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Random freezes, missing sound and display glitches usually trace back to one bad driver. Find and replace yours safely.Free scan · under a minuteMetal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater takes the top spot in this ranking, followed by Metal Gear Solid and Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty. That order reflects GamesRadar+ contributor Scott McCrae’s editorial judgment, not a franchise-wide consensus or a numerical review score. The series ranges from stealth and cinematic storytelling to tactical card battles and full-on action, so the ranking weighs each game’s design, influence, story and distinctive contribution.
How this ranking works
This list follows McCrae’s 2026 ranking while making its trade-offs explicit. It includes spin-offs as well as mainline entries because Metal Gear’s most interesting experiments do not all fit the same stealth-action formula. A game’s place here reflects its strengths and role in the series, not a claim that every player will prefer it.
| # | Preview | Product | Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
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METAL GEAR SOLID | MASTER COLLECTION Vol. 2 - PlayStation 5 | $49.94 | Buy on Amazon |
| 2 |
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METAL GEAR SOLID Δ: SNAKE EATER TACTICAL ED – PS5 | $37.49 | Buy on Amazon |
| 3 |
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Metal Gear Solid Master Collection Vol. 1 - PS5 | $33.59 | Buy on Amazon |
| 4 |
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Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol.1 (Xbox Series X|S) | $35.34 | Buy on Amazon |
| 5 |
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Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance | $16.97 | Buy on Amazon |
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For context, Konami reported in its 2024 corporate report that the Metal Gear series had sold more than 60 million copies. That is the publisher’s series-wide figure from that year, not an audited current total or a comparison between individual games.
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The 10 best Metal Gear games, ranked
1. Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater (2004)
The top pick is a prequel starring Naked Snake, the soldier later known as Big Boss. Its Russian-jungle setting makes survival part of stealth: players must find weapons, equipment and food while navigating hostile territory. The result gives the series’ infiltration a more physical, resource-conscious feel.
#1 Best Overall
- GAME LIST: Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots, Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker (HD Collection version), Metal Gear: Ghost Babel. Versions for other regions of Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots and Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker (HD Collection version) can be downloaded separately from the store. Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker supports online play for up to 6 players.
- DIGITAL BOOKS: Metal Gear Solid 4: Screenplay Book, Metal Gear Solid 4: Master Book, Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker Screenplay Book, and Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker Master Book. All are accessible via the in-game Start Menu.
- METAL GEAR SOLID: MASTER COLLECTION Vol.1 SAVE-DATA BONUS*: If a user has saved data for any title included in METAL GEAR SOLID: MASTER COLLECTION Vol.1, you can receive in-game items usable in Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots and Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker (HD Collection version) respectively. Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots Bonus: Gold Camouflage. Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker (HD Collection version) Bonus: GOLD Uniform.
Its personal story, conflict between Snake and his mentor, and memorable final act help make the game more than a change of scenery. McCrae places it first for the way survival systems and emotional stakes reinforce one another. Konami’s Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater is a modern remake of this game, not a new chronological sequel; the 2004 original is the entry ranked here.
2. Metal Gear Solid (1998)
The PlayStation entry established the series’ cinematic stealth identity for a much wider audience. Solid Snake’s infiltration of Shadow Moses, a memorable cast and boss encounters helped define what later games could build on. Its playful technical surprises are part of its legacy, too: the Psycho Mantis sequence, for example, responds to memory-card data. PlayStation Blog’s history of the game highlights both Shadow Moses and these fourth-wall-breaking moments.
3. Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty (2001)
Sons of Liberty made a major technical leap from the first PlayStation game and told a deliberately disorienting story. Its themes and observations about information and online culture were controversial on release, but have since invited renewed attention. Its ambition is a strength, though the unusual narrative approach can make it a less straightforward entry point than the first Metal Gear Solid.
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Rank #2
- The story, characters, voice acting, gameplay, and music that made the original a sensation return, remade for modern consoles
- This evolutionary leap breathes new life into every cutscene, and rebuilds every corner of the world
- Incredible new graphics bring the wild growth of the jungles, forests, and swamps to life in exquisite detail
- Characters are rendered in fine detail so that facial wrinkles, pores, & separate eye & iris movements are visible, allowing for rich animations
- Any injuries to his actual body will leave their mark permanently, telling a story of each player's unique journey
4. Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes (2014) and The Phantom Pain (2015)
Together, these games offer the series’ clearest shift toward open mission design. The Phantom Pain gives players room to choose routes, tools and tactics, making experimentation central to its appeal. That freedom is its defining strength; the story, by contrast, is often considered unfinished and falls short of the series’ strongest narrative work. The ranking recognizes the game’s systems without treating that trade-off as minor.
5. Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker (2010)
First released for PSP, Peace Walker tells a mission-based Big Boss story and adds base management. Recruiting and developing an organization gives missions consequences beyond their immediate objectives, and the structure points toward systems expanded in Metal Gear Solid V. It is a major, mainline-like chapter even though it began on a handheld.
6. Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance (2013)
This PlatinumGames-developed spin-off puts Raiden at the center and trades stealth’s patience for fast, exaggerated hack-and-slash combat. It is a sharp change in genre rather than an attempt to reproduce the main series’ usual rhythm. That willingness to take Metal Gear in a different direction is why McCrae calls it the series’ best spin-off.
