Metal Gear Survive set in alternate universe where you battle crystal zombies and a giant mech

***UPDATE: Konami have suggested that Metal Gear Survive won't be a full price game but will retail for circa €30 / $33 - more as we get it***

***ORIGINAL STORY BELOW***

Konami have announced Metal Gear Survive, a 4-player co-op stealth game to be released in 2017 on PS4, Xbox One and PC. The game is set directly after the events of Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes where the surviving Militaires San Frontieres soldiers are – and we'd advise long-time MGS fans to inject a vial of FOXDIE suppressants before reading this – sucked through a wormhole into an alternate dimension where they're drawn into battle with zombies that Konami refer to as 'biological threats' and a giant Metal Gear mech(s).

Don't take our word for it – take a look at the 2 minute first trailer below, as debuted on IGN.

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There's no sign of Big Boss, Venom Snake, Ocelot or, indeed, any of the classic MGS cast in this trailer, though that's not to say they won't make an appearance. The new 'hero' appears to be a (fairly generic looking) MSF trooper, who's joined by a team of archetypal action heroes (a snarling heroine with a bow, a man in a sneaking suit and a bald dude). All told, it looks like Left 4 Dead, Monster Hunter and The Division whirled into a blender, with a sprinkling of nano-machines (or Code Talker from MGSV's infamous 'parasites').

There is, of course, a chance that this will all be quite spectacular, despite the initially bewildering setting – and we're hoping to get a closer look at the game during Gamescom later today. It is *slightly* rich to query wormholes as a plot device in a series about sentient AI networks, evolution, nanomachines, fat men on rollerskates and ancient Native American scientists who spawned a species of deadly, vocally-triggered, worms.

"METAL GEAR SURVIVE will offer a fresh take on the series’ famed stealth elements but within a unique co-op setting that is designed for a truly engrossing multi-player experience”, says Tomotada Tashiro, European President for Konami Digital Entertainment B.V.

We've no confirmation of which surviving Kojima Productions staff are working on MG: Survive. As well documented, MGS series' creator Hideo Kojima recently left Konami to start a new studio, also called Kojima Productions, working on Death Stranding in conjunction with Sony. It's worth noting, that of the 100s of developers who worked on MGSV, Kojima appears to have re-recruited relatively few of his former staff, and some notable names – like Yuji Korekado, veteran programmer / designer of the MGS series, whose name appeared on the MGS pre-mission credits – don't appear to have left Konami.

Unsurprisingly, the internet reaction to Metal Gear Survive has been mixed, but short of announcing Kojima's return to the series, that was almost certainly going to be the case with any new Metal Gear games.

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FGS Content Director. Former GamesRadar+ EIC, GTAVoclock host, and PSM3 editor; with - *counts on fingers and toes* - 20 years editorial experience. Loves: spreadsheets, Hideo Kojima and GTA.