War & Pacifism in "Metal Gear" Games
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 5 ก.ย. 2024
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Hideo Kojima's series METAL GEAR SOLID is well known around the world for its idiosyncratic and iconic military stealth action. But how could this same series also be the most consistently anti-war in the industry?
In this video essay, we look at each METAL GEAR in turn, focusing on what it had to say on the subject of war & peace. By the end, I'll make the case for why the Metal Gear series should be recognized more widely for its ability to convey a 'solid' set of principles, yet ultimately leave the final meaning as something for the player ourselves to find.
theweek.com/ar...
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"The Metal Gear franchise follows the story of protagonist Solid Snake as he tries to rid the world of Metal Gears and atone for his sins. The Metal Gear series is well-known for its elaborate, complex plot-lines and large amount of cutscenes. The majority of games in the franchise fall under the Metal Gear Solid series. Another sub-series is the Metal Gear Acid series."
www.giantbomb....
I love how MGSV has an ending talking about the wisdom of not creating nukes but the game has a trophy for creating a nuke, ensuring there's almost always nukes.
We saw that ending though.
@@dylmm the one on PS3 was legit, the one on PC was triggered by hackers
Truly meta
@@enkelegy The one on PS3 was not legit, they had to use hacks and cheats to get players who had nukes but weren't online anymore.
Also, you're talking about a dead platform to begin with, there weren't active players trying to keep nukes so of course you could get rid of a lot of them. Winning a game against nobody isn't a legit win.
I mean you can still make the nuke to show you can and then immediately destroy it. A sort of “I’m only doing this to show I can do it, but choose not to”
The best way to describe MGS is that it’s a anti war game disguised as a war game
Exactly
"I'm going to use war games as entertainment to criticize war games as entertainment!" - Senator Kojima
Also, "Videogames, son!"
I know I'm quite off topic but do anyone know a good place to watch new series online?
It’s sort of a takes one to know one kind of thing lol
I enlisted for BB lmao
I always saw the disarmament ending in V as really tragic. Snake says he has to "drive out the demon" inside him, but we know he never does. By Metal Gear, he's fully accepted being Big Boss and running a nuclear-armed fortress and threatening the world with annihilation. Then there's the fact that the disarmament (assuming it ever happened since assuming anything happened in that game is dubious) was what enabled Big Boss to be the threat he was in Metal Gear and Metal Gear 2. In a world without nukes, the guy with the nuke is king.
Even the idea that they just retconned the disarmament from Metal Gear 2 when Solid happened could be seen as countries plunging back into deterrence after seeing what Big Boss was going to do and how they couldn't react without their own nukes. Then there's what Baker said about proliferation among non-nations, something that Big Boss himself probably inspired after he showed the entire world how easily he was able to hold everyone hostage with Metal Gear. Not unlike how MSF inspired other people to create PFs and begin the war economy.
The invention of the technology was like opening a Pandora’s Box - there is no closing it back. I think the constant theme of failed disarmament is representative of that. There is no hope in the real world for true disarmament, because as you said, no one country is going to disarm if there is any chance that not everyone else will simultaneously disarm. This is why the possession as deterrence practice is really the only option at the end of the day.
"It takes more courage and skill to adopt a non-violent play style"
- The Most Alpha Chad Ever
I've never considered Metal Gear to be pro or anti-war. I've always thought of it as a series that analyzes the nature of war, the causes of it, and what can be done to prevent it, as well as when it becomes necessary. To reduce Metal Gear to simply being anti-war and nothing else does a disservice to the complexity of the topic, and to the games themselves, which is what I see a lot of people doing both in the comments and in other general discussions related to the games.
The stance that war is necessary is not something most people would be complicit with but can be observed within morally reprehensible yet complex characters like The Boss, Big Boss, and Kaz. Let's face it. None of us wanna be caught in any kind of violent conflict. We wanna play games, live life, and have the free time to ponder these very points. I'm not necessarily against the act of not taking a stance on the matter but playing devil's advocate on it without a hint of irony isn't really in my interest.
@@kennysorel I wasn't playing devil's advocate, nor attempted to. My response was aimed at those who attempt to define MGS through their political lenses, situating it on whatever side of the fence suits them. In MGS2 Raiden is taught to decide the man he wants to be, and this process of self-discovery and self-actualization inevitably scales up to your world views. The games themselves all seem to, in some way, or another revolve around the theme of figuring out who a person wants to be, and by the end of the game coming to a decision or encountering an influence that frees them to go and seek it out.
