10 Video Game Origins You Never Knew
5. Metal Gear's Stealth Gameplay Was Due To Technical Limitations
Metal Gear Solid is the stealth-action gaming franchise, and Hideo Kojima's iconic IP kicked off all the way back in 1987 with the MSX2 release Metal Gear.
Kojima's original vision for the game was that of an action-heavy military shooter, but the MSX2's technical limitations meant that only a small number of bullets and enemies could be present on the screen at once.
And so, Kojima scrapped his action-centric plans, reimagining Metal Gear as a stealth game where the player was encouraged to avoid enemies and open fire as little as possible.
And though the newer Metal Gear Solid games have certainly kitted players out with a frankly ridiculous amount of weaponry as more modern hardware allows, there's still a strong encouragement to play things stealthy.
Had the MSX2 been just a little more powerful and been able to support Kojima's original concept, the series would've been very different, and the stealth game as know it may not even exist.
This is a classic case of "it's a feature, not a bug" if there ever was one.