Solid Snake

Solid Snake (real name David, commonly referred to as Snake, and later referred to as Old Snake), was a former spy, special operations soldier and mercenary. He was a product of the Les Enfants Terribles project and "son" of legendary soldier, Big Boss, along with his "brothers" Liquid Snake and Solidus Snake.

Possessing an IQ of 180 and fluent in six languages, including English and French, he was known as "the man who makes the impossible possible" and his exploits made him into a living legend among the military black ops. Initially a Green Beret, Snake was later inducted into High-Tech Special Forces Unit FOXHOUND during the early 1990s while it was under the leadership of Big Boss. Repeatedly tasked with disarming and destroying the latest incarnation of Metal Gear, a bipedal nuclear weapon-armed mecha, Snake would thrice avert potential nuclear catastrophe, becoming a famed war hero.

After 2005 and subsequent manipulation campaign by the Patriots, the secret organization behind American politics, Snake became labeled a terrorist. He faked his own death in 2007, although he would later emerge to assist Raiden in 2009. After that, his cells would enter a state of accelerated aging, causing his health to decline. The cause of his rapid aging was explained by Naomi Hunter, who examined Snake and determined that it was caused by planned genetic changes during the cloning process.

In 2014, Snake performed his final mission, during which he took down Liquid Ocelot and destroyed the Patriots. After a final conversation with Big Boss, Snake chose to live his last days at peace.

Background
David was born in 1972, along with his twin brother, Liquid Snake, as a result of "Les Enfants Terribles," a secret government project designed to create the perfect soldier, using the genes of the "Greatest Warrior of the 20th Century," Big Boss.

Using the process of somatic cell nuclear transfer, eight clone embryos were created by inserting Big Boss's DNA into enucleated egg cells, donated by a healthy Japanese woman. By utilizing the Super Baby Method, the embryos were then implanted into the womb of a surrogate mother, with six of the babies eventually being aborted to promote growth in the remaining two.

The two clones were also modified on the genetic level, with one clone expressing Big Boss's dominant genetic traits, and the other, his recessive traits. Nine months later, the twins were born, who would later receive the codenames of Solid Snake and Liquid Snake. A third clone was also later created, known as Solidus Snake, who inherited an identical genetic code to Big Boss. Liquid was later led to believe that he was the result of Big Boss's "inferior" recessive traits, and would inform an unknowing Solid Snake as such.

Early life and career
Following his birth, Solid Snake was given the name "David," and spent his early life being raised and taught by a variety of foster parents. In 1974, Cipher decided to use Solid Snake and Liquid Snake as an insurance policy, should the organization fail to either convince Big Boss to return to them, or frame the Militaires Sans Frontieres for launching a nuclear attack on the United States.

Making his way into the military, David was inducted into the Green Berets as a teen and took part in a mission to infiltrate western Iraq in 1991, during the Gulf War. Later, he joined Big Boss's special forces unit FOXHOUND, during which time he received the codename "Solid Snake." While undergoing FOXHOUND's training regimen, he became a master of high-altitude skydiving, scuba diving, and freeclimbing. Snake received training from FOXHOUND's drill sergeant, Master Miller, in regards to undertaking sneaking missions, deciphering codes, using common appliances as an aid in a sneaking mission, withstanding torture without breaking from it, using CQB and utilizing all of one's senses to detect an enemy's presence. Additionally, Big Boss personally trained him in the use of CQC and taught him the importance of having the will to survive on the battlefield. During his time in FOXHOUND, his name and origins were also heavily classified through "Classified National Security Codes."

Snake's first mission for FOXHOUND came in 1995. He was tasked with infiltrating Outer Heaven, a military nation led by a feared and legendary mercenary, deep within South Africa. Snake was tasked with rescuing Gray Fox, a FOXHOUND agent who was captured earlier, and shed light on Metal Gear, which Gray Fox mentioned in a broken radio message sometime before his capture. Shortly after arriving in the general vicinity of Outer Heaven, he was contacted by Big Boss via his wireless radio and was reminded that what he was to experience would not be an exercise, as this would be his first real mission for FOXHOUND.

After infiltrating the fortress via an underwater insertion, he learned from some of the hostages after freeing them that Gray Fox was held in a high level prison cell in the basement, and the only way to find him was to get himself captured. After locating Gray Fox, he learned from him that Metal Gear was a bipedal nuclear-armed tank that can launch a nuclear warhead anywhere in the world. He was then told to locate Drago Pettrovich Madnar to find a way to destroy it. After a few delays, he succeeded in rescuing Dr. Madnar as well as his daughter, Ellen and destroyed TX-55 Metal Gear with the aid of Gray Fox. Big Boss, his mission commander, then revealed himself to be the leader behind the Outer Heaven Uprising, but he was promptly dispatched by Snake.

Post-FOXHOUND
Despite his success in Outer Heaven, Snake departed from FOXHOUND and entered early retirement. He also chose to abandon the use of CQC, due to its association with Big Boss, a man who had betrayed his unit. Because of this, he implemented CQB instead.

Snake was later scouted by the CIA and spent six months as an undercover agent before he became dissatisfied with the system and left. He then became a mercenary for hire, and after earning enough money, he went into semi-retirement in the Canadian wilderness. During this time, he found himself constantly having nightmares about Outer Heaven and Big Boss over the next four years due to PTSD.

In 1999, Snake's former commander, Roy Campbell, called upon him again for another operation in Central Asia. Apparently, a new highly militarized nation called Zanzibar Land had kidnapped Kio Marv, inventor of the oil refining microbe, OILIX. Not only that, but a new Metal Gear was believed to be under development in Zanzibar Land. Snake accepted the mission, in part to end the nightmares that he had endured since Operation Intrude N313.

Snake's mission objectives were to infiltrate the seemingly impenetrable wall that surrounded Zanzibar Land and recover Dr. Marv as well as the OILIX formula. He succeeded in the first task, but complications arose when one of his allies in the mission, a CIA war coverage spy named Holly White blew her cover, and required a rescue. After rescuing Holly, she told him about Dr. Marv's carrier pigeon and that it was located on the roof. After catching the pigeon, Snake found a piece of paper on the pigeon's leg which had Dr. Marv's contact frequency written backwards. Snake contacted Dr. Marv who unfortunately only spoke Czech and Slovakian, resulting in him having to locate his bodyguard, and later the unanticipated betrayal of both Gray Fox and Dr. Madnar that resulted in Gustava and Dr. Marv's demise. However, utilizing the polymimetic nature of the Zanzibar Brooch Key, he later managed to succeed in recovering the OILIX formula inside of an MSX2 cartridge in a locker. Deep in the heart of Zanzibar Land, he destroyed Metal Gear D. Afterwards, he fought his former ally Gray Fox who piloted the Metal Gear, and successfully stopped the ambitions of Big Boss. Big Boss, the man behind Zanzibar Land, returned for a final battle against Snake, but Snake ultimately defeated him using a makeshift flamethrower which consisted of a lighter and an aerosol can, although not before he revealed to Snake that he was, in actuality, his father. Snake and Holly White also managed to escape Zanzibar Land, although their escape was narrow because their getaway pilot, Charlie, ran late. Although he promised to have Christmas dinner with Holly White after the mission, he ended up disappearing into the wilderness after the debriefing. He also declined on Roy Campbell's request that he rejoin FOXHOUND, stating his belief that his nightmares were over.

