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| METAL GEAR SOLID | |
| Developer: | Konami Computer Entertainment Japan (West) |
| Publisher: | PSX:Konami Computer Entertainment, PC:Microsoft |
| Designer: | Hideo Kojima |
| Release date: | PSX:1998, PC:2000 |
| Genre: | Stealth action |
| Game modes: | Single player |
| ESRB rating: | Mature |
| ELSPA rating: | +15 |
| Platform: | Playstation, ported to PC |
| Media: | 2 CDs |
| Input: | Keyboard, Mouse or joystick (PC) |
Metal Gear Solid, commonly abbreviated as MGS, is a stealth-based game developed by Konami and first published for the PlayStation game console in 1998. It is the third game in the Metal Gear series and was produced and directed by Hideo Kojima, with artwork by Yoji Shinkawa. The game is known for its short, intense gameplay followed by lengthy, deep cinematic segments.
The suffix Solid not only references the game's protagonist, Solid Snake. It also alludes to the fact that this is the first Metal Gear game to use "solid" 3D graphics, and it being the third Metal Gear game (solid = cubed = 3). Kojima has also said that it was meant to poke a little fun at Squaresoft (as a square is two-dimensional, and the game, as mentioned, is three-dimensional).
Metal Gear Solid was ground breaking in its use of spoken dialogue, an intricate if somewhat obtuse plot, and cinematic presentation. The availability of 3D graphics and the extensive storage capacity of the CD-ROM format compared to what the Metal Gear team had to work with in 1987 and 1990 made it possible to render a more complete vision of Metal Gear's classic "Tactical Espionage Action" than the previous games for the NES and MSX.
After a teaser showing at E3 in 1997, it became one of the most highly anticipated games ever. Upon its release in 1998, it topped the sales charts. VR Missions was released in 1999 as a spin-off from the game (Snake rants about kids trained in VR simulators in the game). It featured about 300 missions, mostly small mini games (from puzzles to weapon practice), gave the player the chance to play as Grey Fox for three missions, and in 2000 Metal Gear Solid: Integral, the two games on one case was released for the Playstation, and also for the PC simply as Metal Gear Solid.
A sequel, Metal Gear Solid 2, was released in 2001.
Spoiler warning: Plot or ending details follow.
On Shadow Moses, a remote island off the coast of Alaska, FOXHOUND leads an armed uprising and seizes the new Metal Gear "REX" in the single biggest act of terrorism in history. At the request of the government, Colonel Roy Campbell, the former commander of FOXHOUND, summons Solid Snake out of retirement and sends him to infiltrate Shadow Moses in one last solo covert operation. Snake must penetrate deep into the heart of a nuclear weapons facility. Aiding him in his mission are Dr. Hal Emmerich, a.k.a. "Otacon", a former Metal Gear developer: Meryl, Col. Campbell's niece: and a team of the top specialists in each field, who comunicate with Snake via the Codec. In the middle of his battle against the members of FOXHOUND, Snake encounters a cyborg ninja, who thirsts only for battle. This mysterious figure's true identitiy turns out to be Grey Fox, Snake's former FOXHOUND comrade who defected to the enemy and fought against Snake in Zanibar Land. After destroying Metal Gear "REX", Snake confronts the head of the terrorist ground, Liquid Snake. Each of the Snakes, Liquid and Solid, carries the genes of the 20th century's greatest soldier, Big Boss. With the support of cyborg ninja, Solid Snake fights a decisive battle with Liquid. After a long and protracted struggle, Snake finally defeats Liquid and leaves the legacy of Shadow Moses behind him.
The entire game was fully voiced with an unprecedented amount of quality voice acting talent. The majority of the game's dialogue takes place in radio conversations between Solid Snake and other characters in the drama. The player was also free to initiate additional codec calls during gameplay, which allowed the player to pick up additional details outside of the core storyline.
The rest of the plot takes place in fully voiced cut scenes whose cinematic quality was considered groundbreaking for its time. These scenes featured motion captured movements, elaborate camera shots, and special effects. They were rendered in real-time using the game's 3D engine. Most noticeably, the characters' mouths did not move during dialogue and instead a slight jiggle of the head was used to represent speech. However advantages were conferred, notably the freedom of placement of the camera and its ability to move without limitation (e.g. through walls). In this sense the game may be viewed as an example of machinima.
Upon completion, the game features a rolling demo mode, where the player may watch every cut scene and codec conversation in the game, without playing through the game. There are over four hours of dialogue. The sheer amount of detail required the game to ship on two CDs.
Metal Gear Solid was one of the first video games to carry a definable "moral" and "meaning". In this case, it was vehemently opposed to nuclear proliferation, and broached such themes as love and killing. It brought the idea that even the most basic media of expression allow meaningful objects with artistic merit to be produced.
In the first quarter of 2004, a remake, Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes, was released for the Nintendo Gamecube. It features re-recorded voice acting, updated graphics, and improved gameplay features borrowed from Metal Gear Solid 2.
A Game Boy Color game, Metal Gear: Ghost Babel, was retitled "Metal Gear Solid" for its international release.
See Also:
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