History YMMV / MetalGearSolid

* BreatherBoss: The Hind D.

* BigLippedAlligatorMoment: In ''The Twin Snakes'', during the Psycho Mantis scene when he's forcing your controller to move, he begins laughing. A second later, three photos in the back, which show real people in them (Specifically, Hideo Kojima, Ryuhei Kitamura, the game's cutscene director, and Denis Dyack, head of Silicon Knights), come to life and begin laughing in extremely high pitched voices that serves as both [[NightmareFuel frightening]] and [[CrowningMomentofFunny quite]] [[MostAnnoyingSound hilarious]]. That's never explained nor mentioned again, though it's not entirely out of the realms of possibility that it's all an illusion created by Mantis.

* FirstInstallmentWins: For some. It's probably the most consistent fan favorite after [[MetalGearSolid3 Snake Eater]] and arguably remains in the public conscious more than the other games.

** Also, Liquid Snake desired to murder Big Boss in revenge for either allegedly being knowingly given the inferior genes by Big Boss or being told by Big Boss repeatedly that he was inferior, and hated Snake partially for stealing that chance. Liquid Snake's VA, CamClarke, later voices [[Disney/TheLionKing a character]] who attempts to avenge his father after discovering that he was murdered by his uncle in VideoGame/KingdomHeartsII.

* BootstrappedTheme: [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XI1VpElKWF8 "Encounter."]]

** Ocelot's line about making bullets go wherever he makes them was not in the Japanese script.

* BigLippedAlligatorMoment: In ''The Twin Snakes'', during the Psycho Mantis scene when he's forcing your controller to move, he begins laughing. A second later, three photos in the back, which show real people in them (Specifically, Hideo Kojima, RyuheiKitamura, the game's cutscene director, and DenisDyack, head of Silicon Knights), come to life and begin laughing in extremely high pitched voices that serves as both [[NightmareFuel frightening]] and [[CrowningMomentofFunny quite]] [[MostAnnoyingSound hilarious]]. That's never explained nor mentioned again, though it's not entirely out of the realms of possibility that it's all an illusion created by Mantis.

* ItWasHisSled: The one scene described in great detail whenever anyone tells someone who hasn't played it is Psycho Mantis' boss fight and the trick to beat him.

* MemeticMutation: "Snake, did you like my sunglasses?"
* RecycledScript: Several plot elements and set pieces used in ''VideoGame/MetalGear'' and ''VideoGame/MetalGear2SolidSnake'' reappear in ''Metal Gear Solid'' with no comment from anybody.

** Remember when Gray Fox tells Snake "You haven't aged well"? Becomes extremely true by ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid4GunsOfThePatriots'' where Foxdie causes Snake to age so rapidly that he looks like an old man.

* BigLippedAlligatorMoment: In ''The Twin Snakes'', during the Psycho Mantis scene when he's forcing your controller to move, he begins laughing. A second later, three photos in the back, which show real people in them (including Kojima), come to life and begin laughing in extremely high pitched voices that serves as both [[NightmareFuel frightening]] and [[CrowningMomentofFunny quite]] [[MostAnnoyingSound hilarious]]. That's never explained nor mentioned again, though it's not entirely out of the realms of possibility that it's all an illusion created by Mantis.

** Also, Liquid Snake desired to murder Big Boss in revenge for either allegedly being knowingly given the inferior genes by Big Boss or being told by Big Boss repeatedly that he was inferior, and hated Snake partially for stealing that chance. Liquid Snake's VA, CamClarke, later voices [[TheLionKing a character]] who attempts to avenge his father after discovering that he was murdered by his uncle in VideoGame/KingdomHeartsII.

** SeinfieldIsUnfunny: The stealth gameplay may seem rather crude and simplistic compared to later entries in the genre, especially to players who have only played the likes of ''{{VideoGame/Hitman}}'' or ''VideoGame/SplinterCell''. Plus, the story, highly praised at the time, today is considered by a lot of people as an InfoDump train wreck with way too much ParrotExposition. Although it still holds up as part of the overarching mythology of the series.

* ItsShortSoItSucks: The most common criticism of the game. A typical player will finish the game in about 10-11 hours, well over half of which is cutscenes and CODEC conversations. This is mitigated by the ranking system, multiple endings, and NewGamePlus bonus items, but that still smacks of FakeLongevity.