Retirement
Following the conclusion of Operation Intrude F014, Snake returned to North America and retired to an Alaskan wilderness retreat, Twin Lakes. By this time, the military had deemed that Snake had committed several acts of misconduct during his career, enough for him to serve a lengthy prison sentence, should he be brought to account. Through his retirement, Snake attempted to try and forget his war-torn past and recover from post-traumatic stress disorder, as well as come to terms with the fact that he had "killed" his own father. During this time, he began heavily drinking. He later became a dogsled racer, taking care of over 50 huskies, and competed in the Iditarod.

Snake was called back to the U.S. military in 2005 when he was deployed by his former commander Roy Campbell to Shadow Moses Island. However, he wasn't too happy with Campbell for how he decided to call him back into service, since he sent armed soldiers to his doorstep in a manner that seemed like they wanted to capture him and also they strip searched him as well taking all his weapons away from him. Here, a rebellion had taken place by the members of FOXHOUND, his former unit, who were threatening the U.S. with a nuclear strike. The task fell on Snake, a former operative and expert, to stop them. Although he wasn't willing to get out of retirement, he ultimately accepted the mission under two conditions: That he be given full disclosure from Campbell on what is going on in the mission, and that he answer to no one besides Campbell, with no cutoffs involved.

In charge of the renegade group was Liquid Snake, who had demanded that the remains of Big Boss be turned over to him. Because of Liquid Snake bearing a large resemblance to Solid Snake at the time, Snake also gave himself a haircut shortly before departing to Shadow Moses Island to avoid being mistaken for him. Solid Snake was charged with ascertaining their nuclear capability and rescuing their hostages: president of ArmsTech weapons manufacturer, Kenneth Baker, and the chief of DARPA, Donald Anderson.

Snake infiltrated the base alone, but quickly gained help in the form of Metal Gear REX developer Hal Emmerich and new FOXHOUND recruit Meryl Silverburgh, Campbell's niece, the latter of whom was actually Campbell's daughter, although Snake did not know this at the time. Metal Gear REX was a nuclear-armed bipedal walking tank developed in secret by the U.S. Army and ArmsTech. However, he ended up tricked into activating Metal Gear REX due to misinformation supplied by Liquid Snake (who had infiltrated Snake's support group by having Master Miller murdered three days prior and posing as him). With the help of the two aforementioned, as well as his former comrade Gray Fox (now the Cyborg Ninja), Snake succeeded in destroying REX and defeating the members of FOXHOUND, including Liquid.

His mission, however, was a cleverly woven plot, prepared by the Pentagon. Through the secret, Pentagon-guided efforts of genetic engineer Naomi Hunter, Solid Snake's body became host to the artificial virus FOXDIE. Snake was outraged to hear that his mission was a government conspiracy, and that he was merely sent as a carrier of the virus, which was programmed to kill Baker (for knowing too much about the project), and the FOXHOUND operatives just to ensure that the bodies of the Genome Soldiers and Metal Gear REX could be recovered undamaged. He was also reminded of the possibility that he had willingly returned to the battlefield because he enjoyed war, as commented upon by Meryl Silverburgh, Psycho Mantis, and Liquid Snake, and echoing Big Boss's words in Zanzibar Land.

Throughout the incident, Snake suspected that Campbell was concealing important information regarding the mission's true nature, although he later forgave the Colonel, after learning that the Pentagon had used Meryl as leverage in order to force him to cooperate with them (they had deliberately sent Meryl to Shadow Moses the same day as the revolt). Snake also discovered that Naomi was the foster sister of Gray Fox, who desired revenge for what Snake had done to her brother and had modified the FOXDIE virus so that it would kill him in addition to FOXHOUND. However, she set the virus to a "wildcard" value, leaving him vulnerable at a later time.

Post-Shadow Moses
Following the Shadow Moses Incident, Snake and Meryl disappeared after leaving the base, after Roy Campbell faked their deaths by claiming that they had died after their jeep crashed into the ocean. Sometime later, Snake lost contact with Meryl. Because of his exploits at Shadow Moses, he also became a hero to the public, which greatly concerned the Patriots.

Revolver Ocelot, the sole surviving member of FOXHOUND, reported the events on Shadow Moses to U.S. President George Sears, for whom he had acted as a spy throughout the entire incident. He informed Sears, that it was the inferior clone, Solid Snake, who had survived, stating that Liquid had wrongly believed himself to be inferior right until his death. Ocelot also reported in the phone call that FOXDIE was set to activate soon, indicating that Snake being a target for FOXDIE was intended from the start by Ocelot and Solidus. Three weeks after the Shadow Moses Incident, Naomi Hunter escaped from confinement at a high-security facility during debriefing due to someone breaking her out. As Nastasha Romanenko and the U.S. Government believed Snake to have been the one who broke her out (in actuality, it was Liquid Ocelot who did the deed), the U.S. Military also added Snake's supposed involvement in her escape to his rap sheet.

Revolver Ocelot later sold REX's plans onto the black market, prompting Snake and Otacon to found the anti-Metal Gear NGO, Philanthropy. With the goal of eradicating all Metal Gear technology, Snake participated in investigating its development across the world, often by illegal means, which Philanthropy then exposed to the public via the Internet. Around 2007, Snake also began suffering the effects of accelerated aging.

For more information on his alias during the Big Shell Incident, see Iroquois Pliskin.

Two years later in 2007, Otacon received a tip from Emma Emmerich (Otacon's younger stepsister) that a new Metal Gear, codenamed Metal Gear RAY, was being developed by the U.S. Marine Corps., and was being sent via a Marine vessel disguised as an oil tanker. Although Solid Snake suspected that the mission was not as good as was believed, he went through with it because their "noses were out in the cold for too long."

The tanker was, however, quickly taken over by a group of Russians led by Sergei Gurlukovich. Snake met Olga Gurlukovich (Gurlukovich's daughter) on board the tanker, but proceeded to defeat her in a gunfight; however, she promptly disappeared afterwards. Snake quickly made his way into the tanker's interior and, as per his mission orders, secured photographic evidence of the new Metal Gear. Neither he nor Otacon could have predicted the reappearance of Revolver Ocelot on the tanker. Ocelot proceeded to sink the vessel and steal RAY. When attempting to stop Ocelot, he also ended up encountering Liquid Ocelot (the alleged possession/fusion between Liquid Snake and Revolver Ocelot due to Liquid's arm being transplanted onto Ocelot's arm to replace the one he lost at Shadow Moses), during the encounter Liquid also briefly reminded Snake of his current aging problem. Thanks to the photographs taken by a U.S. Army CYPHER, the Patriots framed Solid Snake and Philanthropy in a smear campaign for the deed, simultaneously exposing them to the public and destroying their reputation.

It was also widely believed that Solid Snake had been killed in the incident, thanks to propaganda circulated around by the Patriots. His body was even retrieved from the New York Harbor as confirmation. In reality, with the tanker quickly sinking, Snake managed to escape - saving Olga with the help of Otacon. Snake decided to take advantage of the situation and faked his death, using Liquid's body as a decoy.

Another two years later in 2009, Snake had infiltrated the Big Shell offshore facility sometime before Raiden did, cutting a hole in the fence. He later knocked out several Gurlukovich sentries in the deep sea dock, and ascended to the roof of Strut A on an elevator; Raiden briefly saw him, though his back was turned. Snake later disguised himself as a Navy SEALS Alpha squad member named Iroquois Pliskin. There, he met Raiden and eventually met his "other brother"; the final of the three Sons of Big Boss, Solidus Snake. He also once again met Olga Gurlukovich and explained to her that it was in fact Revolver Ocelot who killed her father, Colonel Gurlukovich. Snake later helped Raiden, Otacon and Emma Emmerich (Otacon's stepsister) install the reprogrammed computer virus, a digital counterpart of FOXDIE, into GW (Arsenal Gear's AI system), shortly before Emma died after being stabbed by Vamp.

