Solid Snake
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"Solid Snake" (Japanese: ソリッド・スネーク Soriddo Sunêku) is the main character in the Metal Gear video game series. He is a mystery and myth to much of the world. He is a highly trained, elite soldier with a personal preference for parachuting, husky racing, SCUBA diving, free climbing, rappelling, small and medium range handguns (though well-versed in all types of munitions), and various hand-to-hand combat techniques. Snake is also an avid smoker; he is seen smoking cigarettes on numerous occasions when not under player control. He can use cigarettes during his missions, principally to detect laser wires.
He is voiced by Akio Otsuka in the Japanese releases of the Metal Gear Solid series, and by David Hayter in the English releases. Hideo Kojima based Solid Snake on a number of different characters, including Snake Plissken from the film Escape from New York.
Snake's real name, David, which was revealed in the original 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 the English voice actor, David Hayter, this was not intentional (contrary to popular belief) and is merely coincidental. In Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty, he uses the alias Iroquois Pliskin, which is a reference to Snake Plissken. The name "Iroquois" has a double meaning. The Iroquois were a confederacy of Native American tribes headquartered in New York. The word "Iroquois" was also a Huron word meaning "Black Snake," although this may have been considered an insult.
Metal Gear 2, set in 1999, features an older-looking Snake than seen in Metal Gear Solid, set in 2005. However, there are numerous inconsistencies between the Metal Gear Solid trilogy and the previous incarnation of the series. The character designs used in the earlier Metal Gear games were based on real actors (Snake's depiction on the original MSX game's cover art is pictographically identical to Michael Biehn in The Terminator, while his portrait in Metal Gear 2 bears the likeness of Mel Gibson). In later games, the characters would be redesigned - in Konami's Japanese cell phone re-release of Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake, Snake's portrait is completely reworked, bringing it more in line with his presentation in Metal Gear Solid.
After a largely non-playable appearance in Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty, a much older (his aged look is due to the fact that he is a clone, undergoing advanced cellular degeneration)[Citation needed] Snake will appear in the upcoming Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots, in which he will once again be the main character.
According to the Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake instruction manual, he was 178 cm tall and weighed 75 kg (roughly 5 ft 10 1/2 in, 165 lb) during the Zanzibar Land incident and is of mixed Japanese and British descent. In Metal Gear Solid, it was revealed that Solid Snake shares distant ancestry with Vulcan Raven (Raven mentions that "Inuit and Japanese are cousins to one another.")
In the MGS4 trailer, Snake is 182 cm tall and weighs 83 kg (roughly 6 ft, 183 lb) according to the personal info provided by Otacon's Mk. II.
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History
Early life and career
Snake was born as a result of the Les Enfants Terribles project, which was an attempt to create the perfect soldier by cloning the "Greatest Warrior of the 20th Century," Big Boss. During the Shadow Moses Island incident, Liquid Snake was under the impression that he "was inferior one", having been granted the supposedly "flawed" recessive genes, whilst his brother received the "superior" dominant genes, hence his resentment towards Solid Snake during their confrontation and his believing himself to be "garbage from the day (he) was born," the leftovers of what they had used to create his brother, "the Legend," Solid Snake. In truth, it was revealed that Solid Snake had the inferior genes and liquid was given the superior genes. Liquid and Snake never find this out. Details of his early life are largely unknown, the only clue being Snake's own comment that he was "raised by many people." In 1991, Snake infiltrated western Iraq during the Gulf War with a platoon of Green Berets. Not much else is implied about this other than Snake saying: "I was just a kid myself back then..."
The Outer Heaven Uprising
Template:Selfref Image:MG1 Snake.jpg Snake's career was notable enough that in 1995, he was recruited into the Special Operations group FOXHOUND as a Commando. Still a rookie, he was chosen to infiltrate the heavily fortified independent state of Outer Heaven near South Africa, rescue his fellow operative Gray Fox and other prisoners and destroy a new super weapon called Metal Gear. Unbeknownst to Snake, his superior who ordered him into Outer Heaven, Big Boss, the commander of FOXHOUND, was behind the uprising and actually counting on Snake's inexperience to lead him towards failure.
Using all of his training and abilities, Snake managed to destroy Metal Gear and defeat Big Boss. After the Outer Heaven incident, Solid Snake decided to leave FOXHOUND. He was then scouted by the CIA and spent six months as a deep cover agent before he was dissatisfied with the system and left. He then became a mercenary for hire. Earning enough money, he went into semi-retirement in the Alaskan wilderness.
