Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker

Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker is an upcoming game in the Metal Gear series to be released for the PSP in 2010. It will explain the story of Big Boss and lead up of events to the founding of Outer Heaven. The game was officially announced at Sony's E3 press conference on June 2, 2009. Hideo Kojima is writing, directing, and producing the game.

The game will be set in 1974, ten years after the events of Snake Eater, four years after Portable Ops, and just two years after the Les Enfants Terribles project. The setting is Costa Rica and depicts the rise of Outer Heaven.

Plot
The following is from the official Kojima Productions website:

"Stories tell of a legendary soldier who, with Metal Gear in his command, had once waged war against the world. His name was Naked Snake, a.k.a. Big Boss. Now, in response to a world hungry for answers, the truth behind this legend will finally be told. The era is the 1970's. Big Boss had stationed his 'Soldiers Without Borders' in Colombia, South America, where he was approached by a visitor from Costa Rica, 'a Nation without a Military.' In the wake of the Cuban Missile Crisis, as Latin America became a key to maintaining the power balance between East and West, Costa Rica had miraculously managed to maintain its peace and neutrality. However, in various regions of the country, a mysterious armed force seemed to be engaging in suspicious activities. Now, to preserve peace in this nation without a military, the 'Soldiers Without Borders' move into action. In time, they would come to be known as the founders of 'Outer Heaven."

Gameplay
An E3 2009 trailer for the game revealed that Big Boss can crouch and walk around, similar to gameplay in Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots. The same trailer showed Big Boss walking through jungles and hanging onto the side of a suspension bridge to avoid detection.

In a July 2009 press release, Kojima stated that players can choose to play the game stealthily or charge in with their guns blazing. The game will also include a "growth feature" that allows Big Boss to "evolve", similar to role-playing games and certain first-person shooters. There will also be multiple types of cardboard boxes that can be hidden in to avoid detection.

In August 2009 Japanese gaming magazine Famitsu reported that Peace Walker will contain multiplayer co-operative gameplay. The game will allow two to four players to play together to clear missions. Players must help each other help to clear missions, such as one player using the other player as a step to reach a higher platform. Players will also be able to heal their teammates and can make the other players follow the movements of one player. The magazine also stated that some of the different cardboard boxes that can be found throughout the game, such as one shaped like a tank, can affect the player's status.

Development
Hideo Kojima officially announced the game at Sony's E3 2009 conference, after running various countdowns for the announcement on a Konami website, stating that the team that made Metal Gear Solid 4 will return to help develop Peace Walker. Kojima is writing, producing and directing the game, stating that the game is not a spinoff, nor is it a sidestory. Kojima refers to both Peace Walker and Metal Gear Solid: Rising as Metal Gear Solid 5, while specifically calling Peace Walker "the MGS5 inside me."

A trailer for the game shown at E3 2009 also described it as the "missing link" in the Metal Gear series. The same trailer also revealed multiple Big Bosses, indicating multiplayer or co-op gameplay, which was confirmed in Famitsu in August 2009. Credits appear at the end of the trailer that show Kojima is writing, directing, and producing the game; Shuyo Murata is also a writer on the game; Yoji Shinkawa is the character designer; and Kenichiro Imaizumi is also producing the game.

Kojima originally planned on only creating the overall guidelines and concepts for Peace Walker and then leave the rest to the developers. He was also planning on only being a producer of the game and focus on games not in the Metal Gear series. However, he made the setting for the game in Costa Rica and created a story with themes about nuclear deterrence and the Cold War. When it looked like the story may be too confusing to a younger audience, he decided to become more involved in the development of the game.

In a July 2009 press release, Kojima stated that he had the plan for Peace Walker while he was working on Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops. At that time, he intended to have the next generation of developers at Kojima Productions develop the game, though he eventually decided that it was still a little too early to leave the game completely in their hands. Kojima then decided to direct the game instead. He also stated that players will be able to customize Big Boss before going on a mission. Player can also choose to play the game stealthily or charge in with their guns blazing. If they choose to be stealthy, then their arsenal will be slimmed down in favor of quieter movement. The game will also include a "growth feature" that allows Big Boss to "evolve", similar to role-playing games and certain first-person shooters. There will also be multiple types of cardboard boxes.