Contrary to what GamePro might say, the only 8-Bit Metal Gear games Hideo Komima worked on were the titles for the MSX!
Name all the game consoles the Metal Gear series has appeared on!
I bet you came up with the PlayStation and PS2, and I wouldn't be surprised if you remembered Nintendo systems like the GameCube, Game Boy Advance, and of course the Nintendo Entertainment System. But what else? I mean, besides the PSP and Xbox, what other systems has Metal Gear been on?
Oh, that's right, Metal Gear was originally released on the MSX personal computer ... a system that never actually made it to the United States. Oh, don't feel bad for not remembering the system, you're not alone; GamePro didn't remember the system either.
In their June 2005 issue (#201), GamePro calls Metal Gear the number seven franchise of all time, above heavyweights like Castlevania, Bomberman, and Street Fighter. They go on to spend an entire page talking about the game's history, importance, and sales figures. The only problem is, they never actually talk about the origins of the game ... and at no time mentions the letters "MSX".
Of course, we're not expecting the casual GamePro reader to know what the MSX is; after all, it was never released in the U.S. and came out decades ago. This is why history books are written by experts, people that actually know what they are talking about rather than guessing or going
In this picture you can see Solid Snake doing is best ICO impression, all while running towards a giant killing machine!
by what they remember. In this case, GamePro featured a full history lesson of Metal Gear, but failed to mention the origins of the game. Call it lazy, call it uninformed, but we just feel it downright bad journalism.
Early in the article Major Mike (who, like all GamePro editors, hides behind a pseudonym) suggests that Metal Gear on the NES was the birth of Metal Gear, and that the sequel was a game called Snake's Revenge. He does all this just one sentence after talking about Hideo Kojima and his team ... a group of people who had nothing to do with the NES Metal Gear games. Furthermore, Snake's Revenge isn't even the true sequel to Metal Gear; that honor goes to 1990's Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake, released on the (surprise surprise) MSX.
GamePro doesn't just ignore these MSX games made by Hideo Kojima himself once, they go ahead of pass up a chance to talk about them yet again when they list off the "key games in the Metal Gear series." They have no problem noting the various versions of Metal Gear Solid 1 and 2, as well as the VR Missions and other various side stories. But when it comes to the original 1987 Metal Gear or the 1990 sequel, Solid Snake, GamePro just can't find room.
Actually, now that I think about it I kind of want them to ignore these CDi Zelda games!
When GamePro gets around to talking about the Mario's history (which they will surely do), are they going to ignore the original Mario Brothers or Donkey Kong? If they talk about the history of Grand Theft Auto, will they forget to talk about those old 2D overhead versions?? And I can only worry what they'll say about the Legend of Zelda, which appears on the oft-ignored CD-I.
But getting back on the point, we shouldn't be the ones having to tell you about the origins of Metal Gear. If you're paying GamePro to review games, explain the news, and talk about the history, you shouldn't put up with articles that go well beyond ignoring the facts. GamePro may have hit 200 issues, but they have a lot to learn about the history of video games, and that's a damn shame.
