Metal Gear Solid Delta Could’ve Benefitted From One of…

When Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater was originally released back in 2004, it filled in some of the most important lore gaps in the series, especially those concerning the trajectory of how Naked Snake eventually became the series' most notorious antagonist, Big Boss. That much remains the same in Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater, albeit with the benefit of Unreal Engine 5 visuals bringing the whole saga to life in stunning fidelity. But it's hard not to feel like Konami and Virtuos could have made Delta even more of a definitive version of Snake Eater via the addition of one of Final Fantasy 16's best features.

As far as in-game lore is concerned, the Final Fantasy games have a bit of a leg-up on Metal Gear Solid in that the series is an anthology and only concerned with the individual characters and setting of each game. In contrast, the Metal Gear series tells a complex and multi-faceted narrative with many key players responsible for specific events spanning a roughly 60-year timeline, making it hard to keep up with who's who and remember the all-important context that adds weight and gravitas to each of the painstakingly directed cutscenes. And because of how integral Snake Eater's story is to the whole Metal Gear saga, it's a shame Metal Gear Solid Delta doesn't include something similar to Final Fantasy 16's "Active Time Lore" system.

An Active Time Lore Feature Would've Helped Onboard Those New to the Metal Gear Series

To say that the storyline of the Metal Gear series is convoluted is a bit of an understatement, to the point where doing outside research and playing through the games multiple times is practically a requirement to gain a deeper understanding and appreciation of the complex narrative that weaves together fiction and real-world history. At the time of both Metal Gear Solid and Metal Gear Solid 2's releases, the games took place in a near-future setting that made a brief brush-up on world history unnecessary, but Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater is a different story altogether, taking players back to the turbulent era of espionage and global tension that was the Cold War. As such, an Active Time Lore-like system would've been a huge benefit for anyone approaching Metal Gear Solid Delta as their first Metal Gear game.

Being able to pause mid-cutscene and use an in-game encyclopedia to look up a particular character or get some further context and information on certain terms or real-world events that are referenced would've been a nice touch for both longtime series fans and for newcomers, especially considering how much Snake Eater's story leans heavily on players having some cursory knowledge of the franchise's lore up to that point. Most of Snake Eater's biggest reveals come about either during the game's many cutscenes or from context clues in Snake's Codec calls, which makes the lack of an in-game lore encyclopedia reference feel like a missed opportunity.

As it Stands, Metal Gear Solid Delta's Options for Revisiting Story Content Are Somewhat Lacking

That's not to say that players have no options for refreshing their memory on certain important story beats in Metal Gear Solid Delta; it's just that those options pale in comparison to a Final Fantasy 16-style Active Time Lore feature. Most of Snake Eater's narrative is communicated to the player during the game's many cutscenes, which players can access from the Demo Theater after completing the game once on any difficulty. It's a nice feature to have that's been present in every edition of Snake Eater since the PS2 original, but it requires a bit more legwork on the part of the player than simply hitting a button mid-cutscene a la Active Time Lore.

The final confrontation between Naked Snake and The Boss is so rich with lore that's critical to the rest of the Metal Gear Solid series that it's almost overwhelming to take it all in — information about the Philosophers, their Legacy, The Boss' decision to defect, and even her familial connection to other important characters in the game. Being able to not only pause and get more info on these topics, but also see the connections between them laid bare and have them pinpoint further reading, would've been a nice touch to help elevate Metal Gear Solid Delta to being the "definitive" version of the Metal Gear series' high point.

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