Unused Ideas For Metal Gear Games That Hideo Kojima Has Talked About

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Summary

  • The Snake Eater remake has reignited franchise interest, but Kojima’s absence and uncertainty about future MG games linger.
  • Kojima pitched many canceled concepts: Boss at Normandy, an open-world Rising, and a social PSP Metal Gear.
  • He also eyed remakes, such as MSX originals and an open-world Shadow Moses using Fox Engine ideas.

The launch of Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater is inspiring many enthusiasts to delve further into the past of the Metal Gear series and Hideo Kojima’s career as a game developer. It’s disheartening for some that he didn’t participate in the remake, and there’s disappointment about the possibility that no new Metal Gear game might be created, or if it is, it may not bear Kojima’s signature style.

If the game “Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater” performs well in sales, Konami might delight fans by continuing or expanding the series. Currently, it’s doing well with critics, which is encouraging. Today, let’s explore potential directions for the franchise that Kojima hinted at, through cryptic details, tweets, and occasionally sketches.

The Boss Goes To Normandy

A Sorrowful Pitch Gone Awry

In an exclusive behind-the-scenes video, one fascinating concept for a Metal Gear game was unveiled – a potential MGS5 that Hideo Kojima had been brainstorming after the release of MGS4: Guns of the Patriots. This hypothetical game would have delved into another prequel’s narrative, focusing on The Boss and her Cobra Unit engaging in combat during World War II at Normandy, as opposed to the setting in Metal Gear Solid: Rising which faced challenges.

To provide a more conversational rephrasing: Let’s quickly recap – The Cobra Unit consisted of characters like The Boss, The Pain, The Fear, The End, and The Sorrow as key members, as depicted in the game “Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater.” Given this background, it was a logical step to develop a game set during World War II. Unfortunately, a game featuring a female lead character from the Metal Gear series never materialized, leaving a gap in the franchise for a female-led title.

Originally, the decision was made to proceed with “Metal Gear Solid: Rising” rather than another proposal for a prequel. Back then, artist Takahiro Omori from the Metal Gear series shared his idea for a sandbox game featuring The Sorrow in his youthful days on Twitter. Although this tweet was later removed, it was preserved by the Did You Know Gaming YouTube channel before its disappearance. Interestingly, it seemed that Hideo Kojima still harbored dreams of creating a game centered around The Boss, as he was spotted scouting locations in Normandy during the promotional tour for “MGS5: Ground Zeroes”. Some fans speculated that this could indicate Kojima’s intention to revive the lost WW2 game.

The Original Metal Gear Solid: Rising

And Kojima’s Sequel Idea

In the very same Did You Know Gaming video, they discussed the initial concept for MGS: Rising with some developers. The story was set between MGS2: Sons of Liberty and MGS4: Guns of the Patriots, featuring Raiden on a rescue operation in Area 51. However, his mission would be interrupted by a man named Wexler who would obliterate Raiden’s physical form and remake him as a cybernetic servant, now known as Black Raiden.

As a reborn cyborg warrior, I found myself freed from the mind control, breaking free to seek out Dr. Madnar – the genius behind Metal Gear mechs in iconic games like Metal Gear and Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake. He transformed me into White Raiden, a powerful new version of my former self. Initially, we envisioned an open-world game, but our team struggled to pull it off. Eventually, PlatinumGames stepped in, revitalizing the project and transforming it into Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance.

Kojima proposed to his team that they should develop a game centered around Gray Fox (also known as Frank Jaeger), a character who was initially an ally to Solid Snake that needed rescuing in ‘Metal Gear’, turned enemy in ‘Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake’, and later returned as a cybernetic ninja in ‘Metal Gear Solid’. If his team agreed, Kojima intended to direct it. However, when his team declined, he approached PlatinumGames with the idea of Fox battling zombies infected with nanomachines, but they also rejected it.

Everyone’s Metal Gear

A Social-Based Action PSP Game

In an old, now-vanished blog post by Kojima, he outlined his concept for a PSP game that eventually transformed into Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops. He referred to it as Minna no Metal Gear, which translates to Everybody’s Metal Gear in English. Interestingly,

In the same Did You Know Gaming video, the concept behind Kojima’s game was explained, apart from golf games. The game, played on a PSP, would initially place players in a world devoid of inhabitants. As they interacted with real-world people, these individuals could be incorporated into their game and take on various roles. If a character died in the game, they wouldn’t reappear, much like Kojima’s long-standing idea for a game where play would cease once characters were killed off.

In this blog post, it’s mentioned that Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops, although not heavily influenced by Kojima himself due to him working on a different project, retained some of his concepts. One such concept was the ability for players to interact with each other by recruiting others to populate their game using the Ad Hoc and WiFi features of the PSP device. While the action aspects weren’t elaborated upon in the blog, it was clear that the social elements were the main focus of discussion.

Kojima’s Wanted Remakes

Three Games Waiting In The Wings

As a die-hard gamer here, I’ve always been intrigued by Kojima’s stance on game remakes. Contrary to popular belief, he’s not exactly a fan of them, yet for three years, he kept hinting at his innovative ideas around them. Back in 2013 during E3, the gaming world buzzed with excitement when Kojima casually mentioned that he’d love to see a remake of the iconic Metal Gear Solid series using the Fox Engine – the very same technology that powered Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain. And guess what? That intriguing tidbit got immortalized in one of those Did You Know Gaming videos!

At Gamescom 2014, he sat down for an interview with Geoff Keighley and discussed the possibility of Metal Gear Solid being a potential remake. Later on, at the 2015 Taipei Game Show, Kojima delved deeper into his vision for the game, highlighting his desire to incorporate an open-world rendition of Shadow Moses, the original setting of Metal Gear Solid.

Interestingly, prior to the 2014 Gamescom interview, Geoff Keighley had already interviewed Kojima in London, where they discussed plans for remaking the MSX games, specifically _Metal Gear_ and _Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake_. This was intended to resolve inconsistencies with how _MGS5: The Phantom Pain_ concluded. Without giving away any spoilers, fans would appreciate how seamlessly _MGS5: The Phantom Pain_ could transition into a remake of _Metal Gear_, and it might have also clarified why David Hayter was not the voice for Venom Snake in this scenario.

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2025-09-01 17:05