TX-55 Metal Gear

TX-55 Metal Gear, also referred to as Metal Gear TX-55, was a bipedal tank created in Outer Heaven.

Origins
After succeeding in founding the nation of Outer Heaven, Big Boss knew that he would need a powerful deterrent in order to truly stand a chance at opposing Zero and the Patriots. Following the examples of GRU Colonel Volgin in 1964 and FOX commander Gene in 1970, Big Boss constructed the one thing that he knew the West would fear more than anything else: Metal Gear.

A first attempt made in 1974 resulted in the creation of Metal Gear ZEKE, which was built from the scraps of the Peace Walker AI weapons. However, this project ended in failure when it was confiscated by Cipher agent Pacifica Ocean and Big Boss was forced to fight and heavily damage ZEKE. Even so, the experiment yielded useful test data for operating a working bipedal machine's robotic legs.

"When it's finished, a nuclear strike can be launched from anywhere on the planet. We must do everything we can to destroy it before it's completed."

- Gray Fox to Solid Snake, during Operation Intrude N313.

In 1995, the data was finally made for use when Big Boss enlisted the aid of the foremost expert in the field of robotics: the Eastern scientist Dr. Drago Pettrovich Madnar. While Dr. Madnar understood the power and inherent evil of his creation, the kidnapping of his daughter forced him to complete it.

TX-55 was a revolutionary weapon because of its ability to launch a nuclear attack from any stable territory, without the need for a nuclear silo. Unlike its predecessor, ZEKE, it possessed two nuclear warhead launchers, yet it had a much more compact size. Feared by the Western powers, its mere presence in Outer Heaven made the country virtually untouchable, except by a covert mission.

Metal Gear TX-55's weak spot were its feet, which could only be destroyed by placing plastic explosives over them in a determined order. TX-55 was armed with a 15 mm vulcan gun, a laser cannon and multiple medium-range warheads. However, none of its arsenal was put to use as the TX-55 was destroyed by Solid Snake before its completion.

The TX-55 was later revealed to be merely a prototype for Metal Gear D, the constuction of which was commissioned by Big Boss during the Zanzibar Land Disturbance.

Trivia

 * When firing a nuclear missile, TX-55 would extend a stabilizing leg from its rear and secure itself to the ground in order to conduct an accurate launch.
 * TX-55 was foreseen in Elisa and Ursula's prophetic vision in 1970 as "the new Metal Gear in [the Intercontinental Ballistic Metal Gear's] place."
 * Though its very existence was considered to be a direct threat to the Western powers, Metal Gear TX-55's main purpose was to act as Outer Heaven's nuclear deterrent. By contrast, Metal Gear REX (one the TX-55's successors) was created in 2005 under the false premise of being a (TMD) Theater Missile Defense system.

Behind the scenes

 * Aside from the ICBMG, TX-55 is the only Metal Gear in the series that the player doesn't confront directly. Instead, the player must avoid two gun cameras that protect it, while planting explosives at TX-55's feet.
 * In the manual for Snake's Revenge, the TX-55 was referred to as the "Ultra-Sheik Nuclear Attack Tank."
 * In Snake's Revenge, mass-produced versions of the TX-55 model appear (referred to as "Metal Gear 1"), being transported within an enemy cargo ship, with the following specifications:


 * Code No: VRC-4 // Capacity: 1 // Weight: 226 tons // Height: 22 ft // Speed: 31 mph // Armor: 3.5 in


 * Although most of these are just conversions to imperial units from the original specs, the armor thickness is defined and the weight is implied to be ten times heavier than the original (though this is likely a mistake, due to the omission of a decimal point).


 * The wreckage of the original TX-55 also appears in Stage 11 of Metal Gear: Ghost Babel.

Appearances

 * Metal Gear
 * Snake's Revenge (non-canon)
 * Metal Gear: Ghost Babel (non-canon)
 * Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops (prophetic vision)