This article is about the video game character. For the MSX2 video game, see Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake. For the character's similarly-named brother, see Solidus Snake. For other characters in the franchise known as "Snake", see Snake (Metal Gear).
Snake was named by Kojima who aimed to create a strong individual who would rival villains with a similar naming convention. While his first appearances in the original Metal Gear games were references to Hollywood films, the Metal Gear Solid series has given him a consistent design by artist Yoji Shinkawa while also following Clint Eastwood and Lee Van Cleef as inspirations for his design. During the Metal Gear Solid games, the character has been voiced by voice actor Akio Ōtsuka in the Japanese version and by Canadian-American screenwriter and actor David Hayter in the English version.
Considered one of the most iconic protagonists in video game history, Solid Snake has been acclaimed by critics, with his personality and both Ōtsuka's and Hayter's voice acting being noted as primary factors of the character's appeal. The character has also been praised for his rivalry with the other characters featured in the series, most notably Liquid Snake and Revolver Ocelot while his growth into an elder was also the subject of positive response.
Metal Gear introduces Snake, a rookie recruit of the elite special forces unit FOXHOUND. Snake is sent by Big Boss into Outer Heaven, a rogue nation in South Africa, to rescue Gray Fox and discover who or what the "Metal Gear" is. As his mission progresses, Snake finds out that he has been set up; Big Boss's phantom intended to use TX-55 Metal Gear (the experimental, nuclear-armed weapon) to establish Outer Heaven as a nuclear power. After destroying the Metal Gear, Snake confronts and defeats Big Boss's phantom.
The sequel Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake sees Solid Snake called up to infiltrate Zanzibar Land, a heavily fortified enemy base in Central Asia that has aggravated an international oil crisis and declared itself a nuclear power by kidnapping Dr. Kio Marv (after the creation of a bio-engineered algae that produces an oil substitute) and the Metal Gear engineer Pettrovich Madnar. Snake infiltrates the base and discovers that Pettrovich as well as Fox has defected to Zanzibar Land, and that Zanzibar Land is led by the true Big Boss. Snake destroys Metal Gear D and defeats both Fox and the true Big Boss.
Metal Gear Solid and its remake – The Twin Snakes – reveals Solid Snake's real name as David (デビッド, Debiddo). He is pulled out of retirement by Roy Campbell to deal with the "Sons of Big Boss" led by Liquid Snake who seized an isolated American nuclear weapons disposal facility on Shadow Moses Island. Snake's mission is to rescue Donald Anderson and Kenneth Baker but he is unable to prevent both hostages' deaths. As the game progresses, Snake infiltrates and learns about Metal Gear REX while meeting up with rookie soldier Meryl Silverburgh and REX's engineer Hal Emmerich, confronts and defeats each member of the corrupt faction of FOXHOUND (consisting of Revolver Ocelot, Decoy Octopus, Psycho Mantis, Sniper Wolf, Vulcan Raven, and the Genome Soldiers), several confrontations with the Cyborg Ninja, is able to destroy REX, and personally confronts Liquid. During their fight, it is revealed that Solid and Liquid are twin brothers artificially conceived from Big Boss's genes during the "Les Enfants Terribles" government project designed to create the perfect soldier, in which one brother was genetically modified to be superior to the other. Liquid harbors a strong resentment towards Snake since Solid was apparently given their father's dominant "soldier genes" and Liquid was seemingly cast aside. After a grueling series of battles, Liquid dies from the FOXDIE virus that was previously implanted into Snake by Naomi Hunter in order to wipe out FOXHOUND without risking any damage to REX for retrieval. In the end, it is revealed that Liquid got Big Boss's superior "soldier genes" while Solid was actually the inferior one.
Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty
A Sons of Liberty Snake cosplayer hiding in a cardboard box.
Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty shows Solid Snake as a central character. During the game's extensive prologue sequence, he is sent by Otacon's anti-proliferation organization Philanthropy to infiltrate a cargo tanker and photograph Metal Gear RAY. During the operation, however, RAY is hijacked and the tanker destroyed, with Snake apparently dead and framed for the deed. During the game's main portion, Solidus Snake steals Snake's identity, and leads the "Sons of Liberty" (consisting of Revolver Ocelot, Fortune, Fatman, Vamp and Olga Gurlukovich) while Snake himself uses the pseudonym Iroquois Pliskin (イロコィ・プリスキン, Irokoi Purisukin) as a non-playable character who assists rookie agent Raiden through the remote offshore Big Shell facility and in taking down Solidus and RAY while also learning about the Patriots.
Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots features an aged incarnation of the character who nicknamed himself Old Snake (オールド・スネーク, Ōrudo Sunēku) as the protagonist once again. Thanks to Otacon and Sunny, he wears a sneaking suit outfitted with "Octocamo" technology which allows him to blend with his environment as well as a face mask which alters his appearance.
For his final mission, he is once again enlisted by Campbell to assassinate Liquid Ocelot, CEO of a giant mother company that are trying to take control of the Patriots' AIs. He also learns from Naomi that his life has been artificially shortened as part of the cloning process so that his genes can't be used as a weapon in later research, thus explaining why he has the physical appearance of an elderly man despite being only forty-two years old. Snake and his allies are forced to destroy the Patriots' AI and fight through Ocelot's forces until Snake defeats Liquid's doppelgänger in hand-to-hand combat. Snake tries to commit suicide as his DNA contains a mutated FOXDIE virus that might trigger an epidemic, but Big Boss reveals a new variant overwrote the mutant version, and the two make up as father and son. David is told he still has a chance to live "not as a snake but as a man" so he decides to live out the remainder of his life in peace, vowing that he will live long enough to see what the future holds for the new world he has helped create.
Solid Snake is featured in Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes and Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain. The unlockable bonus mission "Déjà Vu" on the PlayStation platform and later Xbox platform of Ground Zeroes in which Naked Snake must re-enact situations from the original Metal Gear Solid game and answer a series of trivia questions after fulfilling the mission. If all the questions are answered correctly on the Normal difficulty setting, the mission can be replayed with his low-polygon model from Metal Gear Solid in place of his father's standard character model. The Phantom Pain also shows that his low-polygon model from Metal Gear Solid can be an alternate outfit for Venom Snake after transferring the save data from Ground Zeroes. David is also alluded to in association with Eli during a conversation between Big Boss and Revolver Ocelot.
Other Metal Gear media
Solid Snake also serves as the protagonist in Snake's Revenge, a sequel to the original Metal Gear for the NES released for the Western market in 1990 and developed without Kojima's involvement. Set three years after the Outer Heaven incident, Snake's Revenge has Snake leading a team of FOXHOUND operatives as they infiltrate an undisclosed enemy base where the Metal Gear weapon is being mass-produced. Snake is addressed by the military rank of Lieutenant and starts the game already equipped with a handgun and a combat knife, in contrast to the first game, where Snake had to procure all his weapons on-site.
After the success of the original Metal Gear Solid, KCEJ produced a trilogy of Metal Gear spin-offs for portable platforms set in a parallel universe outside the main Kojima-directed series. All three of these portable games were directed by Shinta Nojiri. The first of these is Metal Gear: Ghost Babel (released outside Japan as Metal Gear Solid), in which Solid Snake must infiltrate a rebuilt Outer Heaven (now called Galuade) to defeat a FOXHOUND-like team of rogue agents called Black Chamber and destroy a stolen Metal Gear prototype, Gander. Although the actual in-game artwork of Ghost Babel was done by Ikuya Nakamura, Yoji Shinkawa provided the promotional art as he did with the original Metal Gear Solid. In the second of these titles, Metal Gear Acid, Snake must retrieve "Pythagoras" from the Lobito Physics and Research Laboratory to satisfy hijackers who kidnapped presidential candidate Viggo Hach. This mission is complicated by La Clown, an expert mimic who impersonates Snake's contact Teliko, and subtle brainwashing that nearly convinces him he is Hans Davis, a ruthless scientist who worked at the Lobito facility. He overcomes both, contacts the real Teliko, then destroys the latest model of Metal Gear, Metal Gear KODOQUE. Metal Gear Acid 2 features a main character who is not the real version, but a clone created from tissue samples of the man from the original Metal Gear Acid, following the events of the Lobito Island mission; the Solid Snake from the original Acid is implied to be dead in the sequel.
The character appears in his Old Snake form as a playable character in Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops Plus, a stand-alone expansion to the Portable Ops focusing on online play. In Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance, the VR Missions DLC add-on for the game's Japanese version includes a new weapon that can be used by Raiden known as the Hebidamashi, a talking wooden sword which speaks with Solid Snake's voice (as portrayed by Akio Ōtsuka); the weapon was never made available for the English version.
