Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater is the third installment of the Metal Gear Solid (MGS) series. It was released on November 17, 2004, and remastered August 26, 2025.

The game continues the story of the elite, highly skilled, and rigorously trained army commando David – better known as Snake – a member of the special forces unit FOXHOUND. Snake is trained in stealth, espionage, and close-quarters combat; he can infiltrate enemy bases and destroy the “Metal Gear,” a bipedal, nuclear-powered tank. He is a highly decorated military hero who is nevertheless conflicted because he is a clone of the Big Boss. The game is set during the Cold War in the Soviet Union era, with Snake sent on a mission to the communist-controlled country of Russia.

The game follows the origin story of Big Boss. He is sent to the Soviet Union to stop a nuclear-powered tank. During the process, Snake’s mentor, The Boss, defects to join the Soviet Army and Snake is forced to confront her. He unfortunately fails, The Boss’s deflection is used to blame Snake and FOXHOUND, increasing Cold War tensions. Later, Snake is assigned to complete “Operation: Snake Eater”, and ordered to find and neutralize The Boss. While hunting her, Snake fights members of the Cobra Unit – The Boss’s former group – and their new leader, Ocelot, who is working with the agent Eva. Snake uncovers that the mission, The Boss’s defection, and the broader conflict were manipulated by factions within both the U.S. and Soviet governments, and that Eva is a Chinese agent. In the finale, Snake confronts The Boss, who reveals she was always a true patriot of America, sent to infiltrate the Soviets and to die as a martyr to prevent nuclear war. Snake is ultimately forced to kill his mentor, completing his mission but losing his ideals and loyalty in the process. With his ideals destroyed, he loses his identity and becomes the legacy known as Big Boss.

This is a great game and the focus on losing your identity by being loyal is truly a unique aspect, as it gives you the choice to save yourself, or be loyal to what matters, like a testament to your loyalty.