Metal Gear is a franchise of 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, who is assigned the task of finding the titular superweapon, "Metal Gear", a bipedal walking tank with the ability to launch nuclear weapons.
From top to bottom: Big Boss, Liquid Snake, and Solid Snake, three central characters in the Metal Gear series, as drawn by Yoji Shinkawa
Hideo Kojima is the franchise's creator, and was involved in directing, designing, writing and producing the majority of installments in the main series until Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain (2015).
A stealth game is a type of video game in which the player primarily uses stealth to avoid or overcome opponents. Games in the genre typically allow the player to remain undetected by hiding, sneaking, or using disguises. Some games allow the player to choose between a stealthy approach or directly attacking antagonists, but rewarding the player for greater use of stealth. The genre has employed espionage, counter-terrorism, and rogue themes, with protagonists that are special forces operatives, special agents, secret agents, thieves, ninjas, or assassins. Some games have also combined stealth elements with other genres, such as first-person shooters and also platformers.
Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell (2002) featured a light-based visibility meter which determined how much the player was visible.
Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater (2004) introduced camouflage to the stealth genre as can be seen with the "camo index" in the top-right corner.
