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Solid Snake
Solid Snake
Solid Snake
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Solid Snake
Metal Gear character
Solid Snake as he appears in Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty (2001)
First appearanceMetal Gear (1987)
Created byHideo Kojima
Designed byYoji Shinkawa (Metal Gear Solid series)
Ikuya Nakamura (Metal Gear: Ghost Babel)
Tsubasa Masao (Metal Gear Acid series)
Portrayed byGiacomo Talamini (Metal Gear Solid: Philanthropy)
Voiced by
Motion captureMizuho Yoshida (Metal Gear Solid 2, The Twin Snakes)
Ryoji Okamoto (Metal Gear Solid 4)
Ian MacDougall (Metal Gear Solid 4 [facial capture])
In-universe information
SpeciesHuman
OccupationSoldier
Spy
RelativesLiquid Snake
Solidus Snake
Big Boss
EVA
NationalityAmerican

Solid Snake[1], real name David, is a character and one of the protagonists of Konami's Metal Gear series, created by Hideo Kojima. He is depicted as a former Green Beret and highly skilled special operations soldier engaged in solo stealth and espionage missions who is often tasked with destroying models of the bipedal nuclear weapon-armed mecha known as Metal Gear. Controlled by the player, he must act alone, supported via radio by commanding officers and specialists. While his first appearances in the original Metal Gear games were references to Hollywood films, the Metal Gear Solid series has given a consistent design by artist Yoji Shinkawa alongside an established personality while also exploring his relationship with his mentor and father.

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. He also appears in Nintendo's Super Smash Bros. series as a playable fighter, as well as the battle royale game Fortnite. Considered to be 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.

Characteristics

[edit]

In the early games, Solid Snake's visual appearances were references to popular actors. He was given his own consistent design in Metal Gear Solid. He also establishes Philanthropy, an anti-Metal Gear organization carrying the motto "To let the world be", with his friend Otacon. In Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots, he has access to OctoCamo, which allows him to change his appearance to match the surface he is leaning on. And FaceCamo, which can change his facial appearance to make him look like other characters, as well as his younger self.

Snake possesses an IQ of 180 and is fluent in six languages. Solid Snake has been on the battlefield for most of his life,[2] and says that it is the only place he feels truly alive.[3] He is a hardened veteran, burying his emotions within himself during missions, every one of which has different motives.[4] He is also immediately shown as a loner,[5][6] often with no intentions of taking orders from anyone anymore[7] and he shows no sign of longing for the army or the country of which he was a part.[8] However, along with these traits he has a more human side, being flirtatious,[9] self-sacrificing[10] and with a strong belief that even on a battlefield friendship[11] and love[12] can flourish, and that violence is not glorious.[13] Snake's perceived stance on violence may be a case of denial, as Snake's enemies and at least one of his allies have claimed that he enjoys killing, and label him as more evil than the people he has killed.[3][14][15] When he is not on duty, his favorite recreational activity is being a musher.[16]

Appearances

[edit]

Video games

[edit]

Metal Gear and Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake

[edit]
Main articles: Metal Gear and Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake

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.[17][18] 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.[19] After destroying the Metal Gear, Snake confronts and defeats Big Boss's phantom.[20]

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 themselves 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.[21] 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.[22] Snake destroys Metal Gear D, and defeats both Fox and the true Big Boss.[23][24][25]

Metal Gear Solid / The Twin Snakes

[edit]
Main articles: Metal Gear Solid and Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes

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.[26] 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 over the other.[27] Liquid harbors a strong resentment towards Snake since Solid was apparently given their father's dominant "soldier genes" and Liquid was seemingly cast aside. A grueling series of battles and 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.[28] In the end, it is revealed that Liquid got Big Boss's superior "soldier genes" while Solid was actually the inferior one.[29]

Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty

[edit]
Main article: Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty

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.[30] During the operation, however, RAY is hijacked and the tanker destroyed, with Snake apparently dead and framed for the deed.[31] During the game's main portion, Solidus Snake steals Snake's identity,[32] 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.[33]

Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots

[edit]
Old Snake cosplayer at Tokyo Game Show 2010
Main article: Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of 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.[34]

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.[35] 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.[36] 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 tried to commit suicide as his DNA contains a mutated FOXDIE virus that might trigger an epidemic, but Big Boss revealed a new variant overwrote the mutant version to which 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.[37]

Other appearances

[edit]

The Metal Gear Solid prequels alludes to Solid Snake's existence; Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops has him briefly alluded in a prophetic vision as Naked Snake's "son [who] will save the world" (after Liquid and/or Solidus as Big Boss's "son [who] will bring the world to ruin"),[38] and Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker shows Kazuhira Miller mentioning the "twin sons" that are two years old at the time.[39]

Solid Snake is featured/mentioned in Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes and Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain.[40][41] 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

[edit]

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 events of the Outer Heaven incident, Snake's Revenge has Snake leading a team of FOX HOUND 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 of 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.[42] 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 like 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, in order to satisfy hijackers who have 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 that he is Hans Davis, a ruthless scientist that worked at the Lobito facility. He overcomes both and 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.[43]

Outside video games, Solid Snake appeared in the Metal Gear Solid audio drama that focuses on his missions following the battle from Shadow Moses.[44] He also appears in Alex Garner's comic book adaptations of Metal Gear Solid and Metal Gear Solid 2.[45] 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.[46][47] 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.[48]

Other video games and media

[edit]

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.[49] This version of the character is non-canon and is not referenced by other versions.

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).[50] 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 (Snake's character design in this minigame is taken directly from Naked Snake's).

He has also appeared in several cross-company fighting games. In DreamMix TV World Fighters, Solid Snake appears as a playable character alongside other Konami, Hudson Soft and Takara characters such as Bomberman and Optimus Prime. Similarly, in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, the third installment from the popular fighting game series Super Smash Bros., Solid Snake appeared as a playable fighter alongside Sega character Sonic the Hedgehog and a variety of characters from Nintendo franchises such as Mario, The Legend of Zelda, and Donkey Kong. Brawl Director Masahiro Sakurai has stated that Snake was included under Kojima's request, and that he had talked to Sakurai about adding Snake to the roster of the previous game Super Smash Bros. Melee, which did not materialize due to the game being too far into production.[51] Snake returned as a playable fighter in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, after being absent in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U. In addition, Snake has appeared as a playable character in other Konami crossover titles, such as New International Track & Field and Super Bomberman R.[52]

Old Snake has appeared in the Japanese version of Scribblenauts, having been published by Konami in that region.[53] Customizations in Media Molecule's LittleBigPlanet for the PlayStation 3 allow the player character, Sackboy, to take on the appearance of Old Snake.[54]

Solid Snake appears as an outfit in Fortnite as the "Bonus Outfit" of Chapter 5 Season 1's battle pass[55] and was unlockable by completing in-game quests from January 23, 2024, through March 8, 2024, the end of that season.