Outside video games, Solid Snake appeared in the Metal Gear Solid audio drama that focuses on his missions following the battle from Shadow Moses. He also appears in Alex Garner's comic book adaptations of Metal Gear Solid and Metal Gear Solid 2. Raymond Benson's novelizations of these two games also feature Solid Snake; Benson's adaptation of the character frequently focuses on the comical aspects of his characterization. He also appears in Project Itoh's novelization from Metal Gear Solid 4 where his actions are told from Hal Emmerich's point of view.
Other video games and media
In the Worlds of Power novelization series created by F.X. Nine, Solid Snake appears in the second in the series, based on Metal Gear. In the book, written by Alexander Frost, he is Marine Captain Justin Halley.
Solid Snake has appeared in a number of other games, including other Konami games. Hideo Kojima makes a habit of referencing his previous work. In the Kojima-produced Boktai 2: Solar Boy Django (and Shin Bokura no Taiyō: Gyakushū no Sabata), Snake appears as an unnamed character who sells items to the player. Konami's Evolution Skateboarding features Snake and Raiden as hidden characters, as well as two stages set in the Big Shell (the skateboarding minigame in Metal Gear Solid 2: Substance is a demo of Evolution Skateboarding composed exclusively of these elements). Solid Snake also appears in both halves of a crossover between the Metal Gear and Ape Escape franchises: the Ape Escape monkeys appear with Solid Snake in the "Snake vs. Monkey" minigame featured in Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater. In turn, Snake appears in the corresponding Metal Gear Solid minigame featured in Ape Escape 3, where he is rescued by Pipo Snake.
Solid Snake appears in Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Siege as a playable Operator, as part of its Year 11 Season 1 update; the character is incorporated into the lore of Siege, with his involvement taking place between the events of Metal Gear Solid and Metal Gear Solid 2.
Old Snake has appeared in the Japanese version of Scribblenauts, having been published by Konami in that region. Customizations in Media Molecule's LittleBigPlanet for the PlayStation 3 allow the player character, Sackboy, to take on the appearance of Old Snake.
Solid Snake appears as an outfit in Fortnite as the "Bonus Outfit" of Chapter 5 Season 1'sbattle pass and was unlockable by completing in-game quests from January 23, 2024, through March 8, 2024, the end of that season.
Creation
Hideo Kojima created Solid Snake.
Despite Solid Snake allegedly being named after the fictional special forces operative Snake Plissken, Kurt Russell's character in Escape from New York, series creator Hideo Kojima revealed in March 2014 that the character's codename spawned from something else entirely. According to Kojima, he was given the name "Snake" due to snakes being regarded as a symbol of stealth. Additionally, the "Solid" part of his codename was given to give the opposite impression of a soft image. When deciding the codename would be Snake, the character was more Plissken than snake-like on a subconscious level. He believed that using only Snake would make the character different. The decision to create more Snake characters was meant to give the protagonist equal enemies to defeat. While Liquid was Snake's enemy, the next clone was Solidus. His real name, David, is a tribute to the film 2001: A Space Odyssey character of the same name.
Characterization
Kojima has compared Snake's personality with Lupin III of Monkey Punch's Lupin III franchise, stating that in "MGS, Snake became this sharp-tongued, Lupin III-like guy who flirted with women and told lots of jokes". Kojima later described Snake's role in the original Metal Gear as the "player's presence", contrasting the defined personality acquired in Metal Gear Solid. In addition to expanding Solid Snake's backstory, as the first Metal Gear game to feature voice acting, Metal Gear Solid established his characteristic voice and appearance.
