TGS 09: Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker

Konami had a blowout today at the Tokyo Game Show, hosting a stage show that highlighted Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker’s story and characters. Game director Hideo Kojima also talked at great length with two of the game’s voice actresses.

Featuring a two volume script that is “as large as Metal Gear Solid 4’s” according to Kojima, Peace Walker is a full-blown MGS game, despite its portable platform. The story is as convoluted and detailed as previous entries into the series. “Peace Walker’s story is MGS3-ish,” claimed Kojima.

“Solid Snake’s story is over. Naked Snake’s is not yet finished.” Kojima continued, referring the game’s protagonist Naked Snake, AKA Big Boss. The game will take place in Costa Rica in 1974. According to the trailer shown at the stage show, the story revolves around a mysterious military force operating within Costa Rica, a pacifist nation without a military. Snake and his private army, Militaires Sans Frontiers, are called upon to investigate.

The stage show then shifted its focus away from the story and onto the characters themselves. The voice actors of seven of the game’s characters were either on hand or featured in video messages as their respective characters were described by Kojima.

The first character was Snake, followed by Kazuhira Miller, who hasn’t appeared in a Metal Gear since Metal Gear Solid on the PS1, where he was called Master Miller. The third character was Paz, whose name means peace in Spanish, the same meaning as Kazuhira’s name in Japanese. Next was Galvez, a mysterious Costa Rican professor who calls on the Militaires Sans Frontiers for aid, and somehow knows that Snake is Big Boss. Strangelove came next. She’s a mysterious young woman, whose name sounds like a strange English way of saying "pervert" to the average Japanese person. Strangelove was followed by Chico, a Costa Rican youth and his older sister Amanda, who bears a striking resemblance to Meryl from Metal Gear Solid 4. Another new character that looks like an older one is Huey, who’s appearance is so like that of Otacon, a main character from the previous games, that Kojima joked that “He’s a clone.”

Coldman followed Huey. Coldman is an older bald man who flashed a Nixon-like victory (or perhaps peace) sign during the trailer. A sign of some significance, according to Kojima. Given that Watergate also took place in 1974 and the logo of Peace Walker is a plane made to resemble a peace sign, its importance is obvious, yet mysterious. Kojima revealed Cecile, a young French woman, last.

The stage show was wrapped up with Kojima and two of the voice actresses making small talk about the game’s theme of peace. Both actresses seemed to stress how “deep” the theme was, saying it at least six times between the two of them.

Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker is scheduled for a 2010 release.

Sep 24, 2009