This page contains information on acronyms and concepts (mostly) pertaining to the series and particular games. If you see an acronym or term that you aren't familiar with, this is the place to learn it! For a more general speedrun glossary, click here for SpeedRunsLive's Glossary.
Any% - Typically the most run category in speed games. The goal is to complete the game as fast as possible without restrictions. Many of the Metal Gear games have this category.
BB - Big Boss - Usually the highest rank achievable in Metal Gear games. Historically, it is the rank that many speedrunners went for. Due to this, many games have seen the most routing for Big Boss rank.
IGT - In Game Time - The way the game tracks time, typically given in a results screen or a final save.
IL - Individual Level - A segment of the larger game, typically called a stage, level, act, chapter, etc.
FH - Foxhound - Highest rank achievable in MGS3, MPO, and MPO+. Takes the place of Big Boss Rank.
FPV/POV - First Person (Point of) View - A camera mode showing the world through the playable character's eyes.
MG - Metal Gear - The game series you are reading about!
MGS - Metal Gear Solid - A game series within Metal Gear. It began with the game of the same name released in 1998 on the Playstation. These games are 3D, as opposed to classic Metal Gear, which is 2D.
MGSR - Metal Gear Speerunners - The community for speedrunning these games. The founders created MGSR in late 2013 as a Skype group.
MS - Multi Segment - A speedrun done across multiple saves/reloads. Tool Assisted Speedruns fall into this category.
NG - New Game - A speedrun that uses no additional content received from playing a game from a completed save.
NG+ - New Game+ - A speedrun that uses additional content (weapons, game differences, options, etc.) received from playing a game from a completed save.
NL - Non-Lethal - Strategies that avoid killing the enemy. Needed for Rank 1 strategies.
100% - Running the game while achieving 100% completion. This can be an in game completion counter, or agreed by the community.
OoB - Out of Bounds, going outside the intended boundaries of a level with a glitch or exploit
PSX/PS/PS1 - Playstation - The original Playstation
PSTV - Playstation TV - A Playstation Vita in a plastic shell. Popular for speedrunning many Playstation games due to the speed of PSP hardware.
RTA - Real Time Attack - A speedrun done in a real time setting. This is unlike TAS. Also refers to speedruns compared by real time, rather than in game time.
TAS - Tool Assisted Speedruns - A speedrun which uses tools, savestates, RAM, inhuman frame perfect execution, and the game's code to go as fast as possible.
TPV - Third Person View - A camera mode closely following the character around. The standard for most modern games of the series!
SS - Single Segment - A speedrun done in one segment/sitting, without saving/loading to come back later.
VE - Very Easy - Equivalent to Easy, but you get the MP5SD. The MP5 is an infinite ammo and suppressed replacement for the FAMAS.
EZ - Easy - Bosses take the least damage, guard vision/hearing is the worst, max HP regain after every boss, rations heal much of your lifebar
NM - Normal -
HD - Hard -
EX - Extreme -
PPK - Punch, Punch Kick - The attack combo Snake can do. This combo can be stopped midway (P or PP).
GME - God Mode Exploit - A trick on the PC that allows Snake to become invincible to most forms of damage. By pressing 0 then 9 (or any other weapon hotkey) in quick succession, it interrupts the animation of going into the PSG-1 scope and enters the GME state. This exploit also allows Snake to break loading triggers to new areas, and go out of bounds.
EZ - Easy -
NM - Normal -
HD - Hard -
VH - Very Hard - The hardest difficulty. More guards, more cameras, and attacks are more damaging.
Water Skip - In stage 03, there is a 10 frame window where the second water wave is transitioning between the screens. By crossing during this window, we can avoid the wave entirely. Within the 10 frame window, there are 8 frames that will allow skipping the third wave.
Nikita Skip - In stage 08, we can avoid going to the 2nd floor and picking up the Nikita. Discovered by LCC, this trick exploits invincibility frames to cross the electrified floors on Floor 1. Only part of the floor is electrified, allowing this trick to work.
VE - Very Easy -
EZ - Easy -
N - Normal -
H - Hard -
EX - Extreme -
E-EX/EuEx/EE - European Extreme -
PPK - Punch, Punch Kick - The attack combo Snake and Raiden can do. This combo can be stopped midway (P or PP).
BDU - Battle Dress Uniform - A necessary item for Shell 1 Core during the Ames portion. Also provides camouflage, allowing for certain strategies during the run.
LT - Loading Trick - By playing through the game, getting a Game Over, exiting, then starting a new game, the load times will be faster. In a LT speedrun, playing to Emma sniping will give you the best load times. It does not work past this point. Going past the sniping section into Arsenal will remove LT.
VE - Very Easy -
EZ - Easy -
N - Normal -
H - Hard -
EX - Extreme -
E-EX/EuEx/EE - European Extreme -
LT - Loading Trick - By playing through the game, getting a Game Over, exiting, then starting a new game, the load times will be faster. In a LT speedrun, playing to the prison sequence after getting captured will give you the best load times. It does not work past this point.
Dremuchij South - First area of the game.
Dremuchij Swampland - Area with the quicksand and the crocodiles.
Dremuchij North - First area with guards. Also where you first meet The Boss during Operation Snake Eater.
Dolinovodno - Area with the bridge.
Rassvet - Where you first meet Sokolov.
Dolinovodno Riverbank - Area where the Cure menu is introduced.
Dremuchij East - First area of Operation Snake Eater.
Chyornyj Prud - Lake area after fighting the Ocelot Unit.
Bolshaya Past South - After the lake. Area with claymores, electric fences and dogs.
Bolshaya Past Base - Area just before fighting Ocelot.