The decision to make a new character to replace Solid Snake for most of Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty stemmed from the developer's desire to develop Snake from a third-person perspective. Kojima stated that Raiden's character and his perception by the audience were important to the overall feel of the story. The idea of having a second main character was inspired by the Sherlock Holmes short stories and novels in which the narrator is Dr. Watson rather than Holmes. Kojima said that while Raiden was the playable character, Snake was still the game's true protagonist rather than Raiden. Yoshikazu Matsuhana, assistant director for the project, was uncertain about this decision; he considered Raiden a "weak-looking character" but decided to follow Kojima. Konami kept Raiden's starring role in Metal Gear Solid 2 secret until the game's North American release; the company replaced Raiden with Snake in teaser trailers and other preview materials. Although Raiden appeared in several preview trailers in his scuba gear, his presence was not emphasized. The surprise to fans that Raiden was not Snake was admitted by Kojima to have been inspired by the plot twist of Terminator 2: Judgment Day where the titular character played by Arnold Schwarzenegger was not a villain in that movie. Kojima Productions compared the experiences and ways of thinking of Raiden and Solid Snake. During the game's climax, Raiden stays handcuffed until his final fight against Solidus Snake; Snake escapes from his handcuffs to follow Revolver Ocelot, emphasizing Raiden's lack of freedom. Hideo Kojima compared Raiden and Snake with movie monstersKing Kong and Godzilla, respectively; the former was taken from his home and his nature changes upon meeting Rosemary, whereas the latter will continue fighting against mankind's menaces. Defeating Solidus, Snake encourages Raiden to trust himself and believe in his own choices. This is further addressed by the staff's motivation to make a new sequel to Metal Gear without Kojima.
Various scenes from the games relate Solid Snake's ideals to Hideo Kojima's. During Metal Gear Solid 2, Snake encourages Raiden to trust himself in making his own choices with the former representing the veteran developer and the latter the younger staff who are to decide whether a sequel to the series would be made without Kojima. In Metal Gear Solid 4, Snake tries to protect the next generation by stopping Ocelot which represented Kojima working with the staff to avoid bugs from occurring within the game. Kojima introduced the cloning origins of Snake to Metal Gear Solid in order to provide Snake with an adversary who would be his equal, since the story, being a continuation of the original MSX2 games, established Snake as an experienced soldier. Kojima explained that his decision to introduce a new playable character in Snake's place for Metal Gear Solid 2 was done in order to develop Snake from another character's perspective, but also to avoid treating Snake as a rookie by having a new character be instructed via Codec instead. Snake was written to act as father figure not only to protect those he cares but also leave a message for the future generation despite his imminent death. As a pacifist message, Snake's stress increases when killing enemies. Snake and Otacon were meant to die in the game, with Kojima being inspired by the movie Sacco & Vanzetti in regards to how the duo use death as a penalty for how they are criminals rather than heroes. While the novel retained this idea, the ending in the game was changed with Snake and Otacon surviving. Following Kojima's departure from Konami, the company indicated that it does not intend to produce further Metal Gear games with Solid Snake as the protagonist; Kojima has himself stated that Solid Snake "is one character that I don't want to entrust to other people".
Design
Yoji Shinkawa designed Snake since Metal Gear Solid.
Much as Metal Gear began as a pastiche of action movies of the time, Solid Snake began as a pastiche of action movie heroes. On the cover artwork of the original Metal Gear he resembles actor Michael Biehn as Kyle Reese in the 1984 film The Terminator, although Kojima claimed to have no involvement in the production of the game's packaging illustration. In the in-game portrait of Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake, he resembles Mel Gibson.
Yoji Shinkawa's Solid Snake design, characterized by his navy blue bandanna and "sneaking suit", would serve as the template for all future incarnations in later Metal Gear games. According to Shinkawa, Snake's physique in Metal Gear Solid was based on that of action star Jean-Claude Van Damme, while his facial appearance was inspired by actor Christopher Walken. Shinkawa described his rendition of Solid Snake from Metal Gear Solid as a "middle ground" between the younger Snake who was in the cover artwork of the first Metal Gear and the middle-aged Snake from the MSX2 version of Metal Gear 2. For the initial events from the Big Shell chapter from Metal Gear Solid 2, Snake's visual appearance was sightly modified with his hair being more blonde, and his appearance somewhat resembling the Man with No Name (as portrayed by Clint Eastwood). Shinkawa commented that Snake was one of the easiest Metal Gear characters for him to draw, as his appearance is consistent across games with only minor changes. According to Kojima, Snake's character model was specifically designed to have well-sculpted buttocks, as the player spends the majority of the game staring at the character's back from a third-person view.
During the making of Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater, Kojima asked Shinkawa to make Naked Snake similar to Solid Snake, but with the differences that unlike Solid Snake, Naked Snake was a rookie and thus acted more naively. Shinkawa stated having no difficulties in designing Naked Snake as basically a revised version of Solid Snake. As a result, Naked Snake is virtually identical in appearance to Solid Snake in previous Metal Gear Solid games. Since the game's trailers did not state that Naked Snake was Big Boss, Kojima often gave vague answers to the character's true identity.
