Konami has confirmed that a new version of Metal Gear Solid 3 will be released on the Nintendo 3DS under the title Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater 3D.
I’ve generally been skeptical of 3D games, which thus far seem more like a gimmick than anything else. To be fair, I should acknowledge that my first encounter with 3D gaming was a brief run-in with the Nintendo Virtual Boy that was on display at my local Blockbuster Video back in 1995. Whenever I hear the words “3D game system” I don’t think “exciting new technology,” I think “headache-inducing monochromatic crimson nightmare.” So I can’t claim to be an unbiased source. Nevertheless, I stand by that skepticism, and I think the Nintendo 3DS’ library of games to date- with its long list of games that are just remakes of games from 2D systems with some 3D effects added- supports it.
However, despite the fact that Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater 3D is also just a remake of a game from a 2D system with some 3D effects added, I can see the 3D really adding something here. Metal Gear Solid 3 placed a lot of emphasis on the location it was set in, with the player struggling to survive in the heavily forested environment that dominates much of the game. That’s a situation where some well-done 3D effects might have some significant benefits in terms of making the game more immersive and exciting- much more so than adding some 3D to a platformer or fighting game.
Plus, Hideo Kojima and the other guys behind the Metal Gear games seem to enjoy playing around with the capabilities of the hardware the game is being played on in, such as the moment in the original Metal Gear Solid when telepathic villain Psycho Mantis announces that he’s going to “read deeply into your soul” and then comments on your gaming preferences by detecting save data for other Konami games on your memory card. (To this day, whenever I reference the Suikoden series, one of my friends will traditionally respond, in his best raspy-voiced fake Russian accent, “So, you like Swee-ko-den!”) I’d be interested to see what they come up with when they have a 3D monitor to play with.
Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater 3D will incorporate several features of the 3DS hardware, such as using the system’s second screen to show the player’s inventory. It also has a new version of the original’s camouflage system that allows players to use the 3DS’ built-in camera to capture images from the real world that can then be used to create camouflage patterns in the game. The game is also compatible with the 3DS’s new Circle Pad Pro peripheral, which adds an additional analog circle pad on the right side of the system and two shoulder buttons.
Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater 3D is scheduled for release on February 21st in North America and March 8 the rest of the world, so we won’t have long to wait to see how things turn out.
Subscribe to our email newsletter, a recap of the stories posted to GamingandTech.com each day.
