Aside from its reputation as a storytelling masterpiece, Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots is known for two things: absurdly long cinematic cutscenes and plot twists. But, as it turns out, the development of the game has just as big of a plot twist as the one that happened at the end.
Apparently, the fourth mainline entry in the legendary Metal Gear Solid franchise wasn’t just planned for the Xbox 360 – it was actually fully operational for the Xbox’s flagship console at the time.
In what’s easily the biggest revelation about Metal Gear since the announcement of Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater, Ryan Payton, the game’s assistant producer, confirmes this fascinating detail in an interview for “The Ultimate History of Video Games Vol 2” by Steven L. Kent, as pointed out by Time Extension.
Despite being revered as a PlayStation 3 exclusive, Payton states that Konami, the developer behind the iconic series, had initially intended to make Metal Gear Solid 4 a multi-platform title. According to Payton, MGS4 was in active development for the Xbox 360, and at one stage, it was “running beautifully and smoothly” on Microsoft’s console.
Payton speaks of a day when the Konami R&D team was able to show Metal Gear Solid 4 operating flawlessly on an Xbox 360, much to the delight of Payton himself, a self-professed Xbox enthusiast.
However, the dream of an Xbox 360 version of Metal Gear Solid 4 ultimately foundered on the rocks of physical limitations. The sheer scale and detail of Metal Gear Solid 4’s gaming world required a significant amount of storage space. The PS3’s utilization of Blu-ray discs, which are capable of holding up to 54GB of data, makes them an ideal medium for a game of such magnitude.
In contrast, the Xbox 360 utilized DVD-ROM discs, which held a maximum of 8.3GB. To accommodate Metal Gear Solid 4 on an Xbox 360 would necessitate spreading the game across numerous discs, a logistical challenge Konami deemed too great to overcome.
As such, despite the technical possibility, the practical viability of porting Metal Gear Solid 4 to the Xbox 360 had become playground talk – until now.
Sony’s Jack Tretton, the then-CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment America, once firmly asserted, “Metal Gear Solid [4] is not only exclusive on PS3, it’s only possible on PS3 thanks in part to Blu-ray.” A statement that, in light of this new information, rings true on a practical rather than technical level.
This is not to downplay the significance of Metal Gear Solid 4 within its rightful home on the PlayStation 3. The game, the fourth major installment of the Metal Gear Solid series, marked a grand finale for Solid Snake’s journey, tying up several decade-spanning storylines. The game’s high-detailed graphics, advanced stealth gameplay, and epic narrative that firmly established it as a stalwart title within the PlayStation 3 catalog.
The revelations about Metal Gear Solid 4’s brief stint with Xbox 360 become particularly interesting in light of what Konami had just revealed at the PlayStation Showcase.
The developer recently disclosed plans for the Metal Gear Solid Master Collection Vol. 1, featuring the original versions of Metal Gear Solid 1, 2, and 3 for Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, and PlayStation 5. This will be followed by the much-anticipated remake of Metal Gear Solid 3, dubbed Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater, initially revealed for the PlayStation 5 and the PC before being confirmed for the Xbox Series S/X later on.
In the wake of these plans, Metal Gear Solid 4 stands out as the PS3 exclusive that never made it beyond its OG platform. It has never been re-released or ported to any other system, remaining a distinctive gem in the crown of the PlayStation 3.
However, the upcoming series of Metal Gear Solid re-releases kindle a glimmer of hope for Xbox enthusiasts. Perhaps, with the advent of modern technology and increased storage capacities, the second volume of the Metal Gear Solid Master Collection could resurrect the once-abandoned project and bring Metal Gear Solid 4 to Xbox consoles.
In the meantime, Xbox fans can take delight that Hideo Kojima, the brain behind the entire Metal Gear franchise, is working on an exclusive game for the Xbox platform.
