Solid Snake Is Back In Metal Gear Solid 5
Just when we thought Solid Snake had retired to life as a rich old woman's hand bag comes a bombshell from the ever intriguing mouth of Hideo Kojima.
A tantalising rumour hit the web today regarding the possibility of Solid Snake returning for Metal Gear Solid 5. In an interview with French gaming mag IG Hideo Kojima was quoted as saying: "there will be a Metal Gear Solid 5 with the new FOX Engine". He went on to say: "Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance never claimed to be a Metal Gear Solid. This is not a game about our beloved Solid Snake. It is a spinoff that tries something different. We have not yet finished with Solid Snake, despite the fact that I wanted to let him die at the end of Guns of the Patriots." This is quite a statement considering the state we last saw Solid Snake in, the only real progression would be a full beard; Santa style. Of course while Kojima is hinting at Solid Snake being the protagonist he could well be referring to an origin story or even another Big Boss led affair, leading up to the birth of his clones. Personally I'd like to see some of Snake pre-MGS1, training with Master Miller. One thing seems likely; that stealth espionage action will be making a return. Kojima said: "I can tell you two things. There will be much question of infiltration, espionage, and convincing people to give you 'a favour' like in the last Metal Gear Solid....I liked the idea of social interactions in Deus Ex: Human Revolution, but we will see." 
The return to the roots of the MGS franchise will be welcome news to fans, many of which have been openly sceptical about Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance. I'm personally super excited as the MGS franchise has been consistently excellent. With the superb 3Ds port of MGS3 and the stellar HD Collection available on both PS3 and Xbox 360, the timing could not be better. Way back in 2008 we thought we had been given an end to the exploits of Solid Snake and Big Boss, but as Peace Walker, Revengeance and the re-releasing of the older games has proven there is life in the Old Snake yet. With no solid information to work from it seems unlikely that we will see this game released in the current generation. The new Fox Engine that Kojima is referring to was announced at last year's E3 (see the video bellow) and looks stunning but it also looks next generation. While this is as yet unconfirmed, it seems that we could be looking at a title that will redefine the next generation much like MGS4 did in the early days of the PS3. http://www.youtube.com/embed/O3onAuTSSo4