Metal Gear Solid (MGS1)
"A strong man doesn't need to read the future. He makes his own."
Originally released in 1998 on the Playstation, Metal Gear Solid introduced a new generation of gamers to the Stealth genre. Its mix of cinematics, extensive voice acting, and innovative boss fights changed the landscape of video games.
Metal Gear Solid is the sequel to Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake. MGS1 mimics MG2 in several ways, including a temperature sensitive key, an elevator fight with four enemies, climbing a tower while being chased, a disguised female soldier, and so on. Being the first game in the Solid series, it plays more like 2D Metal Gear. For instance, first person aiming is locked behind certain weapons (unless on Integral's special mode or PC version), you cannot hang from rails, and alert phase is more binary compared to later games in the Solid series.
Why speedrun Metal Gear Solid? Nostalgia is a sizable factor, as the game remains beloved to this day to gamers of the 1990's. If you like boss fights, the All Bosses category provides a variety of interesting challenges. Any% breaks the game to a hilarious extent, especially on PC. PC Any% is generally regarded in the community as one of the most beginner friendly Metal Gear runs because of the God Mode Exploit. However, MGS1 suffers from the amount of button mashing on console, the PAL card sequence at endgame, and the sluggish start to the run in either category.
| Category | Description | Route |
|---|---|---|
| Any% Console/MC | Complete the game as quickly as possible | Any% Console/MC Route |
| Any% PC | Complete the game as quickly as possible, on the most broken version | Any% PC Route |
| Any% Blindfolded PC | Complete the game as quickly as possible on PC while being blindfolded | Any% Blindfolded PC Route |
| All Bosses Console/MC | Complete the game while bringing all bosses' HP to 0 | All Bosses Console/MC Route |
| All Bosses PC | Complete the game while bringing all bosses' HP to 0, on the most broken version | All Bosses PC Route |
| No Major Glitches | Complete the game while bringing all bosses' HP to 0, without using any glitches | No Major Glitches |
MGS1 Regions, Versions and Platforms
MGS1 Entry in The Cutting Room Floor