Snake worked together with Olga, using Raiden in order to gain access to Arsenal Gear and to acquire the disc which contained the information about the true identities of the Patriots’ Wisemen's Committee. Once aboard Arsenal Gear, Snake and Raiden made their way through fighting the army of Arsenal Tengu soldiers. They are both eventually split up from one another, with Snake being captured by Fortune and brought to the top of Arsenal.

Atop Arsenal, Ocelot revealed his true colors to Solidus, Fortune, Snake and Raiden. But before he could kill them, Ocelot's right arm began to twitch, and Liquid Snake possessed him once more, revealing that he leaked the information about Arsenal Gear to lure Snake out to the Big Shell so that Snake could "free him [Liquid]." Liquid (in Ocelot's body) then set off in RAY to kill the Patriots via "[his] host," with Snake in pursuit. Although Snake failed to follow RAY, he placed a tracker on RAY and explained later to Raiden that his plan was for him to find the Patriots by deciphering the source code of Emma's worm cluster to target, and also admitted that the disc they gave Raiden was a decoy. He also declined Raiden's request to help Snake in Philanthropy and save Sunny, as he suspects that even after the S3 Plan was completed, the Patriots would still monitor Raiden's vital signs and thus place Sunny in further danger of being killed should he try to help, and also hinted that Rosemary did indeed exist and that he should maintain his relationship to her before joining. However, the data recovered from Arsenal showed that all 12 members had been dead for over a hundred years, and Philanthropy had lost their only lead. However, Solid Snake eventually deduces that the information was a fake lead (or as he put it in the South American campaign five years later, "a load of crap").

Accelerated aging and CQC
After the Big Shell Incident, Solid Snake's Werner syndrome like symptoms gradually grew worse. His body began to age rapidly, with no doctors being able to figure out the cause. In addition, in 2011, although Snake had earlier promised Raiden that he would rescue Sunny from the Patriots, he wasn't able to get that chance (presumably due to their only lead being a fake lead), and ended up receiving Sunny via Raiden (albeit covertly on the latter's part). By 2014, Otacon and the various doctors who treated Snake estimated that Snake's life span would be a year at best.

Sometime prior to 2014, the Pentagon (the Patriots) declassified documents relating to Big Boss's exploits during the 1960s, which evidently contributed greatly to his legend to the populace, and his CQC was also being taught in the military. After the army decided to implement CQC in an attempt to mimic Big Boss, he lifted his self imposed ban on CQC in order keep himself ahead of the other users (who had been using, as he called it, "cookie cutter imitations").

It was not until 2014 that Snake resurfaced for a final time. Liquid Ocelot (a fusion of Liquid Snake and Revolver Ocelot) was the leader of a new Outer Heaven, this time incarnated as less of a physical thing, and more of a dummy corporation, acting as a single mother company to five of the largest PMCs on the planet. With PMCs now taking over the world's armies in terms of firepower, Liquid was finally on the verge of world domination. With the world once again in crisis, Snake was dispatched to the Middle East as a personal favor to Campbell to assassinate Liquid. In addition, he was to meet up with a PMC investigation group, and was also given the cover job of inspecting PMCs.

Assassinating Liquid
Solid Snake, now occasionally referred to as Old Snake, successfully made it to the PMC base that Liquid was using as his headquarters by disguising himself as a militia instructor for the militia in the region fighting off the Praying Mantis PMC, although he briefly lost the disguise after an ambush by several Gekko units, escaping with the use of his new OctoCamo suit. Snake once again met Meryl, who was now in command of the CID unit Rat Patrol Team 01. He also briefly witnessed the Beauty and the Beast unit when they wiped out a Middle Eastern militia platoon. However, he failed to assassinate Liquid in time due to the latter's sudden deactivation of the Sons of the Patriots System, which resulted in all the soldiers in the vicinity to experience mass convulsions from the sudden release of emotions, including Snake himself, although he was affected to a lesser degree. SOP was run by the Patriots with the purpose of monitoring and controlling every soldier engaged in combat action. Liquid's plan was to remove the system altogether, though his initial attempt had unforeseen consequences, when it caused the PMC's Middle Eastern base to descend into chaos (although the chaos unknowingly saved him from Snake's mission to kill him).

Rescuing Naomi
Later, Otacon received a message from Naomi Hunter, who had been there in the Middle East to save Snake when the SOP System went haywire. The message contained a distress call as well as an encrypted map of Liquid's South American base in Soliton Radar format (a sign from Naomi that it was truly from her), the location of which Olga's daughter Sunny was able to trace. In addition, he was able to arrive at Liquid's base, located in a mountainous region (implied to be the Andes) surrounded by forests, by landing at the El Dorado International Airport with the cover job of a UN inspector as well as gaining a 4x4 vehicle, driving it as close to the security perimeter as he could before sneaking into the region, due to Roy Campbell's influence. Although Snake initially was to meet up with a rebel group to aid him in getting into Liquid Ocelot's primary base, the Vista Mansion, he was forced to change plans after Laughing Octopus murdered some rebel soldiers and spared one under the condition that he not forget "his" face (Laughing Octopus having disguised herself as Old Snake via FaceCamo at that time).

Snake made it to the base where Naomi was held, and she gave him a thorough medical examination. It was during this that Snake discovered the harsh truth: his aging was not part of any external source, but the way he was designed as a clone, and also that the FOXDIE that Naomi injected him with almost a decade earlier will finally claim his life within six months. This was because the FOXDIE was also starting to mutate due to Snake's rapid aging, and would eventually lose its ability to kill by specific DNA patterns and indiscriminately infect anyone and everyone, effectively turning Snake into a walking biological weapon who could cause the deaths of millions. Because of this, he asked if killing himself would have any impact on stopping FOXDIE. Naomi confirmed this, stating that FOXDIE will also die with its host. Snake also learned from Naomi that he had a new FOXDIE strand that was injected into him recently, and immediately deduced that Drebin 893 was the one who injected it into him.

After defeating Laughing Octopus of the Beauty and the Beast Unit, as well as procuring her FaceCamo, Snake escaped with Naomi with the help of Drebin 893, a "gun launderer" he had met in the Middle East. They also picked up Raiden, who was now a Cyborg Ninja. He also learned from Naomi that, despite what he and anyone else believed earlier, Solid Snake was neither a perfect clone of Big Boss nor was he genetically identical to Liquid Snake, which also explained why the previous FOXDIE virus was not able to kill him earlier.

In Eastern Europe
Raiden explained that he was acting under the orders of Big Mama, the leader of a small resistance group in Eastern Europe. He then disguised himself as a civilian in Eastern Europe, also putting his FaceCamo to good use by giving himself a younger look, and was tasked to meet up with a contact that Roy Campbell supplied. However, Raven Sword anticipated this move and made sure to blacklist him if he carried the same nanomachines, which nearly resulted in his cover being blown before his contact, Meryl, managed to get him through. However, Snake and Meryl ended up getting into an argument regarding Liquid's threat level, as well as some of Snake's decisions. Snake, stalking a member of the resistance group, Big Mama, eventually found Big Mama, discovering she was the former Chinese spy who Big Boss had known, back when his codename was Naked Snake, as EVA. Due to her ties with Big Boss, she was able to explain most of the Patriots' history to him. She also revealed that she had Big Boss's body in her possession. After escaping an onslaught of Haven Troopers and defeating a second BB Corps member, Raging Raven, Snake found Liquid, who was in the midst of implementing the now perfected version of his plan. Taking control of the SOP system, Liquid used his now unbeatable army to kill every last soldier there, including Big Mama, save for Old Snake and the members of Rat Patrol. Luckily, in the chaos, Otacon was able to stow the Mk. II away with Naomi (who had returned to Liquid), and discovered Liquid's plan: to destroy JD and use GW to take over the Patriots AI system. As a result of the chaos in the final legs of the mission, he also received severe burns to the left side of his face.