The Zanzibar Land Disturbance
| Solid Snake, circa 1999 | |
| Image:MSX Snake.PNG | Image:SNAKE MG2.gif |
In 1999, Snake's former commander, Roy Campbell, recalled him for another operation in Central Asia in 1999. Snake's mission involved deposing the rising dictator of Zanzibar Land, who turned out to be none other than Big Boss himself, and had command of another Metal Gear tank Metal Gear D. The former FOXHOUND agent Gray Fox was found to be working with Big Boss as well.
Snake destroyed Metal Gear D and defeated Gray Fox in a brutal fist fight in the middle of a minefield. He then confronted Big Boss, who was awaiting near the Detention Camp's exit. The match to the death between the two occurred and Snake emerged victorious over his former commander.
As Big Boss was being burned alive from the makeshift flamethrower Snake created, Snake felt as if he killed his own father. It was only after he returned to base that he learned the truth. After the Zanzibar Land incident, Snake returned to North America and retired to the Alaskan wilderness retreat, Twin Lakes, to try to forget his war-torn past and recover from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) which often led him to hallucinations and feelings of guilt. Snake decided to take up dog sledding in order to help take his mind off of such things.
Shadow Moses Island incident
Template:Selfref Image:MGS1 Solid Snake.jpg
In 2005, when members of recently re-formed FOXHOUND took over the nuclear disposal facility on Shadow Moses Island, Roy Campbell came calling on Snake again. This time, Snake found himself pitted against the Genome Army, an army of genetically altered soldiers using the genes of Big Boss, new members of FOXHOUND: Revolver Ocelot, Sniper Wolf, Vulcan Raven, Decoy Octopus, Psycho Mantis, and their leader, Liquid Snake.
Along the way, Snake periodically teamed up with Meryl Silverburgh, and Hal "Otacon" Emmerich, Metal Gear REX's designer. His support crew included his former commanding officer Campbell, data analyst Mei Ling, weapons expert Nastasha Romanenko and FOXHOUND's medical chief of staff Dr. Naomi Hunter.
Snake was successful in infiltrating the facility. He managed to neutralize all members of the FOXHOUND unit except for Revolver Ocelot, and was successful in destroying the Metal Gear REX prototype. However, Snake was implanted with the FOXDIE retrovirus as part of his mission objective without his knowledge. The virus was originally scheduled to kill Snake after he completed his mission. However, Naomi Hunter, who implanted the virus into Snake, changed the program and altered the incubation period to a wildcard value. Liquid, who was identical to Snake in the genetic level, was killed by the virus, confirming that Snake himself was still vulnerable to the virus at any random moment.
After the incident, Snake went into deep hiding with Meryl. They eventually parted ways, and Snake would return to action later with Otacon. The two worked to create the first anti-Metal Gear political group, an NGO called "Philanthropy." They have since gained official United Nations recognition.
The Sinking of the Tanker
Template:Selfref In 2007, Snake and Otacon, needing photographic proof that the U.S. Marine Corps were developing a new amphibious Metal Gear, proceeded to New York City, following an anonymous tip (that was later revealed to had come from Emma, Otacon's stepsister) that a ship carrying a new Metal Gear prototype was scheduled to travel through the Hudson River.
Almost immediately following Snake's successful insertion onto the vessel, the ship was taken over by Gurlukovich Mercenaries. As the mercenary group was about to take Metal Gear RAY, Revolver Ocelot betrayed Sergei Gurlukovich and took the prototype to an unknown location.
During the sinking of tanker a cypher owned by the Army took photographs of Snake invading the tanker (After he tranquilized Olga) and then released the images to the media, implicating Snake in the attack. Framed for the terrorist act, Snake was believed to have been killed during the incident, and his body was buried (it was actually the body of his twin brother, Liquid Snake).
The Big Shell Takeover
Template:Selfref In 2009, during an incident at the Big Shell, Solid Snake turned up (under the guise of Iroquois Pliskin), and assisted alleged FOXHOUND operative Raiden in rescuing hostages and discovering the plot of former President George Sears, who reveals himself to be Solidus Snake, the third "son" of Big Boss, brother of Solid and Liquid Snake and the one who ordered Ocelot to steal Metal Gear RAY. As the leader of the Sons of Liberty, Solidus was working to overthrow a mysterious underlying force that drives the United States' government called The Patriots.
The real reason Snake went to the Big Shell was to uncover a new type of Metal Gear constructed underneath the treatment plant known as Arsenal Gear. The entire incident was orchestrated by The Patriots from the start as part of the S3 Plan, with the exception of Snake's actual presence. Instead, Snake only got involved due to the information that was leaked to him and Otacon by Ocelot (under Liquid's influence).