By the time Metal Gear Solid 4 started development, Kojima told Shinkawa about his idea of making Snake look elderly, which surprised the designer. Once Shinkawa showed his artwork of Old Snake to the staff, they were all also surprised by the idea of playing as an old version of the character. However, they were satisfied with the end product as the staff began to like the character. In Metal Gear Solid 4, one of Kojima's endings would have had Snake and Otacon turn themselves in for breaking the law, and subsequently they would be convicted and executed. However, comments from Kojima's staff who were disappointed with his death resulted in the character's survival. In Metal Gear Solid 4, Old Snake is modelled after Lee Van Cleef who appeared in Escape from New York.
Voice actors
Solid Snake is voiced by Akio Ōtsuka (left) in Japanese and David Hayter (right) in English.
In the games, Solid Snake has been voiced by Akio Ōtsuka in the Japanese version, and by David Hayter in the English adaptations. Ōtsuka remembers being surprised during his debut as a result of the large amount of dialogue Solid Snake was given. Otsuka remembers the early sessions well, where he learned of the catchphrase "Kept you waiting?" and found Snake to be the character he is attached to the most. Regardless of issues between Kojima and Konami, Otsuka believes the image of Snake is attached to him especially due to the fan response. When it comes to the two Snakes he voiced, he finds Naked Snake from Snake Eater more relatable while Solid Snake is different for carrying the idea of being a clones who battles the ideas of multiple types of genes in rivalry with Liquid Snake. Otsuka claims Solid Snake also has his own darkness that contrasts the original more human Naked Snake.
Hayter's performance was called one of the greatest in gaming as well as one of the character's most recognizable traits. In 2013, when working in Captain Planet, Hayter met the casting director of this show, Kris Zimmerman, who would later also be the voice-over director for Metal Gear games. When debuting in Metal Gear Solid, Hayter was impressed by the game's cutscenes and the amount of dialogue. One of Snake's lines that Hayter liked was "I just didn't expect a world-class designer of military technology to be so… cute." when Snake interacts with Mei Ling, believing it showed a more fun side of him. Solid Snake's English voice was inspired by Hayter's experience with Japan's storytelling, resulting in minor changes to the script. Hayter himself felt shocked when Sons of Liberty was released as the narrative focused more on newcomer Raiden rather than him. Although there were no news about Snake's future role in Metal Gear, the actor believes Guns of the Patriots gave the character a proper closure. One of Snake's final scenes in this game bothered Hayter as during the ending the character hesitates to kill himself despite having killed multiple enemies in fights. Nevertheless, Hayter stated that he "loves" the character he was given to portray.
Reception
Popularity
Solid Snake's character was very well received by gaming media. Retro Gamer included him in the section "top ten forces of good" in their 2004 list of top 50 retro game heroes. In 2005, Electronic Gaming Monthly listed Solid Snake as number one as the top ten video game characters of all time. Solid Snake appeared in multiple GameFAQs "Character Battle" contests, and was runner-up in three: the "Character Battle V" in 2006, the "Character Battle VII" in 2008, and the "Character Battle IX" in 2013. In an Oricon poll from 2008, his character was voted as the most popular video game character in Japan, tying with Nintendo's Pikachu. In a Famitsu poll in 2010, Solid Snake was voted by readers as the most popular video game character. His character was amongst the last 16 contestants on the greatest video game hero on GameSpot contest held in 2009, and lost out to Gordon Freeman on a tiebreaker. In the Guinness World Records Gamer's Edition from 2011, Solid Snake was voted as the fourth most popular video game character. In 2011, Empire ranked Solid Snake as the 19th greatest video game character, adding that "beginning as an action pastiche, he swiftly evolved into his very own character". In 2021, Chris Morgan for Yardbarker described Snake as one of "the most memorable characters from old school Nintendo games". HobbyConsolas named Snake as third of their "The 30 best heroes of the last 30 years."
Critical response
Critics have commented on his traits and appearance, often praising Solid Snake for his appealing personality. Rich Knight and Gus Turner from Complex acknowledged him as one of the best video game mascots, praising his "deep, human emotion that other characters fail to match." IGN also remarked that their rivalry with Liquid Snake is massive and confusing in gaming. Among the several characters he encounters, critics noticed that Snake's friendship with Otacon was one of the best parts of his character due to the contrast it has with enemies as well as how he Snake comforts him in Sons of Liberty. His rivalry with Big Boss was also popular according to journalists, especially when they are compared as son and father and genetic heir. Various gaming sites such as 1UP.com, Game Informer and Kotaku joked on the poor relationship between the two of them as the father attempts to murder his own son. Among other character relationships, Snake and Gray Fox were popular due to the variety of enemies the player faces.