The Final Acts
Knowing Liquid was planning to do this by using the only non-Patriot controlled weapon in existence - the rail gun from Metal Gear REX - Snake followed Liquid back to Shadow Moses Island. There Snake managed to defeat Vamp, BB Corps member Crying Wolf, and a Metal Gear RAY piloted by Liquid, with Snake himself piloting REX against the latter. However, he was unable to kill Liquid or stop him from stealing the rail gun in time, a prize which Liquid quickly equipped to his own recreation of Arsenal Gear, Outer Haven. Snake, Meryl and Rat Patrol team member Johnny &quot;Akiba&quot; Sasaki infiltrated Outer Haven, where Snake defeated the last of the BB members, Screaming Mantis, as well as finally destroying GW, the Patriots' former AI which Liquid had managed to reassemble. Unbeknownst to Snake, the FOXALIVE worm cluster that he had uploaded to GW, spread to JD and the rest of the Patriots' AIs. Atop Outer Haven, Liquid revealed to Snake that he had wanted him to succeed in uploading the worm, and thus eliminate the Patriots' control, though he was unaware that the societal collapse, which he anticipated would come about, had been averted. Snake faced his "brother" in hand-to-hand combat one last time, where it was revealed that Liquid Ocelot no longer possessed the right arm of Liquid Snake, but rather a cybernetic prosthetic instead. Snake ultimately defeated Liquid, with Ocelot's former personality temporarily reasserting control prior to his death. After performing his signature hand gesture and commenting, "You're pretty good," he passed away, having succumbed to the new FOXDIE virus within Snake's body.

One last meeting with Big Boss
Some time later, Snake prepared to commit suicide to prevent the spread of the mutated strain of FOXDIE. He sat in front of Big Boss's grave with his gun in his mouth, but ultimately was unable to end his own life. Big Boss then appeared, returning the Patriot to the grave of The Boss and explained the full history of the Patriots from his point of view, and euthanized the now-vegetative Zero himself. He also revealed to Snake that Revolver Ocelot was never truly possessed by Liquid, but had put himself through hypnotherapy and implanted himself with nanomachines in order to make himself "believe" that he was Liquid Snake. This was done to throw off the Patriots who, being a computer program, could only repeat the same processes and would send Snake in to take down Liquid if they thought he was alive. Big Boss also revealed that when Drebin injected Snake with modern nanomachines in order to make him compatible with SOP weaponry, he also injected him with a second strain of FOXDIE, which was programmed to kill Big Mama, Liquid Ocelot, and Big Boss himself, but also cancelled out the original mutating FOXDIE; thus, Snake was no longer in danger of becoming a biological weapon. Snake and his father, who calmly accepted the fact that he was dying, finally made amends, and Big Boss, before dying, made Snake promise to live however much time he had left "not as a snake, but as a man." Determined to fulfill this promise, Snake decides to quit smoking and retreated with Otacon and Sunny, this time for good, to live out the remainder of his life in peace, resolving to live long enough to see what the future held for the new world he helped to create.

Personality and traits
Solid Snake, a hardened career soldier, often displayed a calm and collected demeanor, rarely showing any signs of fear in extreme circumstances. He also demonstrated compassion towards his fallen enemies, allowing Psycho Mantis and Sniper Wolf to speak their final words to him, even after both had tried to kill Meryl Silverburgh. During the Zanzibar Land Disturbance, Snake claimed to be different from Big Boss, and that he loved life.

Solid Snake was often perceived as holding a degree of enjoyment towards warfare by his own allies as well as his enemies, although he himself was not as open about such behavior in comparison to his clone brothers. He was accused of being in self-denial by Liquid Snake, claiming that he also enjoys the killing, and was remarked upon by Psycho Mantis as being "worse" than his clone brother. In addition, he also holds a particular dislike towards politicians, although not to the same degree as Liquid Snake or his father, Big Boss, as evidenced by his cold remark about the U.S. President's desire for START III to be passed so it could go down in the history books. Snake also displayed little emotion towards people he did not know personally, as with the deaths of SEAL Team 10 on board the Big Shell. In regards to his anti-Metal Gear sabotage efforts, he did not deny Raiden's accusations of being a terrorist. Snake was also willing to use unwitting allies to further his own goals, if it allowed him to infiltrate an enemy complex more easily, as evidenced by his "betrayal" of Raiden on board the Big Shell.

During the events of Liquid Ocelot's Insurrection, Solid Snake calmly accepted the inevitability of his impending death. Because of this, he was also more willing to risk his life, as demonstrated during the Missouri debriefing. However, he would often become annoyed upon being reminded of his accelerated age, once telling Otacon to "cut the senior citizen crap" and his Psyche dropping at occasional moments when called "Old Snake".

Just as Gray Fox did for him during Outer Heaven, Snake "showed the ropes" to Raiden, acting as a de facto mentor to the "rookie" and teaching him about his supplies and how to become a better soldier. During Liquid Ocelot's Insurrection of 2014, he showed sincere concern for his comrade in South America (after his first fight with Vamp) and on Shadow Moses (after Outer Haven crushed him). Later on a mission to destroy GW, Raiden offered to head to the microwave-protected server room on Outer Haven, when Snake refused, saying that Raiden shouldn't "waste [his] youth", and admits apologetically that the Sons of Big Boss "tore the world apart and made [Raiden's] life a living hell." In addition, during Liquid Ocelot's Insurrection, he was apprehensive about getting nanomachine injections, because of the time Naomi Hunter injected him with FOXDIE via this method, as evidenced by his hesitance to let Drebin 893 to inject him with a shot to give him an update on his nanomachines when in the Middle East.

Solid Snake was a heavy cigarette smoker. During Operations Intrude N313 and F014, he smoked an unfiltered version of "Lucky Strikes." During the Shadow Moses Incident, he smoked "Moslems," designed to reduce second-hand smoke. During Liquid Ocelot's Insurrection, he smoked a brand called "The Boss," which were unfiltered hand-rolled cigarettes, each containing 16mg of tar.

His knowledge about computer programs and computer-related terms are somewhat limited, as he often has to get Otacon to get to the point during a mission when Otacon tries to explain about a program due to not understanding much about the concept, and could only refer to what Emma Emmerich was doing with GW's defensive capabilities in the second floor basement of the Shell 1 Core onboard the Big Shell as doing "something."

When Snake gave Raiden the H.F. blade from Olga Gurlukovich, while inside Arsenal Gear, he revealed that he was "not a big fan of blades." However, he did show Raiden that he knew how to use it. During Liquid Ocelot's Insurrection, Snake adopted the use of a stun knife, once he had begun to use CQC again.

Snake also displayed great levels of endurance and heightened reflexes:


 * He survived passing over an electrified floor;
 * He survived being set on fire after destroying Metal Gear D;
 * He successfully evaded cannon fire from an M1 Abrams tank;
 * He withstood at least two electrical torture sessions under Revolver Ocelot (which had four gradually increased electrical outputs per session);
 * Despite having little warning beforehand, he evaded gunshots from a sniper rifle, a revolver and a ballistic knife;
 * Though his forearm was badly cut by Vamp, causing him significant blood loss, he recuperated within a short period of time;
 * He survived passing through a corridor installed with microwave emitters, despite having recently undergone advanced aging.

