ICONIC game designer Hideo Kojima and publisher Konami had a very public fallout, and Kojima left to found his own gaming studio.
This means that the hugely popular Metal Gear Solid series has been left in limbo, as Konami owns the license, but all of the best ideas remain with Kojima.
Konami originally tried its own take on the series without Kojima, Metal Gear Survive, but it ended up a huge flop.
However, the latest idea to remake and re-release iconic games from the series appears poised for success.
The Metal Gear Solid Master Collection Vol. 1 was a huge success, and the next release could be even bigger.
Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater is considered to be one of the best in the series, and 20 years on, Konami is launching a full remake created in Unreal Engine 5.
We had the chance to play an hour of the Metal Gear Solid 3 remake, called Metal Gear Solid Delta, and were blown away by what Konami has achieved.
It’s Kojima’s incredible story design, ideas and characters, all wrapped in a shiny new package.
The jungle is lusher than ever, and overall, it is the MGS3 that only previously lived in people’s imaginations.
Snake looks better than ever, and you can finally get a grasp on his emotions via his facial expressions (or lack of them).
One part that hasn’t seen an update is the loading. While most modern games have all but eliminated this, loading screens run rampant here.
This is one aspect we hope will be tightened up before it launches to bring it in line with modern gamers’ expectations.
However, the reason for this loading is to break up the game into certain hostile areas.
While the game is mostly open, it’s sectioned off into different hostile areas, meaning that if you alert one guard, everyone on the map won’t immediately chase you down.
As the series is known for, you’ll be able to tackle areas in any way you want, whether that’s via combat, stealth, distraction, or faking your own death.
It’s this level of freedom that has always made the Metal Gear series stand out, and its vast number of options have been recreated faithfully here.
Konami has stated that there will be some new features, such as Snake maintaining battle scars throughout the game as a reminder of what he’s gone through.
During our time we didn’t notice this, but perhaps by the end he’ll look a lot more war-torn.
Konami has mostly remained faithful to the original, but that’s what fans really want.
MGS3 is a classic for a reason, and aside from a new coat of paint and new accessibility features, people want the story and experience that they fondly remember.
This appears to be exactly what Konami is delivering with the remake, and we can’t wait to see the result.
If you want to read more about upcoming games, check out our Star Wars Outlaws review.
Get the lowdown on more of the latest PS5 releases from our expert reviewers.
For Xbox Series X and Nintendo Switch, check out our full game reviews section.