Creation and development

[edit]

"The name 'Snake' in MGS comes from creeping up on someone silently like a snake. The adjective 'Solid' expresses Snake's strong and blade-sharp image - paradoxical when combined with a snake's litheness. Normally, 'snake' and 'solid' do not go together. It's like talking about 'hot ice.' I came up with the name to express this lack of balance and equilibrium. But when I decided the codename would be Snake, the character was more Plissken than snake-like at the subconscious level. If I had used a different name for 'Snake' in MGS, he probably would have been a totally different character."

– Hideo Kojima[56]

Solid Snake was apparently named after the fictional special forces operative Snake Plissken, Kurt Russell's character in Escape from New York.[57][58] However, Kojima revealed in March 2014 that the character's name origins were something else. According to Kojima, he was given the "Snake" name because snakes are a symbol of stealth. Additionally, the "Solid" part of his code-name was given to give the opposite impression of a soft image.[59] 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".[60] His real name David[61][62] is a tribute to the film 2001: A Space Odyssey that has a character with the same name (and coincidentally shared with his English voice actor David Hayter).[63] 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.[64]

Solid Snake was created by Hideo Kojima (left) and designed by Yoji Shinkawa (right).

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.[65]

Various scenes from the games relate Solid Snake's ideals with 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.[63] 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.[66] 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.[67] 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.[68] 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.[69] 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.[70] 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;[71] Kojima has himself stated that Solid Snake "is one character that I don't want to entrust to other people".[67]

Design

[edit]
The Solid Snake design created by Yoji Shinkawa for Metal Gear Solid is inspired by actors Jean-Claude Van Damme (pictured) and Christopher Walken.

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,[72] although Kojima claimed to have no involvement in the production of the game's packaging illustration.[73] In the in-game portrait of Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake, he resembles Mel Gibson.[72]

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 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.[58][74] 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).[75] 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.[76] 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.[77]

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.[66] 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.[67] However, comments from Kojima's staff who were disappointed with his death resulted in the character's survival.[78] In Metal Gear Solid 4, Old Snake is modelled after Lee Van Cleef who appeared in Escape from New York.[79]

Voice actors

[edit]
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. 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 for 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.[80] 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.[81]

Other than the aforementioned voice actors, Solid Snake has also been dubbed in four different languages for the European localization of Metal Gear Solid; in French by Emmanuel Bonami,[82] in German by Stephan Grothgar,[83] in Italian by Alessandro Ricci,[84] and in Spanish by Alfonso Vallés.[85]

Reception

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Popularity

[edit]

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.[86] In 2005, Electronic Gaming Monthly listed Solid Snake as number one as the top ten video game characters of all time.[34] Solid Snake appeared in multiple GameFAQs "Character Battle" contests, and was runner-up in three: the "Character Battle V" in 2006,[87] the "Character Battle VII" in 2008,[88] and the "Character Battle IX" in 2013.[89] In an Oricon poll from 2008, his character was voted as the most popular video game character in Japan, tying with Nintendo's Pikachu.[90] In a Famitsu poll in 2010, Solid Snake was voted by readers as the most popular video game character.[60] 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.[91] In the Guinness World Records Gamer's Edition from 2011, Solid Snake was voted as the fourth most popular video game character.[92] 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".[93] In 2007, ScrewAttack ranked him as the sixth "coolest" character in video games.[94] 1UP.com listed him second in the list of top video game smokers, while GamesRadar placed him at the top of their 2009 list of manliest men in video game history.[95][96] Complex ranked him as fourth on the list of top "pervs" in games in 2012[97] and as the seventh greatest soldier in video games in 2013.[98] In 2021, Chris Morgan for Yardbarker described Snake as one of "the most memorable characters from old school Nintendo games".[99] HobbyConsolas named Snake as third of their "The 30 best heroes of the last 30 years."[100]

Critical response

[edit]

Critics have commented on his traits and appearance, often praising Solid Snake for his appealing personality.[34] Rich Knight and Gus Turner from Complex acknowledged him as one of the best video game mascot, praising his "deep, human emotion that other characters fail to match."[101] IGN also remarked their rivalry, saying "Few rivalries in games have spanned as massive and confusing a timeline as Solid Snake and Liquid Snake".[102] 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.[103][104] His rivalry with Big Boss was also popular according to journalists, especially when they are compared as son and father and genetic heir.[105] 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.[106][107][108] Among other character relationships, Snake and Gray Fox were popular due to the variety of enemies the player faces.[109][110]

Solid Snake's Metal Gear Solid 2 design was at the bottom of the worst game character makeovers list by GamePro, condemning his conversion in hairstyle in comparison to his Metal Gear Solid design,[111] and was also at the top of IGN's list of the worst video game haircuts.[112] 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.[113] Eurogamer's Tom Bramwell commented that his interactions with the other characters also helped expand Solid Snake's character.[114] 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.[115] 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.[116][117][118] 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."[119]

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.[120] 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.[121][122] GamesRadar commented that his character was one of the few gaming characters that aged across video games.[123] 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.[124] 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.[125] PLAY gave praise to his moustache considering how highly detailed it is, and represents the change from Solid Snake's character.[126] On the other hand, 1UP.com criticized it as the most gracelessly aging characters as it gave negative messages about aging.[127] 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.[128] The design resulted in mixed reactions regarding whether or not the character kept his original sex appeal.[129][130]

GameDaily made Solid Snake top their Smash Bros. characters list,[131] while PLAY listed him as one of the characters they wanted to be playable in Mortal Kombat.[132] The character customization in Soulcalibur IV that allowed to create Solid Snake was listed by UGO as one of the best ones from the series owing to his popularity within gamers.[133] Gavin Jasper of Den of Geek ranked Solid Snake as 12th of Super Smash Bros. Ultimate characters, and stated that "bringing Snake in Smash Bros. was an act of pure dominance."[134] Jeremy Parish of Polygon ranked 73 fighters from Super Smash Bros. Ultimate "from garbage to glorious", listing Solid Snake as 18th, stating that "The legendary super-soldier Solid Snake remains one of gaming's greatest and most tragic figures."[135] People expressed some disappointment on Super Smash Bros. Ultimate when Solid Snake wore a skintight stealth suit, and the rendition was completely changed, including the character's butt being reduced.[136]

