, the tranquilizer has always been a means of progressing through each entry.
These stealth elements were essential in Kojima’s design; MGS was not only the beginning of a whole new genre in video games, but its influence has echoed throughout the years. The way MGS handled action was unlike any other game before it; the limiting of weapons, the encouragement to quietly take out or dodge foes, were all ideas not common in games; as gamers, we were always expected to kill the enemy. This concept of stealth and taking out the opponent through non-violent means would become an integral part of Kojima’s gaming philosophy.
Even almost two decades later, his final Metal Gear entry (Phantom Pain), offers the chance to quietly go about missions or to kill. It’s such a simple idea that has gone on to influence such video games like Dishonored. The way the player maneuvers and stalks the shadows throughout MGS has also influenced games like Assassin’s Creed, Splinter Cell, and Deus Ex: Human Revolution.
MGS can be marked as one of the biggest turning points in gaming; it’s a title where one can go back and find innovation and technology coming together to present a more immersive presentation. But even though MGS is successful on a game mechanic level, it also presents a truly exhilarating, cinematic story experience.
A Video Game Of Cinematic Quality
While the game takes place in a fictional 2005, it embodies many Cold War Era tensions; this is due to the heavy dialogue and themes revolving around espionage, politics, and nuclear war. As Snake makes his way through the facility he comes across a wide variety of extravagant characters; many who he finds to have passionate political and personal beliefs.
With a love for film, Kojima came into MGS with the understanding of how important drama is to a story. Rather than give us flat characters that just gun it out, he provides numerous characters with depth; each one brings their own identity, adding more substance to the plot. An example of this is found in the game’s main antagonist, Liquid Snake; even though it isn’t his only motivating factor, he is driven by jealousy towards his brother Solid Snake. Their confrontations are consistently heated, with the former stating his desire to surpass his “genetic history” (referring to their “father” Big Boss).
The Horror in Metal Gear Solid’s History
One major concept that made MGS so different back in the day (compared to other video games), was just how cinematic it was in nature. In one moment you’re playing a game and in the next, you feel like you’re watching a movie. As Kojima has said in interviews, “70% of my body is made of movies.” His passion and knowledge of film can be felt throughout MGS; dynamic camera angles, conflict-driven dialogue, as well as the physical action taking place in the game’s cutscenes, come across as elements you would find on a big theatre screen.
Given that MGS is such a cinematic experience, one place that it greatly shines is that of its boss fights. MGS is home to some of the most unique and innovative boss battles in video game history. Two worth major notice are that of the battles between Sniper Wolf and Psycho Mantis.
When battling Wolf, you find yourself at the end of a long narrow path. A shot blasts towards you, and you know somewhere Wolf is in the distance. What takes place is moment-to-moment tension in holding your breath, looking down the scope of your rifle, and searching for her before she gets you first. It’s a superb sequence that pushes the player into a state of constant awareness, requiring them to have fast reflexes.
The battle with Psycho Mantis is one of the biggest moments in fourth wall breaking techniques via gaming. Upon confronting him you learn of his psychic abilities; but rather than be just any old boss who levitates and uses telekinesis, Mantis takes it one large step further. Depending on past or current save files in your PlayStation memory card, Mantis will actually comment on said saved data. If you’ve been playing Castlevania for example, he’ll say something along the lines of how much of a fan you must be. On top of that, he could also dodge all your attacks by reading your movements via the game controller. It’s only upon research that you learn that by switching your controller to a different port on your console, that you can throw Mantis off.
These innovations were/are mind-blowing; and even with how far technology has come since then, feats like this have been rarely accomplished so well. The cleverness found in these fourth wall breaking moments adds a level of immersion to an already in-depth, fascinating story.
MGS was one of the first big games to shape itself around the impact of war and violence. At times Kojima’s characters will discuss the politics and economics of war, and specifically, the cost in human lives. MGS, in particular, works itself around these ideas throughout its story, taking more time to center in on the nuclear conflict at hand. But by including such mature concepts, MGS became one of the first major examples in how games were capable of mature stories.
Considering past and present commentary, negative criticism towards video games has stated that games are forms of entertainment that are about and perpetuate violence; MGS flipped this idea on its head, offering more of a conscious statement about violence. Much contemporary gaming journalism has looked at the impact and commentary throughout the Metal Gear series; and specifically, how the games point out the horrors of violence, offering players the chance to avoid violent actions.
Kojima’s efforts helped to bring about the idea that video games could be cinematic experiences; that one could infuse game mechanics into the human need for stories. We’ve seen games today that strive to bring about those cinematic vibes (via interactive button prompts), but what Kojima has pulled off through Metal Gear is on a different level; it’s that intricate balance between immersion and voyeurism, allowing the player to participate and to experience all at once (but with much more interaction). Starting with MGS, he has taken so many traditional elements from different mediums, meshing them together to present a new medium of sorts.
MGS not only stands as an incredible feat in gaming but is a testament to the emotion and immense quality that games are capable of presenting.
A Solid Legacy
Since Metal Gear Solid’s release, the world of gaming has massively changed. We have photorealistic graphics, AR & VR technology, innovative ways to use a game controller, and many more mature stories. All of that, in one way or another, is thanks to Metal Gear Solid.
The game isn’t just responsible for helping to establish a new genre of titles, but more importantly, set the bar for rich stories. Metal Gear Solid paved the way for future video games to pursue intellectual adventures, balancing the line between drama and action. It demonstrated to future developers how you could take creative chances with games; how utilizing story and game mechanics together allow gamers to immerse themselves further into an experience.
In the 20 years since it was released Metal Gear Solid has made a name for itself as one of the greatest video games of all time. In 2018 we have thousands of players who have fond memories of experiencing it; we have loyal fans who stand by Kojima and whatever new project he touches; we have artists looking to do what they can to even create a film out of it.
As time moved forward, the Metal Gear series continuously built upon the foundations established in Metal Gear Solid; its following entries offered other unique means for us to interpret our playing experience, while still providing stories that embodied action, stealth, politics, and emotion. From the moment it was born, Metal Gear Solid was meant to embark on a legacy that would not just alter how we play video games, but how we perceive what a video game is and what they can teach us.