I’ll be honest: after the fumble that was Metal Gear SURVIVE, Konami had me a bit iffy on its remake of Snake Eater: as one of my formative games, from a time just before I became a journalist, this is one title I always was particularly fond of.
You see, I’m a self-taught English speaker, and Naked Snake’s mission in a setting that ditched the hi-end technological warfare of its previous game in favor of a Cold War ambiance and plot was one of the games that actually made me learn a new language.
And almost 21 years later after the game’s launch, here I am, writing the Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater review for an outlet outside of my country and mother language.I have a major attachment to this, is what I’m saying…
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Luckily, my fears were appeased as soon as I fired up my PS5: from the menu’s opening, to the game’s eponymous first cutscene intro and its “New Style” gameplay that mixes old and new elements of progression, Metal Gear 3’s remake not only does the original title its fair justice, but improves on several points that make it a major sell for some gamers who weren’t even born at the original launch.
Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater Review: “Epic” is an understatement
Pros
- A faithful and respectful remake that honors the original’s essence.
- A stunning visual overhaul that adds dramatic depth to the cinematic story.
- The “New Style” controls and quick-access menus are welcome quality-of-life improvements.
- Enhanced environmental sound design that is both realistic and practically helpful for gameplay.
- The game acknowledges Hideo Kojima’s legacy, signaling a respectful approach to the franchise’s history.
Cons
- Missed opportunity to include contextual Quick Time Events (QTEs) in cutscenes.
To properly write a critical experience on a game that I’m obviously so unbiased is a tall order. Like I said before, I love this game. But allow me to say this: much like fine whiskey, the last 21 years have allowed Snake Eater a near-perfect aging. To this day, everything in the original title just…fits. It came out on PlayStation 2, originally—a console most people, save for some retro specialists out there—won’t even give a second thought, and it still feels like it was made one or two years ago if you ignore the obvious visual gaps.
That’s why the remake got me a bit wary at first: I remember working for another outlet and berating Konami for not bringing Metal Gear Solid 4 back into the spotlight in this age of remakes and remasters (a complaint that still stands, mind you: get your s*** together, Konami!), and then, Delta’s announcement came around and, as excited as I was to hear Cynthia Harrell’s voice chanting the original soundtrack once again, I couldn’t help but to question: why?
Lucky for me, Konami had the right idea this time: proving me wrong, the Japanese publisher chose to faithfully recreate the third game with most of its original aspects intact. Despite a major overhaul and a new, not-too-far-from-original gameplay mechanic, this game feels just like the original, giving me the 2004 vibes of playing it for the first time as a kid on my late teens.
Graphics add drama
Yes, as a remake conceived to introduce an old time classic to modern audiences, Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater has had a gigantic visual rework. But not only its hi-def, 4K beauty translates into cool visual standards, it has a practical benefit to it.
You see, the entire plot of the game is still the same as the original: as Naked Snake (who would eventually become the world famous “Big Boss” from other games), you’re a CIa agent sent to rescue a defecting Russian scientist in a lush, forest-like environment right in the middle of USSR. America-versus-Russia shenanigans ensue and now you have even bigger objectives to fulfill. Yes, we’re trying to skirt around to avoid spoilers of a 21-year old plot, sue us.
The thing is, this is one drama-intense story. Knowing now how the overarching Metal Gear Solid plot unfolds on later games, we can see how heavy the acting on the original Snake Eater was. The visual overhaul serves to that purpose: while the PS2 original had its moments, technical limitations stopped developers from conceiving the depth of narrative most of the scenes had.
Such is not the case here: the PlayStation 5 technology is a far cry of evolution compared to its three-generations-ago predecessor, allowing every visual aspect in Metal Gear Solid Delta to shine as a piece of drama that is incredibly portrayed, with just the right tone and delivery.
The (not-so) New Style gameplay
When it comes to playing the game, this Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater review would be remiss to not mention the “New Style” mechanic. Like we stated before, Konami decided to stay “mostly” faithful to the original game, but this is one aspect it decidedly changed.
