The protagonist of Metal Gear Solid is Solid Snake, a legendary infiltrator and saboteur. His physique is based on Jean Claude Van Damme, while his facial appearance was originally based on Christopher Walken.[20][21] During the mission, Snake receives support and advice via radio. Colonel Roy Campbell, Solid Snake's former commanding officer, supports Snake with advice and tactics. While he initially keeps a number of secrets from Snake, he gradually reveals them.[22] He is joined by Naomi Hunter, who gives medical advice; Nastasha Romanenko, who provides item and weapon tips; Master Miller, a former drill instructor and survival coach; and Mei Ling, who saves the player's progress.

The main antagonist of the game is Liquid Snake, leader of the now-terrorist organization FOXHOUND, and genetic counterpart to Solid Snake.[16] An elite special forces unit, FOX-HOUND contains experts specializing in unique tasks. Members are Revolver Ocelot, a Western-style gunslinger and expert interrogator whose weapon of choice is the Colt Single Action Army; Sniper Wolf, a preternatural sniper; Vulcan Raven, a hulking Alaskan shaman armed with an M61 Vulcan torn from a downed F-16; Psycho Mantis, a psychic profiler and psychokinesis expert; and Decoy Octopus, a master of disguise.[16]

Other characters include Meryl Silverburgh, Roy Campbell's daughter (though this is only revealed in the Otacon ending) and a rookie soldier stationed in Shadow Moses who did not join the revolt; Dr. Hal "Otacon" Emmerich, the lead developer of Metal Gear REX; and the Cyborg Ninja, a mysterious cybernetically-enhanced agent who is neither an ally nor an enemy of Snake but does oppose FOXHOUND.[16]

[edit] Plot

The game is set in 2005,[23] where FOXHOUND and a genetically enhanced next-generation special forces unit lead an armed uprising on a remote island in Alaska's Fox Archipelago. This island, codenamed Shadow Moses, is the site of a nuclear weapons disposal facility.[19] The forces that seized this island have acquired the nuclear-capable mecha Metal Gear REX, and are threatening the US government with a nuclear reprisal if they do not receive the remains of the "legendary mercenary" Big Boss within 24 hours.[24]

As the game begins, Solid Snake is dispatched at the request of Colonel Roy Campbell to penetrate the terrorists' defenses and neutralize the threat.[25] Snake is also ordered to locate hostages DARPA chief Donald Anderson, and ArmsTech president Kenneth Baker. After being found, the DARPA chief informs Snake of the new Metal Gear REX unit housed at the facility, but then suddenly dies of what appears to be a heart attack.[26] Snake then finds the other hostage, Kenneth Baker. Revolver Ocelot challenges Snake to a gunfight, which is interrupted by a mysterious cyborg ninja who cuts off Ocelot's hand. Baker briefs Snake on the Metal Gear project and, like the DARPA chief, suddenly dies of a "heart attack".

Snake then contacts Meryl via radio, and agrees to meet her in the base's warhead disposal area on the condition that he contacts Metal Gear's designer, Hal "Otacon" Emmerich. Snake locates Otacon in his lab. The ninja reappears, and Snake realizes that it is actually his former ally Gray Fox, whom he believed killed years earlier. Otacon agrees to aid Snake remotely, using special camouflage to procure information and supplies while he remains invisible. Snake meets with Meryl and agrees for her to accompany him on his mission. Meryl gives Snake a PAL key and they head for the underground base. Part way through the base, Sniper Wolf ambushes them, wounds Meryl, and captures Snake.

While imprisoned, Liquid confirms Snake's suspicion that they are twin brothers.[27] Snake is tortured by Ocelot[28] and the player can choose to give in to this torture, or not. When Snake is taken to his cell, he discovers the body of DARPA chief Donald Anderson lying in the corner; however, though it was only hours before did Snake watch Anderson die in front of him, the body has been decomposing as if he were dead for days. Eventually Snake is able to escape.

Snake descends into the bowels of the Shadow Moses facility. After defeating Vulcan Raven, the shaman reveals to Snake that the man we watched die was not the DARPA Chief. It was Decoy Octopus.[29] However, Raven leaves the cause of death for Snake to find out. Shortly after, Master Miller calls and reveals that Dr. Naomi Hunter, a support agent, has given Snake the genetically engineered virus "FoxDie" during his mission preparations, and is sending coded messages into the facility. Campbell swiftly orders her arrest. The virus, designed to kill people with particular genetic markers via cardiac arrest,[30][31] was responsible for the deaths of Octopus and the ArmsTech president.[32] Naomi contacts Snake and confesses that she joined the mission to sabotage it. But upon learning of Snake's own past, she no longer had the heart to kill him directly having reprogrammed the virus.[33]

Infiltrating Metal Gear's hangar, Snake overhears Liquid and Ocelot preparing the launch sequence for Metal Gear REX. Thinking he is deactivating it, using the PAL key, Snake activates Metal Gear REX.[34] Master Miller then reveals himself to be Liquid in disguise. He informs Snake that his entire mission was manipulated by the renegades to allow the launch of the nuclear weapon.[35] Liquid explains that they are the product of the Les Enfants Terribles project, a government sponsored effort to clone Big Boss, that was conducted during the 1970s. Liquid explains that Solid received all of Big Boss' dominant alleles,while he received all the recessive alleles.[36][37] He also reveals to Snake the government's true reason for sending him in: his FoxDie would kill all the members of FOXHOUND, allowing the government to retrieve REX undamaged.

Snake destroys Metal Gear REX and defeats Liquid. He is then reunited with Meryl or Otacon, depending on the player's actions. They escape, while being chased by Liquid, in a jeep. Liquid dies from the FoxDie virus.[38] Colonel Campbell, briefly ousted from command of the mission, calls off a nuclear airstrike intended to obliterate the evidence of the day's events and officially declares Snake killed in action to stop the US government's search for him in the future.

There are two possible endings, depending on the player's actions during the torture sequence. If the player gives in to the torture, Snake finds Meryl dead and escapes with Otacon. If the player does not give in to the torture, Meryl survives and escapes with Snake while Otacon volunteers to stay behind and sacrifice himself to help Snake and Meryl get out, not knowing that the nuclear strike intended to hit the disposal facility would never come.

After the end credits the player finds out Snake is actually genetically inferior to Liquid[39] and has an indeterminate amount of time left before FoxDie kills him. Ocelot is revealed to be a double agent for the President of the United States, George Sears (the third Snake, Solidus). His intention was to obtain Baker's disk containing Metal Gear's specifications and deliver it to the President, and kill whoever knew of his true motives, the reason for his "accidental" killing of the DARPA chief.[40] The reason why Ocelot kills Anderson goes deeper into the Metal Gear saga. For info, see MGS 4.