With Olga Gurlukovich's help (whom Snake rescued during the Tanker incident), Snake used Raiden as a decoy to infiltrate Arsenal Gear itself and replaced the MO Disk containing the identities of the Wisemen's Committee in Raiden's possession with a fake one. He helped Raiden neutralize an entire battalion of Tengu Commandos, before being captured by Fortune. However, Snake broke free (after Arsenal Gear's AI System broke down) and chased after the awakened Liquid when he took off with Metal Gear RAY. He was unable to capture Liquid/Ocelot, but still retained the MO Disk.
At the end of this mission, Snake began looking into who the Wisemen's Committee were and how Ocelot was involved. Otacon tells Snake about the Patriots information on the disk. Otacon discovers that the Wisemen had been dead for about 100 years, leaving them both in utter confusion.
Guns of the Patriots
On September 15th, 2005, Kojima Productions released a trailer of Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots, their upcoming PlayStation 3 title, at the Tokyo Game Show as part of their Metal Gear Saga presentation. The setting of the game is unknown, as the trailer only states that Metal Gear Solid 4 is "X years" or "several years" (the Japanese subtitles translated into english means "Several years after Big Shell") after the Big Shell incident. In the trailer, Snake is shown suffering from a what appears to be a respiratory illness after collapsing to the ground in a coughing spasm, which he stops with the use of an immediate injection of medicine into his jugular vein, hinting that his health will play a vital role in the game. This unknown illness could be a long-term result of his constant tobacco use. Another possibility is that the FOXDIE virus, which was set by Naomi Hunter to manifest at a random time, has begun to take effect.
Also of note is the fact that Snake is shown wearing a monitor-equipped eyepatch, called the Solid Eye System, which gives him enhanced vision (providing him with information about hostiles and vehicles), continuing the motif of eye-patch wearing Snakes in the series. The two preceding ones are Solidus Snake in Metal Gear Solid 2, and Naked Snake (Big Boss) in Metal Gear Solid 3. Solid Snake's eyepatch covers his left eye, making him more similar to Solidus than Big Boss in this respect, and at this point it is uncertain whether or not Snake has actually lost his eye, had his eye surgically removed or altered purposely or simply wears the patch for the technological advantage.
In this game, Snake is clearly suffering from accelerated aging, a result of the cloning process which gave birth to him. Big Boss was cloned in his late 50's. Having been cloned from the aged cells of Big Boss, it is therefore likely that imperfections in his genes led to a decreased lifespan.
The kanji-like symbol on Snake's sneaking suit is called an Otakon (オタ魂), which is a portmanteau of Otacon's name with the kanji character (kon or tamashii) for spirit; beneath it is the phrase "to let the world be". The symbol is Otacon's personal logo and will appear on equipment designed by him.
Also worth mentioning, is Otacon's conversation with Snake. Otacon says to Snake: "Didn't you quit?" to which Snake replies: "Nah, just found a light." Apparently, in spite of his ill health, Solid Snake still smokes.
Alternate storylines
In addition to the games belonging to the Metal Gear canon, Solid Snake has also served as the protagonist of the various related side games set outside the series' main continuity. While Snake's roles in these side-stories are not taken into account in the main canon, his general backstory and appearance remains relatively similar in these games.
Operation 747
Image:SR Snake.PNG In the events depicted in the non-canonical Snake's Revenge (which serves as an alternate sequel to the first Metal Gear), Solid Snake is sent to an undisclosed hostile nation in order to investigate rumors of a new Metal Gear being developed. He is referred by the military rank of lieutenant, and "Solid Snake" is apparently his real name. Snake is placed in command of a FOXHOUND squad consisting of himself and three other members, John Turner (a former Navy operative), Nick Myer (a former Marine) and Jennifer (a double agent). He discovers that not only is the enemy is constructing mass-produced units of the original "Metal Gear 1" model, but that a new prototype known as "Metal Gear 2" is being developed at the heart of the main base. Ultimately, Snake is forced to complete his mission alone when "Turner" is revealed to be an imposter, Myer is killed in action and Jennifer is taken captive when her cover is blown. Snake accomplishes his mission: he defeats the enemy commander (who is revealed to be Big Boss), saves Jennifer and destroys Metal Gear 2 before the countdown all in one.
