After 4 Years, METAL GEAR ONLINE Says Goodbye

Metal Gear Online, the multiplayer component that was packaged in with Metal Gear Solid 4, is going offline tonight, forever. Things will go quiet at 11:59 p.m. JST or 10:59 a.m. EST. This shutdown may have already happened to you, but I want to take time to talk about this and reflect.

The servers launched four years ago and the game was supposed to be shutdown in three, but developer, Kojima loved us so much, that he extended it another year. I don't know how many of you were still playing this, but I am certain that a few of you are not happy.

Servers get shut down for a few reasons and the biggest reason would be money. It costs Kojima Productions and Konami money to keep the servers running. If the player base is not what it use to be, then it is more of a financial waste than gain. It also costs the companies money to employ people to maintain the servers and fix any issues with the game. The only other reason I can think of is that Kojima needs those servers for something else in the future. Hmmm.....

I feel old, guys. I remember pre-ordering Metal Gear Solid 4 on Amazon months before it came out, and I now just realized that I did that four years ago. I remember playing through the story and being in awe of the cinematics. I also felt that MGS4 was the best movie I ever played. Snake's story didn't come to a full halt, and some things were not resolved, but after years of being in that universe, it felt like a proper end.

I did jump into the crazy world of Metal Geat Online. I remember having to make an account with Konami because you could not just sign in with you PSN account. I actually played MGO quite a bit and had fun with running around sniping dudes. The multiplayer was for a particular breed of people; just like Gran Turismo 5 is for a particular breed of car enthusiasts. I will miss the MGO function, even if I have not played it in over a year, I will miss the idea of it. What other game can you buy gear for your character online? Probably a few, but MGO was a standout to me.

Goodbye, dear friend.

How does the shutdown of the Metal Gear Online servers make you feel?