Timeline

Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater is a 2004 action-adventure stealth game developed and published by Konami for the PlayStation 2. It was released in late 2004 in North America and Japan, and in early 2005 in Europe and Australia. Written, produced and directed by Hideo Kojima, the game is the fifth mainline installment in the Metal Gear series and the first chronologically, serving as a prequel to the entire series. Set in 1964, 31 years before the events of the original Metal Gear, the story centers on the FOX operative codenamed Naked Snake as he attempts to rescue Russian rocket scientist Nikolai Stepanovich Sokolov, sabotage an experimental superweapon, and assassinate his defected former boss.

Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain is a 2015 action-adventure stealth game developed and published by Konami. Directed, written, and produced by Hideo Kojima, it is the ninth installment in the Metal Gear franchise, following Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes, a stand-alone prologue released the previous year. Set in 1984, nine years after the events of Ground Zeroes, the story follows mercenary leader Punished "Venom" Snake as he ventures into Soviet-occupied Afghanistan and the Angola–Zaire border region to exact revenge on those who destroyed his forces and almost killed him during the climax of Ground Zeroes.

Metal Gear is a Japanese franchise of action-adventure stealth games created by Hideo Kojima. Developed and published by Konami, the first game, Metal Gear, was released in 1987 for MSX home computers. The player often takes control of a special forces operative, usually Solid Snake, who is typically assigned the task of finding the titular superweapon, "Metal Gear", a bipedal walking tank (mecha) with the ability to launch nuclear weapons.

Metal Gear is a 1987 action-adventure stealth game developed and published by Konami for the MSX2. Originally released in Japan and parts of Europe in July 1987, it is the first mainline game in the Metal Gear series, the fifth chronologically, and the first video game developed by Hideo Kojima. Players control Solid Snake, an operative of the U.S. special forces unit FOXHOUND, who is sent on a solo infiltration mission into the fortified state of Outer Heaven to destroy Metal Gear, a bipedal mecha capable of launching nuclear missiles to anywhere in the world, as well as rescue a number of fellow agents who have been taken hostages by the enemy.

Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake is a 1990 action-adventure stealth game developed and published by Konami for the MSX2. The second mainline installment in the Metal Gear series and the sixth chronologically, it serves as a sequel to the original Metal Gear (1987). Set in 1999, a few years after the events of the original game, Solid Snake must infiltrate a heavily defended territory in Central Asia known as Zanzibar Land to rescue a kidnapped scientist and destroy the revised "Metal Gear D". The game significantly evolved the stealth-based game system of its predecessor, and uses a storyline dealing with themes such as the nature of warfare and nuclear proliferation.

Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty is a 2001 action-adventure stealth game developed by Konami Computer Entertainment Japan and published by Konami for the PlayStation 2. Directed, produced, designed, and written by Hideo Kojima, it is the fourth overall game in the Metal Gear series, the eighth chronologically, and a sequel to Metal Gear Solid (1998). The game was originally released in November 2001 for North America and Japan and March 2002 for Europe, while an expanded edition, titled Metal Gear Solid 2: Substance was released the following year for the PlayStation 2, Xbox and Windows.

Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots is a 2008 action-adventure stealth game developed by Kojima Productions and published by Konami for the PlayStation 3. It is the sixth Metal Gear game directed by Hideo Kojima. Set five years after the events of Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty, the story centers around a prematurely aged Solid Snake, now known as Old Snake, as he goes on one last mission to assassinate his nemesis Liquid Snake, who now inhabits the body of his former henchman Revolver Ocelot under the guise of Liquid Ocelot, before he takes control of the Sons of the Patriots, an A.I. system that controls the activities of PMCs worldwide. The game was released on June 12, 2008. After over 18 years of being exclusive to the PlayStation 3, Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots will be ported to Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Switch 2, PlayStation 5, Windows, and Xbox Series X/S on August 27, 2026, and will additionally be part of the Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 2 compilation on these platforms. However, Metal Gear Online will not be included in the ports.

Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker is a 2010 stealth game developed by Kojima Productions and published by Konami. It is the seventh Metal Gear game written, directed, and designed by Hideo Kojima, and the fifth installment of the Metal Gear Solid series, as well as the fourth Metal Gear game made specifically for the PlayStation Portable, following Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops. A remastered version of the game titled Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker — HD Edition was later released for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 as part of the Metal Gear Solid HD Collection in North America and Europe and as a stand-alone retail release in Japan. The HD Edition of the game will be included in the Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 2 compilation for Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Switch 2, PlayStation 5, Windows, and Xbox Series X/S on August 27, 2026.