We’re expecting a major Metal Gear Solid V announcement tomorrow, but it looks like we’re getting it early. The release date for the title has been confirmed by Hideo Kojima himself.

In a video posted errantly by IGN, Kojima announces the release date as September 1. He also says that Snake will be more of an extension of the player and won’t have much to say. “Snake will be more of a silent protagonist, similar to Mad Max in Mad Max 2,” Kojima says. “It’s the characters around him who will expand the story.”

A slide appears at the end of the video confirming the worldwide release date as Tuesday, September 1. Kojima says that this will be his final Metal Gear game, though he does leave the door open for others to step in.

As for the future of the series, Kojima says that this is the last game in the series to him. “I always say this will be my last Metal Gear, but the games in the series I’ve personally designed and produced: Metal Gear on MSX, Metal Gear 2, Metal Gear Solid 1, 2, 3, 4, and Peace Walker, and now Metal Gear Solid V are what constitute a single Metal Gear saga,” he says. “With Metal Gear Solid V, I’m finally closing the loop on that saga. In that sense, this will be the final Metal Gear Solid. Even if the Metal Gear franchise continues, to me, this is the last Metal Gear.”

Our Take

As suspected, tomorrow's big announcement is the one piece of information we've been waiting for. What's surprising though, is Kojima's thoughts on Snake as a more silent protagonist. It seems a waste to bring in Kiefer Sutherland and then relegate him to a more secondary presence.