Following Konami and Hideo Kojima’s split, the future of the Metal Gear series was uncertain. Although Konami has repeatedly stated that the series is one of its main assets, the publisher has not released any new games under the Metal Gear name — except for the strange Metal Gear Survive, which fans prefer to ignore. Well, except for a couple of re-releases, but those don’t count. Now, however, it seems that things are finally changing. The series’s producer announced that specialists are being trained to work on new MGS games. As part of their training, they have been tasked with creating Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater, a remake of the third installment. Clearly, the developers at Virtuos and Konami paid tribute to Hideo Kojima and his team by trying to follow the original to the letter. This approach has its pros and cons: fans will get their beloved game in a new package, and newcomers will understand exactly why the original was so popular twenty-one years ago.
Everything here is based on old memories
Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater is a “remake vulgaris.” In other words, it’s a standard remake without any major changes. Although the word “remake” is not in the title of this version, Konami describes MGS Delta as such in press releases and on social media. And this can cause confusion among the audience — lately, this word has been associated with something more than just redrawn graphics. In the Resident Evil remakes, the gameplay has been significantly improved and the plot has been expanded, while in Mafia: Definitive Edition, the city has been redesigned and cinematic elements have been added to the cutscenes. Konami itself released a remake of Silent Hill 2, which bears little resemblance to the original — the story is the same, but the voice acting, locations, combat system, and even puzzles have been changed.
In Metal Gear Solid Delta, practically nothing like this has been done. This version can still be called a remake, as the game has been completely rebuilt on a new engine — Unreal Engine 5 is used instead of FOX Engine. But otherwise, the action was treated like a museum exhibit — very carefully, trying not to break or scratch anything, it was transferred intact to new technologies. The plot remained the same, the dialogues were not changed or re-voiced, and the animations (even the smallest ones) were left in their original form. And they didn’t bother to glue individual locations into a full-fledged open world — you still move between them, watching short loading screens.
Whether this is good or right is a moot point. Of course, we would like to see something more daring: enlarged (or even new) locations, real-time healing of wounds instead of a separate menu, a redesigned introduction so that it is not so overloaded with cutscenes and dialogue….
In short, something that would spark debate — as was the case with Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes, a remake of the first part that some fans love and others hate. Even if Konami presented its vision of the battle with The End without forcing players to run through a forest divided into several parts in the remake, it would still be a cause for heated discussion.
Meanwhile, Metal Gear Solid 3 did not require significant modifications. However, modern and convenient controls were necessary, and Konami addressed this by including “New” and “Original” modes in the remake, which offer different ways to play the third part. In “Original” mode, the camera is positioned above the character’s head and cannot be rotated; it can only be moved to the side. To aim and shoot accurately, you need to use a separate button to activate the first-person view, as in older versions of the game.
At the same time, Metal Gear Solid 3 may not have needed major changes. Modern, convenient controls were necessary, and Konami delivered with “New” and “Original” modes. In “Original” mode, the camera is positioned above the character’s head and cannot be rotated. To aim and shoot accurately, you must activate the first-person view with a separate button, just like in older versions of the game. In “Original” mode, the camera is positioned above the character’s head and cannot be rotated; it can only be moved to the side. To aim and shoot accurately, you need to activate the first-person view with a separate button, just like in older versions of the game.
The stealth gameplay is very old school, but if it were 2004 again, we certainly wouldn’t mind. The Splinter Cell and Hitman series were gaining momentum, and Thief hadn’t met its demise yet. It was a golden age for stealth fans. Now, alas, things are far from rosy.
In terms of stealth, the game is fairly straightforward. There’s a small level where you have to get from point A to point B without being spotted by enemies. The areas are relatively compact and feel like puzzles. Your enemies have the terrain and patrolling soldiers on their side. You have the ability to quickly assess the situation, a modest set of gadgets, and your own skills. You can distract one guard with a discarded adult magazine, bypass the second, strangle the third, and drag his unconscious body into a dark corner. Voilà—you’re awesome! Just remember that enemies don’t stay down for long.
The cat-and-mouse game in MGS3 is both exciting and exhausting. It’s paradoxical, yet true. Improvising and finding original ways to get through an area is fun. However, simply tracking soldiers’ routes and taking them out one by one is not so enjoyable. At some point, the seditious thought creeps in: Wouldn’t it be more effective to just shoot everything that moves?
Be Your Own Boss
Of course, we’re talking about boss battles. This is a sensitive topic for stealth action games. Unfortunately, Snake Eater approaches the issue too directly.
In battles with most bosses, stealth is not an option. We wait for the right moment to attack and quickly change position so Snake doesn’t get hit in the head. Some battles are different, though. Take the fight with Konz, the legendary sniper, for example. It’s exactly the kind of battle that fits perfectly into the genre. There you are, and there’s a well-camouflaged sniper. You play cat and mouse in three locations, trying to outsmart each other. Fortunately, the developers carried over all the original bosses’ features to Delta, so some old tricks still work.