Trivia

 * Solid Snake was foreseen in Elisa and Ursula's prophetic vision in 1970 as "the son [of Big Boss] that will save the world."
 * Being a somatic cell clone of Big Boss, Solid Snake inherited mitochondrial DNA from the Japanese egg donor of Les Enfants Terribles.
 * This fact was alluded to by Vulcan Raven, during the Shadow Moses Incident, when he remarked that "Blood from the East flows within [Snake's] veins." Solid Snake was also, somewhat, aware of his Japanese heritage.
 * Solid Snake shared the same first name as that of Zero, David.
 * Solid Snake disliked wearing hats, preferring his bandana, despite "Master Miller" warning him that 70% of body heat dissipates from the head.
 * The Shocking Conspiracy Behind Shadow Moses was a 2007 magazine article written by journalist Gary McGolden, after he received an optical disc from an unknown source, containing Nastasha Romanenko's novel In the Darkness of Shadow Moses: The Unofficial Truth. After supposedly journeying to the island himself in order to verify Nastasha's account, McGolden was captured and interrogated by an unknown party and subsequently rescued by an "invisible" saviour. The sender of the disk and his savior is implied to be Solid Snake, presumably to help give more exposure to Nastasha's novel.
 * During the Big Shell Incident, Snake used the alias Iroquois Pliskin, which is a reference to the character Snake Plissken from the movies Escape from New York and Escape from L.A. The name "Iroquois" has a double meaning, being both the name of a confederacy of Native American tribes headquartered in New York and a Huron word meaning "Black Snake."
 * Although Solid Snake didn't know Czech during the Zanzibar Land Disturbance, he was able to recognize the term "Matka Pluku," when Raiden told him of Big Mama's alias during Liquid Ocelot's Insurrection.

Unconfirmed history
The Twin Snakes were born as a result of a ninth batch of clones, in Carlsbad, New Mexico. David then spent the first ten years of his life in the state of Oregon where he underwent intense military training, being raised and taught by a variety of teachers. During the summer months of his childhood, he would make weekly visits to a small, privately owned theme park known as "Kiddieland."

After joining FOXHOUND, Snake became knowledgeable in various foreign languages, including Russian. Following his retirement from the unit, and his brief stint in the CIA, Snake was responsible for the assassination of several despotic dictators during his years as a mercenary. After the events of the Zanzibar Land Disturbance, Snake retreated to Alaska, where he resided in a small log cabin, and lived off the native flora and fauna, developing a taste for blueberries and salmonberries. Befriending an Inuit of the Yup'ik tribe, who helped him to train sleigh dogs, Snake indulged in Huskie sleigh racing in an attempt to banish the intense hallucinations, guilt, and flashbacks of battlefield trauma that he suffered from.

Behind the scenes
Solid Snake (ソリッド・スネーク) is the main protagonist of Konami's Metal Gear series of stealth video games. Created by Hideo Kojima, Snake was introduced in the first game of the series, Metal Gear (1987), and has appeared in the majority of subsequent games and spin-offs. Japanese voice actor Akio Ōtsuka voices Snake in Japanese, while actor and screenwriter David Hayter provides the English voice of the character.

Early Metal Gear games
Much as Metal Gear began as a pastiche of action movies of the time, Solid Snake began as a pastiche of contemporary action movie heroes. Hideo Kojima based Snake on a number of different characters, including Escape from New York’s Snake Plissken, another fictional special forces operative. The name "Solid" was Kojima's intent to create a paradoxical name, in contrast to the smooth motion commonly attributed to snakes, and to express the character's strong image. Snake's appearance on the cover artwork for Metal Gear is based on a screenshot of actor Michael Biehn, in character as Kyle Reese in the 1984 film The Terminator. Kojima later described Snake's role in the original Metal Gear as the "player's presence," contrasting the defined personality Solid Snake acquired in later games in the series. In addition, aside from saying, "This is Solid Snake, respond please," when the player attempts to call a frequency, Snake speaks only twice in Metal Gear: the first time after finding Dr. Madnar's empty cell, in Building 1's courtyard; and the second time in the ending, shortly after escaping Outer Heaven.

The MSX2 user's manual for Metal Gear implied that Operation Intrude N313 was Snake's first experience of being on the battlefield. This was retconned in later games, where FOXHOUND was establish to only pick recruits who had previous experience within the military, and with Snake having participated in the Gulf War as a Green Beret. In the NES manual, it was stated that prior to Operation Intrude N313, Snake was former Marine who had taken part in the Grenada Invasion. However, the NES version of this game is non-canon, as Kojima himself has denounced it since then. Based on the information presented in later installments, Snake would have been 11 years old at the time, however, making his involvement possible (via the Les Enfantes Terribles project).

In the original version of Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake, released exclusively in Japan, Snake's appearance in the intro resembles actor Mel Gibson; his in-game appearance is also speculated to be modeled after either Gibson or Sylvester Stallone. In the re-released versions, Snake's appearance was brought more in line with his altered presentation in the sequel Metal Gear Solid.

Snake's biography, featured in Metal Gear 2 ' s MSX2 manual, revealed that he was of Japanese-British descent, though his origins, much like his military background, would be retconned in later games in the series.

Metal Gear Solid
In addition to expanding Solid Snake's backstory, as the first Metal Gear game to feature voice acting Metal Gear Solid established his characteristic voice and appearance. Yoji Shinkawa's Solid Snake design, characterized by his navy blue bandana and "sneaking suit", would serve as the template for all future incarnations of Snake in later Metal Gear games. According to Shinkawa, Snake's physique in Metal Gear Solid was based on that of action star Jean-Claude Van Damme, while his facial appearance in the same game was inspired by actor Christopher Walken. Shinkawa described his rendition of Solid Snake from Metal Gear Solid as a "middle ground" between the younger Snake who graced the cover artwork of the first Metal Gear and the middle-aged Snake from the MSX2 version of Metal Gear 2. Hideo Kojima introduced the cloning origins of Solid Snake to Metal Gear Solid in order to provide Solid Snake with an adversary who would be his equal, since the story, being a continuation to the original MSX2 games, established Snake as an experienced soldier. He later expressed the decision as "cheating."

Snake's real name, David (デイビッド), which was revealed at the end of Metal Gear Solid, is a reference to two fictional characters: David Bowman from 2001: A Space Odyssey and Dave Forrest from Policenauts (which was also created by Kojima). While Snake shares the same given name with his English voice actor, David Hayter, this was not intentional (contrary to popular belief) and is merely coincidental. The name David is of Hebrew origin and was used by the biblical King David, who managed to slay the giant Goliath with a slingshot and a sword. Similarly, Solid Snake also overcame several almost impossible challenges despite being a clone created from supposedly inferior genes.

It was mistakenly believed that Solid Snake was blond and dyed his hair brown during the Shadow Moses Incident, due to the sepia tone and lighting in the Shadow Moses briefing files making Solid Snake's hair seem light-colored. However, this was rectified in the remake Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes, which shows Snake being brown haired in the same briefing files.

It remains unclear as to which clone was created to express Big Boss's dominant or recessive traits, since Liquid Snake's exposition on Les Enfants Terribles is contradicted by Ocelot's later report to Solidus, regarding which clone was designated the "inferior" one. The subject of Big Boss's dominant and recessive traits, in regards to the clones' gene expression, is never once referred to again in other games in the series, after Metal Gear Solid. A recap of Liquid's dialogue was included in the fictional in-game novel In the Darkness of Shadow Moses, but there is no mention of dominant and recessive traits. However, the dialogue remains essentially unchanged from the original game, in its 2004 remake, The Twin Snakes.

Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty
For Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty, Hideo Kojima explained that his decision to introduce a new playable character in Solid Snake's place was done in order to develop Snake from another character's perspective, but also to avoid treating Snake as a rookie by having a new character be instructed via Codec instead.

A story idea, featured in Kojima's Metal Gear Solid 2 Grand Game Plan suggested that the Patriots were wary of Solid Snake, due to the possibility of him being a spy for China.

In Metal Gear Solid 2, due to a placement error of Codec calls, Snake denied any knowledge of Outer Heaven when asked by Raiden about it shortly after the Harrier battle despite the fact Snake was no longer using the alias of Iroquois Pliskin by that point. It is possible, however, that he was either hiding his knowledge or denying the idea presented to him (more likely the latter).

If the player manages to retrieve the shaver and supply it to Solid Snake (while disguised as Iroquois Pliskin) during their first meeting, Snake will appear cleanshaven when meeting up with Raiden on Arsenal Gear.

Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots
Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots is the final canonical Metal Gear game to feature Solid Snake as the main character. Kojima himself has stated that the series will continue but he does not want the character to be handled by anyone else.

In the original ending of Metal Gear Solid 4, Solid Snake and Otacon would have turned themselves in to be executed for their crimes. The staff at Kojima Productions were strongly opposed to this idea, and convinced Kojima to change it.

The Metal Gear Solid 4 Database mistakenly places Snake's recruitment by the CIA as occurring after the Zanzibar Land Disturbance, rather than before.

During gameplay, Snake may throw out his back after doing a forward roll (with his Psyche gauge decreasing slightly) and will get up rather slowly, while holding his back, further portraying his now-advanced years. Similarly, if the player dies during combat or some other related death, chooses to continue, and calls Rosemary, he will mention seeing himself having been killed in that manner (or in the case of the player being killed via explosion, Rosemary will admit she dreamed of Snake being killed via an explosion). In one particular call, Rosemary will also speculate that Snake is suffering from a mild case of depersonalization disorder.

According to the director's commentary, most of Solid Snake's mannerisms (including the way he smokes his cigarettes) were replicated from that of his voice actor, Akio Ohtsuka.

Other appearances
There are two non-canon games in which Snake does not smoke: one is Snake's Revenge, an initial attempt to make a Western-aimed sequel to Metal Gear for the NES; the other is Metal Gear: Ghost Babel, where he instead starts the game with a Fogger, described by the Item box as a "device that lights up and emits smoke." Ghost Babel ' s opening scene, however, does show him smoking a cigarette, while waiting aboard a cargo plane, en route to Gindra.

Snake's Revenge
Solid Snake was the playable character of the unofficial sequel Snake's Revenge. Snake's in-game appearance resembles that of Austrian bodybuilder and actor Arnold Schwarzenegger. Snake was promoted to Lieutenant sometime after the events of Operation Intrude N313 and remained a member of FOXHOUND. He is called into action in order to investigate rumors of a nation mass producing the TX-55 Metal Gear (referred to as "Metal Gear 1" in-game).

After infiltrating the enemy's main warehouse, Snake uncovered evidence that the nation had not only been mass producing Metal Gear 1, but had also began to ship them to other countries. Snake then infiltrated the enemy tanker transporting them, and then blew up its ammunition room in order to sink it. Afterwards, he learned from his support group's helicopter pilot that contact had been lost with the FOXHOUND operatives, and that the nation also built an entirely new Metal Gear model: Metal Gear 2. Snake discovered that the leader of the nation was actually former FOXHOUND commander Big Boss, the mastermind behind Outer Heaven, and that in order to defeat him, he had to lure him out of the command room. He later entered Big Boss's command room, where Big Boss explained that after Outer Heaven was destroyed, he suffered extensive injuries that resulted in him becoming a cyborg, and he wanted revenge. Snake fought his former commanding officer, but after seemingly defeating him, Big Boss transformed into a giant robotic version of himself. Placing mines at Big Boss's feet after luring him out, Snake killed Big Boss once and for all, and managed to destroy Metal Gear 2 before it could launch its nukes into New York, Tokyo, and Moscow.

Metal Gear: Ghost Babel
Solid Snake was the main character in the non-canon game Metal Gear: Ghost Babel. In it, Snake was visited by Roy Campbell as well as at least four armed soldiers in his house in Alaska, which he built himself. Snake, knowing that Campbell most likely would not have travelled to Alaska with several armed soldiers for "small talk," deduced that the real reason for the visit was because there was trouble happening. Confirming it, Campbell debriefed Snake on the situation: Terrorists hijacked a C-5 Galaxy transport plane heading for South America, which contained nukes and, to Snake's surprise, Metal Gear, which was previously destroyed by him seven years prior. He also learned the location of where Metal Gear was placed at: Gindra, more specifically the Gindra Liberation Front. He initially refused to participate in the mission, although he later changed his mind when he learned that the specific location that they and Metal Gear were based at, Galuade, was the same place that Outer Heaven once stood. His mission this time was to sneak into Gindra, and assist Delta Force in preventing the GLF's uprising. After being briefed on his mission, and briefed on his support team members, he is dispatched via cargo plane to perform a HALO jump into the territory, 3km south of Galuade's entrance.

He managed to successfully land in the planned area and made his way to the base, although he later learned that the GLF had managed to slaughter the Delta Force unit, suggesting a leak in the mission. He is later contacted by a survivor of Delta Force's massacre, Sergeant Christine Jenner. He is initially reluctant to allow her to continue her mission, but relents when Roy Campbell points out that her expertise of the base may aid Snake in his mission. Snake then infiltrated the watchtower of Galuade via a drainage duct, although he also had to avoid massive flooding of water caused by a squall that arrived, and met up with a disguised Chris Jenner. He then learned that there were four mercenaries involved in GLF's independence movement that were rumored to be former U.S. Special Forces members. Snake then headed to the barracks to locate Metal Gear's chief developer, Jimmy Harks. Along the way, he fought against the first of the mercenaries involved, Slasher Hawk, who he learned was from a group called Black Chamber, who also hated FOXHOUND. He later managed to locate Harks, although to his surprise, he learned that Harks was actually a child. He learned some things from Harks, such as Metal Gear being the brainchild of John Parker for Project Babel, and that Metal Gear requires a large amount of power to use its railgun, the latter of which was exposed when the base experienced a blackout. Leaving Harks at the care of Jenner, Snake then attempted to get to the northwest exit on the first floor to reach the maintenance base and stop Metal Gear, although he was delayed a bit by Marionette Owl, the second surviving member of Black Chamber.

