We’re very close to the release of Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater, the highly anticipated remake of Naked Snake’s (or Big Boss, if you prefer) origin story and one of the franchise’s most beloved titles over its illustrious history.
There are so many cool things about this title that we believe you should know before you dive into the action, taking on The Boss and Colonel Volgin with a mixture of stealth, skill, and style. Snake Eater is Hideo Kojima at his finest, and it is no surprise that it was chosen as the vehicle to usher in a new era of current-gen glory for the franchise.
With that being said, here are a few more details that could sway you to see what all the fuss is about, and grab a copy of the remake for yourself.
1. No Hiccups from Unreal Engine 5
While the engine behind several excellent looking titles has been a bit troublesome with games that were built on previous versions or other engines altogether, early previews of Snake Eater suggest that the game suffers no issues with its performance.
That’s good news considering that the visual upgrades in the remake are top notch, although some early previews lament the new color palette over the original game’s green and brown hues.
2. Early Access
Preordering the Digital Deluxe Edition of the game lets you dive into the action 48-hours before its stated release, alongside and the White Tuxedo, an item you can obtain quite early on in the game.
For those of you who cannot wait to see if Konami’s efforts to bring its classic to a new generation of players have been worth it, this edition of the game will set you back by $79.99. That’s a hefty price tag but it might be exactly what you’re looking for if you are eager to return to a story that still manages to stay at the top of many lists of excellent narratives.
3. World Design
Nothing much has changed from the original level design, most of which includes jungles with dense foliage and a lot of places to hide from your foes as you silently infiltrate their strongholds. Once again, that’s a good thing since the environments are closely tied to the gameplay loop on offer, with Naked Snake favoring a stealthy, quiet approach over going in all guns blazing.
When taking a stealthy approach, your environment is your best friend, allowing you to camouflage yourself in order to be invisible to any patrolling enemies, letting you slip past their ranks virtually unnoticed. It’s a gameplay loop that is sure to bring back some fond memories as the previews suggest that Konami has been careful to preserve what made the original game so special to begin with.
4. Load Screens Will Be Present
Unfortunately, the current-gen makeover in Delta has not been extended to its loading screens. Considering that each level is designed to present a tightly scripted, linear experience, Konami was unable to remove loading screens entirely.
While that may be a downer for anyone who has come to take modern gaming’s more seamless transitions between different areas for granted, it isn’t going to affect the gameplay in Snake Eater on any level, and is simply a limitation from the past that has been retained in order to preserve the original experience.
5. Fast Running is Absent
In keeping with the original experience as much as possible, it is quite possible that rushing might not make its way over from Metal Gear Solid V: Phantom Pain despite that title’s control scheme finding its way into the remake in order to present players with a more intuitive control scheme than the original.
That’s because being able to rush through levels could take away from the original game’s high-stakes gameplay that was designed around the PLayStation 2, and did not have the scope for Naked Snake to move quickly while still remaining unseen.
However, there are a bunch of changes that did not require drastic alterations to the gameplay loop and make sense in a current-gen remake of Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater.
6. Customizable UI
A few previews pointed out that UI elements such as your health, stamina, and camouflage meter have been moved to the lower center of the player’s screen as opposed to the usual top-left in MSG3.
That suggests that there could be a modicum of customization added to the game, allowing you to move UI elements around to your liking based on your preferences.
7. More Subtitle Options
If you’re looking to experience the game in a language other than English or Japanese, you will be pleased to know that the subtitling options have been expanded to include eleven languages as opposed to just six in the original Metal Gear Solid 3.
Konami must be commended for its efforts to make the game more accessible to a wider audience, bringing Delta in line with other modern releases that aim to do the same.
8. Better Facial Animations
Another highlight of the new experience that Konami has brought to the table is that facial animations and lip syncing now align almost perfectly with the English voiceovers, something that was a jarring mismatch in the original title.
