Release OrderRecommended
0 / 11 playedThe order the games came out, and the recommended play order. Later prequels assume you know the earlier reveals.
- 1 Metal Gear
- 2 Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake
- 3 Metal Gear Solid Play the Master Collection Vol. 1 version on modern platforms.
- 4 Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty
- 5 Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater Faithful remake of MGS3 (2004). Play this version.
- 6 Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots Long PS3 exclusive. Re-released in Master Collection Vol. 2 (2026).
- 7 Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker Originally PSP. Included in Master Collection Vol. 2.
- 8 Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance PlatinumGames action spinoff starring Raiden. Skippable.
- 9 Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes Standalone prologue to The Phantom Pain.
- 10 Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain
- 11 Metal Gear Survive Non-canon co-op survival spinoff in an alternate dimension. Optional.
Chronological Order
0 / 11 playedThe in-universe timeline, best saved for a second run. It front-loads the prequels and spoils the original trilogy's twists.
- 1 Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater Set in 1964. The earliest story.
- 2 Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker Set in 1974.
- 3 Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes Set in 1975.
- 4 Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain Set in 1984.
- 5 Metal Gear Set in 1995.
- 6 Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake Set in 1999.
- 7 Metal Gear Solid Set in 2005.
- 8 Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty Set in 2007 and 2009.
- 9 Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots Set in 2014.
- 10 Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance Set in 2018. Follows MGS4 in both orders.
- 11 Metal Gear Survive Alternate timeline branching off Ground Zeroes. Play last or skip.
About Metal Gear
Metal Gear spans the Cold War to the near future through Solid Snake, Naked Snake (Big Boss) and Raiden. The saga loves prequels that reframe earlier games, which is why release order stays the recommended play order.
Delta: Snake Eater (August 28, 2025) is the current version of MGS3 and the first series release without Kojima to win over critics. Master Collection Vol. 1 (2023) bundles the early games for modern platforms, and Vol. 2 followed on August 27, 2026 with MGS4 and Peace Walker.
Good to know
Play in release order. Newcomers can start with the original Metal Gear Solid via Master Collection Vol. 1, or with Delta for modern controls first. Survive is a non-canon spinoff and safe to skip. Portable Ops (2006) sits between MGS3 and Peace Walker, but Peace Walker covers the important parts, so it is optional; Snake's Revenge and the Acid games are non-canon. No new original entry has been announced, and Konami has confirmed nothing about further remakes.