Akio Otsuka's and David Hayter's performances as Solid Snake's voice actors has received praise. Ōtsuka remembers being surprised during his debut as a result of the large amount of dialogue Solid Snake was given.[137] Hayter's performance was called one of the greatest in gaming as well as one of the character's most recognizable traits.[138][139] In 2013, 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".[140] 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.[141]

Controversy

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In the Tekken 7 Evo 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.[142] David Hayter complained about this joke as Evo did not consult Konami or him when using the audio.[143]

References

[edit]
Revisions and contributorsEdit on WikipediaRead on Wikipedia

Solid Snake

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Solid Snake, real name David, is a legendary soldier and infiltration expert in Konami's Metal Gear series of stealth-action video games, renowned as "the man who makes the impossible possible" for his repeated success in neutralizing global threats from nuclear-armed mechanized weapons known as Metal Gears. Possessing an IQ of 180 and fluency in six languages, he is depicted as a highly skilled operative who excels in covert operations despite his preference for a solitary life. Snake first rose to prominence as a member of the elite unit during the Outer Heaven Uprising and the Zanzibar Land Disturbance in the late 1990s, where he single-handedly dismantled terrorist strongholds and destroyed prototype s. After retiring from to live in isolation in , he was reluctantly recalled to active duty by his former commander, Roy Campbell, for a high-stakes mission to infiltrate the hijacked Shadow Moses Island nuclear weapons facility in 2005, as detailed in Metal Gear Solid (1998). There, Snake uncovered a conspiracy involving his genetic origins as a clone of the legendary soldier and prevented a orchestrated by rogue elements of his former unit. In Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty (2001), Snake operates undercover as philanthropist agent "Iroquois Pliskin" to investigate a new prototype on the Big Shell offshore facility, only to become entangled in a broader plot manipulating information and identity in the digital age. The game portrays him as a grizzled veteran who has "thrice saved the world from the menace of ," guiding the younger operative Raiden while confronting his brother, . Aging rapidly due to artificial genetic defects known as the Les Enfants Terribles project, Snake returns in Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots (2008) as "Old Snake," embarking on a final mission across war-torn regions from the to to assassinate his nemesis, Liquid Ocelot, and dismantle a global system controlling child soldiers and perpetual conflict. This installment concludes his arc, emphasizing themes of legacy, mortality, and peace in a privatized . Created by renowned game designer , Snake's character draws inspiration from and action heroes, evolving from a stoic lone wolf to a reflective anti-hero across the series, which has sold over 65 million copies worldwide as of September 2025 and redefined stealth gameplay. Voiced by in English across multiple titles, Snake has become an enduring icon of , appearing in spin-offs, crossovers like Super Smash Bros., and adaptations.

Characteristics

Appearance and age

Solid Snake is depicted as a Caucasian male with a muscular build, standing at approximately 6 feet (182 cm) tall and weighing around 165 pounds (75 kg) during his early missions. He has styled in a mullet, blue eyes, and typically sports light stubble or a . Throughout the series, Snake's appearance evolves to reflect his chronological aging and the physical toll of his lifestyle, spanning from a youthful operative in his mid-30s during the 2005 Shadow Moses Incident to an elderly figure known as "Old Snake" by 2014. Born in 1972 as a clone of , he is 33 years old in Metal Gear Solid, presenting a rugged, battle-hardened look with short and no visible signs of frailty. By Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots, at age 42, accelerated aging due to genetic defects from the process causes him to appear in his 70s, with white hair, deep wrinkles, graying stubble, and a frail yet determined posture; he also loses his left arm during the events of the game, receiving a prosthetic replacement. Additionally, he wears the Solid Eye, an optoelectronic device resembling an over his left eye to aid in and targeting. In the 2004 remake Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes, Snake's model receives a significant visual upgrade using the engine from Metal Gear Solid 2: , resulting in more realistic facial animations, detailed textures, and motion-captured movements that make his expressions and actions appear more fluid and lifelike compared to the original PlayStation version's polygonal style. This update emphasizes his muscular physique and dynamic poses during cutscenes, such as enhanced combat sequences, while maintaining core traits like his brown hair and tactical gear. Snake's iconic attire centers on variations of the sneaking suit, a form-fitting tactical garment designed for stealth operations with optical fibers to reduce visibility and provide padding against environmental hazards. Early suits, like the dark blue version in Metal Gear Solid, include holsters, knee pads, and a utility belt for gear. He frequently wears a bandana, an iconic accessory that in provides infinite ammunition when equipped, symbolizing his relentless drive; its color varies across games, such as blue in Metal Gear Solid. He is often associated with a , which he smokes to steady his nerves during tense moments. Later iterations, such as the octo-camo patterned suit in Metal Gear Solid 4, adapt to needs while retaining the suit's ergonomic design.

Personality

Solid Snake is characterized as a stoic and introspective operative, whose silent "tough guy" demeanor originated from the technical constraints of the 1987 Metal Gear game, where limited sprite animations and voice capabilities restricted expressive dialogue, as creator Hideo Kojima noted in reflecting on the character's inception. This trait underscores his cynical worldview, shaped by repeated betrayals and the moral weight of espionage, leading him to question the futility of endless conflicts. Despite his elite combat skills, Snake embodies an anti-war pacifist ethos, with Kojima designing the series to convey messages against war and nuclear proliferation through Snake's reluctant participation in missions aimed at averting global catastrophes. He prioritizes stealth and non-lethal approaches when possible, reflecting a philosophical rejection of gratuitous violence and a preference for individual agency over systemic obedience. Snake's motivations stem from a drive for personal redemption amid haunting revelations, such as discovering in Metal Gear Solid that he is a cloned "perfect" version of his genetic father, , who had orchestrated earlier missions to eliminate him as a rival. This betrayal fuels his disdain for political authorities and shadowy organizations that exploit soldiers like pawns, yet it also instills unwavering loyalty to trusted comrades, such as engineers Otacon and Roy Campbell, whom he repeatedly aids at great personal risk. Kojima intended players to empathize with Snake's internal struggles, understanding "why [he] is fighting, how he feels about it, and what he is thinking" to highlight the human cost of war. Over the series, Snake's character develops from a cocky, mission-focused in early entries like and 2: Solid Snake—where he confidently infiltrates fortresses with minimal introspection—to a weary, aging in Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots, confronting his accelerated cellular decay and cloned legacy while seeking meaning beyond combat. This arc culminates in his rejection of genetic determinism, affirming that his choices, not his origins, define his path, as he chooses survival and peace over suicidal resignation.

