I'm just going to come forward and say I honestly don't have a clue where to take this next. That in large part has been the limitation in writing more blog posts here. It's not that there aren't things to say about this game. I'm not scraping the bottom of the barrel for ideas, but how to say it has been the challenge. Going in the same linear manner as I did for Majora's Mask hasn't really been effective, but I'm not going to shy away from addressing several themes in the overarching story of Metal Gear.
If you are looking for a summary of the story, I'm sorry to say I will be discontinuing my summary of Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater. If you have not played it and want to hear the rest of the story, you can get this game for the PS2, Xbox 360, PS3, Nintendo 3DS, and this coming July in a bundle with every Metal Gear title as a PS3 exclusive. If you don't want to take the time to play the game or have already played it once, I will link the dubbed series by BroadSpectrumStudios of cartoonist Hiimdaisy's comic series "Let's Destroy the Shagohod."
As for what is next, I will give a list of a number of themes or motifs I am willing to address in posts about the Metal Gear Solid series. I would appreciate some feedback in the comments either here or on my twitter @RodeothePirate as to the top 5 themes or motifs you all would like to read. I will give a list to name a few potential topics.
Women in Metal Gear Life and Death in Metal Gear National Identity in Metal Gear War and Peace in Metal Gear Technology in Metal Gear Betrayal in Metal Gear Multigenerational Conflict in Metal Gear The Supernatural in Metal Gear
Genetics and Metal Gear
Meme Theory and Metal Gear Raiden and Snake
Metal Gear in Metal Gear Pop Culture and Metal Gear History and Current Events in Metal Gear Metal Gear and Film
Anything I did not list is fair game as well. I will be taking a little time off to brainstorm on topics and write more articles for my other work at culturemass.com since I am running out of silent protagonists. I would also appreciate if you could give suggestions for future titles you would like me to discuss. The list on this post is a good starting point for suggestions. I would prefer not to do a series I have already done (so, that's only two of them). Your participation is greatly appreciated. Without further ado, I present to you "Let's Destroy the Shagohod".
Snake begins his journey through the forest to reach the base in which The Boss and Volgin are using. EVA, by way of her reckless driving, has made it back to the base before her cover was blown. Snake calls EVA on the radio to ask why anyone would defect from their country. EVA explains that she spent her entire life in a small American town. Communication to the outside world was limited, and she did not know any other way of life. When she joined the NSA, she had the opportunity to see many different cultures and ways of life from around the world that affected what she thought of the life she had once lived. Her defection resulted in the new identity she found in the Soviet ideals.
I feel like too often beholders of this conversation take it for granted. The awareness that other countries exist is hardly any incentive to defect by any modern standards. However, you have to put this in terms of an era before mass communication, counter culture, and the Berlin Wall. The United States is defined by the ideals of a white middle class capitalist suburbia, and the Soviets are the enemies. The NSA deals specifically in codes and communication. If there's anything we've gathered from EVA's character thus far, she doesn't really fit into the 50s-early 60s housewife archetype. The whole paradigm of the traditional has been flipped as stated in a previous post. This is just another way in which Snake's understanding of what is and isn't is being challenged.
Snake continues toward Volgin's base when he is stopped at a ravine by Ocelot once again. In the time that it has taken Snake to get to this ravine, Volgin has replaced his ornate Colt .45 with two more pratical Colt .45s. Stating that he has 12 shots as opposed to the 6 that had caused him folly, he wants to challenge Snake to a showdown like those in Westerns. He has also gathered many soldiers in his unit to watch, and only to watch. If they shoot at Snake, Ocelot gets pissed and sometimes takes shots and them. Snake agrees to fight Ocelot, because really the last two times were hardly an issue.
Snake comes close to defeating Ocelot by shooting down a load of beehives on him as well as shooting his red beret off his head which Ocelot apparently can't function without. Overtime, more and more bees start showing up. They scare off all of Ocelot's soldiers, and Ocelot is too busy killing all the bees by spinning his revolvers to resume his fight with Snake. Snake gets chased by all the bees down into the ravine.
The ravine runs so deep that no light can be seen. If I haven't mentioned this before, it is important to note now that Snake just like his son has a serious smoking problem. In this case, Snake's smoking may save his life. He uses a cigar to light his way around the ravine until he can find a proper torch. After travelling through the darkness and at times swimming in these depths, Snake reaches a large cavern with some small islets. A figure materializes out of a swarm of bees, he is The Pain.