Clearly, the new visual upgrades are working in Delta’s favor, allowing the title to truly belong among current-gen releases that boast of a high level of visual quality that the original game could not hope to match back in the day.
9. More Lethal Enemies
Early access previews suggest that Konami has made a few tweaks to enemy difficulty in Delta, as they are now more deadly than they were in the original release.
This is a great way to address any potential balancing mismatches that could arise from the new control schemes, which make getting to cover more seamless along with the third-person camera view that makes it easier for Snake to spot enemies and potential advantages while out in the field.
These new advantages could be perfectly balanced out by enemies that are harder to kill and more effective at handling Naked Snake’s unique CQC-based fighting style that returns from the original release with a few new animations.
10. Wide Range of Tools and Gadgets
The new camera and control systems could work very well with the many tools that Naked Snake has at his disposal over the course of his pilot adventure. The Motion Detector and Mine Detector are quite handy, allowing you to circumvent enemy patrols and traps when used intelligently.
The AP Sensor and Active Sonar are also very useful, and will always remain among our recommendations for an easier time with the game’s more challenging levels.
11. An Arsenal of Weapons
Of course, tools are only part of the equation. Naked Snake is also proficient with a variety of weapons, as any soldier of his caliber should be. We’re particularly excited to get our hands on the MK22 considering its indisputable utility in taking out enemies in our way, or perhaps taking down animals for resources.
In our opinion, Chaff Grenades are worth picking up at the earliest as the ability to disrupt enemy electronics opens up so many new avenues for stealth in comparison to other tools you may find.
12. Hide In Plain Sight
As a highlight of the original release, Delta brings back the camouflage and disguise mechanics back to Delta, allowing Naked Snake to embody the tenets of the Assassin Brotherhood by literally hiding in plain sight. There are a variety of camouflage options that you can use based on the terrain you are trying to navigate, making you very hard to spot while you get the drop on unsuspecting enemies.
Or you could nab a couple of disguises such as the Scientist disguise that allows you to walk right past enemies in the Research Facility and Weapons Lab. Raikov’s Uniform and the Maintenance uniform are also very effective in specific areas that we won’t spoil for you, both of which can be found in the East Wing of the Weapons Lab when you get to it.
13. FOX Hunt Releases in Fall 2025
An online multiplayer mode built from the ground up and designed to blend the best of Metal Gear Online with MGS3’s sneaking mechanics, FOX Hunt is among Konami’s biggest additions to Delta.
However, the studio is going to release it a little later down the line, with a release window slated for Fall 2025. It could very well be that it is taking the extra time to fine tune the experience on offer, ensuring that it is as appealing as it can be to both returning veterans and new players alike. We’re definitely excited to try it out when it does make its way to the game.
14. How Long Will Delta Take to Beat?
The answer to that question depends on how diligent you are when you explore each level. If you find the story too exciting to ignore (we wouldn’t blame you if you did), you should roll the credits in about 15 hours of play.
However, for those of you who take the time to try teasing out every little secret that Hideo Kojima has cleverly hidden in the game, expect that number to go up to about 25 hours.
15. A Linear Experience With A Lot To Discover
A completionist run could very well be worth the effort considering the sheer number of cleverly hidden details that Kojima included in MGS3, a trademark of his unique directional style.
For instance, input the Konami Code which is Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, Square, and Triangle in the game’s opening sequence when you see the studios name displayed to learn more about the team behind that incredible sequence that continues to give us goosebumps whenever we think about it.
You could also use that sequence when you take on The End if you’re having a bit of trouble in that fight. Or perhaps, you could let a vulture eat a guard up on the mountaintop where you encounter The Sorrow and then eat that vulture. You get the point.
Finding all those details is sure to keep you occupied for a while despite Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater being a fairly linear experience. We recommend holding down R1 during cutscenes.
And that’s a wrap on things you should know ahead of the game’s release. Will you be picking up your own copy? If yes, we’ll see you in Russia. Or maybe not, if you manage to hide well enough.
