| This article is about a non-canonical topic in the Metal Gear series. |
During Operation Intrude N313, Solid Snake and three other companions performed an air insertion into the jungles of Outer Heaven, by parachuting out of a transport plane. They landed separately and Snake infiltrated the main fortress alone.
Behind the scenes[]
The NES version of Metal Gear features a different opening sequence than the original MSX2 version, in which Solid Snake is not the sole infiltrator into enemy territory. Although Snake must later rescue numerous prisoners of war in the fortress, any connection to the other three parachutists isn't made clear. In the Worlds of Power novelization of the game, most of the prisoners are Snake's squadmates who had also parachuted into Outer Heaven, albeit three weeks earlier.
The back cover of the 1988 sequel gamebook, for the Famicom version of Metal Gear, features a screencap of the three parachutists jumping out of the plane alongside Snake, although they are not present in the book itself.
While the MS-DOS and Commodore 64 versions of Metal Gear include the opening parachute sequence, the companions are omitted, and Solid Snake jumps from the plane alone.
In the back of the packaging for Snake's Revenge, it mentions that Colonel CaTaffy (the "villain" of the NES version, or more accurately, its manual) had murdered two of Snake's friends after Metal Gear's destruction and this acted as the basis for Snake desiring vengeance, although it's not clear if this was meant to reference his parachuting companions.
Snake's companions make an appearance 31 years later in the Metal Gear Original NES Video Game Soundtrack cover art.