It appearsKonamiwill not berecording new dialoguefor the upcomingMetal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eaterremake. This baffles me, and surfaces a lot of questions about Delta and exactly how much it will differ from the original game. Given it will use the same delivery and cadence for its cutscenes and dialogue, I can’t imagine it can push the boat out.
This was my assumption when early screenshots were revealed too, which seem to tease a gorgeous selection of stunning yet familiar locations with mostly unchanged level design. If all the voice lines - NPCs included - are being kept, this remake will be more faithful than we’re expecting. A double-edged sword, given original creatorHideo Kojima, is no longer in the picture and its arrival will only serve to bring back memories of his Konami departure.
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Keeping dialogue intact works when it comes to more recent games being remade or remastered likeThe Last of Us, but by the timeSnake Eaterlaunches two decades will have passed, and we’ll be greeted by archaic writing with every charm and flaw perfectly preserved. This means legends like David Hayter will return, but only as a recording of a performance that will already be available due to an upcoming legacy collection which will house Metal Gear Solid 1, 2, and 3 later this year. Is the remake simply a case of fancier visuals and not much else? If so, what exactly is the point of Konami bringing Snake Eater back in the first place?
Hayter, who provided the voice for Solid Snake and Big Boss from the original Metal Gear Solid in 1998 until the release of Peace Walker in 2010, was controversially removed from the role in favour of Kiefer Sutherland in The Phantom Pain. Konami clearly wanted a bigger name, and Kojima loves rubbing shoulders with famous actors, so this was likely a business move as much as it was a creative one. Sutherland was fine, although it became very clear in the game itself that booth time with the man was limited, since much of his dialogue is loaded into cutscenes as he remains silent during actual gameplay. It was strange, regardless of whether it fit the darker tone or not. Hardcore fans also never really let this change slide.
In their eyes, Hayter is the one and only Solid Snake, and puts his everything into a role that has come to define him both within the games and outside them. Petitions demanded he get another chance, but with the ousting of Kojima and apparent death of all things Metal Gear, we accepted that the series was never coming back. Now it’s revived, and so is Hayter, although the folks over at Konami are seemingly taking the laziest route possible. Ripping lines from the PlayStation 2 original and jamming them into a modern dayPS5remake doesn’t sound like a good idea, and could feel jarringly out of place next to the updated graphics. All of the iconic quotes and clumsy exposition will remain, but isn’t this remake supposed to represent a new start for Metal Gear?
It’s the first instalment when it comes to narrative chronology, and the lack of a number in the title likely represents an aim to introduce this series to a whole new generation. Instead of acknowledging the potential archaic nature of the game it’s remaking and either rewriting or re-recording dialogue, Konami is simply using what it has. It could work, and Konami is well aware of the backlash it might face for messing with Kojima’s original work, so either it has decided against changing what many consider a masterpiece, or required resources to achieve such a thing just weren’t worth the investment. Neither outcome is ideal, and part of me fears that this remake will only serve as an inferior coat of paint without the blessing of its creator. Not to mention the subsequent remakes that could follow in Snake Eater’s wake, all of which will share the same level design, same performances, and same disappointments.
Here’s hoping the actors involved are at least getting residuals once the remake comes out.
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