Zombicide studio CMON is teasing a new Metal Gear Solid board game

Zombicide and Blood Rage publisher CMON appears to be teasing a new board game adaptation of video game series Metal Gear Solid.

The board game maker posted a picture of a cardboard box to its Twitter account on Tuesday, along with the caption: “IMPORTANT: DO NOT OPEN UNTIL TOMORROW”

Of course, the box is more than just a box, as fans of the long-running stealth-action series quickly surmised. Cardboard boxes have made an iconic appearance in every instalment since the original Metal Gear, allowing the player to hide under them and avoid enemy detection, as well as providing an amusing method of transportation between locations.

If the cardboard box’s close association with Metal Gear Solid wasn’t enough of a tease, text written on the side of the cardboard box directly quotes hero Solid Snake’s speech from the conclusion of 2001 sequel Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty: “Life isn't just about passing on your genes. We can leave behind much more than just DNA."

Squinting at the blurry text on its other side, it also appears that the box is addressed to Big Boss - antagonist of the original Metal Gear games who later becomes the player’s main character in prequel games Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater, Metal Gear Solid V and portable spin-offs Portable Ops and Peace Walker.

If this all turns out to be accurate, CMON’s Metal Gear Solid board game won’t be the first attempt to adapt the series for the tabletop.

A co-op board game under the title of Metal Gear Solid: The Board Game was announced in 2018 with designer Emerson Matsuuchi attached. Matsuuchi had previously earned plaudits for the heavily MGS-inspired hidden-movement stealth board game Specter Ops.

However, after years of delays, Matsuuchi announced in early 2021 that the project had been cancelled by publisher IDW Games. IDW ultimately shuttered the board game division of the comic book publisher later that year.

At the time, Matsuuchi said he had retained rights to the game’s design, but did not have the licensing rights required to release it as an official Metal Gear Solid title. The board game had planned to adapt the first Metal Gear Solid game, putting players in control of Solid Snake, Meryl Silverburgh, Dr Hal ‘Otacon’ Emmerich and Gray Fox as they infiltrated the Shadow Moses facility to stop the terrorist cell of FOXHOUND, led by Liquid Snake.

“I have been pursuing a myriad of options to keep the project going,” Matsuuchi wrote. “We’re working to keep this project alive and exploring possible options. While there are no guarantees that our efforts will bear fruit, I’m still optimistic that we will be able to get the MGS game to market, to the patient fans that have been kept waiting.”

While there’s no indication that CMON’s game and Matsuuchi’s game are one and the same, it may well yet prove to be the case.

CMON’s tease of an announcement later today, Wednesday May 24th, also happens to coincide with the rumoured reveal of a remake of PlayStation 2 game Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater. While rumours of a remake of the acclaimed jungle-set prequel have circulated for years, they’ve recently gathered fresh momentum ahead of a new games showcase by PlayStation airing this evening.

If nothing else, the coincidental timing of a new Metal Gear Solid board game - one that appears to directly reference Snake Eater hero Big Boss (aka Naked Snake) - and a long-rumoured MGS remake may certainly raise eyebrows.