Rank #3
- Title Lineup:Metal Gear, Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake, Metal Gear Solid (Including VR Missions/Special Missions), Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty (HD Collection version), Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater (HD Collection version), Metal Gear (NES/FC version), Snake's Revenge
- Video: Metal Gear Solid: Digital Graphic Novel, Metal Gear Solid 2: Digital Graphic Novel
- Digital book: Metal Gear Solid: Screenplay Book, Metal Gear Solid: Master Book, Metal Gear Solid 2: Screenplay Book, Metal Gear Solid 2: Master Book, Metal Gear Solid 3: Screenplay Book, Metal Gear Solid 3: Master Book, Metal Gear & Metal Gear 2: Screenplay Book, Metal Gear & Metal Gear 2: Master Book
- Soundtrack: Metal Gear Solid: Digital Soundtrack
7. Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots (2008)
Guns of the Patriots concludes Solid Snake’s story with set pieces, gameplay and callbacks that reward longtime fans. Its weaknesses are equally notable: later gameplay can feel uneven, retcons complicate the series’ history, and lengthy exposition can make the plot convoluted. The ranking values its role in Snake’s arc without overlooking those pacing and narrative problems.
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Outbyte Driver Updater FREEFix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →Outbyte PC Repair FREERepair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →8. Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake (1990)
This MSX2 sequel developed ideas that became familiar series features, including radar, enemy awareness and distinctive codec conversations. Its importance is easy to miss beside the later 3D games, but it helped establish the stealth design vocabulary they would develop. Do not confuse it with Snake’s Revenge, a different NES game.
PlayStation Blog notes that players outside Japan waited 16 years for an official release of Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake.
Rank #4
- This innovative game series was born from the idea of avoiding combat and infiltrating enemy territory undetected
- Title line up: Metal Gear, Metal Gear 2, Metal Gear Solid, Metal Gear Solid 2, Metal Gear Solid 3, Metal Gear (NES/FC version), and Snake’s Revenge
- Digital books: Metal Gear Solid, Metal Gear Solid 2, Metal Gear Solid 3, Metal Gear, and Metal Gear; Screenplay and Master Books included
- Video: Metal Gear Solid; Digital Graphic Novel and Metal Gear Solid 2; Digital Graphic Novel
- Includes Metal Gear Solid: Digital Soundtrack
9. Metal Gear Acid 2 (2006)
This PSP spin-off turns stealth into a turn-based tactical card game. Instead of relying on reflexes, players plan moves and weigh the risk of each decision. Its placement reflects the breadth of the franchise: Metal Gear can support a thoughtful strategy game as well as cinematic infiltration.
10. Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops (2006)
Portable Ops is a PSP Big Boss story built around recruiting soldiers and assembling an army. Those ideas were developed further in Peace Walker. The game’s canonical status is debated, so it is safer to treat it as an important branch of the series than to present its place in continuity as settled.
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Which Metal Gear game should you play first?
Choose based on the experience you want rather than assuming the highest-ranked game is the best starting point for everyone.
Best Value
- Rising's stealth elements will emphasize Raiden's considerable speed and agility through what Matsuyama describes as "hunting stealth."
- Gameplay will focus on two key elements: swordfighting, and a style of stealth that is more fast-paced and action-oriented.
- "Cutting" entails sophisticated swordplay that lets players engage in third person melee combat, as well as precisely slash enemies and objects "at will" along a geometrical plane using a "free slicing" mode.
- For survival stealth and a self-contained emotional arc: start with Snake Eater. Choose the 2004 original for the game ranked here, or Delta if you specifically want its modern remake.
- For the series’ cinematic roots: begin with Metal Gear Solid, then continue to Sons of Liberty if you want the more experimental follow-up.
- For tactical freedom and open missions: choose Metal Gear Solid V, bearing in mind its story is less satisfying than its systems.
- For action without the stealth emphasis: try Revengeance.
- For a strategy-game take on infiltration: Acid 2 is the list’s most unusual option.
Where to play the ranked games now
Konami’s official Master Collection Vol.1 product page lists the original Metal Gear and Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake, Metal Gear Solid (including VR/Special Missions), and HD Collection versions of Metal Gear Solid 2 and Metal Gear Solid 3, alongside bonus content. The listed platform families are PS4, PS5, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch and PC/Steam; check the exact regional store listing because platform-specific editions can differ.
Konami’s product portal lists Master Collection Vol.2 for Nintendo Switch 2, Nintendo Switch, PS5, Xbox Series X|S and Steam. TechRadar’s review, published August 21, 2026, identifies Metal Gear Solid 4 and Peace Walker as its headline games, with Ghost Babel as a bonus, and lists August 27, 2026 as the release date. Konami lists Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater for PS5, Xbox Series X|S, Windows and Steam.
A practical route is Vol.1 for the early games and original trilogy, Vol.2 for MGS4 and Peace Walker, and Delta if you want a remake of Snake Eater. Prices and current storefront availability vary by region, so confirm them with the store before buying.
Why the ranking includes more than mainline stealth games
Metal Gear’s identity is broader than a single genre. Its most influential entries helped define cinematic stealth; others push tactical planning, survival, open-ended missions or action combat. Including Acid 2, Rising and Portable Ops makes this a ranking of the series’ range, not simply a list of numbered installments. There is no published numerical scoring rubric behind the order, so the best choice for a new player depends on which part of that range sounds most appealing.
Quick Recap
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