He managed to reach the general area of the maintenance base, but the leader of Black Chamber, Black Arts Viper, stopped him with a Mi-28 Havoc, forcing Snake to do nothing but watch as Metal Gear launched its nuclear weapon via its railgun, and was forced to retreat when the anti personnel turrets guarding the maintenance base started firing at him. He also learned that the nuke was actually a fake, and fired at a nuclear testing facility at Nevada. He also learned from Chris Jenner that she and Harks were ambushed, and she was forced to leave Harks behind. Snake later arrived at the power plant in order to sabotage the main generator in order to eliminate Metal Gear's use of its railgun. He later encountered the third surviving member of Black Chamber, Pyro Bison. After defeating him, Snake learned that Black Chamber was formed from FOXHOUND's shadow after it became too famous at Outer Heaven to take care of the kinds of missions that FOXHOUND no longer was able to do thanks to its newfound fame, and that they were betrayed by FOXHOUND. Pyro Bison also revealed to Snake that there were actually five surviving members of Black Chamber, not four as previously believed, and implied that the fifth member was one of Snake's own support group before dying by his own fire. Snake eventually arrived at the generator, but discovered that there was no way he could sabotage it as it was surrounded by an electric floor, so he ended up having to destroy four key points to the power plant to demolish it. He managed to succeed in doing so, and escaped before he got caught in the explosion. However, he learned that even without the railgun, Metal Gear can still launch a nuke. Snake later found a recently escaped Jimmy Harks, who also told Snake that not only was there a second surviving member of Delta Force, Lieutenant Smith, but Jenner, the supposed survivor of Delta Force's massacre, wasn't even around when the unit was massacred. Although Snake refused to believe it, it became apparent that Jenner may have been the fifth Black Chamber member. He returned to the Maintenance base, which he now could access easily because F-22s managed to take down the anti-personnel turrets guarding it. He also fought against the Havoc, mistaking the woman piloting it for Chris Jenner, although he later discovered that it was actually the General's second in command, Sophie N'dram, although he spared her.

Afterwards, Snake arrived at the vicinity of the maintenance base, the same building that formerly housed TX-55 Metal Gear. He then encountered Viper, who revealed more about the mission they were involved in before being massacred by FOXHOUND. He then showed Jenner to Snake, exposing that she was not actually the fifth Black Chamber member at all, but rather was assigned to a secret mission by Parker. Snake then fought Viper and defeated him. Snake also forgave Jenner for her deception, telling her to get something fast to escape when he's done destroying Metal Gear. He then headed to the hangar for Metal Gear, and learned from Eguabon that there was a connection between the US and GLF, although Eguabon would only tell Snake the full details if Snake defeated him. Snake then managed to destroy Metal Gear's legs, although he still had to destroy the weapons. Afterwards, Snake learned the full truth of not only the connection between the US and GLF, but also the true purpose of his previous mission into Outer Heaven and Outer Heaven's ties to the US. He then was supplied a disc containing all the records of Project Babel. He prepared to leave, when he noticed Viper, who had survived their previous battle, on top of Metal Gear, and revealed that not only did he learn about the true identity of Anonymous, and that the fifth Black Chamber member was actually McBride, but also that Metal Gear had a satellite uplink to seven nuclear satellites, and planned to use it to achieve Black Chamber's revenge against the world. Snake then fought and defeated Viper in an intense duel before the cargo elevator containing Metal Gear could reach the surface, disabling Metal Gear's satellite uplink to prevent it from activating the satellites. Snake then learned that Anonymous was actually Steve Gardner, and that another one of his members, Weasel, was actually assigned to keep tabs on them and eventually assassinate them after the mission, although he relented towards it. Snake then decided to go back to the United States and hunt down and exact revenge on the people who played peoples lives as if they were chess pieces.

Metal Gear Solid audio drama


Solid Snake reappears in the audio drama for Metal Gear Solid that is set at some point after the events of Shadow Moses. Unlike in the other games, FOXHOUND was not disbanded following the incident. Solid Snake is sent to the Basra Republic by Roy Campbell to rendezvous with Meryl Silverburgh after her and a unit of U.N. peace negotiators were forced to crash land in the region, also getting help from a member of Delta Force member Allen Iishiba. Afterwards, he helped Mei Ling infiltrate a neo-communist island of San Chago in order to acquire evidence of a chemical plant that is secretly being built on the island and then expose its existence. While undergoing this portion of the mission, he also ends up getting into an argument with Mei Ling in regards to whether killing child soldiers is any different than killing regular soldiers, to which Snake states that there is no difference. Snake later has to undergo an unofficial rescue mission for Roy Campbell after the latter ended up captured by the enemy.

Metal Gear Acid
See Solid Snake (Metal Gear Acid)

Solid Snake is the main character in the turn-based strategy game, Metal Gear Acid. He is brought out of retirement to obtain data on a secret project conducted on Lobito Island, and to help thwart a terrorist plot.

Metal Gear Solid Mobile
Metal Gear Solid Mobile is set some time after Shadow Moses. Philanthropy received intelligence from a woman named Victoria Reed that a Metal Gear REX model was being built by the company she was working for. Snake was sent in, but quickly discovered that the whole thing was a ruse. Victoria was an AI, and Snake had really been sent in so that terrorists could take over the facility once Snake had disabled the security system. Pressing on, Snake later realized that the Otacon he had been talking was also an AI, as it started to glitch. The real Otacon eventually managed to contact Snake and they decided it would be easier for Snake to finish the mission instead of Otacon hacking him out. Snake eventually overthrew the virtual terrorist threat, and defeated their leader.

When Snake awoke from the VR, he overheard two voices talking. They stated that Snake was unable to provide them with the data they needed, and proceeded to erase his memory of the events.

Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops Plus
Snake is a unique recruitable character in Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops Plus, under the Old Snake codename, and featuring his aged appearance from Metal Gear Solid 4. When he is recruited, Campbell remarks, "Some old guy joined our team. Kinda reminds me of Snake" (referring to Old Snake's obvious similarities to his father, Naked Snake). He is equipped with an M4(SOPMOD) and a stun knife when newly recruited. In-game Old Snake has the same stats and skills as Naked Snake but his maximum stamina and health are the highest among special characters, surpassing Raiden, Campbell and even Naked Snake. Players can unlock him by completing "Infinity Mission" under the Medium difficulty.

"A legendary mercenary and former member of FOXHOUND, he single-handedly overthrow the fortress states of Outer Heaven and Zanzibar Land, and ended the terrorist crisis on Shadow Moses Island. Along with Otacon, founded "Philanthropy," an anti-Metal Gear movement."

- Character description in Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops Plus

Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker
Aside from his mention in Kazuhira Miller's phone call, Solid Snake also makes a cameo appearance in the English version of Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker, on a magazine cover. The cameo resulted when the English version had to change a few items during localization due to their being real life products (in the Solid Magazine 's case, it was Weekly Famitsu).

Yu-Gi-Oh!
Snake makes a cameo appearance in the Game Boy Advance game ''[http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Yu-Gi-Oh!_7_Trials_to_Glory:_World_Championship_2005 Yu-Gi-Oh! 7 Trials to Glory: World Championship]''. After the player unlocks access to the Mystic Lands (by winning the championship in the K.C. arena), Snake will appear in the Mystic Lands or outside its arena depending on what day it is. He appears as a character named ??? who is hiding in a cardboard box, and when talked to, he says to the player "I don't know why I'm revealing this, but I'm a secret spy. I was hired by an organization, which shall remain nameless, in order to study this Shadow World." The player can choose to duel him, where he will recognize the player is not a denizen of the shadow world and accepts the duel to see if they are strong enough to survive. If the player wins, Snake will recognise the player's strength and say they can manage, but still warns that they should run away at the slightest sign of danger. As Snake only appears within the Mystic Lands, however, the player will always have to wager one of their cards in the duel, but also gains a (random) card from him if they win.

In the Yu-Gi-Oh series proper, a monster card called Tactical Espionage Expert exists that is based on Snake. The card is an effect monster who prevents trap cards from activating if normal-summoned on the field. The monster had appeared as a discarded card in episode 1 of ''Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's''.

Super Smash Bros. Brawl


Solid Snake is a playable character in Super Smash Bros. Brawl for the Nintendo Wii. When Snake is selected with the Wii Remote he says "It's show time!", which he also said in the premiere trailer. Snake uses explosives, RPGs, and grenades, with a mix of CQC, the Cypher from Metal Gear Solid 2, and the trademark cardboard box as a taunt. His "Final Smash" super move has him hanging from a helicopter on a rope ladder, firing a grenade launcher at the rest of the combatants. In order to keep the game's rating a "T," Snake never uses knives or firearms, despite there being a pistol in his leg holster, and solely relies on explosives in-game.