Solid Snake's Metal Gear Solid 2 design was porly received by GamePro and IGN especially for its haircut. The book Playing with Videogames states that Raiden's inclusion was intended to surprise Metal Gear fans who, instead of playing as Snake, played as his opposite. Writer James Newman commented that fans' reactions were highly negative; they acted as though Kojima had betrayed their expectations. He compared Raiden to the controversial Star Wars character Jar Jar Binks. Eurogamer's Tom Bramwell commented that his interactions with the other characters also helped expand Solid Snake's character. His interactions with veteran Solid Snake identify the former as "a Metal Gear fan". As the game progresses it is stated that Raiden "has become Snake", having developed skills similar to those he gained from taking part in the Big Shell's fights that resemble Metal Gear Solid's Shadow Moses Island. Before Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater, the character was thought to be the game's protagonist because of his physical resemblances with Naked Snake. However, later previews speculated how was it impossible for Solid Snake to be in the game's settings, leading to the conclusion it was a young incarnation of his father. A comparison between Solid Snake's and Big Boss's characters was made by IGN in an article titled "Stars Thunderdome: Snake vs. Big Boss." seeing the two to have distinct abilities they developed in missions and wonder whether or not one was superior to the other.
The character's appearance in Metal Gear Solid 4 has received mostly positive opinions. Before it was released, various speculations were made regarding his role. As he was the only one who suffered from a drastic change in appearance, IGN commented that the most famous rumor was the one of his body deteriorating across the game. Moreover, since it had been announced it would be his last appearance, IGN and GamesRadar wondered whether the character would die during the game and if Raiden would replace him following his death. GamesRadar commented that his character was one of the few gaming characters that aged across video games. GamePro also listed Old Snake as one of the biggest surprises from the game, as the character was found interesting in contrast to pessimistic thoughts they had before the game's release. GameDaily listed the "old hero" as one of their list of top video game archetypes, using the old version of the character as an example of this. PLAY gave praise to his moustache considering how highly detailed it is, and represents the change from Solid Snake's character. On the other hand, 1UP.com criticized it as the most gracelessly aging characters as it gave negative messages about aging. 1UP.com listed their fight as the 13 "most dumbass" boss battles for its simple style in comparison to other more challenging bosses from Metal Gear Solid 3 and its excessive length for a hand-to-hand fight between two old people. The design resulted in mixed reactions regarding whether or not the character kept his original sex appeal.
The character was also popular for his inclusion in made Solid Snake top their Smash Bros. based on the impact of his inclusion and design and his importance in gaming. Game Informer ranked Hayter's role as Solid Snake as the seventh most memorable character voice in video games for "a portrayal that's considered to be a real classic in the history of video game voice acting". In 2024, a poll conducted by BAFTA with around 4,000 respondents named Solid Snake as the fourteenth most iconic video-game character of all time.
Analysis
In "Hideo Kojima: Progressive Game Design from Metal Gear to Death Stranding", Solid Snake's first two games are seen as a "silent complex film" for the focus on visuals and little dialogue, with the manual further comparing the cast to real actors with Snake being likened to Mel Gibson and his in-game graphics looking like Kurt Russell's Snake Plissken. While the first Metal Gear is regarded as a simple game, Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake embodies a more realistic take with a focus on the movements the protagonist makes when hiding from the enemies.
In "Analyzing Metal Gear Solid through Psychoanalytic Film Theory", Metal Gear Solid is seen as a game whose dialogues help the gamer immerse in the narrative through constant interactions between Snake and other characters that might come across as ridiculous at first, but the seriousness of the exchanges makes it realistic. Snake is also notable for his male gaze when interacting with Meryl and Hal, addressing a masculine personality. This connection with the player's reaction helps further immerse him in the game and the development of empowerment. At his weaker moments, Snake is told by Naomi Hunter to treat himself by an action only the player can do merging with the latter's experience. Regardless of the situation, Metal Gear Solid manages to make the player connect with the protagonist. Once Upon a Pixel: Storytelling and Worldbuilding in Video Games described how the sequence was able to remind players of the fact that the world of Metal Gear Solid was in a video game, and that while they controlled Snake, they themselves would never amount to actually being Snake. This created conflicting feelings of identification and alienation, with Mantis's actions pushing the player out of the normal game flow they were experiencing as Snake.
