Nostalgia can be blissful as it has the power to eradicate the flaws from whatever you’re reminiscing about, but it can also be a red herring. We’ve all championed a treasure from our childhood, like the Metal Gear Solid series, and battled for it amongst a minefield of ridicule and cynicism with others, only to return to it as an adult and discover that, nowadays, it’s no good. But would the same be true with something as high-profile and important as Konami’s upcoming Metal Gear Solid Master Collection Volume 1?
This nostalgia-induced concern is with me when returning to older games, and particularly ones as important as the Metal Gear Solid franchise - but then a haunting and somber score drizzles over a title card that reads “A Hideo Kojima game”. A man in an uber-cool black tactical outfit swims up to an industrial complex where guards are prowling on patrol. He lifts himself out of the water and says: “This is Snake”. The signature gruff tones of voice actor David Hayter (who absolutely is Snake, regardless of how great Keifer Sutherland was in the role in Metal Gear Solid V) are heard for the first time. Instantly, my worries vanished and I was instantly teleported back to the mysterious and captivating world of espionage, extravagant storytelling, and cardboard boxes.