I agree. It says more on the nature of war then actually saying "War's Bad, Mkay". Afterlife Games has a really good video on the subject
“You played around the violence” is my favorite description of the mgs soul.
Reminds me of the fight with the joy
It honestly makes perfect sense. In most MGS games you can go completely without fatally harming anyone if you truly want to take the time and effort.
Wait, do people really not get that Metal Gear is anti-war? HOW?
Only an absolute dingus would think they're pro-war. That's like saying Gundam is just about cool robots.
Pretty much. I LOVE both series but there is more depth to both than just Mobile Suits and Being Solid Snake.
Same people that think it's pro capitalists because the enemy are always ex soviet russian private military, without asking why they make st skip all the cutscenes
I’ve commented on futura’s vids before saying the same thing and have gotten angry responses hahaha. Really blew my mind how mgs anti war stance gets overlooked by some folks
I've never seen people call MGS pro-war, but i've seen quite a few call the series "apolitical" which makes even less sense.
I guess that would be the people who skip all the codec calls and cutscenes , I guess that’s how they didn’t see it !
"All art is inherently political" originally comes from George Orwell. Which goes to show Kojima's appreciation for his works, including 1984.
So much for the "keep politics out of muh vidya gaymes!"
@@themajesticspider-man6116 Yup, and saying "keep politics out of X" is a political act within itself. What was it... Claiming to be apolitical is a political act
I was under the impression Escape from New York and LA were the biggest movie influences on Metal Gear and Kojima. But I can see how The Great Escape is definitely impactful on Metal Gear.
Also, dr stranglove, on the waterfront, they live, cool hand luke, easy rider, king kong, apocolypse now, of course james bond so many little things if your into film studies, kojima definitely was woke to progressive filmmaking in Hollywood and the coding of ideas and themes, he sneaks in these little moments that stick out when you watch the old movies!
It's been a longtime.
I would also like to add: Just like Solid Snake's Quote from MGS1 "As long as there are people, there will always be war."
War used in the entertainment industry influencing Movies and Video Games.
The Military Entertainment Complex. Jorin speaks about this in his MGS2 retrospectives
@@solidsadd Oh right. I have yet to finish that. LOL 😋
When Monday’s look bleak , a new vid from futurasound makes my day SO much better.
Especially when the video is about metal gear !! 💯
and Saturday's alright for fighting.....hey, Elton John said so dammit!
😈
You really deserve 400x the amount of subscribers you have.
I always try to go as nonlethal as I can in a Metal Gear. Sometimes I can't cut it, but I'm always inspired to give it my best.
Idk why, but even as a small child, I'd never kill anyone in mgs game on the PlayStation. I'd always use the tranq and cqc fighting.
I remember taking out all bosses in MGS2 non-lethaly because of a rumor that you get another ending like I MGS2, turns out it wasn't line but maybe it was based on the extras you get in MGS3 and since then I played all the sequels non-lethaly b I didn't know why, but Kojima was right, it feels like an accomplishment oke completely unforgettable since when I play another stealth game I look to play in a non-lethal way because of the impact the MGS series has left on me.
I remember I played mgs3 on the hardest difficulty with only the tranq gun
When i played mgsv i only used the tranq gun so i usually got the code name sleeping octopus
The way you cut the introductory footage for the MGS segment was beautiful. You ever considered doing a small music video like the old ones? I remember a really great one about the series set to some Trevor Rabin music, I imagine you could easily do something like that. It included dialogue segments from the games and everything, really cohesive and artistic.
Jorin, thank you for another video about MGS, it is greatly appreciated.
I wish everyone in the planet could at the very least see this video.
it's always nice to find a TH-camr who knows when to place ad breaks. Well done, sir
The speed you create these with the amazing quality is astounding and you truly deserve the subs you have and more! I love watching each of your videos when they’re realized!
Mmmm, more tasty video essay on one of my favorite series.
Impressively spoiler free essay. Well done. I always explain MGS as anti-conflict, anti-killing war game to new friends and this is very validating.
The irony... almost all my adverts were for glamorous mobile war games. This is an antiwar analysis for antiwar games.
As someone who’s in the military I can safely say there are multiple reasons why ppl in the military like playing MGS games!
Among them is the main character (usually Solid Snake of The Boss himself) because of their mercenary lifestyle and the fact that as far as video game character go…they look, sound and even when not fighting act cool!
They’re soldiers I think a lot of us in the military wanna be: not bound to governments or ideals but fighting for commonality, unity and looking pretty badass while doing it!