Not the bees
If the instance with Sokolov being lifted from his feet by bees and Volgin's lightning powers were not enough to convince you, this character right here might cue you that realism is a relative concept in this series. The Pain has control over bees. As far as super powers go, I would hope for something more along the lines of super speed, invincibility, flight, psychokinesis (although that one is already taken in this series), fireballs, or the capacity to summon bears with prayer like Elisha from the Bible. The power to summon and manipulate bees is a terrible power. There is a point in this fight where The Pain takes off his mask to reveal blisters and welts all over his face. He then spits bee bullets that can eat through Snake's flesh. The Pain can further protect himself from Snake by forming a barrier of bees around his body. To attack Snake, The Pain can surround a live grenade with bees to airlift it to Snake and create a tommygun out of bees. I should also mention he is wearing bee colored camouflage. Had he built a Wickerman with Nic Cage in it we would have the full package.
One man's love for bees, unparalleled.
It just so happens that this guy along with the rest of the Cobra unit were responsible for ending World War II. Despite bee powers being stupid, this fight is actually pretty fun. The advantage against The Pain is that while there aren't many places to attack him given there are only small islands around, there is a lot of water. The principle still stands from that episode of Doctor Who with Agatha Christie and the giant bee that bees can't swim. When The Pain is defeated, he explodes. Yep, he just explodes.
Shortly after this, Snake manages to leave the ravine for a sort of wetlands area that puts him near the Soviet base.
Snake wakes up the next morning to EVA warning him that the Reds are coming. She hops into a trap door beneath the bed and notes that Ocelot is leading these soldiers. Since this game isn't about cover based shooting, the possibilities of how to dispatch the enemies are pretty widespread. This was at a point when military games weren't merely whackamole in gritty dystopian environments with steroid space marines grunting and sawing each other in half (no hard feelings, Cliffy). Snake has access to a shotgun and a machine gun at this point as well as the gun he got from EVA, just so long as he remembers to equip the said weapons. He has probably found a fair number of grenades at this point and could also resort to sneaking up and getting them with his knife, which if difficult but doable.
I chose to jump into the trap door and then when they went into the room doing all the proper breaching procedures and stuff, I went outside and cleared them out from the back ducking in and out of cover with a shotgun (it's still not really the same as cover based shooting because they recognize their advantage in numbers and can quickly turn the situation around if you don't think on your feet). As far as stealth goes, I have nothing against the Splinter Cell games, but they don't really let me do this.
For those who know my common greeting gesture, it comes from this.
Not exactly the best character to borrow anything from, but whatever.
After dealing with all these guys, EVA (w/ motorcycle helmet on to hide face) is being held at gunpoint by Ocelot. Ocelot does everything to get Snake's attention to show him his "cool new revolver." He also keeps Snake at a distance so that Snake doesn't beat him in CQC again. Snake doesn't have to attack Ocelot in combat, because he knows he can just attack Ocelot's ego. Snake tells him that the revolver is a nice gun but more for gun shows and collectors and not for durability or use in war. Ocelot gets upset about this and tries to shoot Snake only to realize he's out of ammo. Snake points out that the Colt Single Action revolver holds only six bullets while the Makarov holds eight. This exchange gives EVA enough time to take down Ocelot and then back flip off of his face with her motorcycle.
With Ocelot's ego thoroughly destroyed, he runs off to get better with guns and probably get more cheerleaders since Snake killed them all. EVA takes aim at Ocelot, but Snake tells her to let him go since he's still young and stupid (and in all the non-prequel titles). She then does some crazy motorcross stuff to get back to the Soviet base in time so that Ocelot doesn't blow her cover upon realizing that she would be missing. Her psychology when driving is discussed much further down the road, but basically she loses all inhibitions when driving which usually results in her doing death defying acts.
So why does Ocelot suck so much? He's supposed to be this special forces guy leading an entire squad and yet he and his team get defeated again and again by a single soldier. Well, to be fair, I don't know much about higher ups in the military. I've never been on a battlefield, or in a military base, and I've never seen the few soldiers I know in action. What my best guess is at Ocelot's deal comes from the philosophy of the samurai. This is a military game made in Japan. It's bound to show up sooner or later.
