Quiet

Quiet (Russian: Тихоня ) was a female sniper/assassin who was active during the 1980s, and was feared by the Afghanistan-occupying Soviet forces.

The Phantom Pain
She was hired by XOF to kill Venom Snake. During the hospital raid, she had her sights on him, also killing the nurse and the doctor in attendance at the hospital during the raid, though she told her employer that she hadn't killed her target yet as "the man in the bed next to [Ahab] had seen [her] face". She then tried to kill Ahab, only for the patient in question to fight her off. She was then hit with bottles of medical grade Ethanol, with the patient setting her on fire. However she still proved to be determined to try and kill Ahab, resulting in her being doused with another set of chemicals that refueled the fire and forced her to flee out of a window. Ultimately, she survived, although with severe enough injuries to force her to allow herself to be infected with a mutant strain of the parasites used to create the Skulls. This variety gave her similar abilities to the Parasite Unit, plus her seemingly unique ability to camouflage her skin, but left her mind intact, rendering her far more effective and deadly than the Skulls themselves. This came at a cost, however; the mutant strain had been implanted with Skull Face's directive to become a lethal contagious form should she ever attempt to communicate in English, and the contagious form would force her to carry out her mission of killing Big Boss regardless of her wishes. Due to her injuries, the parasite also gave her the ability to "breathe" through her skin rather than her lungs, negating any problems that could come from sway that could be the result of breathing too much while sniping, but also requiring her to wear as little clothes as possible, as covering her skin would suffocate her. As a side effect of that effect of her skin, she also appeared able to "drink" through her skin as well when showering, and didn't even need to eat, apparently able to take in nutrients by way of photosynthesis much like The End.

True to her name, she kept herself silent, either by verbal communication or by writing, meaning interrogations against her were useless. However, she communicated with Ahab by using gestures as well as by humming noises. In 1984, she fought in a sniper duel with Venom Snake, where she was beaten. Although Miller wanted her dead due to believing her to be a Cipher agent, Venom Snake ultimately decided to apprehend her at Ocelot's suggestion. She uncuffed herself and seemingly escaped from the chopper, although she secretly stayed invisible while inside the helicopter. Shortly afterwards, while on the way back to Mother Base, a fighter aircraft pursued the ACC, with Quiet took down an approaching fighter aircraft by sniping the aircraft's pilot through the plane's closed cockpit, saving Snake's life in the process. However, Miller still didn't trust her, and had even gave orders to prevent a landing if Quiet is still onboard, not wanting her on Mother Base, however, she then effectively surrendered herself into Diamond Dogs custody. Because of this, despite Kazuhira Miller's insistence that they kill her due to her being too much of a liability because of her discovering the location of Mother Base, Ocelot and Venom Snake instead suggested that they lock her up, although Venom Snake agreed that she might have to be killed if she proved to be too much of a threat to Diamond Dogs' existence, adding that he would be the one to kill her. Some time later, she was tortured by Ocelot and managed to neutralize three Diamond Dogs soldiers on Mother Base. Quiet was given some unknown objective to accomplish: to either kill Venom Snake or, as Miller feared, to destroy Diamond Dogs. However, in the end, she would save Venom Snake again after he was bitten by a snake (it is implied through the game that she had developed feelings for him) by speaking English to Pequod. Having activated the vocal cord parasites, sacrificing her life to save Venom Snake, Quiet then calmly walked out into the desert to die alone. Her departure can be prevented, if players use the Butterfly Emblem.

Quiet's weapons included a lethal sniper rifle nicknamed Wicked Butterfly as well as a non-lethal one nicknamed Guilty Butterfly.

Behind the scenes
Quiet first appeared in the 2012 trailer for The Phantom Pain, where she is briefly seen on fire inside the hospital.

Quiet was introduced in the E3 2013 trailer of Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, in which she is described as being "A Sniper deprived of her Words." In the extended trailer, she is seen being tortured by a soldier and Ocelot via electrocution while having a bag over her head. Quiet's voice and motion capture will be provided by the Dutch-born Japanese model and actress, Stefanie Joosten.

