There are few games out there that define the stealth series more than the Metal Gear franchise. Hideo Kojima conceived the universe and its main character "Snake" inspired by Kurt Russell's Snake Plissken in the film Escape From New York. The sweeping tale follows a soldier over the course of his life including the relationships he forms, the terrible and great things he does, and the story of his clones.
But Big Boss, a.k.a. "Naked Snake," is one of the most iconic characters in all of video game history. The character is also decently easy to cosplay. But some fans take it to the next level with extremely authentic takes on the many versions of Big Boss.
9 SambuZ Cosplay's Many Snakes
Italian cosplayer SambuZ sets the bar incredibly high when it comes to Big Boss cosplays. He portrayed Big Boss as he appeared in his green service uniform and classic green beret to staggering accuracy. But he also whipped up an impressive Venom Snake cosplay complete with bionic arm.
The attention to detail is what elevates any cosplay. SambuZ nails all of them from the medals and facial hair to the forlorn look in his eyes when he realizes Boss is gone for good. For those that haven't played a Metal Gear series game in awhile, here's a refresher course on MGS 3: Snake Eater.
8 Our Heaven And Our Hell
Bernardo Gavilan goes by the name Beno and has also cosplayed various Snakes over the years. With several variations of Big Boss under his belt, this one stands out as perhaps his most impressive. The icing on the cosplay cake here are the matching Militaires sans Frontières patches on the arm and beret respectively. Translated to English, it means "Army Without Borders" which, as fans of the series know, eventually leads to the creation of Outer Heaven.
Beno does some other choice cosplays including John Wick and Johnny Silverhand.
7 Old Dogs Don't Need New Tricks
Many cosplayers opt for recreating Snake from MGS 3: Snake Eater or Venom Snake from MGS: Phantom Pain. But @FrankieBello5 shows us a refined and retired warrior who still enjoys a fine cigar here as older Big Boss.
After many long years working as a soldier, Big Boss dedicated his life to a new cause in the form of Militaires sans Frontières and eventually Outer Heaven. He also mentors one of his three clones: David a.k.a. Solid Snake.
6 Maul Cosplay Brings Big Boss To Life
Although Venom Snake and Naked Snake/Big Boss aren't the same person technically, they also are the same person....technically. Without spoiling too much of MGS: Phantom Pain, Venom Snake is another Snake clone who isn't Solid Snake, Liquid Snake, and Solidus. But, unlike the others, he's a direct clone of Big Boss.
Maul Cosplay beautifully brings that Big Boss to life in this stunning photo that looks like it could have been plucked from an awesome gaming rig running the game at ultra graphics settings. Showcasing the cosplay in the real world, other fans met up with him for a bit of a Spider-Man gif moment. This time, they were the same Snake.
5 He Had Two Eyes...Once
Some gamers know the meme, but MGS fans are intimately familiar with the phrase. Game creator Hideo Kojima tends to embrace whatever fans throw at him and this meme was no different. Sawyers Mess Cosplay captures that cheeky Snake essence here as Big Boss with cigar before he lost his eye.
For those wondering how he lost his eye, nothing too crazy happened: Ocelot just shot it out while Snake was in a torture room. It was totally by accident though, so he and Snake are still bros.
4 From Now On, Call Me Big Boss
In MGS V: Ground Zeroes, you play as Big Boss and, though Snake is younger than this cosplayer, Jon Towner captures Naked Snake here effortlessly. The FOX badges indicate a younger Snake before the creation of Outer Heaven and the events of MGS V: Phantom Pain. Again, he wears the quintessential patches, bears the iconic eyepatch, and has that resolved look in his eye that says "I'm going to keep you waiting."
Snake would more likely say something eloquent like "Pain gets the better of us all" or "We have no tomorrow, but there's still hope for the future."
3 An Everyman For Every Cosplayer
The beautiful thing about a Big Boss cosplay is that it is not hard to replicate in a faithful way. Imgur user Taylorbhall (left) and DeviantArt user Snake-n-DA-boX (right) showcase straightforward, but excellent Naked Snake cosplays. Both of them also feature different camo patterns, radios, gear, and other small differences. That's one of the coolest things about Snake as a character: almost anyone can play him.
In fact, Oscar Isaac even told IGN that he would love to play Snake in the upcoming Metal Gear Solid movie project. No matter who may take up Snake's mantle, the actor must have that one and only voice.
2 David Hayter Voice Intensifies
While some cosplayers opt for function when it comes to conventions, some shine most during photoshoots. This impeccable take on Big Boss from MGS 3: Snake Eater comes from Rick Boer. Like many other Snake cosplayers, he has multiple Snake setups and all of them take the detail level up to eleven.
His work also employs props from RBF-productions-NL. Though Boer's take on Big Boss is excellent, his MGS 2: Sons of Liberty cosplay is nothing to scoff at either. Of course, that game features Solid Snake....not Big Boss or Venom Snake.
1 Kept You Waiting, Huh?
As classic as a burger on a diner menu, great Big Boss cosplayers are simple, but thorough in their recreations. Petchymon delivers in his MGS 3: Snake Eater cosplay that comes complete with an added bonus member known simply as "The End".
When the game originally debuted on PlayStation 2, you could avoid the boss fight by saving at the beginning of the encounter, changing the time on your console, and loading back into the game. The End would have died from old age. Oh, Kojima and his details.