Snake is an honor bound soldier. He almost fits the mold of the legendary heroes of Japanese folklore perfectly. He is well trained, completely loyal to his country, and has a deep bond with his mentor. Like many of the samurai of legend, who by social order only held the title of samurai by representing and protecting a shogunate or in this case country, he is put at odds with his own understanding by being forced to challenge his teacher who has deserted the land she was sworn to protect. Through all of this, he faces almost mythical adversity in the members of the Cobra unit which finally comes to a climax in his upcoming battle with The Boss. Despite the challenge against everything he thinks he understands, he doesn't compromise his ethics or his place as a soldier.
Ocelot is pretty much the antithesis of everything Snake is. His rash behavior and massive ego are considered two of the greatest vices a warrior in Japanese culture and folklore could have. Everything he does is very showy, and it has proven and will continue to prove to cause nothing but trouble. The fact he keeps failing suggests he has been taught how to fight and not how to be a soldier on the deeper metaphysical level. It's apparent at some point between MGS3 and the rest of the Metal Gear series this changes as he becomes worthy to be the major antagonist of the series.
It should also be noted that rivalry is a huge trope in just about every story coming from Japan in the 20th century. For further reading refer to Ash and Gary (or Red and Blue), Goku and Vegeta, Yugi and Kaiba, Takumi and Keisuke (if you're a hipster), Kamina and Kittan, Mega Man and Proto Man, X and Zero, Sonic and Shadow the Hedgehog, Raiden and Vamp (also from MGS), Godzilla and King Ghidorah, Ryu and Ken, Raiden and Shao Khan (different Raiden), and the list goes on and on. To be honest, I'm shocked I could list that many.
We return to the story in which the world is on the brink of widespread turmoil. Major Tom gives a briefing of the situation as Snake, patched up after a week in the best ICU the West could muster, flies inside a sort of shuttle pod (a D-21 to spy plane fanatics) attached to a Lockheed M-21 (precursor to the SR-71 Blackbird reconnaissance jet and variant of the A-12. for those who don't know planes, it's the thing that the X-men get around in). Basically, FOX unit looks awful because the mission that should've been a quick easy in n' out has brought the Cold War closer to eruption into World War III. The events that occurred were unforeseeable and as a result Snake and the FOX unit are given a second chance. Operation Snake Eater.
Cold War had awesome planes, that's for sure.
A phone call between Khrushchev and President Lyndon B. Johnson involves the two world leaders piecing together what all has occurred on this mission. The issue of The Boss' defection to Volgin's side has frightened the Soviet establishment and as such they need Snake to assassinate Volgin, The Cobra Unit, The Boss, and destroy the Shagohod. Since the nuclear assault has been interpreted as American aggression, Snake will not be welcome in Russia, and he will still be hunted by Russian soldiers. Not leaving Snake completely helpless, the Reds agree to send in two former NSA operatives who defected to the Soviets and have infiltrated Volgin's ranks. These operatives are under the codenames ADAM and EVA. Also, Snake has the support team of Major Tom (now called Major Zero because he mistakenly chose the first one after one of the discovered tunnels in the movie The Great Escape), Para Medic (who is about to lose her medical license if Snake Eater fails, she also really likes movies), and Sigint (the new guy, a black man who specializes in R&D of weapons and equipment).
Zero and Paramedic. They must live in a movie theater or something.
The D-21 detaches from really high up in the atmosphere as it passes Soviet air patrols undetected. Snake deploys into just about the same clearing he landed in for the Virtuous Mission. After sneaking around some, he hears a horse in the jungle. After approaching the horse, The Boss comes out. She is displeased with Snake and the fact he holds onto the past (as represented by the bandanna he wears that he took from her after he plummeted off the bridge). She shoots the D-21 that landed nearby enough times that it explodes. After disassembling Snake's gun (seeing how Snake is an amazing soldier and how this is the second time The Boss has destroyed his gun, it says something about how unstoppable she is), she rides off on her horse, but not without stomping on Snake's hand. She vows that she will kill Snake the next time they meet.
Anyone who can wear a white combat uniform at night is inviting you to get destroyed.
Snake is pretty upset about this, but he continues with the mission because that's the only thing that makes sense (spoiler: not for long). Arriving at the place he found Sokolov the first time, he encounters an individual on a motorcycle. Having been told this was where he would meet ADAM, he requests the password. The person on the motorcycle doesn't give a password, nor does this individual turn off the light or motor of the bike. It draws a lot of attention as you could imagine. As Russian soldiers come out to get them, the person on the motorcycle pulls out a Chinese pistol and kills all of the Russians. After this madness, the person is revealed to be a woman as she removes her helmet and for good measure unzips her combat uniform down to her navel. I know that sounds incredibly unprofessional and probably gets at the claim that video games have sexist elements, and it might be just a little, but I swear if you haven't caught on already the developers going for something here. Her name is EVA by the way.
