The recent announcement and trailers for Metal Gear Solid 5 has brought many fond memories back to gamers. Fans of the series will not only have their favourite entries, but also their favourite boss encounters. The new trailer for Metal Gear Solid 5 shows quite a few battle moments that seems even more over-the-top than in previous games. The boss battles make up a large part of the charm of the series. With that in mind, this article is looking to remember some of the best bosses in the Metal Gear Solid series.
5) Revolver Ocelot
One of the long standing characters in the game, Revolver Ocelot has played as an antagonist to various Snakes over a long period of time. As the only FOXHOUND survivor from Metal Gear Solid 1, his post-game dialogue with the then president of the USA (Solidus Snake) gave gamers huge hope that a sequel would eventually arrive. Revolver Ocelot further cemented his legacy in Metal Gear Solid 3 as the cocky young villain. His background (or more accurately, allegiances) is one of the most cloudy backgrounds in the entire game series. I’m sure we all recall the final moments of Metal Gear Solid 3 where Ocelot begins to follow Big Boss too. His impact on the story of the series is one of the biggest amongst all characters.
4) The End
The old relic, a master of the sniper art, brought to gamers one of the most memorable boss battles ever. Covering three large areas, Snake and The End battled back and forth trying to catch each other out. This is truly what an epic sniper battler would feel like. Sure, some actions could make this fight much easier, but the first few times you try this battle are all memorable. I fondly remember getting shot in the back while looking over a cliff. I also remember a moment where, having seen something shine in the distance, crouched down and looked down my sniper scope to see what it was. A few seconds later the camera changed to look down The End’s sniper scope showing Snake in its sight. This was so surprising that Snake looked mentally challenged as I tried to hastily run away from an entirely weird perspective. Great times.
3) Psycho Mantis
Who can forget Psycho Mantis? He didn’t just mess with Snake, he messed with you, the gamer. Rarely had a game done something as involved as his boss battle, so Psycho Mantis deserves to be on any top boss list. Even though you only fought him once in Metal Gear Solid 1, his impact was long-lasting. Once you figured out how to fight him, he became somewhat easy. Then again you could argue that with any boss battle. You have to also remember that Psycho Mantis was controlling most of the foot soldiers in Metal Gear Solid 1 too. Surely that took its toll too. With the recent trailer for Metal Gear Solid 5, many are speculating that a young Psycho Mantis could return. That sounds awesome!
2) The Boss
Ah, The Boss. The figurehead for Metal Gear Solid 3. Big Boss’ mentor. And a great mentor she was. She was very loyal to her country, sacrificing herself so that war on a large scale could be averted. The final battle was tense, with a very strong boss, reliance on CQC methods and to top it all off, a time limit. The symbolism behind the battle mattered more though. The Boss stood in Naked Snake’s way to becoming a better soldier. Only by taking her down, would he be able to reach greatness. So while he didn’t wish to fight his mentor, he had to in order to survive. Thus, Big Boss was born.
1) Liquid Snake
What can I say, I absolutely loved Liquid Snake in Metal Gear Solid 1. Solid Snake’s greatest rival was also the only one he could never defeat. His sheer determination to never lay down made him memorable to me. You fought him in a helicopter, in a metal gear, in a jeep and face-2-face. In just one game. Liquid Snake’s inferiority complex was his undoing, never realising he was the clone child of Big Boss with the dominant genes. Still, in the end, only FOXDIE killed him. In Metal Gear Solid 4, while he doesn’t technically return, Ocelot’s hypnotism of himself to become Liquid speaks volumes of Liquid’s abilities and mental state. True, it was done to confuse The Patriots, but Liquid was the only one who could have pulled it off. Liquid Ocelot was spiritually Liquid Snake. Only near the end did Ocelot return slowly. That end battle in Metal Gear Solid 4 was equally memorable. Two brothers dueling until the end. It was a great homage to Ocelot too.
Good article, I agree with all of your choices (though not necessarily the order but hey ho). However, I do disagree with the end of the article.
The final fight in MGS4 is not about Snake and Liquid, Metal Gear Solid never was really. Ocelot always has been Snake’s greatest rival and their last battle reflects that. Ocelot’s every action was motivated by his love for Big Boss, and he saw a lot of Big Boss in Snake. While Liquid is an awesome character who I really do enjoy, the series always had to come down to one last battle – Snake vs Ocelot. They needed to find out who was better.
“Just like your father…. You’re pretty good…”