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Metal Gear

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Metal Gear grew from MSX stealth into one of games' signature cinematic series. It mixes tactical infiltration with political melodrama, strange humor, and a deliberately tangled timeline. The story starts with Big Boss in the Cold War, even though players first met Solid Snake much later in release order.

SINCE 1987 · 14 GAMES

▶ WHERE DO I START?
  1. 1980s

    Metal Gear

    1987 · MSX2, NES

    The MSX2 original establishes stealth as the answer to impossible odds: infiltrate Outer Heaven, avoid fights, and expose Big Boss.

    Classic 2D stealth

    5 releases & editions

  2. 1990s

    Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake

    1990 · MSX2, PlayStation 2

    A much richer MSX2 sequel where patrol patterns, sound, radar, and melodrama start looking like Metal Gear Solid in 2D.

    Classic 2D stealth

    3 releases & editions

  3. Metal Gear Solid

    1998 · PlayStation, PC, Switch, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 4

    Shadow Moses turns stealth into cinema: codec drama, boss monologues, nuclear anxiety, and a cast that became PlayStation history.

    Start hereMetal Gear Solid

    10 releases & editions

  4. 2000s

    Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty

    2001 · PlayStation 2, Xbox, PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Switch, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 4

    A sequel about information control that weaponizes expectations, swaps leads, and feels more current every year.

    Start hereMetal Gear Solid

    12 releases & editions

  5. Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater

    2004 · PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Nintendo 3DS, Switch, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 4, PC

    Naked Snake survives a Cold War jungle mission that explains Big Boss, The Boss, and the wound under the whole saga.

    Start hereBig Boss saga

    11 releases & editions

  6. Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes

    2004 · GameCube

    A GameCube remake of Metal Gear Solid with new cutscenes, MGS2 mechanics, and a much flashier read on Shadow Moses.

    RemakeSpinoffs and remakes

    3 releases & editions

  7. Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops

    2006 · PSP

    A PSP squad-recruitment stealth game that bridges Naked Snake toward the private-army structure of later prequels.

    Big Boss saga

    3 releases & editions

  9. 2010s

    Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker

    2010 · PSP, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360

    Big Boss builds Militaires Sans Frontières in a mission-based PSP epic that quietly becomes the spine of the V era.

    Start hereBig Boss saga

    5 releases & editions

  10. Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance

    2013 · PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, PC

    Raiden's cyborg aftermath becomes a PlatinumGames action spinoff about parries, blade mode, and meme-grade villains.

    Spinoffs and remakes

    5 releases & editions

  11. Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes

    2014 · PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, PC

    A compact open-ended infiltration prologue that turns Camp Omega into a systems playground and detonates Peace Walker's aftermath.

    Big Boss saga

    5 releases & editions

  12. Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain

    2015 · PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, PC

    Big Boss returns in a vast stealth sandbox about revenge, language, and the missing link before Outer Heaven.

    Start hereBig Boss saga

    5 releases & editions

  13. 2020s

    Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 1

    2023 · Switch, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 4, PC

    A preservation bundle for the first three Solid games plus the two MSX originals, making the core arc easier to buy today.

    CompilationSpinoffs and remakes

    5 releases & editions

  14. Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater

    2025 · PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PC

    A modern remake of Snake Eater built around the same origin-story spine with contemporary presentation and controls.

    RemakeBig Boss sagaSpinoffs and remakes

    3 releases & editions