Uploaded August 2025 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Metal Gear Solid's codec is an iconic element of the series' identity. It's a foundational component of its storytelling and yet a question that rarely gets asked is, well... how does it actually function? What are its rules? How do the games (and novel) explain it? The answer, as it turns out, is rather complicated, going far beyond the physics of futuristic radio communication or the series' obsession with nanomachines, and getting into the differences in storytelling between games and other artforms—"winning the battle, losing the cutscene," the differences in how they handle contrivances, etc. With the release of Metal Gear Solid Delta imminent, in this essay/analysis/thought experiment, let's answer the question—how does Metal Gear Solid's codec work?
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Support the show on Patreon - patreon.com/writingongames
Podcast - http://anchor.fm/writingongamescast
Second Channel - youtube.com/channel/UC1xxfS_HILi09yaELQdmV1A
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0:00 - Intro plug
0:08 - The question I've been asking myself
1:22 - What are the "rules" of the codec?
4:57 - How different artforms handle contrivances
7:55 - Control is the key word
9:21 - So how does the codec ACTUALLY work?!
10:47 - Outro
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#metalgearsolid #mgs #hideokojima
MGS2 translator Agness Kaku on working with Kojima - web.archive.org/web/20120125211106/http://www.hardcoregaming101.net/metalgear/agnesskaku3.htm#13
Extra footage used:
youtube.com/watch?v=c3iqVTDXK1Y
youtube.com/watch?v=RhMsboqMMzs
youtube.com/watch?v=35FzeJoqpkk
youtube.com/watch?v=Nr5AVIUb1rM
youtube.com/watch?v=zU9ZUmcz_ig
youtube.com/watch?v=LXaOguzFHTE
youtube.com/watch?v=XVYMKd2Datk
Metal Gear Solid's codec is an iconic element of the series' identity. It's a foundational component of its storytelling and yet a question that rarely gets asked is, well... how does it actually function? What are its rules? How do the games (and novel) explain it? The answer, as it turns out, is rather complicated, going far beyond the physics of futuristic radio communication or the series' obsession with nanomachines, and getting into the differences in storytelling between games and other artforms—"winning the battle, losing the cutscene," the differences in how they handle contrivances, etc. With the release of Metal Gear Solid Delta imminent, in this essay/analysis/thought experiment, let's answer the question—how does Metal Gear Solid's codec work?
---
Support the show on Patreon - patreon.com/writingongames
Podcast - http://anchor.fm/writingongamescast
Second Channel - youtube.com/channel/UC1xxfS_HILi09yaELQdmV1A
---
0:00 - Intro plug
0:08 - The question I've been asking myself
1:22 - What are the "rules" of the codec?
4:57 - How different artforms handle contrivances
7:55 - Control is the key word
9:21 - So how does the codec ACTUALLY work?!
10:47 - Outro
---
#metalgearsolid #mgs #hideokojima
MGS2 translator Agness Kaku on working with Kojima - web.archive.org/web/20120125211106/http://www.hardcoregaming101.net/metalgear/agnesskaku3.htm#13
Extra footage used:
youtube.com/watch?v=c3iqVTDXK1Y
youtube.com/watch?v=RhMsboqMMzs
youtube.com/watch?v=35FzeJoqpkk
youtube.com/watch?v=Nr5AVIUb1rM
youtube.com/watch?v=zU9ZUmcz_ig
youtube.com/watch?v=LXaOguzFHTE
youtube.com/watch?v=XVYMKd2Datk
