For many people, the idea that the Metal Gear series and its protagonist, Solid Snake, would be unknown to a generation of gamers would be ridiculous, but that's exactly what Konami and the team working on the upcoming Metal Gear Solid Delta fear.
In an interview in Play issue 46, series producer Noriaki Okamura was open about the fact that many younger gamers simply don't know much about Metal Gear. “One of the things that really drove us to do the remake in general is that we realized that a lot of the newer, younger generations of gamers are no longer familiar with the Metal Gear series,” he explains.
For those of us who grew up with the franchise, it may be hard to imagine. But given that the original Snake Eater was released 20 years ago and there have been no new mainline games in the series since 2015, it's perhaps not a big surprise that younger players aren't very familiar with the franchise.
For Okamura, MGS Delta is not just about allowing older players to experience a sense of nostalgia, but ensuring that the series' legacy continues to impact future players. “It was basically our mission, our duty, to continue to make sure that the series lives on for future generations.” he explains. “After all, we left a lot more than just DNA, as Solid Snake would say, but then again, who is Solid Snake?”
This appeal to new players is part of the reason why Konami has decided to forgo the numbering system in titles in favor of the Greek letter delta. While it's perhaps a strange move to start remaking the series from the third entry, Okamura points out that it takes place first in the series' chronology. “That's where the original story began,” he notes, which makes it the ideal place to start remaking it.
Look what we did with Snake's return to the past with our Metal Gear Solid Delta Preview.