Konami has announced two upcoming releases under its long-dormant Metal Gear Solid (MGS) franchise during the PlayStation Showcase 2023 live stream earlier today. The first of which is a remake of the classic third entry of the series, Snake Eater, while the second is a collection of the first three MGS games for current generation platforms.
In its press release, the company said that the former is officially called Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater, and will be a “faithful remake” of the original that was released in 2004 for the PlayStation 2. It added that the upcoming game will star the original voice actors, while the teaser trailer (which Konami disclaims is not using actual gameplay footage) also revealed that it will still feature the game’s original “Snake Eater” theme song or an updated rendition of it.
The Delta symbol (Δ) was chosen because its meaning fits the concept of the remake project.
Delta means "change" or "difference" without changing structure.#MetalGearSolid#MGSDelta pic.twitter.com/LRWrNzg3he
— METAL GEAR OFFICIAL (@Metalgear) May 25, 2023
Seeing that Snake Eater is the third game in the MGS series, you’re probably wondering why “Delta”, the fourth alphabet in the Greek language, is chosen instead of “Gamma”. According to the official Metal Gear account on Twitter, the letter (or rather its symbol, “Δ”) was chosen because its meaning fits the concept of the remake project. “Delta means “change” or “difference” without changing structure,” it wrote.
More mysterious is the identity of the development team responsible for MGS Delta, which Konami has yet to name. Prior rumours are suggesting that the company has signed Virtuos, a studio known for porting numerous titles to other platforms, to work on the remake back in 2021. Neither the publisher nor the studio has confirmed this, even after today’s reveal.
While Konami has made it known that Delta’s teaser did not feature actual gameplay, it did provide several screenshots showcasing the environments, characters and animals which are created using the game’s engine. It is unclear whether the remake is powered by the first-party FOX Engine (which was notably used in MGS V: The Phantom Pain, as well as the publisher’s Pro Evolution Soccer and eFootball games), or is using a completely different graphics engine altogether.
For voicework, the company promises that all of the original game’s voice cast will reprise their respective roles, including David Hayter as main protagonist Naked Snake, Jim Piddock as Major Zero, Neil Ross as Colonel Volgin, Lori Alan as The Boss, and much more. So far none of the aforementioned have confirmed this, while Hayter himself cheekily dodged the question on Twitter by redirecting followers to Synapse, a separate title that he’s involved with which was also announced during PlayStation Showcase 2023. It’s also worth reminding that longtime MGS collaborator Donna Burke has previously teased her involvement with the remake, though her exact role is still anyone’s guess.
https://twitter.com/DavidBHayter/status/1661482115861721088?s=20
And as mentioned earlier, Konami also announced that it will be releasing the first volume of the Metal Gear Solid Master Collection, comprising the first three games from the series. In the same press release, it is revealed that the second and third games from the anthology are their HD Collection version, which have been updated to feature high resolution graphics. This is actually the second time that the publisher has released such a collection, with the first being the Metal Gear Solid: The Legacy Collection that was released in 2013, exclusively for the PlayStation 3.
Seeing that the anthology is the first volume planned, it is very possible that we’ll be seeing the re-release of the series’ other sequels and spinoffs at a later date in the next instalments. It is also worth reminding that the fourth entry, Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots, have never seen a port to other platforms since its launch as an exclusive for the PlayStation 3 more or less 15 years ago. Hopefully the next volumes of the Master Collection will finally change this once and for all.
And just in case you’re wondering, the series’ original creator Hideo Kojima has not commented regarding the Snake Eater remake or the Master Collection. Instead, he appears to be occupied with the development of the upcoming sequel to his studio’s inaugural title, Death Stranding. As you may recall, the famed game designer has long parted ways with Konami, though the latter still owns the rights to the MGS series. That being said, whether or not the publisher will still credit (let alone mention) Kojima in the remake or the Master Collection remains to be seen.
Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater will be coming to the PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S and Steam, though its release date is still unconfirmed at this time. The MGS Master Collection, on the other hand, is slated for release in autumn this year, but the publisher did not mention which platforms it will be released on.
(Source: Konami press release / official website [1] [2])
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