She asks Jack whats his code name, to which he says Snake. She then follows up with "So have you come to tempt me?" You see, the grand irony of it all is that although she is supposed to be on his side, she is doing pretty much everything in her power to get his attention away from the mission. There is also the Biblical irony that it is the woman that is tempting the snake in the garden. It presents this idea that all conventional wisdom has been turned on its head. It should also be noted that Snake is incredibly meek for someone who is supposed to be crawling on his stomach, sneaking around, and killing some crazy terrorists. It almost gives a sense that an angel fell (HALO jump) to become a Snake (Naked Snake) to set straight a Garden (the jungle) seized by pandemonium (the mission). At least the Snake encountered the woman first, that lines up (spoiler: not really)
In the face of such temptation, Snake manages to resist. He just ran into The Boss, whom he worshiped, and she pretty much gave him the shaft. However, EVA does give Snake something that would help with the mission, a gun. It's pretty much a case of love at first sight when Snake beholds the gun. He praises all of its qualities as though it was handcrafted for him. He accepts the gun and consequentially accepts EVA as well (I could write pages about the character of EVA. There's a lot of to be said for and against her characterization with regards to feminism, misogyny, and the video game industry. Maybe I will later. If Anita Sarkeesian should stumble upon this, I'd be more than willing to share all my thoughts on this matter, though I bet she could say it a lot better than I can.)
By way of Para-Medic's request, Snake decides to get some sleep (by saving the game). EVA wanders off to do something that we will address next time.
Before I get back into more Metal Gear, I want to talk about a mod I think you all should know about.
Do you like Majora's Mask? I suppose you like it enough to have read any of the previous series.
Are you aware of Nicholas Cage's existence, for better or for worse? I certainly hope so.
Wouldn't it be great if somebody combined the two? No, it would not, but who cares what you or I think?
Thanks to the work of popular youtuber Criken and his friend Shane, we now have access to this abomination
By way of this all new texture pack, you can reenact the movie Face Off. The best part is, it's less John Travolta and more everyone else. You will question whether or not the horrors of Termina can ever be reversed past doomsday. Skull Kid doesn't turn Kafei into a boy, he turns him into Nic Cage. The mask was created by Nic Cage. Link IS Nic Cage, and all transformations still look like Nic Cage. Truly this is the devil's work.
Critics have already been calling this new take of an old title a guaranteed Call of Duty killer. Now, every Mountain Dew chugging prestigionado can set CoD Blops Zombies aside and live their favorite nightmare by becoming the most enthusiastic actor in the world.
Check it out, test your nerve, and let the nightmares and ruined childhoods begin.
You've met a terrible face, haven't you?
Certainly brings new meaning to the scene where Link drops the bees on the pirates.
You can also run the streets of Clock Town shouting "I'M A TREE PERSON! I'M A TREE PERSON! AAAAHHHHH"
Because face it, one day, every day, every where, somewhere out there, somebody wakes up one morning to find they have been turned into Nic Cage, and then you realize what you had. You realize that you truly did want that cake that your wife ate. (women included, you all become a Nic Cage when you transform) You will shout "TA DAH" and have everybody look at you like a crazy person. And then you will find yourself breaking down in Las Vegas with your only daughter when you should've gotten a hair cut, and you give her the bunny that you insisted should stay in the box. You're gonna go far, kid. You're gonna go far.
So I'm taking us back to square zero, before the cyborgs, before the clones, before the private military contractors and even before the namesake Metal Gears. Our story takes us back to 1964. It begins as pretty much all historic films begin, white words on a black background. "After the end of World War II, the world was split into two -- east and west. This marked the beginning of the era called the Cold War." It's nice to know in a story about crazy science fiction and terrorists, we can begin with something we are familiar with. Or so we thought, and as we shall soon see, so our hero also thought.