While Sons of Liberty was meant to follow Solid Snake again based on his popularity, the decision to replace him with a more vulnerable hero, Raiden, bothered fans. Multiple fans were bothered by Kojima's promotional materials emphasized that Snake. In contrast to the disappointed players, the critics found the experience integral to the narrative, emphasizing subversive logics of control and affect. Raiden's interactions with veteran Solid Snake identify the former as "a Metal Gear fan". As the game progresses it is stated that Raiden "has become Snake", having developed skills similar to those he gained from taking part in the Big Shell's fights that resemble Metal Gear Solid's Shadow Moses Island. VG247 wrote the game helps Raiden to better distinguish himself, and for the player to distance themselves, from Snake's revered image by deconstructing the latter as an unreliable ally.
Guns of the Patriots places heavy emphasis on being Snake's final story where he stands out thanks to his heroic persona regardless of his actions while exploring his sense of justice and morals when it comes to wars in futuristic settings. The character's expanded origins further make him a "hybrid" of multiple cultures across the world. Although Snake is regarded as a hero, the protagonist never takes pride in his actions and instead sees himself as a killer for the missions he is given for the sake of a greater good. The theme of genes helps Snake differentiate himself from the Foxdie victims Liquid and Ocelot. Although Snake succeeds in surviving, the character is forced to commit suicide but is given a "rebirth" when Big Boss lectures him that he has a chance of living in the world he has been fighting for.
Controversy
In the Tekken 7Evo 2019 finals, the character was used to have a chat with developer Katsuhiro Harada. The organizers of Evo stated this was a joke as many fans believed it was a hint for a possible usage of the character as downloadable content. David Hayter complained about this joke as Evo did not consult Konami or him when using the audio.
References
↑ Showcasing an updated rendition of his appearance in Metal Gear Solid (1998)
↑Kojima Productions. Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence, Metal Gear. Konami. Big Boss: Big Boss speaking. Operation Intrude N313. Penetrate the enemy's Outer Heaven and destroy the ultimate weapon, Metal Gear!
↑Kojima Productions. Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence, Metal Gear. Konami. Big Boss: First, contact missing Gray Fox and destroy Metal Gear!
↑Kojima Productions. Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence, Metal Gear. Konami. Big Boss: Solid Snake! You've finally come here. Yeah, I'm Big Boss General Commander of Foxhound. And in charge of this castle, Outer Heaven.
↑Kojima Productions. Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence, Metal Gear. Konami. Solid Snake: This is Solid Snake... Metal Gear's destruction is a success.
↑Kojima Productions. Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence, Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake. Konami. Roy Campbell: Snake... Right on time, as always. Let's get started... Commencing Operation Intrude F014. Let's go over this one more time. Your mission is to infiltrate Zanzibar Land and rescue the kidnapped Czech biologist, Dr. Kio Marv.
↑Kojima Productions. Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence, Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake. Konami. Solid Snake: Big... Boss?! / Madnar: The very same! With Metal Gear and OILEX, he plots to rule the world. We cannot let the secret of OILEX fall into his hands!
↑Kojima Productions. Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence, Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake. Konami. Gray Fox: Snake... I'm not the same as I used to be. And neither is Metal Gear. I'll show you what fear really is. Prepare to taste defeat!
↑Kojima Productions. Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence, Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake. Konami. Big Boss: Even I make mistakes from time to time. Snake! This will be our final battle... Let's end this once and for all!
↑Konami Computer Entertainment Japan. Metal Gear Solid. Konami. Solid Snake: FOX-HOUND hijacking a nuclear weapon? / Campbell: Now you understand how serious the situation is. You'll have two mission objectives. First, you're to rescue the DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency) Chief Donald Anderson, and the ArmsTech president Kenneth Baker. They're both being held as hostages.
↑Konami Computer Entertainment Japan. Metal Gear Solid. Konami. Liquid Snake: There's a killer inside you... You don't have to deny it. We were created to be that way. Solid Snake: Created? Liquid Snake: Les enfants terribles... the terrible children. That's what the project was called. It started in the 1970's. Their plan was to artificially create the most powerful soldier possible. The person that they chose as the model was the man known then as the greatest living soldier in the world...