Unlike the usual portrayal of Solid Snake (excluding Guns of the Patriots), this incarnation wields a knife in combat which is already in his possession at the beginning of the mission (which the player can use as a substitute for the standard punch). In MGS2, when Snake hands out the high-frequency blade to Raiden, Snake makes the comment that he is not "a fan of blades" as his reasoning for not using the blade himself. This comment has been interpreted by fans as an attempt to distance the canonical version of Snake from the Snake's Revenge version of the character, although in MGS3 Naked Snake (the young Big Boss) uses a survival knife, as does Solid Snake in the upcoming MGS4.
Snake's appearance in Snake's Revenge was modeled after the likeness of Arnold Schwarzenegger.
Galuade incident
Image:MGGB Snake.gif In the continuity followed by Metal Gear: Ghost Babel, Solid Snake has already killed in Big Boss during the Outer Heaven incident (although, he was unaware that Big Boss was his biological father until sometime after his death). He continued his service with FOXHOUND for the following four years afterwards, until being discharged. Three years after, he is brought out of retirement from his home in Alaska by Colonel Campbell (under orders from Steve Gardner, the National Security Advisor) when GANDER, a new US-developed Metal Gear model, is hijacked by the Gindra Liberation Force in Central Africa and Black Chamber. Their base of operations is the fortress of Galuade, which happened to be the former Outer Heaven. His support crew is comprised of Campbell himself, Mei Ling (whom Snake meets for the first time in Ghost Babel' continuity), Ronard "Weasel" Lensenbrink (a mercenary) and Brian McBride (Director of African Affairs for the CIA).
His initial objective to rendezvous with the Delta Force team sent to recover Gander from the Galuade. When he arrives there however, he discovers from Delta Force operative Chris Jenner, that the team has been wiped out by Black Chamber and that she is apparently the only survivor. Snake cooperates with Chris and with her help, he defeats the members of Black Chamber and destroys Gander. In the end, Snake learns from General Eguabon that Outer Heaven was actually a CIA-funded mercenary dispatching company for "clients" and that Snake's involvement in its downfall was staged in order to eliminate its renegade leader, Big Boss. It is also revealed that Gardner, the NSA advisor who authorized Snake's mission in Galuade, was also the former DCI who funded Outer Heaven and its succeeding project, Project Babel.
After defeating the General and Black Chamber leader, Black Arts Viper, in battle, Snake leaves Gindra with Chris via a jeep, as he vows to return to the U.S. to fight against Gardner and Parker.
Lobito Island incident
Image:MGA Snake.jpg Image:SnakeMGA1.PNG In the events depicted in Metal Gear Ac!d, Snake is chosen to infiltrate the Lobito Physics and Research Laboratory when Commercial Flight 326 is hijacked with an important candidate for U.S. presidential election on board: Viggo Hatch. His objective is to retrieve "Pythagoras", which the hijackers demand.
Solid Snake suffers through an identity crisis through most of his mission. A turn of events makes him doubt his real identity when Dr. William L. Flemming (the true identity of Gary Murray) identifies him as Hans Davis, his co-worker at the lab.
Snake is almost controlled by his "Hans" personality, when he discovers he was never Hans Davis in the first place. This is actually the work of Alice (No. 16) who wanted Snake all for herself as a mindless puppet, as he was the so-called "role model" of the children in the Ritual of Conjuration and the closest thing she had to a father figure, along with Flemming. By introducing ACUA into his metabolism via the CHAIN system in his sneaking suit remote medical administration, Alice managed to make Snake recall false memories of his time as Hans. However, he breaks free to fight against the new Metal Gear model, KODOQUE. He is ultimately successful in destroying the new Metal Gear and foiling Flemming's plot.
At the end, Snake talks to Teliko about mountain climbing, and both agree to do this activity together. Template:-
SaintLogic Labs incident
In the events Metal Gear Acid 2 (which continues from the events of Metal Gear Acid), it is assumed that the "real" Solid Snake died after the Lobito Island incident. During that time, SaintLogic took posession of Solid Snake's body and made a clone using a fusion of cells and data. Created as a Model 3 test subject, the clone was dubbed "Snake" by Lucinda Koppelthorn, his creator. During the same time, Metal Gear Chaioth Ha Qadesh was created in order to control the Model 3 test subjects.
However, during the time Lucinda visited Serena to gather data on the Model 2 test subjects, they became unstable and started to kill various civilians. In order to kill off the Model 2s, SaintLogic sent Snake and other Model 3 test subjects to clean everything up. Secretly, however, Lucinda Koppelthorn had ordered Snake sent in, himself a rogue Model 3, and she was later killed for her treachery. Template:-
References
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