The ‘Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater’ remake was greenlit because younger players didn’t know the franchise.
The action-adventure game - which is a reimagining of the 2004 title of the same name - is due to release at some point next year, and the series producer at Konami Noriaki Okamura has said the reason the remake exists is to capture a new audience that wasn’t familiar with the IP.
During an interview with Play magazine’s upcoming issue 46, the developer said: “One of the things that really sparked us to do the remake in general is because we realised that a lot of the newer, younger generation of gamers aren’t familiar with the ‘Metal Gear’ series anymore.”
The franchise hasn’t seen a new addition to its mainline story since ‘Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain’ in 2015, and Okamura explained Konami felt like it was their “duty” to honour long-time fans while welcoming new players to the series with the ‘Snake Eater’ remake.
He said: “It was basically our mission, our duty, to kind of continue making sure that the series lives on for future generations.
“After all, we leave behind much more than just DNA, as Solid Snake would say—but again, who is Solid Snake?”
The series producer previously revealed Konami were weighing up their options for where to take the franchise next after the ‘Snake Eater’ remake launches, and hinted that other remakes of older titles may be a possibility.
He told Famitsu: “Before everyone who was involved in the original is gone, we need to create a path to preserve the ‘Metal Gear’ series for 10 or 50 years into the future. I think this is something we have to do.”