Combat skills and philosophy

Solid Snake possesses exceptional combat proficiency, characterized by mastery of Close Quarters Combat (CQC), a hand-to-hand system emphasizing joint locks, throws, and weapon integration for rapid neutralization in confined spaces. He excels in stealth infiltration, leveraging environmental awareness and evasion tactics to penetrate heavily guarded facilities undetected. His marksmanship is precise, particularly with suppressed firearms, allowing for accurate engagements at varying ranges while maintaining operational silence. Additionally, Snake demonstrates superior survival skills in adversarial settings, including expertise in , high-altitude parachuting, and , honed through his FOXHOUND training. Central to Snake's operative style is a philosophy that views modern warfare as fundamentally transformed, no longer defined by nations or ideologies but by an endless cycle of proxy conflicts fueled by economic and corporate interests—a sentiment he articulates as "war has changed." This outlook informs his preference for non-lethal methods, such as chokeholds and tranquilizer rounds, to incapacitate foes without fatalities whenever feasible, reflecting a deliberate effort to limit the human cost of missions. Iconic to his approach is the use of unconventional tools like the for concealment, enabling him to exploit surroundings for hiding and evasion rather than direct confrontation. Snake's equipment choices underscore his tactical versatility, with a particular affinity for the SOCOM pistol—a suppressed sidearm ideal for covert operations—and advanced technologies like OctoCamo, which allows adaptive blending into environments. His prioritizes restraint against unnecessary violence, positioning him as an anti-hero who resists the military-industrial complex's manipulative control over global conflicts, often undertaking solo missions to dismantle such systems. This stance drives his critiques of economies, emphasizing personal agency over institutionalized aggression.

Role in the Metal Gear series

Early missions (Metal Gear and Metal Gear 2)

Solid Snake debuted in (1987), developed by for the MSX2 platform, as a rookie operative in the elite unit . In 1995, amid the Outer Heaven Uprising, Snake was dispatched on his first solo infiltration mission to the fortified mercenary state of Outer Heaven in . His primary objectives were to rescue captured agents, including the elite soldier , and investigate reports of a mysterious superweapon being developed there. As Snake navigated the enemy stronghold using stealth tactics, he uncovered the TX-55 , a bipedal tank equipped with nuclear launch capabilities designed for global intimidation. Created by the scientist Dr. Pettrovich Madnar under duress, the weapon represented a grave threat to . Snake successfully rescued and other hostages, but his mission culminated in a shocking betrayal: his commanding officer, , was revealed as the true leader of Outer Heaven, orchestrating the uprising to create a soldiers' paradise free from exploitation. In a tense confrontation, Snake destroyed the Metal Gear prototype and defeated Big Boss, escaping the self-destructing base as Outer Heaven collapsed. Four years later, in Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake (1990), also for MSX2, Snake had retired from active duty but was reluctantly reactivated by for the 1999 Zanzibar Land crisis. The rogue nation of Zanzibar Land, located in , had kidnapped Dr. Kio Marv, a Czech scientist who developed OILIX, an enzyme capable of creating unlimited clean fuel from seawater, potentially disrupting global oil markets. Snake's mission involved infiltrating the heavily guarded territory to rescue Marv, recover the OILIX formula, and neutralize another advanced threat. During the operation, Snake encountered heightened challenges, including encounters with former allies like the now-cyborg , who served as a formidable antagonist. The plot escalated when Snake discovered Metal Gear D, an upgraded nuclear-armed walker far more advanced than its predecessor. Ultimately, reemerged as Zanzibar Land's commander, having survived their previous clash and viewing Snake as a protégé turned rival— a paternal figure whose ideals clashed with his own vision of soldier autonomy. Snake demolished Metal Gear D, rescued Dr. Marv (though tragically too late to prevent his death), and engaged in a final showdown with , ending the crisis and Big Boss's ambitions once more. These early missions established Snake's codename and core abilities through top-down stealth gameplay, emphasizing evasion, resource scavenging, and non-lethal approaches over direct combat, which laid the foundation for his of intelligent infiltration. Key relationships formed here, such as Snake's mentorship under —evolving into antagonism—and his bond with , highlighted themes of loyalty and betrayal that defined his character arc.

Shadow Moses incident (Metal Gear Solid)

