10 Video Game Franchises Where Nobody Played The Original
2. Metal Gear
The Metal Gear series only hit the big leagues thanks to Metal Gear Solid in 1998. This PlayStation title was revolutionary, featuring a fleshed out cinematic story, groundbreaking stealth gameplay and impressive graphics for the period. The series only became bigger – and crazier – from there, and is stuck in a rut thanks to Hideo Kojima and Konami parting ways.
Fans will probably know Solid is actually the third official game, following 1987’s Metal Gear and 1990’s Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake. The original looks downright ancient now and the mechanics weren’t nearly as refined, but this top-down adventure was one of the first to pioneer sneaking over combat.
The original version was released only for the obscure MSX2 console in Japan, and a redesigned port for the NES received mixed reviews and has been denounced by Kojima himself.
The first game has subsequently been ported over for numerous Metal Gear collections, but even then few tend to try it out. A shame, since it’s fun to look back and see how far the series has come.