It’s official—Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes will indeed be a separate game from Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, as Siliconera reported earlier in the year. Konami confirmed the news this morning, along with an announcement that Ground Zeroes will be available for Xbox 360, Xbox One, PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4.
Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes will have the player go on a rescue mission, infiltrating a Cuban prison camp. The events of the game will culminate in the plotline of Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain.
As previously reported, Ground Zeroes will feature a large open environment, a day-and-night system that affects the game’s missions, and is intended to familiarize players with the series’ new advancements in preparation for Metal Gear Solid V. The game will feature both a central story and Side-Ops missions, including tactical missions, aerial assaults and “covert” missions.
Additionally, Konami say, the game will feature a minimalistic user interface.
“The advanced capabilities of the FOX Engine have allowed me to tell the new story in a new way. There will be a significant difference in what Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain brings to the series, so we want to ease players into the new open world environment and its potential. As such, Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes has been designed to introduce key elements, allowing them to fully benefit from all that the new game will offer.”
Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes will be available in Spring 2014. The game will be available as both a retail and digital title for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. Retail versions of the game will cost $30/£30, while download versions will cost $20/£20.
Meanwhile, the Xbox One and PlayStation 4 will see a digital-only release of the game, priced at $30/£30 on both platforms.