In 2005, the Shadow Moses Incident erupted when the renegade unit , augmented by the Next-Generation Special Forces (Genome Soldiers), seized a remote nuclear weapons disposal facility on Shadow Moses Island off the coast of . The terrorists, led by , captured high-profile hostages including Chief Donald Anderson and ArmsTech President Kenneth Baker, while demanding the remains of and threatening a nuclear launch using the experimental REX—a stealth nuclear warhead-equipped walking tank developed at the site. Retired legendary operative Solid Snake, living in self-imposed exile after previous missions, was urgently recruited by his former , Roy Campbell, via Phoenix-based NGO support, to infiltrate the heavily fortified complex, rescue the hostages, and destroy REX before the deadline. Despite his reluctance and distrust of government motives, Snake accepted the solo covert operation, equipped with advanced sneaking suit technology. Snake's infiltration began with a high-risk HALO jump and underwater approach to the island's dock, navigating blizzards, patrolling guards, and sophisticated security systems amid the facility's underground labyrinth. Early in the mission, he encountered and allied with Meryl Silverburgh, a trained policewoman and Campbell's niece held as a , who provided crucial on-site assistance and developed a romantic connection with Snake. He also befriended Dr. Hal "Otacon" Emmerich, a reclusive ArmsTech engineer and REX's designer, who, wracked by guilt, offered technical intel, remote hacking support, and later became a lifelong partner in Snake's endeavors. These alliances proved vital as Snake progressed through key areas like the tank hangar, nuclear storage, and , using stealth tactics refined from prior operations to avoid detection. The mission escalated with intense confrontations against FOXHOUND's elite members, testing Snake's combat philosophy of precision over brute force. , a operative with mind-control abilities, invaded Snake's psyche during a boss encounter, manipulating his controller and reading his thoughts, but was defeated through unconventional countermeasures like swaps. Sniper Wolf, a Kurdish assassin with unmatched marksmanship, ambushed Snake in snowy fields and warehouse duels, forcing prolonged cat-and-mouse engagements that highlighted his endurance and adaptability. Throughout, Snake's rivalry with intensified, marked by taunts over radio and direct clashes, as Liquid revealed himself as the mastermind seeking to expose global conspiracies while pursuing personal vendettas. Major revelations unfolded via codec briefings and interrogations, shattering Snake's understanding of his origins and purpose. , posing as Master Miller, and later Naomi Hunter disclosed that Snake was a genetic clone of , engineered through the 1972 project to create perfect soldiers, with Liquid as his twin possessing what he believed were superior recessive genes—though later clarified as equal in flaw. Furthermore, Snake learned he had been covertly injected with FOXDIE, a programmed to induce heart attacks in specific targets like the hostages and Liquid, turning him into an unwitting assassin under the Patriots' shadowy control and sparking debates on the ethics of bioweapon deployment in . In the climax, Snake infiltrated REX's hangar, with Otacon disabling security, and piloted an upgraded REX variant against before destroying the machine with missiles smuggled by Meryl. A brutal hand-to-hand brawl atop the ruins ended with Snake choking out Liquid, who died from FOXDIE as predicted, averting the nuclear threat. In the aftermath, to evade the Patriots' , Snake orchestrated a using a corpse and escape, retiring once more to live privately with Meryl in an unspecified location. This event later inspired Snake and Otacon to found , an NGO dedicated to dismantling projects worldwide.

Big Shell incident (Metal Gear Solid 2)

In 2009, Solid Snake, co-founder of the anti- alongside Otacon, undertakes an unauthorized infiltration of the Big Shell offshore cleanup facility to disrupt the development and deployment of advanced weaponry, including the anti- platform Metal Gear RAY and the massive AI-controlled warship Arsenal Gear. Posing as a member of the terrorist group Dead Cell under the alias "Iroquois Pliskin," Snake navigates the seized facility to gather intelligence and execute sabotage operations aimed at preventing the proliferation of nuclear-armed bipedal tanks. During the crisis, Snake encounters remnants of the Dead Cell unit, including the luck-manipulating Fortune and the immortal vampire-like Vamp, engaging them in combat while coordinating with Otacon for remote support and hacking assistance. A pivotal revelation occurs when , initially appearing as an ally, is shown to be possessed by the disembodied arm of , leading to a betrayal that complicates Snake's efforts to neutralize the threats. Snake survives a catastrophic tanker explosion earlier in the operation, demonstrating his enduring resilience. Throughout the incident, Snake provides crucial codec guidance to rookie operative Raiden, serving as a mentor figure who imparts lessons on stealth tactics, ethical dilemmas in , and the manipulation of information by shadowy forces. This support underscores themes of identity , as Snake grapples with his fabricated legend being exploited by the Patriots—a secretive cabal controlling global data flows—and the broader control exerted over soldiers' realities through digital simulations and . Ultimately, Snake's actions culminate in the exposure of the fabricated Dead Cell operation and the Patriots' S3 Plan for information manipulation, forcing him into global evasion as he and Otacon escape pursuit by international authorities while vowing to continue their anti-proliferation mission.

Guns of the Patriots (Metal Gear Solid 4)

In Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots, set in 2014, Solid Snake, now suffering from accelerated aging due to his status as a clone from the project, is reluctantly pulled out of retirement for one final mission. Recruited by Colonel Campbell, Snake is tasked with infiltrating war zones controlled by private military companies (PMCs) to dismantle the Sons of the Patriots () system, a of nanomachines that regulates soldiers' performance, suppresses , and maintains the Patriots' control over international conflicts and economies. His primary objective is to assassinate Liquid , who has seized command of the world's largest PMCs and seeks to hijack the SOP for his own ends, potentially unleashing . The mission unfolds across four acts, each named after previous Snake iterations, beginning in the Middle East's Sun act, where Snake poses as a UN inspector amid a PMC skirmish between Praying Mantis and units. There, he reunites with Meryl Silverburgh, now a captain in the anti-PMC Team 01, and Campbell, who leads the group and reveals his marriage to Meryl, straining Snake's long-held affections. Subsequent acts take Snake to South America's Sun jungles, where he rescues a developing anti-SOP technology and reconnects with allies like Hal "Otacon" Emmerich via remote support, and Eastern Europe's Third Sun urban ruins, marked by intense PMC assaults and encounters with arms dealer Drebin 874, who provides intel on the system's vulnerabilities. In the act, Snake returns to Shadow Moses Island to thwart 's apparent activation of REX's , only to uncover it as a diversion allowing to acquire the preserved body of . Throughout these sequences, Snake grapples with his deteriorating health, relying on suppressants developed by Otacon and Naomi Hunter to temporarily halt his rapid cellular degradation, though they offer only short-term relief and exacerbate his physical and emotional exhaustion. The narrative culminates in the Old Sun act aboard Liquid Ocelot's Outer Haven ship, where Snake boards the vessel and engages in a brutal hand-to-hand duel with Liquid atop a Metal Gear RAY. During the confrontation, revelations emerge that the Patriots are not human overlords but an AI core known as GW, derived from digitized minds of the original founders, which Liquid aims to corrupt for total dominance. Snake self-injects with a modified FOXDIE virus to neutralize GW, seemingly sacrificing himself in an act of redemption, but Ocelot's possession by Liquid ends as the true Ocelot reemerges, confessing the scheme was designed to eradicate the AI's influence. In a poignant resolution, Snake encounters a dying Big Boss on a Guatemalan shore, where Big Boss clarifies the cloning project's origins, the brothers' shared genes, and the Patriots' fractured legacy born from The Boss's will, before succumbing to the virus. Contrary to expectations, Snake survives the virus's effects, which prove selectively lethal only to the AI and Big Boss, allowing him to retire peacefully to a remote Alaskan farm with Otacon and his adopted daughter Sunny, symbolizing closure to his warrior life and the Patriots' era. This arc ties up longstanding series threads, affirming Snake's role in liberating the world from systemic control while highlighting his philosophical weariness toward endless conflict.

