By Jonathan Chucri

One must die and one must live. No victory, no defeat. The survivor will carry on the fight. It is our destiny… The one who survives will inherit the title of Boss. And the one who inherits the title of Boss will face an existence of endless battle. – The Boss (MGS 3).

Metal Gear is a stealth action game series created by Hideo Kojima and developed by Konami. The series has been around since 1987 and is known for its story, characters, and stealth gameplay.   With the latest installment to the series, Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, out now, some people that have not heard about the series might want to get a quick history lesson about Snake, Foxhound, The Sons of Liberty, The Patriots, and Big Boss himself, starting from the very beginning.

The first game in the series is called Metal Gear Solid (MGS). It is about the main character, Solid Snake, a soldier sent to Shadow Moses Island, home to a nuclear weapons disposal facility, to disable the bipedal nuclear tank, Metal Gear Rex. Snake also has to stop the remnants of the Foxhound soldiers sent to capture the island and use it as leverage against the U.S Government. Throughout his mission, Snake has to fight Foxhound’s many genetically engineered soldiers and eventually learns about his past and the other soldiers just like him.

The sequel to MGS is called Sons of Liberty. The game starts with the player playing as Solid Snake, but primarily the player plays as Raiden, a soldier sent to a marine decontamination facility called Big Shell, to rescue the U.S President and other hostages from the terrorist group known as the Sons of Liberty. Throughout his mission he encounters members of Dead Cell, a rogue anti-terrorist group backing up the Sons of Liberty. While on his mission, he finds out about the greater powers in play and realizes that nothing is as it seems. This installation in the series is known for its deep and complex story, often leaving players questioning everything after their first playthrough.

The third game in the series is called Snake Eater. Unlike previous games in the series, which take place in present time, Snake Eater takes place in 1964. In this game the player plays as Naked Snake, an Ex-Green Beret turned CIA agent (not to be confused with Solid Snake), sent to the Soviet Union during the Cold War to rescue a nuclear weapons designer from captivity. After he seemingly accomplishes this, he is met by his old mentor, The Boss, whose motives and affiliations seem to have changed from when he trained under her. Snake is then thrown off a bridge by The Boss into the river and falls unconscious. When he finally awakens, he realizes that he is left on his own accords in the jungle and must survive while fighting off the soldiers sent to take him out and nature itself. Throughout his mission, Naked Snake endures many hardships and eventually earns himself the title of Big Boss. This game is widely considered the best one in the series by MGS fans due to its emotional story and gameplay.

The fourth installment in the series is called Guns of The Patriots. In this game, players play as an older Solid Snake who now goes by Old Snake. His mission is to stop Liquid Ocelot from hijacking the Sons of The Patriots network, which controls all of the nanomachines, tiny machines put into soldiers’ bodies to aid them in battle, that all private military corporation soldiers (PMCs) have been equipped with. Throughout his mission he must fight the very PMCs he’s trying to save.

Lastly, the series leads up to its big finale; The Phantom Pain. The reviews for Kojima’s final installment have been nothing short of amazing. Metacritic, the aggregate review site gave MGS V a 95 out of 100 (based on 24 critics including IGN and Gamespot). Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain is an extremely strong contender for Game of The Year and if you have even the slightest thought about playing it, don’t second guess yourself! Pick up a copy now! Do it soldier!