Board Thread:Metal Gear Solid V/@comment-153.96.144.4-20141009152903/@comment-176.25.161.230-20150524234921

If I had to guess, there is only one pre-existing character who could be Skullface. Someone who we know was in Africa around that time, who had an interest in children around that area, and who Foxhound considered better than Big Boss, and therefore a better potential villain for Big Boss. Finally, who would be perfect for Big Boss, aging and wounded and going mad, to face in a final battle? We also see Big Boss working with Skullface later.

Now, understand, I think he is a new character. I don't think he is a pre-existing one.

But, if I had to guess it was someone else, someone who actually links into Metal Gear, Metal Gear 2, and the narrative after The Phantom Pain, then Volgin adds very little. Volgin's story was fairly well done. Further, Ocelot is on Mother Base. Everyone would notice if he said, "Oh, I just left to go... buy nachos, yeah, nachos." It would be awful.

There is, however, one other character who foreshadows Raiden as a Ninja replacement, who was in Africa at that time, who could even team up with Big Boss to confront Zero, if they want a pre-existing character, as well as linking it to the late game revelations in MGS4, specifically the defeat of the Patriots through Sunny and Naomi. Namely, Sunny, the child of a version of the Ninja, and Naomi, the "sister" of...

Yes, Skullface could easily be: Grey Fox. We know Frank Yeager found Naomi around that time in Africa, we know he was part of Foxhound prior to Solid Snake (meaning he was probably but in there with the consent of either Big Boss or Zero). Plus, as far as Boss battles go, who better than Grey Fox? He'd be the one Boss that'd work in an open world... sat in the middle of a field full of mines, in reference to his most famous battle with Snake.

Plus, it allows us to have a bad guy that, cannon, is actually regarded as being better than both Solid Snake and Big Boss. Grey Fox got the codename that puts him ahead of them.