Other roles in Metal Gear games

In titles set before Solid Snake's main missions, he is referenced as a legendary future operative destined to challenge . In Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater (2004), EVA mentions during the ending sequence that she will entrust the true microfilm to Solid Snake, implying his pivotal role in uncovering historical truths about The Boss and the Philosophers. Similarly, in Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker (2010), conversations allude to Snake as an emerging myth among soldiers, with Kazuhira noting in a briefing that a "perfect clone" will one day rise to oppose Big Boss's ambitions, foreshadowing Solid Snake's confrontations in later games. Solid Snake is also unlockable in supplementary content within these prequels. In the expanded edition Metal Gear Solid: Integral (1999), completing the main campaign unlocks VR training missions where players control Snake in simulated scenarios, emphasizing his tactical prowess without advancing the core narrative. In Peace Walker, achieving high ranks in extra ops unlocks Snake's face as a customizable option, allowing players to adopt his likeness for stealth gameplay. In the spin-off Metal Gear Acid series, Snake takes a more prominent but alternate role. He serves as the playable protagonist in Metal Gear Acid (2004), leading a card-based infiltration mission on Lobito Island to retrieve a dangerous nanomachine weapon, though this version diverges from canon as a parallel-universe clone. Snake returns as a selectable character in Metal Gear Acid 2 (2005), partnering with agent Kestrel for cooperative missions against the SaintLogic organization, blending turn-based strategy with his signature stealth mechanics. Brief cameos appear in other spin-offs, such as Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance (2013), where a hologram of Snake is viewable via collectible data files, and Raiden references him in a codec call with Kevin Washington as a retired legend who dismantled the Patriots' system. Post-Metal Gear Solid 4 titles include subtle nods; Metal Gear Survive (2018) features easter eggs like audio logs echoing Snake's codec banter during survival sequences, evoking his resourcefulness against otherworldly threats. Remakes and collections update Snake's appearances without new story elements. Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes (2004) reimagines his Shadow Moses infiltration with enhanced graphics, motion-captured animations from director Ryuhei Kitamura, and a more agile model for Snake that incorporates cinematic action sequences. The Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 1 (2023) ports his roles from the original Metal Gear (1987), Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake (1990), and Metal Gear Solid (1998) with quality-of-life improvements like widescreen support and higher resolutions, preserving his pixelated and polygonal depictions. In the 2025 remake Metal Gear Solid Δ: Snake Eater (released August 28, 2025), which received generally positive reviews, codec interactions include subtle nods to Solid Snake, such as Para-Medic's conversation referencing future cloning technologies that would lead to his creation. These elements reinforce Snake's enduring legacy across the series' expanded canon.

Appearances outside the main series

Adaptations of Metal Gear media

Solid Snake is prominently featured in the official novelizations of the Solid series. The first two novels were authored by . Metal Gear Solid, published in 2008 by , adapts the 1998 game's storyline, providing expanded prose descriptions of Snake's infiltration of Shadow Moses and his interactions with characters like Meryl Silverburgh and , while delving deeper into his psychological conflicts and tactical decisions. Benson's follow-up, Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty (2009), similarly novelizes the Big Shell incident, emphasizing Snake's undercover role with Otacon and the themes of information control, with additional narrative details beyond the game's conversations. The adaptation of Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots (original Japanese publication 2008 by Project Itoh; English 2012 by ) chronicles Snake's aging struggles and final missions against the Patriots, incorporating more introspective elements on his clone origins and . In the comic adaptations, Solid Snake stars in the Metal Gear Solid Digital Graphic Novels, interactive illustrated retellings produced by and . The initial release, Metal Gear Solid: Digital Graphic Novel for in 2006, digitizes Ashley Wood's original comic series with added sound effects, music, and limited animations to depict Snake's Shadow Moses operation in a stylized, noir-inspired visual style that highlights his stealth maneuvers and moral dilemmas. The subsequent Metal Gear Solid 2: Digital Graphic Novel (2008) focuses on Snake's activities during the Sons of Liberty tanker and plant incursions. These digital graphic novels were re-released as bonus content in Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 1 on October 24, 2023. These adaptations maintain fidelity to the games' plots while enhancing visual storytelling through Wood's distinctive artwork. Snake's portrayal extends to theatrical bonus content in the series, particularly the Secret Theater segments, which present him in comedic, stage-play-like skits parodying key events. In Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker (2010), the hidden disc unlocks such reels, including humorous takes on Snake's recruitment by and his MSF base interactions, styled as over-the-top performances with exaggerated dialogue and props to lighten the franchise's tone. These official tie-ins, blending fan-service humor with canonical character traits, originated as unlockables in earlier titles like Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater and evolved into recurring features. Additionally, Solid Snake provides voice cameos in various drama CDs and radio plays from the late 1990s and , expanding the Metal Gear universe through audio narratives. The Drama CD Metal Gear Solid series (Vols. 1 and 2, released 1998 and 1999 by King Records) continues post-Shadow Moses adventures, with Japanese voice actor Akio Ōtsuka reprising Snake in missions alongside Roy Campbell, Meryl, and Mei Ling against rogue threats, featuring scripted radio-style episodes that explore team dynamics and unresolved plot threads. Later entries, such as the Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker drama CD (2010), include Snake's interactions with Kazuhira Miller in tense, dialogue-heavy scenes like confrontations, voiced by Ōtsuka to bridge game events. These audio adaptations, directed by series staff, offer supplemental character development without altering core canon.