Consequently, the bosses themselves are much more interesting than the battles with them. Take the mad Soviet cosmonaut who rushes around on a jetpack and sprays flames from a flamethrower, for example. It’s a crazy, purely Kojima-esque variant. However, the fight with him is boring, whether you’re going for a “non-lethal” playthrough or shooting everything that moves. The members of Cobra are much more interesting as characters than as enemies. Unfortunately, they are given too little time. With Volgin and Boss, however, it’s a different story. They play much more important roles in the plot and are thus revealed much better.
As mentioned above, the plot of Metal Gear Solid 3 is a mix of everything that was once carefully covered up by political drama and spiced up with an arms race and the paranoid atmosphere of the 1960s. It includes government conspiracies, secret societies, and spies working for multiple sides. The story is fascinating, but not everyone will appreciate the absurdity woven into the dramatic, serious storyline. Nevertheless, the strongest moments of the game are exciting and incredibly cool.
Of course, the whole question is how closely you align with Hideo Kojima’s work. It also depends on how you feel about incredibly long cutscenes. Let’s remind you that the remake is as close to the original as possible. This is why the huge cinematic inserts have been carried over one-to-one. Sometimes it seems that there is even less gameplay in Snake Eater. Not everyone will like this aspect — some people come to games to play, not watch. They should be sent to Quantum Break.
That very same Kojima
Now, everyone can enjoy the story, which is why many people play MGS. The events of the third part unfold after the Caribbean crisis. In the role of an American nicknamed Naked Snake, we go to the USSR on a “mission of virtue.” We must find Soviet rocket scientist Sokolov, who is being held in an abandoned factory. We must avoid being seen because the presence of an American soldier in the Soviet Union violates international agreements. If we are caught, no one will help us.
We find Sokolov but can’t get him home. We encounter one villain after another, experience betrayal, and make new friends. The operation, which was not supposed to take long and on which the official recognition of our FOX squad by the CIA depends, drags on for ten hours. The story remains interesting today, partly because it combines incompatible elements so well. One moment, we see real footage of Kennedy and Khrushchev’s speeches; the next, we fight a beekeeper whose hornets gather on his hand like a Thompson submachine gun. One moment, you’re having a serious conversation about desertion and defecting to the enemy in wartime; the next, you’re watching Ocelot meow and summon his minions with this sound. Such strange stories are still uncommon in games, and the authors of the remake decided not to change anything Kojima and his colleagues came up with in 2004.
However, the graphics have been significantly updated. As with any remake of an older release, when you see the updated version, it seems like the game has always looked this way. In reality, though, the improvement is enormous. The jungles and forests are now more realistic with lush foliage, sunlight streaming through, and detailed wildlife hiding among the leaves. Muddy swamps and clear ponds surrounded by vegetation contain crocodiles that look real. The game features more expressive faces, high-quality clothing textures, gorgeous lighting, and spectacular special effects.
It’s easy to forget that all this beauty is built on a 20-year-old foundation. While it’s a bit cliché to say that Metal Gear Solid 3 was ahead of its time, judging by the remake, it really was. The direction, staging of the cutscenes, variety of situations, and brilliant boss battles have all been preserved and are still fun today.
The locations are small but fascinating mini-sandboxes. You can tranquilize everyone, get an automatic weapon and turn the game into a shooter, sneak up on guards and scare them into dropping something valuable, drop beehives on their heads, throw snakes at them, or slip past enemies by covering yourself with a cardboard box. Then, take the time to hunt crabs and knock fruit from trees so your stomach doesn’t growl and your stamina is restored. Many of these mechanics are unique to stealth action games. There are a few places where you need to access the treatment menu to remove a bullet, treat a wound with antiseptic, or change your camouflage depending on the environment. That’s what makes MGS3 so good.
Whether or not you need fancy graphics is up to you. Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 1 is a collection of remastered older games in the series that is available on most modern platforms. It includes more games and costs less than the standalone remake of the third game. However, the graphics are outdated and look increasingly dated.
The remake has several new features that enhance the gameplay experience. For example, camouflage can now be changed quickly by holding down the button on the D-pad. Slow walking in a crouch, previously exclusive to the 3DS version, is now possible. Progress is automatically saved when visiting any location, so there is no need to radio in.
Fans of “collecting” will be happy to know that dozens of new items have been added, including rubber ducks hidden on each map, in addition to the familiar frogs. They can be easily tracked in the pause menu, along with all other progress, such as the number of kills, injuries, and alarms raised. Additionally, two mini-games have been revived, one of which was omitted from nearly all re-releases of the trilogy.
In general, everything you would expect from a game called Metal Gear is here. A spy thriller with a twisted level of absurdity? Check. Incredibly long cutscenes? Check. Pointless conversations with colleagues over the Codec? Of course—what would it be without those? Supernatural elements that just appear and can’t be explained? How could it be otherwise? Without these details, the series wouldn’t be itself. Try removing one, and it’s no longer Metal Gear; it’s a self-conscious parody.
No matter what remake Konami made, it would be impossible to please everyone. Audiences would be particularly sensitive to major changes because of the situation with Kojima; they would claim that Konami kicked out the author and is doing its own thing.
Therefore, Konami took the safer route and did not remove Kojima’s name anywhere. In Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater, his name appears on the screen more often than in the original. The gameplay has been perfectly preserved, and MGS3 has never looked more luxurious graphically.