I replayed Mgsv with the knowledge of your theory.. and man you solely made my run a lot better. Continue making videos
Dude you make the best metal gear videos because it’s not all graphics or it 1040 fps or whatever it’s about the story and the story in the story and it’s awesome
This channel is too good. We don't deserve Futurasound.
Spread the word, my son
I love your work. You made Kojima proud ❤️
Brilliant video essay, as always!
To question whats actually possible..... Some how always knew that was the thang to pull from this as a kid. Thank you Kojima. You made my childhood badass.
This channel saves lives.
Ya voice and metal gear goes together so well. I can’t explain it.... you do history teachings of some sort.
been a fan of Kojima's signature style of anti war messaging throughout his MGS games. good work.
One of the greatest gaming franchises of all time.
Oh Konami... How did it all go wrong all of a sudden..
$$$
@@nickstav08 They got greedy and fucked it all up. Konami was my favorite gaming company, They funded Silent Hill and Metal Gear and other franchises that shaped my childhood. Hate to see it all go away liie that.
You make great videos. Spot on as usual. Best wishes.
This here is high quality ASF
Amazing content and analysis of every subject you do. Especially Metal Gear, love it.
That favorite term of game critics, 'ludonarrative dissonance' seems to apply.
We should probably have a conversation sometime about the structure of your essays here.
i live for these videos, never stop!
Anybody know the name of the funky drum & bass tune at 12:18??
Absolute love this video series, MGS is such a rich yet silly game
The Metal Gear Series is The Illiad of it's time.
It has to show the horrors and pointlessness of war to make it's point. Look at any of the games in the main series, they will depict terrible violence and death, Meryl getting shot by Sniper Wolf, Grey Fox being killed by Rex, the death of Olga, Big Boss getting blinded, Snake in the Microwave chamber, but it absolutely positively never glorifies that violence. It's often almost uncomfortable to watch at times, and thats the point.
The Illiad got it's point across in a similar way, constantly having men talking about the glory of war, just to see them meet a gruesome end, face down in the dust, stripped of his armor, to become yet another indistinguishable corpse to get it's share of fire. It will go out of it's way to talk about the men who are dying, and the terrible, very detailed depictions of those deaths, and give you details about them, to give a real sense of the loss felt by others by their death. It humanizes those being killed, both Acheans and Trojans.
MGS captures that same vibe for me. Before MGS, as a kid I never thought about the enemies I would face in games, you kill them, you move on. But the way MGS treated it's bosses, especially Sniper Wolf's death, was just nothing like anything I had ever seen, it changed my perception of the idea of an enemy, having them have real human emotions and motivations. Seeing how Snake and Otacon were effected by her death, even though she just got done trying to kill Snake a moment before, it added such gravity to it. Seeing an enemy as a real person is something I think even games today don't do very well, certainly compared to MGS.
3:27 - ... is that description of Big Boss actually in the original manual or is this a retconned version? Did Kojima plan MSF all along here?!
My take on MGS being anti war while also glorifying weapons is pretty simple. You cant love these things and still detest war. You can decry war while also living in reality and understanding you need to be preppared to defend yourself
Boss.....now that's some lateral thinking.Misson complete.
Dang good video, man. Great job!
As much as it betrays it I sometimes play mgs and especially mgsV “loud” cause didn’t want the firearms that the devs designed go to waste, and i would be lying if i said i didn’t kill a few or more guards after being spotted in mgs3, but ive been trying to do perfect stealth in recent times
Always fxckin GREAT VIDEOS bro!
Anybody know that first song after the MGS 1 Warhead quote?
I find it interesting how a series that goes out of its way to humanize soldiers also has the really dark turn on that angle in Phantom Pain. They're still humanized, but I got the feeling that Kojima really didn't like any of the grunts in TPP and the game is a lot less sympathetic to them, especially during A Quiet Exit.
Are you gonna make a video analysis on the idroid?
The only way to be at peace, is to destroy how we are threatened by pain, death, and destruction.
there are some analysis of politics and dialogues in mgs that needs to be written on books and the books will be the guide for modern society
Quite a fascinating question about pacifism thanks for the video.🙏
This is a video
Souls analysis please
The mg2 ost is pretty good
Great video. Too many damn ads man. Gotta stop every 5 mins to skip 1 lol
Great video man!
Another great one 👏👍
Actually I don't think we've talked yet have we?
good stuff!! 👍
Good job 👍
yes!
you should finish MGRR.
It's weird how, if you keep playing MGSV long enough you stop caring about individual soldiers and just rush through camps systematically kidnapping or killing to boost your bases.
