In the immediate aftermath of 9/11, numerous films, TV shows, and video games that had been in development before the tragedy had to make last-minute changes or postpone their release. Notably, this includes changes made to the 2002Spider-Manfilm, which removed the World Trade Center from promotional material and the movie. Another example isGrand Theft Auto 3,which was delayed so that changes could be made to the game map to make it look less like Manhattan. Considering this context,Metal Gear Solid 2is a particularly interesting release from this time, as although some changes were needed, the game was released on schedule (November 2001) despite being about a terrorist attack in New York City.
While any resemblance between the plot ofMetal Gear Solid 2and the actual attack on 9/11 is coincidental, the game does explore numerous themes that rapidly increase in relevance in the aftermath of the 9/11 tragedy. Both thematically and formally, the game has a preoccupation with data collection and vulnerabilities associated with big data, which became all the more relevant to a post-9/11 audience with growing fears around online surveillance and data theft/misuse. There are many factors that madeMetal Gear Solid 2so commercially and critically successful, but the increased thematic relevance post-9/11 helped solidify the game’s iconic status.
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Last-Minute Changes Made To Metal Gear Solid 2
Early into development, a Middle East setting was considered forMetal Gear Solid 2,but was ultimately decided against due to the extremely tumultuous political situation in the Middle East. It is somewhat ironic that in trying to avoid a controversial setting, the game is set in the same city as one of the most significant terrorist attacks in American history. Some ofthe last-minute changes made toMGS2were largely superficial,including the removal of American flags from the boss fight between Raiden and Solidus and changing the spelling of Raiden from katana to kanji, as the katana bore a resemblance to the Japanese for Bin Laden. Like other media products set in New York, some promotional material was altered to not feature the recently destroyed Twin Towers.
As many fans of the game will know, more significant changes were made to the game’s ending because of the 9/11 attacks. Originally, the Statue of Liberty was featured inMetal Gear Solid 2’sending and was to be attacked by Arsenal Gear. A scene showing Arsenal Gear destroying large sections of Manhattan was also removed due to how recently the tragedy had occurred in the city, as well as some dialogue alluding to terrorists targeting Manhattan specifically. Again, while the similarities here are coincidental,the conspiracy inMGS2resembles conspiracy theories that arose post-9/11, further reflecting howMGS2had tapped into contemporary themes that would skyrocket in relevance.
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Metal Gear Solid 2’s Cultural Relevance
One of the most memorable moments inMetal Gear Solid 2is when an AI impersonating the Colonel tells the player to stop playing, comments on how long they’ve played, and continually makes nonsensical comments. In the firstMetal Gear Solid,the Psycho Mantis battletouches on the same themes asMGS2,and in exploring these themes the game utilizes the ability of game consoles to store user data and personalize the gameplay experience; this, in turn, echoes the increasing fears over data misuse in the past two decades.
Furthermore, the randomend game screenthat can appear during this section ofMGS2taps into fears about technological dependence and overuse.MGS2is a game that very much reflects the drastic increase in the prevalence of digital technologies from the ’90s to the ’00s and beyond, and its proximity to the events of 9/11 bolsters the significance of its exploration of these themes. These fears are focalized through data-related controversies such as the Facebook-Cambridge Analytica scandal in the decades following the game’s release.
The shadowy organization that features in the game, the Patriots, bear obvious resemblance to the real-world Illuminati conspiracies; again,the Patriots ofMGS2were given increased significance and weight due to the numerous, prevalent 9/11 conspiracies that arose. The Patriot Act that was signed into law after 9/11 gave law enforcement increased surveillance abilities, heightening fears around digital surveillance; while the similarity in name ofMGS2’sPatriots group and the real-world Patriot Act is coincidental, it again exemplifies howMGS2was constructed around topics that would dominate world news for decades after its release.
The connections to 9/11 were not actually the biggest controversy whenMetal Gear Solid 2was released, but rather it wasthe unexpected change of playable character to Raiden(and the apparent death of Snake). While Snake’s journey occurs across various games and encompasses a variety of themes, Raiden’s journey (at least inMGS2) largely explores themes of agency, freedom, and mistrust in authority. Like US conspiracy thriller films of the ’70s and ’80s, Raiden is a protagonist that doesn’t know who to trust or how he may be being controlled. Having the conspiracy center around a rogue AI, digital surveillance, and shadowy organizations that pull all the strings made the game highly relevant as a post-9/11 cultural text, despite being developed long before the attacks occurred.
Finally, it’s important to acknowledge that not all gamers holdMetal Gear Solid 2in high regard, and it has often been criticized for being overly convoluted. Regardless of the game’s quality, it was released in proximity to an unexpected disaster, the aftermath of which made the game a significant case study of early ’00s media related to 9/11. A very similar coincidence occurs withKojima’s most recent game,Death Stranding,which contains an isolated society only able to communicate via the internet and cannot go outside. These themes of separation and isolation inDeath Strandingbecame more significant due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the mandatory lock-downs that gripped the world.
The lore oftheMetal Gear Solidfranchisemay be dense and highly complex, but in the case ofMetal Gear Solid 2,the complexity of the conspiracy narrative seemed eerily apt for a post-9/11 world.