When asked about Quiet during a interview with Famitsu, Hideo Kojima replied: "In the game, Quiet is the main heroine. Whether she is friend or foe has yet to be revealed so I had to be careful when casting her role. MGS normally has old timers and old guys (laughs). Stefanie is very skilled in action but since she never held that type of gun, we asked her do some training at home." He also told 4Gamer: "With Stefanie, we had to make sure to focus her 3D motion on capturing her facial and body language and not her voice, since Quiet does not speak. She does make small sounds like “ugh” and “ah” though."

On September 6, 2013, in response to the mixed reaction concerning Quiet's characteristics, Kojima clarified exactly what he meant when he asked lead designer Yoji Shinkawa for a "more erotic" character. Speaking through a translator, he said: "Maybe the phrase 'erotic' wasn't really [the correct word for] what I was trying to say. What I'm really trying to do is create unique characters. One of those is, of course, Quiet. She's a really unique character, I wanted to add that sexiness to her. It wasn't really supposed to be erotic, but sexy." He also said, "You're going to notice [when you play,] but there's limited dialogue with the [Metal Gear Solid 5], and for that reason we really want to show the characteristic from each character. Sexy could be for guys, weapons, vehicles, it's really that characteristic." Shinkawa also weighed in at the Q&A, saying, "From my perspective, it's not just the characters, but often I look at a weapon or a vehicle and think 'That's really sexy.' It's not just the characters, but the mechs and weapons [as well]." When asked for her thoughts on Quiet's design, Joosten stated, "Of course, I was surprised to see Quiet's outfit at first. But, you know, it fits in the Metal Gear universe, I think. I don't think I'm allowed to say a lot about this, but, well, Mr. Kojima has his reasons for deciding why Quiet [is] wearing what she's wearing. Players will just have to look forward to that."

On September 8, 2013, Kojima stated, "I know there's people concerning about 'Quiet' but don't worry. I created her character as an antithesis to the women characters appeared in the past fighting game who are excessively exposed. 'Quiet' who doesn't have a word will be teased in the story as well. But once you recognize the secret reason for her exposure, you will feel ashamed of your words & deeds. The response of 'Quiet' disclosure few days ago incited by the net is exactly what 'MGSV' itself is."

On November 7, 2013, some concept art for The Phantom Pain was leaked on the Tumblr account "european-extreme." One of the concept arts for Quiet strongly resembled Paz Ortega Andrade though Paz was killed in Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes.

During the development of The Phantom Pain, a fan theory circulated on the Internet that Chico, due to the trauma of his incarceration at Camp Omega, and the death of Paz in Ground Zeroes, underwent a sex change to become the female Quiet. Konami employees expressed their surprise and humor at the theory in the sixth episode of the English version of Kojima Productions' webseries, Kojima Station, but chose to not confirm or deny it in order to avoid spoilers. In the ninth episode of the Japanese version of Kojima Station, Stefanie Joosten addressed the theory, saying that "Quiet is definitely a female, while Chico is a male."

On September 11, 2014, Kojima Station featured a short clip focused on Quiet. The clip revealed that Quiet possesses the ability to become invisible, shown by her vanishing while escaping from a Diamond Dogs helicopter, only to later reappear behind the soldiers onboard Mother Base. According to Kojima, her ability and arrival on Mother Base was intended to be an homage to Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty, more specifically the infiltration entry paths for Solid Snake and Raiden during the Tanker and Plant Chapters, respectively.

On September 18, 2014, during the TGS demo of The Phantom Pain, Quiet was shown to be one of many "buddy" characters available to the player during the course of the game. When arriving at a location set by the player, she will contact the player via radio and hum to indicate that she arrived at the destination. The demo also unveiled more of her abilities, more specifically she also possessed superhuman speed. During the demo, Kojima commented that Quiet had a weakness that tied into the story. He also implied that the full extent of her abilities depends on her bond with the player, and that the player, depending on their actions, may never even meet her at all. In an interview with Dengeki Online after TGS 2014 ended, Kojima stated that the concept behind Quiet's design was nudity, "a naked sniper," and reiterated his statement that her reason for looking this way will surprise the audience. He also confirmed that Quiet is not Chico. Furthermore, he stated that characters in the game will question Quiet's appearance as well, and reiterated that she had the design for a reason. In a later interview, Kojima confirmed that Quiet will not be the only character with supernatural powers. He also revealed that Quiet and any other AI controlled buddy soldiers will not be played independently of Snake.

