TheMetal Gear Solidseries is no stranger to fan theories. Since its release back on the original PlayStation, message boards have had thread after threaddebating character motives, plot devices, and secret twists. Not to be outdone, Solid Snake voice actor David Hayter has a theory of his own about Raiden, one of the series' most controversial characters.
In an interview with IGN, David Hater says,“My personal theory is that Snake is Kojima’s creation; he’s his interpretation of a classic American action star, whereas I think that RaidenisKojima.” Regarding Raiden’s evolution as a character throughout the series, Hayter believes that Raiden is “Kojima’s personality coming through saying, I can be an action hero too.”
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Metal Gear Solid 2released with a big surprise for fans. Though Solid Snake was initially playable, the game pulled a bait-and-switch by switching to Raiden for the last three quarters. ThoughMGS2is now widely regarded as a masterpiece,the initial reception was somewhat negative. This lead to a re-release of the game that contained more Solid Snake content, although it didn’t affect the main story.
Hayter also commented on Raiden’s change inMetal Gear Solid 4:
“Being the main character you began to see that Snake started to get more and more injured, started to get older, whileRaiden became, like, a lightning-fueled electric ninja.I felt like that arc was Kojima’s revenge on the audience for the initial backlash. I don’t know that, I haven’t spoken to him about it.”
Metal Gear Solid 4would end up being the last game to focus on Solid Snake with subsequent games featuring Big Boss. Early on, David Hayter voiced Big Boss for a number of titles and the character emerged as a new fan favorite, even being parodied in other media to this day.
Several years after the release ofMetal Gear Solid 4, a new title was announced by Konami in 2012. At the time, fans were excited but they were disappointed to learn thatthe character of Big Boss was recastand would be voiced by actor Kiefer Sutherland. And strangely,Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Painhad very little voice acting for Big Boss, especially in comparison to prior games in the series. Though Solid Snake’s story has long been done, fans can still Hear Hayter as Snake inNintendo’s Super Smash Bros.Ultimate for the Nintendo Switch.
Metal Gear Solid 5is available now on PS4, Xbox One and PC