* SeinfeldIsUnfunny: The Psycho Mantis fight was ground breaking and full of {{HSQ}} at the time, most new players now a days don't get what was so mindblowing.
** More broadly, the stealth gameplay may seem rather crude and simplistic compared to later entries in the genre, especially to players who have only played the likes of ''{{VideoGame/Hitman}}'' or ''VideoGame/SplinterCell''.
* SoCoolItsAwesome

* TheWoobie: Many.
** [[ReluctantWarrior Solid Snake]]: Snake's a minor case, but he has a few things on his shoulders. There's his guilt over killing Big Boss and Gray Fox in the previous game, as well as his general distaste for killing that plays directly against his "killer instinct." He also finds out [[spoiler:[[CloningBlues that he's a clone]], that he's got an EvilTwin, and [[MultipleEndings might]] get Meryl killed]].
** [[BigBad Liquid]]: Seriously, when you think about it, especially given what happens in the rest of the series: he's played like a fiddle and given a ([[spoiler:unjustified]]) massive inferiority complex by Ocelot, suffers not one, not two, but ''three'' brutal beatdowns at the hands of Snake, [[spoiler: and is ultimately killed off in a cutscene by FOXDIE when he pretty much had Snake dead to rights]]. And then, just when you think [[spoiler: he's getting his own back at Ocelot by taking him over via his reattatched arm and masterminding the events that follow, it turns out he was just a VirtualGhost used by Ocelot as part of his scheme.]] Kinda makes you feel sorry for the poor guy, even if he was an evil mastermind in his own right.
*** On the other hand, he was a hop skip and jump away from being a complete monster, so how much of all that he had coming to him depends on the player.
** [[PsychoForHire Psycho Mantis]]: He's an extremely dark WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds, due to a literal FreudianExcuse ([[spoiler: the first mind he dove into was his father's, and he realized that his father hated him and blamed him for the fact that his mother died in childbirth]]) and his delving too far into a serial killer's mind, but he still can earn a bit of sympathy. Having his mind torn open by everyone's thoughts and a tragic past can do that.
** [[EvilIsSexy Sniper Wolf]]: Similar to Psycho Mantis, though not quite as dark.
** [[SmartGuy Otacon]]: He's really not cut out for this sort of thing to begin with. He also is the helpless pawn who's horrified to discover what Metal Gear ''really'' is for. Also, his StockholmSyndrome for [[spoiler:Sniper Wolf]]. It would be a lot more effective if he didn't {{Wangst}} so much about it though.
** [[spoiler:[[WeCanRebuildHim Gray Fox]]: This is, really, the entire point of the character. Kept barely alive but superhumanly powerful with [[CyberneticsEatYourSoul cybernetics that eat his soul]], Gray Fox also has the whole "my best friend tried to kill me" thing going. Killing him is, as many in the game tell you, a mercy kill.]]
** Decoy Octopus: the MasterOfDisguise would often require intensive therapy after each mission, due to allowing himself to sink completely into the personality of whoever he was imitating. Also, of all the bosses, he's the only one that [[spoiler:you don't actually fight. He gets killed by FOXDIE before you even find out who he really is, and only gets mentioned in passing later on by Vulcan Raven.]]

* VocalEvolution: DavidHayter seems to portray Solid Snake as being very distant and cold through his speaking. In later games, while still very gruff, Snake's voice is warmer and more comforting.

** Severl of its tracks can be found [[AwesomeMusic/MetalGear here]].

* HarsherInHindsight: After defeating Sniper Wolf, Solid Snake ends up talking with her and then, at her request, shot her in the head to euthanize her. The already sad scene gets even ''worse'' after playing ''Snake Eater'', where his father, Naked Snake/[[spoiler:Big Boss]], does something very similar to Solid Snake regarding The Boss late into the game.

** In the Japanese version, Dr. Clark's gender was alluded to only once, when Naomi responds that it was Gray Fox who killed Clark (she uses Kare, a masculine pronoun). The English version added in more references to Clark being a male.

* BootstrappedThemeTune: [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XI1VpElKWF8 "Encounter."]]

* AlasPoorVillain: Psycho Mantis (with his quote of "it...feels nice"), Sniper Wolf (upon revealing her backstory), and Vulcan Raven (he ends up letting his beloved ravens eat him, so that he can "become one with them").

* ItGetsBetter: Compared to most games, ''Metal Gear Solid'' is this. In comparison to the other games in the series, however...

** Mei-Ling originally quoted only Chinese proverbs in the Japanese version. She would say the original proverb in phonetic Chinese and then repeat the same proverb in Japanese. This proved to be rather difficulty to localize, since she simply ended up saying the same thing twice in English, so Blaustein expanded Mei-Ling's expertise to include Western literature and proverbs as well (This is one of the few changes retained in the remake: The Twin Snakes).

* EvilIsCool: FOXHOUND completely steal the show. It helps that two thirds of them are [[RecurringBoss Recurring Bosses]], so the audience gets plenty of time to know them.

* ThatOneBoss: Sniper Wolf , since the sniper rifle is so annoying to control. Though the second battle can be easy if you use the Nikita.

* MemeticMutation: "Did you like my sunglasses, Snake?"