Bolshaya Past Crevice - Where you fight Ocelot.
Chyornaya Peschera Cave Branch - First cave area, where the torch is located.
Chyornaya Peschera Cave - Where you fight The Pain.
Chyornaya Peschera Cave Entrance - After fighting The Pain and before the river.
Ponizovje South - River area with guards in flying platforms.
Ponizovje Warehouse: Exterior - Where you can kill The End for the first time.
Ponizovje Warehouse - The warehouse. May be referred to as Warehouse 1 (going to the lab) and Warehouse 2 (after beating The Fear).
Graniny Gorki South - Where you fight The Fear.
Graniny Gorki Lab Exterior: Outside Walls - Exterior of the lab, where the electric fence is.
Graniny Gorki Lab Exterior: Inside Walls - Exterior of the lab. There are two trucks there.
Graniny Gorki Lab 1F - Lab entrance.
Graniny Gorki Lab B1 West - Where you meet Granin.
Svyatogornyj South - After Warehouse 2. There's a codec with EVA there, in which she mentions The End or the Ocelot Unit.
Svyatogornyj West - Area before The End.
Sokrovenno South - Where you fight The End. This is the first area.
Sokrovenno North - Where you fight The End. This area leads to the exit with The Ladder.
Krasnogorje Tunnel - Area with The Ladder.
Krasnogorje Mountain Base - After The Ladder. AKA Mountains 1.
Krasnogorje Mountainside - Mountains 2. The hind will show up here (if it didn't blow up).
Krasnogorje Mountaintop - Mountains 3. There's a red door that leads to The Fury there.
Krasnogorje Mountaintop: Behind Ruins - Top of the mountain, where you can see the fortress.
Krasnogorje Mountaintop Ruins - Where the cutscene with EVA happens. There are noodles there.
Groznyj Grad Underground Tunnel - Where you fight The Fury.
Groznyj Grad Southwest - First fortress area.
Groznyj Grad Northeast - Area with the entrance that leads to the Weapons Lab.
Groznyj Grad Weapons Lab: East Wing - Where Raikov is.
Groznyj Grad Weapons Lab: Main Wing - Where the Shagohod is.
Groznyj Grad Weapons Lab: West Wing Corridor - Last area before Torture.
Groznyj Grad Torture Room - Prison area.
Groznyj Grad Southeast - After leaving the prison.
Groznyj Grad Northwest - Just before the sewers.
Groznyj Grad Sewers - Sewers.
Tikhogornyj - After fighting The Sorrow.
Tikhogornyj: Behind Waterfall - Where you get your items back.
Groznyj Grad Weapons Lab: Main Wing B1 - Where you fight Volgin.
Groznyj Grad - First bike chase area.
Groznyj Grad Runway South - Second bike chase area.
Groznyj Grad Runway - Long runway.
Groznyj Grad Rail Bridge - Bridge area with C3s. The Shagohod fight happens there.
Groznyj Grad Rail Bridge North - After destroying the Shagohod.
Lazorevo South - Where EVA tells Snake to shoot the log.
Lazorevo North - Last bike chase area.
Zaozyorje West - Escort 1.
Zaozyorje East - Escort 2.
Rokovoj Bereg - Where The Boss fight happens.
WIG: Interior - Where Snake duels with Ocelot. Final area.
VE - Very Easy -
EZ - Easy -
N - Normal -
H - Hard -
EX - Extreme -
PPK - Punch, Punch Kick - The attack combo Snake can do. This combo can be stopped midway (P or PP).
PPN - Punch, Punch Nikita - A PPK where the Nikita is equipped before the kick contacts the enemy. Used to quickly defeat the Ninja.
SPP - Socom Punch Punch - Socom shot, double punch the Ninja. This is used for the easier strategy.
SPNR - Socom Punch, Nikita Roll - Socom shot, punch the Ninja, then roll with the Nikita out. This is used for the fastest strategy.
AP - Advance Point (a.k.a. Mission Square) - The 'exit' of a level, which either takes you straight to the next level or back to the Briefing Menu.
BB - Box Bump - Run & bump into a soldier, then quick-equip your C Box to give yourself just enough time to run out of the clueless guard's cone of vision.
(180-)BG - (180°-)Bump-Grab - Run & bump into a soldier from the front, then once you’re behind him, do a 180° turn and grab him. Also works while having the C Box equipped.
LT - Loading Trick - By playing a few maps before starting a run, the loading times to load into these maps are greatly reduced (Exact behavior not yet figured out).
RKD - Roll-Knockdown - Bump into or run just next to a guard and perform a roll in the direction you want to continue in. This pushes him just out of range to see you once he's back up.
MPO/MPO+ - The official way to abbreviate MGS: Portable Ops/Portable Ops Plus (according to Konami).
Next to Equip/Unequip and the 2 Slot Swap (2SS), in MPO+ there's also the 3 Slot Cycle (3SC).
M4C - M4 Custom
LE - Liquid Easy
NN - Naked Normal
SN - Solid Normal
BBH - Big Boss Hard
TBE - The Boss Extreme
Ch.1 - Chapter 1 - A run from start of episode 1 to first credits after episode 31.
PSNK - Perfect Stealth No Kills - A score bonus rewarded for completing missions without any kills or combat alerts. Also a run category
v1.01 / Unpatched / Old version - refers to any version that allows any of the several timesaving glitches, usually 1.01.
PUW/PUG - Pick-up Warp/Glitch - An 1.01 glitch that activates when you fall off an edge while picking up a body. Allows huge teleports and zips depending on setup.
Chopper Skip - An 1.01 menuing glitch that allows you to start missions on the ground from ACC