Quiet isn't the first character in the Metal Gear series with supernatural abilities, even though hers seem to be more extreme than those previously depicted. In Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater alone, the entire Cobra Unit, save The Boss herself, has superhuman abilities (though The Boss possibly has some supernatural force permeating her, evidenced when the lilies turn red and her scar moves out of her body when she dies), along with Colonel Volgin, who commands lightning from his body.

The Video Game Awards 2014 Metal Gear Online trailer displayed Big Boss using similar powers as Quiet to escape being pinned down during combat.

The Official PlayStation Magazine and Official Xbox Magazine confirmed that Quiet is one of four partners the player can select to accompany them on missions. It also revealed that recruiting Quiet may have the downside of causing low morale among the troops at Mother Base. It also mentioned that radio chatter can be picked up about Quiet and her "bloody trail."

One of the playtesters of The Phantom Pain stated that after recruiting Quiet and getting her to a level that she's accepted among Mother Base, they found her sunbathing on one of the decks.

In the first E3 2015 trailer for The Phantom Pain, Big Boss and Quiet are shown being attacked, presumably by the Parasite Unit, leading to their helicopter crashing, rendering Quiet unconscious, and Big Boss has to carry her away from the fight. In the second E3 2015 trailer, Quiet and Big Boss are briefly shown sparring at Mother Base with a knife. It is also shown that she can hold her own against Big Boss in melee combat. Finally, it is shown that she has a positive relationship with Big Boss, as she lit a cigar by shooting it with her rifle. Snake shows his approval for her assistance.

The official artbook for The Phantom Pain incorrectly translates Quiet's name into Russian by posting the letters "ТИХИЙ" instead of "ТИХОНЯ."

According to Hideo Kojima's notes in the Piggyback Collector's Edition Guide's art gallery, Quiet's role is that of a strong and impressive character that is nonetheless defined by her failure: Specifically, how she failed to kill Big Boss twice, with the player being prompted to ponder the implications of this, namely her emotional state and what she wished to accomplish, and whether her motives were truly vengeful in nature. He also explains that the black marks around her eyes portray her inner emotions, particularly her combat vigilance, and inferred that Code Talker has similar marks that appear and signify his emotional state.

Gameplay
In the mobile command helicopter, there is a messy pile of photographs on the wall that contain several photographs of Quiet. The player can go into first person view to see the photographs better.

Depending on her approval rating, Quiet's reaction to the player in Mother Base can range from defiant and cold (at the lowest levels) to affectionate and friendly (at the highest).

When Quiet is in the mobile command helicopter with the player, the demo host at E3 2015 stated that depending on certain actions taken by the player, Quiet's mood will be affected.

In the mobile command helicopter, the player can get a better look at Quiet by going into the first person mode.

When selecting Quiet as a buddy before a mission, the following things can be observed:


 * When selecting weapons the game states she has customized her sniper rifle.


 * The outfits menu states that Quiet's default outfit is called "naked" meaning she has other cosmetic outfits.


 * In free-roam mode, Quiet can be selected to be spawned on most parts of the map, and even spawn in by landing via parachute.


 * When selecting Quiet in free-roam mode, her name is listed under "Quiet scout", and "Quiet attack.

If Quiet's health is low enough, it is suspected that the game will attempt to Fulton lift her to Mother Base as it did when the Walker Gear Big Boss was using became too damaged.

In an earlier demo, it was shown that Quiet has the skill to shoot an airborne grenade into a helicopter, causing a large explosion. She later demonstrated a similar trick in the 2015 alternate gameplay paths demo where she, at Big Boss's command, managed to shoot an airborne sleep gas grenade towards a group of soldiers.

Videos
Character making of Quiet