Really takes the spirit out of the quarantine platform event, especially when you find yourself wanting to keep a troublemaker for their rank.
edit: It makes you think like a corporation, just realised after commenting...
Who else thinks the MGS series could use a remake of Metal Gear and Metal Gear 2 Solid Snake, the games from the NES and Super Nintendo
I would love if Konami did a RE2/3-esq remake of the first few metal gear games in the mgsv engine
Basically the boss' will
There is qn ad every 5 minutes
kaz's speech around the 28 minute mark sounds like it was recorded in a closet
Please do more persona 5 videos as well!
Instead of the patriots we got facebook. This is the good timeline, right?
Made sure to catch Meryl with her pants down, literally, huh?
301 views club baby!
so many ads wtf
Instalike! 👍
Way off. Snakes are not the good guy. That's what makes him so interesting.
Now explore militarism
Are you sure you couldn't squeeze in a handful of ad breaks? Sorry for being that guy, but it is jarring as hell.
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The Adpocalypse is a real problem in your videos. You have a patreon, why so many?
war is bad
And another essay stolen from reddit
Do a bit on The Boss’ will. There’s too many auth-right metal gear fans
Weird, considering how heavily big boss is/was based on che guevara and the socialist coup in cuba against the bautistas, I don't think many conservatives understand their favorite films. Just watched easy rider last night I can't believe it inspired a generation of boomers to ride harleys but not understand any of the political, cultural, or religious themes about freedom and collectivism being inextricably related and opposed to authoritarian fascism.
Yeah yeah the Boss was hippie we all know that
@Phillip hanna "Voting was never real" is a really bad take, let me just leave you with a story.
A Day in the Life of Joe Republican
Joe gets up at 6:00 am to prepare his morning coffee. He fills his pot full of good, clean drinking water because some liberal fought for minimum water quality standards. He takes his daily medication with his first swallow of coffee. His medications are safe to take because some liberal fought to insure their safety and efficacy. All but $10.00 of his medications are paid for by his employer's medical plan because some liberal union workers fought their employers for paid medical insurance. Now Joe gets it too. He prepares his morning breakfast, bacon and eggs this day. Joe's bacon is safe to eat because some liberal fought for laws to regulate the meat packing industry. Joe takes his morning shower, reaching for his shampoo; his bottle is properly labeled with every ingredient and the amount of its contents because some liberal fought for his right to know the amount and identity of the substances he was putting on his body.
Joe dresses, walks outside and takes a deep breath. The air he breathes is clean because some tree hugging liberal fought for laws to stop industries from polluting our air. He walks to the subway station for his government subsidized ride to work; it saves him considerable money in parking and transportation fees. You see, some liberal fought for affordable public transportation, which gives everyone the opportunity to be a contributor to society. Joe begins his work day. He has a good job with excellent pay, medical benefits, retirement, paid holidays and vacation because some liberal union members fought and died for these working standards. Joe's employer upholds these standards because Joe's employer doesn't want his employees to call the union. If Joe is hurt on the job or becomes unemployed hell get a worker compensation or unemployment check because some Liberal didn't think he should lose his home because of his temporary misfortune.
It's noon time, Joe needs to make a Bank Deposit so he can pay some bills. Joe's deposit is federally insured by the FSLIC because some liberal wanted to protect Joe's money from unscrupulous bankers who ruined the banking system before the depression. Joe has to pay his Fannie Mae-underwritten mortgage and his below-market federal student loan because some stupid liberal decided that Joe and the government would be better off if he was educated and earned more money over his lifetime.
Joe is home from work, and he plans to visit his father this evening at his farm home in the country. He gets in his car for the drive to his dad's; his car is among the safest in the world be cause some wacko liberal (Ralph Nader!) fought for car safety standards. He arrives at his boyhood home. He was the third generation to live in the house financed by Farmer's Home Administration because bankers didn't want to make rural loans. The house didn't have electricity until some big government liberal stuck his nose where it didn't belong and demanded rural electrification. He is happy to see his dad who is now retired. His dad lives on Social Security and his union pension because some liberal made sure he could take care of himself so Joe wouldn't have to.
After his visit with dad he gets back in his car for the ride home. He turns on a radio talk show. The host keeps saying that liberals are bad and conservatives are good. He doesn't tell Joe that his beloved Republicans have fought against every protection and benefit that Joe enjoys throughout his day. Joe agrees. "We don't need those big government liberals ruining our lives'', he says. "After all, I'm a self-made man who believes everyone should take care of themselves, just like I have".
^Voting has very real outcomes and consequences, I hope this has given you something to consider. =]