Once upon a time, over the skies of Soviet Russia, a single plane flies through the night. The plane flies over the lonely clouds, and it is an American plane. Within, a sort of mission control preps for a combat deployment, and below the plane sits a single soldier smoking a cigar. His name is Jack, and he suggests his name is John Doe (whether or not this is truly his name is up to the audience, as are most things in this series). As the plane flies over the drop site, Jack reluctantly puts out his cigar and puts an oxygen mask over his face. As the the door opens for Jack to prepare his dive, the sun rises over the clouds. Jack is the morning star rising from the uniformity of the drab clouds. He takes his dive from the plane, performing the first HALO (High Altitude-Low Opening) jump in history. As he falls, his British commanding officer explains the gravity of the coming mission. Jack was selected for a special forces unit called FOX and he will be embarking upon its virtuous mission (a sort of maiden voyage/proving ground in the intelligence community).
He is informed that the VIP he will be recovering is Russian rocket scientist and weapons engineer Nikolai Stephanovich Sokolov. This scientist (in fiction of course) was responsible for the Sputnik rockets, launching Yuri Gagarin into space, and countless other projects for the USSR. When pressured to design something terrible, Sokolov and his family defected to the United States. This resulted in the Cuban Missile Crisis, in which the nukes in Cuba would be dismantled under the condition that Sokolov be returned to the Soviet Union. America consented, promising Sokolov they would rescue him again.
Jack touches down in a forest around the research facility. He pulls away his parachuting equipment and oxygen mask to reveal a face too familiar to the series.
The man who would be boss.
The commanding officer (codename Major Tom) gives Jack the codename Naked Snake (not Solid Snake, this is the 60s). The codename is Naked because Snake cannot bring anything on this mission that would suggest his ties to America. Although he is the only man on the ground, he has a support team up in the plane. Major Tom keeps him updated on the mission objectives, Para Medic is the team doctor to instruct Snake on nature survival, and finally The Boss. The Boss, perhaps the most influential character in the series, is the mother of the special forces, the woman who won WWII for the allies, and Snake's personal mentor when he was in the Green Berets. She practically created the world in which the series is set. Snake is quite upset that it has been so long since he heard from her (ya gotta understand, they're soldiers and there's a war, the characterization in these games is pretty serious even though the series doesn't always take itself seriously). The Boss tells Snake that he should not be upset in the absence of his comrades. She mentions that today's allies could be tomorrow's enemies and a soldier's virtues are dependent upon how well they keep the mission first and foremost. Snakes doesn't really understand what she is telling him, but he gets the part about following the mission. Major Tom tells Snake that the Boss is presently in a submarine in the Arctic Circle. The Boss reminds Snake that since he doesn't have weapons beyond his tranquilizer gun and knife, he must resort to the CQC (close quarters combat) training she taught him.
Snake gets through the jungle after evading Russian guards and crocodiles in a swamp (its a research facility, so there's gonna be a lot of flora and fauna from around the world. also, Hideo Kojima, the creator of these games has a thing for animals as you will soon see). Upon reaching the place the Russians are holding Sokolov hostage, he finds Sokolov burning pages of a tank he calls the Shagohod. He tells Snake that he is too late and that the weapon he was designing is almost complete. Snake had only come to recover Sokolov and by taking him the Soviets will not have the means of successfully operating the Shagohod. The Shagohod is a treaded tank armed to the teeth with weapons for any situation. Its crowning weapon is the ability to launch nuclear warheads anywhere in the world (but it is not a Metal Gear, so you know). As Snake is leaving the facility with Sokolov, a Russian guard catches sight of him.
As it turns out, the Russians are not looking for Snake, because another Russian with an oddly American accent shows up. This Russian kills all seven Soviet Guards. Sokolov tells Snake this is Ocelot, commander of the special Ocelot unit of an ultranationalist party (think like the Nazi SS but in Soviet Russia). When he sees Snake and realizes he is American, he tries to show off how cool he is by spinning his Makarov pistol like a gunslinger would (did I mention this series doesn't always take itself seriously?) and then trying to shoot Snake. The bullet jams in the chamber and Snake proceeds to beat up this guy with the CQC tactics he knows. With his ego wounded, the Russian summons the soldiers under his command. Snake basically tells Ocelot that he would suck less if he used a revolver instead of a Makarov based on how he shoots the pistol. This is the first chapter of the awkward humble beginnings of the series main antagonist, Revolver Ocelot.