↑Konami Computer Entertainment Japan. Metal Gear Solid. Liquid Snake: The Pentagon only needed for you to come into contact with us. That's what killed the ArmsTech president and Decoy Octopus. / Solid Snake: You don't mean... / Liquid Snake: That's right. You were sent in here to kill us so they could retrieve Metal Gear undamaged along with the bodies of the genome soldiers. From the beginning, the Pentagon was just using you as a vector to spread FoxDie!
↑Konami Computer Entertainment Japan. Metal Gear Solid. Revolver Ocelot: Yes, although [Solid Snake] proved he was superior and was the winner after all. ...That's right. Until the very end, [Liquid Snake] thought he was meant to be the inferior one.
↑Konami Computer Entertainment Japan. Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty. Konami. Solid Snake: All right. I'll head to the bridge ASAP. / Otacon: Try to avoid confrontations. Our goal is to collect evidence on Metal Gear development and expose it to the world. It would be best if you could get out of there without alerting anyone. / Solid Snake: Don't worry. I know the drill -- we're not terrorists. / Otacon: Very good. Don't you forget that you're a part of "Philanthropy" now, an anti-Metal Gear organization and officially recognized by the UN.
↑Konami Computer Entertainment Japan. Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty. Konami. Revolver Ocelot: ...Yes, at the location we discussed. Yes. I have photographic evidence of Snake on the scene. The Cypher was most useful...I look forward to tomorrow morning's news flash. I would say the Marine Corps' plans are on indefinite hold.
↑Kojima Productions. Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty. Konami. Raiden: So your the boss around here? / Solidus Snake: No, not just around here. I'm the boss to surpass Big Boss himself. Solid Snake. / Solid Snake: No! That is not Solid Snake! Solidus Snake: What a pleasant surprise – brother.
↑Konami Computer Entertainment Japan. Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty. Konami. Solid Snake: I'm not an enemy. Calm down. My name is S... My name is Pliskin. Iroquois Pliskin, Lieutenant Junior Grade.
↑Kojima Productions. Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots. Konami. Campbell: His will lives on - in the body of the man once known as Ocelot. He aims to fan the flames of war even higher - to create the perfect world once envisioned by Big Boss. / Old Snake: The one world in which soldiers will always have a place... / Campbell: He must be stopped... Before it's too late.
↑Kojima Productions. Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots. Naomi Hunter: You're clones created for one purpose - war. And so in order to prevent you from being abused by clients or stolen by the enemy... They shortened your lifespan and removed your ability to reproduce. It was a safety device to ensure that the seed of Big Boss didn't end up in the hands of others. The reason you're aging so rapidly isn't that of disease, or faulty research, or FOXDIE. It's how you were born. It's your natural lifespan.
↑Kojima Productions. Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots. Konami. Otacon: Our fight is finished. There's nothing left for us to do. / Old Snake: No. There's one thing I still have to do. I have to see this age off... See what the future brings.
↑Elisa/Ursula: The futures we saw were the same. [Naked Snake], you will destroy Metal Gear, and you will build a new Metal Gear to take its place. Your children... Les Enfants Terribles. Snake, your son will bring the world to ruin. Your son... will save... the world... (Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops)
↑Kazuhira Miller: Speaking of which, any news on the "sons"?... But they're strictly an insurance policy, yes?... I wonder how Big Boss will respond... (Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker)
↑Kojima Productions. Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain. Level/area: Episode 46. 1995 – While commanding special forces unit FOXHOUND from a position in the U.S. military, Big Boss establishes the fortified military nation 'Outer Heaven' in South Africa. The Outer Heaven Uprising occurs, but it is quashed by Solid Snake, who kills Big Boss' phantom.
↑Sharkey, Scott (September 9, 2010). "Gaming's Crappiest Fathers". Game Informer. Archived from the original on September 11, 2010. Retrieved July 18, 2011.
↑Higgin, T. (2009). Turn the Game Console off Right Now!”: War, Subjectivity, and Control in Metal Gear Solid 2. pp.268–287.{{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
↑Gomez, J. (2015). "A Match Made in 'Outer Heaven': The Digital Age Vis-à-Vis the Bomb in Guns of the Patriots". Gamification: Concepts, Methodologies, Tools, and Applications. IGI Global Scientific Publishing. pp.159–193.
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