“Kept you waiting, huh?” says Big Boss wryly during the opening scene of Metal Gear Solid 5: Ground Zeroes, the controversy-laden prologue to the much anticipated Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain. Well, gamers still have to be patient in regards to the proper release of the full MGS5 experience, however, they now have PC gamers to share the phantom pain (I’m so sorry) of playing the waiting game with.
According to an apparently leaked announcement on Konami Europe’s website (https://uk.games.konami-europe.com/posts/METAL-GEAR-SOLID-V-THE-PHANTOM-PAIN-and-GROUND-ZEROES-Coming-to-Steam – link is broken, presumably due to the unintentional nature of the announcement), both Metal Gear Solid 5: Ground Zeroes and The Phantom Pain are expected to release on PC through Steam.
This proposition is exciting news for PC gamers worldwide as the only PC releases of Metal Gear Solid titles have been limited to the original Metal Gear Solid and its sequel, Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty. There was a PC port of the well-received Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance (which is not, and never will be, a real word) released in January of this year, but most MGS fans don’t consider it to be a bona fide Metal Gear Solid game. With that said, Metal Gear Solid 5: Ground Zeroes and The Phantom Pain would be the first MGS games to release on Steam.
In the past, aside from the Gamecube remake of MGS1 as The Twin Snakes and the Xbox port of Metal Gear Solid 2: Substance, the majority of Metal Gear Solid games have typically released on PlayStation consoles. However, the release of the Metal Gear Solid: HD Collection on both PS3 and Xbox 360 remedied that. Metal Gear Solid 5: Ground Zeroes, being the newest entry into the series, released back in March for the PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One. Its follow-up was expected to release on the same systems, until now.
Above: Behold the glorious world of PC gaming.
Many gamers are migrating over to PC for gaming purposes, and enjoying the benefits that come with the switch. Still, there are certain games members of the “PC master race” simply cannot play due to the fact that they were or are not available on the platform (i.e. Red Dead Redemption, Infamous: Second Son, The Last of Us: Remastered, and the upcoming Halo: Master Chief Collection/Halo 5: Guardians to name a few). With previously high-profile, console-centric games such as Grand Theft Auto 5 coming soon to PC, the notion that another AAA franchise is going to be available on the platform is a very exciting news, and a good reason to keep waiting indeed.
What are your thoughts on MGS5 coming to PC, or on previously console-exclusive games releasing on PC in general? Let us know in the comments section below!