In the lead up toMetal Gear Solid 5’s unveiling, the hype from fans was massive on what was being poised as a grand finale forMetal Gear Solid. At least for Hideo Kojima, who even before his controversial departure from Konami had stated the fifth entry would be his last. While it was clear to many that the game’s narrative never truly reached the ending he had wanted for the series, the game was still received quite well worldwide. Then, as Kojima had hastily left or was ousted from his 20-year-long tenure at the company, Konami rubbed salt in the wound and basically killedMetal Gear Solidas a franchise.
Konami could return to its revered stealth action franchise, but that would inevitably upset basically allMetal Gear Solidfans.Metal Gear Surviveleft a horrible taste in gaming fans' mouths after severely altering the franchise beyond recognition. If Hideo Kojima’s ousting from Konami was not enough,Metal Gear Survivewas the nail in the coffin for the remaining fans. Theoretically, Konami could bring backMetal Gearin some way, but it’s almost a sure fire failure for a number of reasons beyond just critical reception.
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Metal Gear Solid’s Abrupt End
Even though the gameplay inMetal Gear Solid 5was widely praised, there was one particular aspect that was generally understood as unfinished or half-baked: the game’s story. Kojima, being the auteur-like game director with a reputation of being a perfectionist, would’ve never left an unsubstantial ending in a mainline entry of his brainchild without proper reason. Regardless of the nature of his eventual departure from Konami, it’s clearthe ending ofMetal Gear Solid 5hastily wrapped up the game’s storywithout Kojima’s insight. Then, almost as if to burn the franchise to the ground out of spite, Konami produced and release its ownMetal Geargame:Metal Gear Survive.
Predictably,Metal Gear Survivewas a flop, and rightfully so.Survivewas a zombie survival game based in an alternate reality ofMetal Gear Solid 5, and had no relation to the overarching series by any means. The game was basically a slap in the face to Kojima, who had since left to form his own development studio to workon what would becomeDeath Stranding. It’s hard not to get the impression that Konami basically wanted theMetal Gearfranchise to fade into obscurity withSurvive, which by almost all accounts was not a great game. Even without the added expectation of Kojima being involved, which he was not, the game was a total grindfest that just didn’t have enjoyable gameplay.
Failure is Likely For Future Metal Gear Titles
Fans ofMetal Gear Solidhave understandably resigned anyhope of ever receiving a properMetal Gear Solidgame again. Without the series' iconic game director, the franchise practically has no legs to stand on. Especially with the context of Kojima’s departure andSurvive’s critical failure, there’s no love for Konami and certainly no love left for futureMetal Gear Solidtitles. That being said, the series is Konami’s intellectual property, and the company may do whatever it feels with that franchise.
If Konami wishes to continue with theMetal Gearseries, practically any game that’s shown (Pachinko machine or not) will be met with backlash. Whether someone’s the biggestMetal Gear Solidfan, or they’ve never played a single game in the series, aMetal Gear Solidgame without Hideo Kojima is objectively doomed to fail. Hideo Kojima commands respect in the gaming industry now more than ever, andwithMetal Gear Survive’s scandal and failure, any game with theMetal Gear Solidname on it will be met with pure unadulterated backlash. There’s just no point for Konami, a publisher with a majority of its gaming catalog filled with mobile games, arcade games, and Pachinko machines.
Konami Runs a Huge Risk In Bringing Back Metal Gear
This is a stretch, but the only possible way Konami could feasibly release aMetal Gear Solidgame without being publicly lambasted is to release remasters from the franchise.Even a potential remake of the classicMetal Gear Solidgamesgives Konami the ability to make changes to the narrative, and that capability wouldn’t sit well with fans. Taking theMetal Gear Solidfranchise in any kind of new direction will be met with outcry and, at bare minimum, disappointment from fans.
Either way,Konami likely would never risk bringing backMetal Gear Solidin any fashion. There’s too much financial risk to be had developing a game that has an incredibly high chance of being blacklisted immediately by the gaming community. Konami would be better off leaving the franchise to unceremoniously fade away.
