Summary
Metal Gear Solidis one of the few series that feels so attached to one person. From its inception until 2015, all the main games were spearheaded by Hideo Kojima. He also had at least some role in most of the spin-offs. The series was once hailed as the epitome of writing and storytelling in the medium.
Regardless of one’s thoughts on the games, their distinct personality and identity cannot be denied. The greatest final lines from the series prove it. Some left players on a jaw-dropping cliffhanger, while others were more playful jabs. A select couple are bows that wrap up the narrative.
Many games have intended to end the series, or at least pass the baton to new developers.Metal Gear 2was the first of these. Going back, the scenario is filled with a lot of the political intrigue for which the series is known, making this jest that closes the story somewhat of a surprise.
Still, it is a good indication of the series' balance of serious themes and unexpected comedy. The line still works in retrospect. It marks Solid Snake abandoning his career, which eventually leads toMetal Gear Solid.
At the time, this was one of the wildest cliffhangers in gaming history. The secret cabal said to be in control of the whole world was revealed to have been killed over a hundred years ago setting fans into a tailspin. The next game in the series was a prequel set in 1964, so it did not provide any answers.
Metal Gear Solid 4revealed the info to be misleading, instead hinting at the Philosophers who are at the center ofMetal Gear Solid 3’splot. While it can be seen as deflating the cliffhanger,it at least hints that the lore ofMetal Geargoes further back than the events of the firstMetal Gear.
The classic conversations that end each game to the title card always have a cliffhanger or revelation.Metal Gear Solid 4,being the end of Solid Snake’s journey,played with this by leaving players with a lighter note. Instead of reminding fans of Snake’s mortality, it punctuates the journey with a quip about Sunny’s bad cooking.
She cannot exactly be blamed, though. She is a child, after all. The moment also serves as some relief after everything that just took place. Not only was the story resolved, but Big Boss miraculously returned from the grave for one last face-to-face with his son. More twists and turns would have melted players' brains at that point.
Ocelot is just a boss players fight and Liquid Snake’s right-hand manin 1998’sMetal Gear Solid. That is until the ending reveals he was in contact with the president of the United States. Even more, this revelation comes just after Ocelot reveals the other person on the phone is another son of Big Boss.
Fortunately, this is appropriately followed up on in the direct sequel where the third Big Boss clone plays the main antagonist. It also sets into motion Ocelot’s significantly larger role in theMetal Gearcanon.
ThroughoutMetal Gear Solid 3Ocelot feels like a young, inexperienced, and cocky Russian soldier. The final conversation flips that all on its head. It turns out he has been a double agent this whole time.
Fans were already aware that Ocelot had so much more going on than he let on, but few expected that his conspiracies go all the way back to the 1960s.Portable Opsfurther expands on this and his role in the creation of the Patriots is finally blown wide open inMetal Gear Solid 4.
Even without looking at the bigger picture,playing through the game again with this twistrecontextualizes a lot of Ocelot’s role in the third numbered entry.
Every prequel set before the originalMetal Geargot closer to revealing the Big Boss that would face off against his son.Peace Walker’sfinal line is a huge leap towards the character. He turned his back on the Boss and decided to create a home for soldiers rather than the goal of peace The Boss ultimately wanted.
Hearing Big Boss refer to Mother Base as Outer Heaven is a big deal since that is the name of the base Snake infiltrates in the series debut. Of course, it is not the same physical location. Outer Heaven is not a tangible space, but an idea.
The cult classic spin-off is only getting more love as time goes byboth for its gameplayand radical story. It is just unfortunate that it never got a proper sequel, especially since the last line indicates that Raiden is not sheathing his sword just yet.
Raiden’s whole arc involves him running away from his past. He is not at fault for the terrible things he was forced to do as a child soldier, but ignoring them just further expands his guilt. The final line reveals that he is no longer running away.
That “Jack the Ripper” is always inside him, but he can choose what to do with it instead of being a tool. It is just a shame fans have yet to play what that future means. It is hard to say if they ever will.
Portable Opsis often overlooked, but this line represents an important step in the canon, especially since it came out beforeMetal Gear Solid 4. Though he is not referred to by name, the final dialogue is the first hint at Major Zero’s involvement in the Patriots.
PlayingMetal Gear Solid 3does not reveal any grander plan or even suggest that The Boss’s actions affected him.Portable Opsis really where the ball gets rolling. For that, it deserves just as much love asPeace Walker.
It is also important to note thatPortable Opswas the start of the mechanics that were expanded upon inPeace WalkerandPhantom Pain.