Crossover appearances

Solid Snake has appeared in several non-Metal Gear video games as a playable character or cameo, showcasing his stealth expertise in crossover contexts. These roles often highlight his iconic gadgets and infiltration tactics, integrating them into diverse gameplay mechanics. His most prominent crossover is in the series, where he debuted as a playable fighter in , released in 2008 for the . Announced at 2006, Snake was the first third-party character in the franchise, developed in collaboration with Metal Gear creator , and features a moveset incorporating grenades, remote-controlled missiles, and C4 explosives for stealth-oriented combat. He returned in for the in 2018, confirmed during the presentation, retaining much of his Brawl moveset with updated animations and conversations referencing other fighters. In Fortnite Battle Royale, Solid Snake was introduced as a mid-season skin in Chapter 5: Season 1 on January 23, 2024, unlockable through the via completing specific quests, such as dealing damage to opponents and searching containers. The skin includes alternate styles representing his younger appearance from Solid and aged "Old Snake" variant from Solid 4, along with themed items like the Slider Glider and Snake Skin Wrap, emphasizing his covert operations theme. The quests remained available until March 8, 2024. Snake also appears in other Konami titles outside the main series. In Super Bomberman R for Nintendo Switch, he was added as a downloadable playable character in the 2.1 update on June 27, 2018, alongside Naked Snake and Raiden, voiced by David Hayter, with abilities adapted for bomb-based multiplayer battles. Earlier, in the Japan-exclusive DreamMix TV: World Fighters for GameCube in 2003, Snake is a playable fighter in this platform brawler, using energy-based attacks inspired by his espionage tools against characters from other Konami and partner franchises. Cameo roles include for in 2005, which features the minigame "Mesal Gear Solid: Snake Escape," a where an ape assumes Snake's role in a stealth mission using his sneaking suit and disguise. Promotional media for these crossovers, such as animated trailers for like "Snake Joins the Brawl," depict Snake interacting with icons in short vignettes. As of 2025, no major new crossover appearances for Solid Snake have been announced, though Konami's ongoing promotions reference his legacy in collaborative merchandise like action figures tied to the skin.

Creation and development

Origins and design

Solid Snake was conceived by as the protagonist of the 1987 video game Metal Gear for the MSX2 platform, where he served as an anti-Rambo figure emphasizing stealth, infiltration, and the psychological tension of rather than direct confrontation. Kojima drew inspiration from and the pervasive anxieties of the era, aiming to create a narrative that highlighted the fear and suspense of war over heroic bravado. This design choice stemmed from Kojima's desire to subvert conventions, forcing players to hide and evade enemies to progress, a concept that contrasted sharply with the era's popular run-and-gun titles. The character's name, "Solid Snake," was selected to evoke stealth and resilience: "Snake" symbolizes creatures that conceal their presence and move silently, aligning with the game's covert operations theme, while "Solid" was added to counteract the perceived "wiggly" or soft image of snakes, providing a sturdy, dependable . In the original MSX2 version, Snake appeared in simple as a bandana-wearing equipped with basic military gear, with the bandana specifically inspired by the headwear seen on characters in the 1978 film . Early design iterations reflected hardware constraints, portraying Snake in a more straightforward role, but Kojima refined the character from an initially aggressive operative in the script to a burdened by moral dilemmas, better suiting the stealth mechanics and thematic depth. The clone concept for Solid Snake was introduced in Metal Gear Solid (1998) to establish his genetic ties to the legendary soldier , positioning him as one of three clones created through the project. This backstory drew from cloning tropes, exploring themes of identity, , and the of , while retroactively deepening the connection to the series' earlier entries. Kojima used this element to humanize Snake, portraying him not as an infallible super-soldier but as a flawed individual grappling with his artificial origins and the weight of his lineage.

Evolution across games

Solid Snake's transition to three-dimensional graphics began with Metal Gear Solid (1998), where he was depicted as a low-polygon character model optimized for the PlayStation's hardware limitations, featuring basic animations derived from magnetic systems that allowed for rudimentary stealth movements like crawling and aiming. This evolved significantly in Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty (2001), which introduced optical technology using multiple cameras to record movements from various angles, resulting in more fluid and realistic animations for Snake's actions, such as improved running cycles and combat maneuvers, reflecting the PlayStation 2's enhanced processing capabilities. The 2004 remake Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes incorporated real-time for key sequences, including facial expressions, to update Snake's model with higher polygon counts and dynamic camera angles on the , enhancing expressiveness during cutscenes and gameplay interactions. By Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots (2008), Snake's design emphasized his accelerated aging, portrayed through advanced graphics that rendered detailed wrinkles, gray hair, and deliberate, slower movements via a combination of and manual keyframe to simulate physical deterioration, directly influencing stealth mechanics like reduced stamina and increased vulnerability to stress. Narratively, Snake shifted from the central protagonist in Metal Gear Solid, leading the infiltration of Shadow Moses, to a supporting mentor role in Metal Gear Solid 2, guiding rookie Raiden during the Big Shell incident before confronting his clone brother Liquid Ocelot; this culminated in Metal Gear Solid 4, where he returned as the protagonist to dismantle the Patriots' system, providing narrative closure to his arc. Subsequent HD collections, released between 2011 and 2023 for , Vita, and later platforms, applied minor technical updates to Snake's models, including higher-resolution textures and support, without altering core animations or design, to adapt the stealth gameplay to modern displays while preserving the original hardware-specific nuances. These changes were driven by hardware progression—from the PS1's constrained polygons limiting Snake's model to simple shapes, to the PS2's enabling complex animations, and the PS3's supporting high-fidelity details that refined stealth elements like enemy detection tied to Snake's more lifelike posture and movement speed.

Voice actors and portrayal

David Hayter provided the English voice for Solid Snake in the main Metal Gear Solid series from Metal Gear Solid (1998) through Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots (2008), portraying the character with a distinctive gravelly tone that evolved to reflect Snake's weary, aged demeanor in later entries. Hayter also contributed motion capture performances for Snake in Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty (2001), Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater (2004), and Metal Gear Solid 4, enhancing the character's physical realism through his involvement in both vocal and movement recording. Following Konami's split with Hideo Kojima in 2015, Hayter was replaced by Kiefer Sutherland for Big Boss in Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain (2015), and he has since appeared in fan-led projects voicing Snake only sporadically. In the Japanese versions, Akio Ōtsuka has voiced Solid Snake consistently since Metal Gear Solid (1998), delivering a deep, resonant timbre that has remained a staple across the series, including portrayals of the character's aging in Metal Gear Solid 4. Ōtsuka's performance emphasized emotional depth, particularly in scenes depicting Snake's vulnerability and reflection, drawing from his long association with the role as one of his personal "alter egos." Regional dubs featured localized actors to adapt Snake's portrayal, such as Emmanuel Bonami in French versions from Metal Gear Solid onward, who brought a robust, action-oriented delivery to the role. In German dubs, Michael Hülsmann voiced Snake starting with Metal Gear Solid, maintaining the character's gruff intensity for European audiences. Hayter's portrayal included improvised elements during recording sessions, such as ad-libs in conversations that added humor and spontaneity to Snake's interactions, complementing the character's tactical persona. Ōtsuka's consistent vocal style provided emotional grounding, especially in sequences highlighting Snake's physical decline, synergizing with the character's evolving visual design to convey themes of mortality.

