Our Biggest Expectations for Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater Remake

Looking into Konami’s latest triple-A entry in the new Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater remake.

If you’ve been on the internet lately, you might have noticed people in the gaming sphere freaking out over the confirmed rumors of a Metal Gear solid 3 remake. But what exactly made this almost 20 year-old classic so legendary?

Back in the good ol’ days of the PlayStation hype, when the PS2 was the top-selling console worldwide, a singular title stood among the rest as the standard-bearer for stealth games, and that was Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater. One might even argue that the innovations that the Kojima-led development team put out shaped the genre into what it is today.

Watch the reveal trailer for Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater, an upcoming remake of Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater originally released in 2004 for the PlayStation 2. pic.twitter.com/p62cdaeAy4

— IGN (@IGN) May 24, 2023

Taking inspiration from real-life events surrounding the cold war, MGS 3 put us in the shoes of former FOX agent “Naked Snake” (yes that is his actual name in the game). Voiced by David Hayter, the game’s protagonist is sent deep into enemy lines to rescue a high-value rocket scientist, sabotage Russia’s latest superweapon and defeat (spoiler alert!) his defected former boss. Besides the prequel’s over-the-top plot, Metal Gear Solid 3 also shined in its stealth mechanics, unique survival system and JRPG-like philosophical inspirations.

Now that the much-anticipated remake was finally confirmed to be in development, fans are excited to revisit Snake’s journey. Here are our biggest expectations for Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater.

Camouflage System Remastered

In its first iteration, Snake Eater allowed you to freely swap between outfits (which ranged from purely tactical to downright wacky). Switching your camo and face paint famously allowed Snake to blend in with your environment as you progressed through the map. The effectiveness of your disguise would be shown on the stealth meter on the upper right corner of your game’s screen.

This not only gave you a smarts way to avoid encounters, but also added to the immersion. I distinctly remember crawling along the jungle floor in first-person, fully focused as I carefully made my own way around Metal Gear Solid 3’s unique scenarios.

Better Movement

Oddly enough, crouch-walking wasn’t a thing in 1960’s Soviet Russia. Besides being able to walk around like normal, you had to go take a knee before going prone in first-person mode. Taking a knee in the first game left you stationary and made the game feel clunkier than it already was.

On top of that, aiming down sights also put you in first-person mode, with arm controls that felt janky and unresponsive. The developers might bring this view change back into the game to preserve nostalgia, but getting more response when you aim would be peachy.

Refined CQC

Metal Gear Solid 3’s melee combat was easily the weakest point of the original. Consisting of 2 whole punches and a sweeping kick, Naked snake’s original combo would comedically send enemies off their feet every time. Now the game was released in 2004, so some janky and repetitive peccadilloes were expected. But now that we’re getting a fully-fledged remake, an update on Snake’s martial arts technique is long overdue.

Improved Survival System

Lastly, we want Konami to retain one of the core features that helped define Snake Eater’s tone: the survival system.

If you aren’t familiar with the original game, MGS 3 had a unique healing system that had you pause the game and enter a menu. Here, you needed to localize your injury and then apply the needed cure. The game had a neat way of letting you patch yourself up, and it just contributed to the survival aspect of the original title.

Furthermore, as was hinted in the teaser trailer, you also had to not go hungry. This meant that you had to scavenge and hunt to stay at the top of your game. We’re talking bugs, rodents and – to no one’s surprise – snakes! Humans are on the top of the food chain, so you had to act like it. All that said, retaining the main characteristics of the survival system is crucial to crafting a faithful Snake Eater rendition. However, there’s always room for improvement!

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