Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection

Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection is a series of video game compilations published by Konami. These compilations feature remastered ports of titles in the Metal Gear franchise of stealth games, released in commemoration of the series' 35th anniversary.
Split across volumes, Vol. 1 was announced in May 2023. It comprises the first five main entries in the franchise: Metal Gear (1987), Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake (1990), Metal Gear Solid (1998), Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty (2001), Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater (2004), as well as the VR Missions for Metal Gear Solid, the Nintendo Entertainment System version of Metal Gear and its standalone sequel Snake's Revenge (1990), games guides, a sound selection of music from the series, and the motion comics Metal Gear Solid: Digital Graphic Novel and Metal Gear Solid 2: Bande Dessinée as bonuses.
Vol. 1 was released for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows, and Xbox Series X/S on October 24, 2023. More volumes will be announced and detailed in the future.
The Master Collection marks the first release of Metal Gear Solid on Xbox, the original version of the game and Sons of Liberty on a Nintendo system, as well as Snake Eater on PC.
Games
Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 1 presents five individual applications, each comprising one or two games and additional versions as well as its additional content. Metal Gear Solid and its two sequels each have their own application, while the MSX versions of Metal Gear and Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake are contained in one application. The Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) games Metal Gear (1987) and Snake's Revenge (1990) have their own application, labeled as "Bonus Content", including extra content such as the music player and graphic novels. The additional content for each game consists of digital copies of the respective games' boxes and instruction manuals, associated Master Book dossiers which divulge details on characters, narrative, and their place in Metal Gears in-universe canon, as well as the corresponding screenplays for each game. Metal Gear Solid and its sequels can be purchased individually, with Metal Gear Solid bundling Metal Gear and Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake.
Metal Gear Solid (1998) in the Master Collection is primarily based on the game's original PlayStation version, while the standalone Metal Gear Solid VR Missions and Special Missions regional releases are accessible from its hub on the game selection screen, as well as the original Japanese release of Metal Gear Solid: Integral, which has been made available for the first time to North American players through its inclusion on the compilation. Due to the original Metal Gear Solid being presented in 4:3 aspect ratio, an assortment of wallpapers can be selected both from the main menu and during gameplay, as well as adjustments to the game's display position, and the ability to virtually create save data from other Konami titles and virtually swap controller ports from Player 1 to Player 2, which is later utilized as the gimmick of the boss fight against Psycho Mantis. A digital replica of the game's original retail packaging is included to aid players in obtaining Meryl Silverburgh's Codec frequency number to contact her later in the game, as alluded to in the game itself.
Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty (2001) and Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater (2004) are both direct conversions of their HD Edition remasters previously developed by Bluepoint Games and distributed as part of the Metal Gear Solid HD Collection (2011) compilation for PlayStation 3, PlayStation Vita and Xbox 360. On PlayStation 5, Windows and Xbox Series X/S, all featured games are presented at a resolution of 1080p (1920x1080 pixels) at a maximum performance of 60 frames-per-second. The Nintendo Switch version of the collection similarly retains a native 1080p resolution in TV Mode, but has a lower output of 720p (1280x720 pixels) in Handheld Mode, while both configurations run at 30FPS. Each game in the collection supports Trophies and Achievements on all platforms excluding Switch, as well as language options. The vibration feedback from the DualShock and DualShock 2 controllers for certain in-game effects such as weapon fire and taking damage in action sequences, has been reimplemented for supported gamepads across each console platform and PC.
Extras
Vol. 1 includes the motion comics Metal Gear Solid: Digital Graphic Novel (2006) and Metal Gear Solid 2: Bande Dessinée (2009), both originally released for PlayStation Portable. Other extras include strategy guides, screenplay books, and an in-game sound selection of 20 tracks curated from each game in the collection. Remixes of the vocal tracks "The Best is Yet to Come" from Metal Gear Solid, "Can't Say Goodbye To Yesterday" from Sons of Liberty and the titular "Snake Eater" from Metal Gear Solid 3, were made available as pre-order bonuses.
Development
In November 2021, the digital downloads for Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty and Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater as well as the original Metal Gear Solid HD Collection were removed from digital storefronts, with Konami citing the reason as expired licenses. In July 2022, Konami announced their intentions to reinstate the games for the series' 35th anniversary. During the development of Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater, Konami began the creation of the Master Collection series to "the most complete collection that celebrates the 35th anniversary of the series, allowing fans to play the games as they were, as first released on the latest platforms." Minimal changes to copyright had to be made during the porting process Metal Gear Solid 2 and 3 would use their versions from the HD Collection. Close to the launch, M2, known for developing other video game compilations from Konami, confirmed that it worked in the compilation by providing emulation of the NES titles and porting Metal Gear Solid and Metal Gear Solid: VR Missions, including their regional variants.
Marketing and release
After the reveal of Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater during a PlayStation Showcase in May 2023, Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 1 was announced for the PlayStation 5. It was originally revealed to contain the first three Metal Gear Solid games. The games listing on the PlayStation Store later that day confirmed that the collection would also contain content from the Integral version of Metal Gear Solid, alongside the original Metal Gear and Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake from the MSX. In June 2023, a Nintendo Direct revealed that the compilation was releasing for Nintendo Switch, the inclusion of Nintendo Entertainment System version of Metal Gear and its standalone sequel Snake's Revenge, and the Digital Graphic Novels for Solid and Solid 2. Releases for the Xbox Series X/S and Windows via Steam were confirmed later that day. Vol. 1 released on October 24, 2023 alongside standalone versions of the three Metal Gear Solid games for $19.99 each. Buying the standalone version of Metal Gear Solid grants access to Metal Gear and Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake. However, the NES version of Metal Gear, as well as Snake's Revenge, are exclusive to those who purchase the entire Collection. In August 2023, a digital release for PlayStation 4 was confirmed to be in development, and was later announced as releasing day and date with other platforms, with PS4 players entitled to a free PS5 upgrade. Additional volumes have been teased and may be announced in the future.
Reception
Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection received "generally favorable" reviews from critics for the PS5 version, while the Xbox Series X version received "mixed or average" reviews, according to the review aggregator website Metacritic.
Notes
References
External links
2023 video games
Action-adventure games
Bluepoint Games games
Konami video game compilations
Metal Gear video games
Nintendo Switch games
PlayStation 4 games
PlayStation 5 games
Windows games
Xbox Series X and Series S games
Single-player video games