Reception

Popularity

Solid Snake has consistently ranked among the most beloved characters in video gaming history, as evidenced by various fan polls and industry recognitions. In a 2010 Empire magazine feature on the 50 greatest video game characters, Snake placed at number 19, praised for his tactical ingenuity and iconic stealth gameplay. Similarly, in GamesRadar's 2021 list of the 50 most iconic video game characters, he was highlighted for his complex narrative role as a clone soldier in Hideo Kojima's intricate storytelling. His appeal extends to cosplay communities, where Snake's distinctive tactical gear and bandana make him a frequent choice at conventions; a 2021 Screen Rant article showcased 10 standout Solid Snake cosplays, underscoring his enduring visual draw among fans. The Metal Gear series, with Snake as its central protagonist, has sold over 65 million units worldwide as of October 2025, a figure that reflects his role in driving the franchise's commercial success. Merchandise featuring Solid Snake remains a strong indicator of his fanbase loyalty, encompassing action figures, apparel, and themed accessories. Official Konami-licensed products, such as detailed statues from First 4 Figures and clothing lines from Fangamer, continue to sell steadily through major retailers like GameStop and Amazon. The 2020s revivals, including the 2025 remake Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater, have boosted merchandise demand; the game's launch saw over 1 million units sold globally in its first day, correlating with increased availability of Snake-inspired items like apparel and collectibles. The Snake community thrives through dedicated online activities, including and , demonstrating his lasting engagement even after Hideo Kojima's departure from in 2015. Platforms like Speedrun.com host active leaderboards and forums for Metal Gear Solid titles, with recent records set in 2024 using optimized PC versions. Modding scenes, such as those for Metal Gear Solid 2 on PC, have flourished with community tools enhancing gameplay, as detailed in 2025 tutorials. This grassroots involvement highlights Snake's appeal in technical and creative fan pursuits. Beyond core gamers, Solid Snake enjoys global recognition through memes and parodies that amplify his cultural footprint. Articles compiling fan-created content, like Screen Rant's 2022 roundup of 10 memes capturing Snake's quirky traits such as his hiding, illustrate how these humorous takes resonate widely online. Parodies, including the 2017 indie game Never Stop Sneakin'—a satirical take on Metal Gear Solid's stealth mechanics—further extend his influence into broader entertainment. His appearances in crossovers, such as Super Smash Bros., have additionally sustained this visibility among diverse audiences.

Critical reception

Solid Snake has been widely praised by critics for the depth of his character writing, particularly his portrayal as a reluctant anti-hero burdened by conflicts and loyalties. In reviews of the original Metal Gear Solid, Snake is highlighted as a retired operative thrust back into conflict against former comrades in , emphasizing his internal struggles with duty and betrayal that add nuance to his stealth-focused gameplay role. This integration of psychological complexity with tactical mechanics was seen as innovative, allowing players to embody a grappling with the ethical costs of . Critics have also commended the synergy between Snake's character and his , with David Hayter's gravelly, world-weary delivery enhancing the anti-hero archetype across the series. Hayter's performance is often cited as iconic, capturing Snake's cynicism and quiet heroism while syncing seamlessly with the game's cinematic cutscenes and radio interactions that reveal his vulnerabilities. However, some aspects of Snake's development drew criticism, particularly the accelerated aging arc in Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots, which reviewers and analysts described as redundant or an unnecessary that overshadowed his core traits. Earlier entries were occasionally faulted for relying on action-hero tropes, with Snake's stoic demeanor and one-man-army feats feeling stereotypical before later games added layers of philosophical . Snake's character design and evolution have earned formal recognition, including the "Character of the Year" award at the 2009 Awards, reflecting his impact on . Scholarly analyses, such as those in The Metal Gear Solid Series: Critical Essays and New Perspectives, explore Snake's embodiment as a militarized subject and his liminal ties to themes of and , underscoring his role in critiquing war and identity. The remake Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes elicited mixed responses regarding Snake's portrayal, with some praising the enhanced visuals and first-person sequences that amplify his super-soldier abilities, while others noted the added action elements shifted the tone from subtle stealth to more bombastic heroism, altering the original's nuanced anti-hero vibe.

Cultural impact and controversies

Solid Snake's portrayal as a grizzled, tactical operative has established him as the quintessential for stealth protagonists in video games, profoundly influencing subsequent titles in the genre. Developers credit Metal Gear Solid (1998) with expanding stealth mechanics beyond simple avoidance, integrating narrative depth and player agency that inspired series like Splinter Cell, where Sam Fisher echoes Snake's emphasis on shadow-based infiltration, and , which adopted historical espionage with non-lethal takedowns reminiscent of Snake's cardboard box antics. This shift elevated stealth from a niche mechanic to a core genre pillar, as noted in industry retrospectives marking the game's 25th anniversary. The character's cultural footprint extends to internet memes and academic scrutiny. The recurring codec call "Snake? Snake? SNAAAKE!" during game over sequences in Metal Gear Solid originated as a humorous ally reaction to player death and has proliferated as a template across online videos and fan content, symbolizing frustration in gaming failures. In scholarly circles, Snake's missions have prompted analyses of military , including the moral ambiguities of nuclear deterrence and , with the series critiqued for blending anti-war against real-world . Controversies surrounding Snake often stem from behind-the-scenes tensions and thematic interpretations. In 2015, Hideo Kojima's decision to recast —Snake's longtime voice actor—with for Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain ignited fan debates on authenticity, with Hayter publicly expressing resentment toward Kojima for the abrupt exclusion after two decades. The series' political allegories, portraying war as a cycle driven by information control and corporate greed, have drawn criticism for juxtaposing pacifist messages with visceral combat, potentially glorifying the violence it condemns. Snake's legacy persists through series revivals and broader discourse. The August 2025 release of Metal Gear Solid Δ: Snake Eater, a of the 2004 , has rekindled enthusiasm for the franchise's lore, including Snake's role in later entries via updated graphics and new modes. Competitive play has gained traction with features like the Fox Hunt multiplayer in the , fostering cat-and-mouse stealth encounters akin to skirmishes. Fan and academic explorations of Snake's origins further probe ethical dilemmas of and identity, questioning the humanity of engineered soldiers in a post-Cold War context.

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