Not necessarily “for the better” or “worse”, mind you: just…different. Most of the changes are cosmetic, like needing to press Circle to crouch while the same function was mapped to X in the original game. However, the quality-of-life aspects do give it a breath of fresh air: quick-access to some menus and features that, before, were locked into several screens of navigation, and the ability to do a lot of things in real time, as opposed to “pausing-accessing-unpausing” like before, give the entire game a new dynamic that doesn’t really feel “new” (as most old school players will immediately recognize) nor “outdated” (as a lot of remakes/remasters tend to be).
It will take some getting used to, of course, but you get the hang of things in minutes and, soon enough, you’ll forget that there was even a doubt. Sometimes, sticking to the bread-and-butter without going overboard on the new stuff just works, as Konami just proved.
I do think some windows of opportunity were missed: not that I’m a fan of them, but I do see value, for instance, in contextual QTE features in cutscenes, and there are some examples where this particular feature would’ve played out greatly. That’s not a new ground for Konami, either, since it has implemented something similar in Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker.
That does not, however, take anything away from the overall experience. It’s just something I felt could be pointed out.
Sounds are more contextual, help finding collectibles
We already commented on how Snake Eater (the song) is one of the most memorable pieces of gaming soundtracks of all time and, while with some changes, that remains largely the same in Metal Gear Solid Delta. But that’s not what this part of our review is about.
I don’t remember if this was a thing 21 years ago, but one cool aspect of this remake is the fact that the environmental sounds are helpful in a practical manner: enemy steps are more noticeable, but not obvious and, in some key moments, faint sound cues help you find all the collectibles this game has.
This is especially prevalent when hunting for GA-KO ducks and Kerotan frogs (yes, they’re back, they’re in the same places as the original, they’re still incredibly annoying to catch). The sound cues are not obvious as to not kill the hunting experience by making it too easy, but they’re also just faint enough to be audible in order to guide you in areas that you end up visiting more than once, letting you know that you might’ve missed one or two things there.
Also, for the most part, all sounds are far more realistic: shooting enemy radios or taking down hornet hives are still fun things to do, but they now have a more impactful sound immersion, which shows a level of attention to detail that reminisces of the old Kojima days.
Speaking of which…
Metal Gear Solid Delta review: Is this what “burying the hatchet” means?
One thing that some reviewers who ran their stories before us pointed out is the fact that Konami did not shy away from crediting Hideo Kojima, the series creator and longtime director, within the remake.
Not to be the one to open old wounds, but Kojima had a rather turbulent spat with the Japanese publisher, culminating in its controversial leaving in 2015. And Metal Gear was a big part of the reason why (specifically, Phantom Pain: look it up as it is an interesting read).
While Kojima has stated that he would not play the remake of a game he directed in its original conception, this was taken more in a context of him wanting to explore new ideas and gaming concepts, and not really something out of spite.
From Konami’s side, some of the original game’s members worked on the remake—namely, Yuji Korekado and Noriaki Okamura—and while theirs has been a most respectful stance, both have stated they’d love to see Kojima play the remake, while also acknowledging that it’s time for the series to finally move towards a future of a new generation of developers.
Metal Gear Solid Delta goes to great lengths to recognize Kojima’s work, though: teh end credits mention the man not only as the original game’s director, but in several other opportunities as well and, given the penchant to do something as close to the original title as possible, this is giving off some “water under the bridge” vibes.
Not that anyone expects Kojima and Konami to work together in the near-future (or far future…or any future for that matter): Hideo loves his unrestricted creativity exercises, while Konami can understandably be a tad conservative on the business side of things.
But still, Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater’s release is poised to look like the one moment where both sides let go of the heavy air between them. Which is always a good thing.
This review is based on the PlayStation 5 version of the game, which was kindly provided by the publisher. All images contained within this article were captured during our gameplay.