He is the first third party character in the game, the other being SEGA's mascot, Sonic the Hedgehog.

In the Shadow Moses Island stage, Snake can use the Codec to contact Colonel Campbell, Otacon, or Mei Ling, in order to acquire intel on his opponents. The Codec in Brawl is based on the Metal Gear Solid version, which utilizes animated character artwork, though Snake's icon has been modified to match his in-game appearance. To use the Codec, the player must press the down taunt button and release very quickly. During Codec dialogue, Snake is revealed to be a fan of Captain Falcon, with he and Otacon referring to the Captain's signature Falcon Punch and Falcon Kick moves as something they have always wanted to try themselves. When Snake contacts Otacon and Mei Ling, regarding Samus Aran, it is implied that Snake may be infatuated with the bounty hunter. Snake also knows Mario to be a world-wide celebrity; criticizes Link's lack of speed due to his plethora of equipment; defends Luigi from verbal attack by the Colonel (presumed the AI); and believes that Pit is a mutant due to skepticism towards his being an angel. When fighting Sonic the Hedgehog, Snake remarks that "something about that hedgehog rubs me the wrong way," but refuses to explain why, merely stating, "... just don't like him." Slippy Toad, from the Star Fox series, hacks into the Colonel's frequency when trying to get information on Falco; Snake is impressed at Slippy's invention of a multi-purpose shield generator, requesting that he also build a weapon for him. It is also revealed that Snake fears Ganondorf, stating ''This guy is giving off a murderous vibe! Even getting close to him makes my skin crawl...''. If Snake is KOed by his enemies while making a Codec call, the characters that he has called will repeatedly shout his name in the same manner as the main series' Game Over screen. Snake also acts in a similar fashion towards Colonel Campbell, when the latter vilifies Luigi and begins repeating the phrase "La Li Lu Le Lo."

Solid Snake's character model in Super Smash Bros. Brawl combines traits from both the Metal Gear series' Solid Snake and the young Big Boss, Naked Snake. While the Snake of Brawl wears the Sneaking Suit, he also has a full beard similar to Naked Snake, whereas his Metal Gear counterpart is usually portrayed with only stubble. Additionally, in one palette swap (Tiger Stripe), Snake wears Naked Snake's green bandana as opposed to Solid Snake's trademark gray-blue one.

Snake is the only character to be given actual dialogue in "The Subspace Emissary" Adventure mode, when he first becomes playable in the storyline, remarking "Kept you waiting, huh?" Similarly, he is the only character to refer to the events of "The Subspace Emissary" in gameplay outside of the Adventure mode, commenting that he has seen Meta Knight's ship, the Halberd, while speaking to Mei Ling via Codec.

In "The Subspace Emissary," Snake infiltrates the Halberd, and spends most of the story hiding in the cardboard box. He attempts to hide from Lucario and Meta Knight, but fails after Lucario detects him hiding in the box using his aura powers. A fight seemed inevitable, but they put aside their differences and team up when they realize that some security primids are approaching in their direction. After becoming involved in saving the princesses on the Halberd, he, Lucario, and Meta Knight infiltrate the bridge area, where they discover various Mr. Game and Watches copies manning the bridge. They then tackle them, knocking them all from the bridge, though the multitude of Mr. Game and Watches later merge together into Duon. Snake attempts to fight it along with Fox, Zelda/Shiek, Peach, Lucario, and Falco. He is later turned into a trophy by Tabuu, only to be revived before the final confrontation.

Clearing "Classic Mode" with Snake will award a trophy of Snake, with the following description:

"A former member of FOXHOUND with an IQ of 180 and mastery of six languages. He's an infiltration specialist whose ability to carry out missions under any conditions has made him a legend. He's saved the world three times from the threat of bipedal, nuclear-armed mechs called Metal Gear. Currently he's working with the anti-Metal Gear group known as Philanthropy."

Evolution Skateboarding
Solid Snake is a secret character in Evolution Skateboarding. To play as Solid Snake, beat the game 100%, collecting all coins with character Colin McKay. A demo of Snake and the Big Shell level are playable as a special feature in the PS2 version of Metal Gear Solid 2: Substance.

Boktai series
In Boktai 2: Solar Boy Django, Snake appears as "???," a character who has lost their memory. The player rescues him in the House of Time. Django tells him to go to Sun Avenue, where he sets up a shop. The player can then buy "Blindboxes" (weapons and items that Snake has picked up in random boxes so the player can't see what he or she is buying) from him. He also gives advice on where to go next, and gives the player titles. He also appears in Boktai 3: Sabata's Counterattack.

DreamMix TV World Fighters


Snake is one of the fighters in DreamMix TV World Fighters, the fighting cross-company game between Konami, Hudson Soft, and Takara, appearing alongside mascots like Bomberman, Castlevania 's Simon Belmont, and Optimus Prime. His appearance in the game is based on Metal Gear Solid 2 with his special moves consisting of only C4, which can be planted onto anything and detonated at will. Snake's stage is based on one of the connecting bridges of the Big Shell, with the Harrier II appearing and shooting the combatants. The music for this stage is a remix of the Metal Gear Solid Main Theme, with a remix of Yell "Dead Cell" playing when the Harrier appears. Snake also has alternate costumes like the Tuxedo, his Iroquois Pliskin alter ego, as well as one based on his original Metal Gear Solid appearance.

Ape Escape 3
Solid Snake makes a non-canon appearance in Metal Gear Solid 3, specifically in the Snake vs. Monkey game, part of a promotional crossover between Konami's Metal Gear Solid and Sony's Ape Escape series, which included a special mode in Ape Escape 3 called "Mesal Gear Solid." Here, Campbell too makes an appearance in a call, where he had to bring Snake out of vacation to capture mechanical monkeys that escaped a lab, much to Snake's dismay. Snake replies back that Campbell could have gotten Gabe or Sam (referring to Gabriel Logan and Sam Fisher, protagonists of the Syphon Filter and Splinter Cell series respectively, competitors of Metal Gear Solid in the stealth genre) to do the job, though is told that there were a number of reasons why Snake was chosen, one of them being that the lab scientist is a friend of Otacon's. Once Snake has completed all of his monkey capturing, Naked Snake can acquire a Monkey Mask. Although he is usually voiced by David Hayter in most of his appearances, including Snake vs. Monkey, he was voiced by Peter Lurie (the voice actor of Vulcan Raven) in Mesal Gear Solid.

New International Track & Field
Solid Snake appears as a playable character in Konami's sports video game New International Track & Field.



LittleBigPlanet
The "Metal Gear Solid" costume download for LittleBigPlanet allows Sackboy to dress up as Old Snake. The pack can be downloaded at the PlayStation Store for $5.99. Or by getting the Game of the Year edition of the game.



Monster Hunter Freedom 3
In the PlayStation Portable game Monster Hunter Freedom 3 the player can obtain a Solid Snake outfit for their Felyne comrade. There is also a rendering of a Snake-Felyne, which hides under a cardboard box like Snake himself.

Castlevania: Lords of Shadow
In Castlevania: Lords of Shadow, the player can add Solid Snake's bandana and Solid Eye to Gabriel Belmont's normal attire by going to the Extras menu, after completing the game.



"Michael" - PS3 Long Live Play
In this video, Solid Snake makes a cameo appearance, along with other iconic game characters.

Notes and references
Solid Snake Solid Snake Solid Snake