Snake avoids Ocelot and his soldiers (which basically get reduced to cheerleaders under the crushing weight of Ocelot's massive ego), he arrives at a rope bridge. As he begins to cross the rope bridge, he sees another figure coming from the other side with two crates. The figure drops the crates, blocking all passage across the bridge, revealing to be no one other than The Boss (who for the record is not in a submarine in the Arctic Circle). Suddenly a swarm of hornets come with such ferocity that they lift Sokolov off the ground to a helicopter above. Two freakish soldiers look down at The Boss and a third is flying the helicopter with a parrot on his shoulder, she says they are her friends and that everyone has come together. A silent man in a hood with glowing red eyes transparently floating behind The Boss materalizes. Only The Boss seems think something is up, but then this feeling goes away. We'll get to him later. A Russian with a strange mark over his face shows up. This marked Russian is Colonel Volgin, leader of a radical communist faction looking to overthrow Khrushchev. It is at this moment that The Boss reveals she is defecting to the Soviet Union and will fight with Colonel Volgin.
Colonel Volgin and The Boss
Volgin cannot let the Americans stop his insurrection, so he orders that Snake be killed. The Boss sees to it since Snake is her student. The scene is perfectly set like something from a samurai movie, where student and teacher must fight to the death on a bridge to gain passage. The Boss dislocates Snake's arm at the elbow, breaks some ribs, and then flings him off the bridge to the river below. Snake only manages to grab the bandanna around her forehead. The Boss gives Volgin the crates, which prove to be two recoilless nuclear warheads known as Davy Crocketts.
As the helicopter flies away with The Boss, her allies(known as the Cobra unit), Volgin, Ocelot, Sokolov and a young woman claiming to be Sokolov's mistress, Snake washes up somewhere down the river. He catches sight of The Boss in the helicopter as they fly away as well as The Shagohod which is being moved to a new facility. Volgin then takes one of the warheads and, to the shock of Ocelot, nukes the research facility full of Russian scientists. Snake somehow survives the resulting explosion without a refrigerator and passes out after making an effort to patch himself up.
It is at this moment that the James Bond-esque theme and intro sequence kicks in. This is Metal Gear Solid: Snake Eater.
So next up we're doing the Metal Gear series, better known from the more recent titles as Metal Gear Solid. Personally, I've felt like these games have had something different to offer than really any other franchise. It says on the title card of pretty much every game "tactical espionage action." The basis of the game is heavily around the concept of stealth. Being a single person in a military base where the enemies are highly trained suggests subtlety is of utmost importance. However, Metal Gear Solid also carries elements of the shooters that are popular today. After all, destroying helicopters and tanks cannot be done by hiding under a cardboard box. The versatility in style of play has made Metal Gear Solid (MGS for short) a very unique series in an industry that strives to hold to the status quo. It also carries excellent characterization and a story that is comparable to the Count of Monte Cristo in breadth and depth. So here we begin.
Solid Snake
Now, for my readers who are unfamiliar with the Metal Gear franchise, it starts off rather simple, gets confusing, and then kinda sorts itself out by the end. It's roots began as an homage to action movies of the time, but it quickly took off into conspiracy theories and science fiction. The games follow a spy and soldier code named Solid Snake. Snake (for short) is a clone of the perfect soldier, code named Big Boss. In each of the first three games (Metal Gear, Metal Gear 2, and Metal Gear Solid), Snake must enter into a military compound alone, usually being run by domestic terrorists, with the help of a support team via his radio often called a codec. These three games end with a battle with a weapon called Metal Gear, which is a term with loose meanings that basically denotes a bipedal tank that can also shoot nuclear warheads. Following the battle with Metal Gear, Snake must then fight the leader of the terrorists who is always one of his superiors as a sort of surprise ending.
Metal Gear Solid was the first title that heavily focused on the sci-fi aspects of the series. As if a bipedal, nuke launching tank wasn't enough, Metal Gear Solid introduced genetically enhanced soldiers, a psychic, a shaman, bio weapons, human augmentation (cyborgs), and Solid Snake's vengeful clone brother Liquid Snake.
Liquid Snake (note blond hair)
Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty took the series even further into the realm of uncertainty. On top of everything that was introduced in Metal Gear Solid, the sequel introduced government conspiracy, artificial intelligence that control every aspect of society, and nano technology. This game ended without solving any of the mysteries it addressed. They would not be addressed until Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots as the world begins to collapse with the establishment of a global economy built on war.
So from this long series of twists and turns that I have now described, which title shall my next series revolve around? Well, in order for any of this to make sense (because it doesn't and that's ok), we're gonna start back at square one. Or rather, square zero.
