Metal Gear Solid: The Board Game from IDW Games has been delayed once again, this time to Summer 2021, and the game’s price tag has been increased to $125. The board game is based on the original Metal Gear Solid game from Konami and legendary game developer Hideo Kojima, which was released back in 1998 for the PlayStation. Kojima has since moved on to open up his own studio, Kojima Productions, and release Death Stranding, which recently came to PC. As for Metal Gear Solid: The Board Game, it was announced back in late 2018 for a release in 2019 but was initially delayed to this summer.

Metal Gear Solid: The Board Game is being designed by Emerson Matsuuchi, who also worked on the classic Specter Ops board game, which shares quite a few traits with the Metal Gear Solid series including stealth/hidden movement mechanics and a sci-fi theme. Metal Gear Solid: The Board Game will feature cooperative gameplay and will let players take on the role of Solid Snake, Meryl Silverburgh, Dr. Hal “Otacon” Emmerich, and Gray Fox. It will be a fully cooperative board game that will require players to use their unique skill sets to stay hidden as they complete objectives across different missions.

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In a recent statement to the game’s pre-order customers, IDW Games announced that the game would be delayed another year and will be released sometime in the summer of 2021 instead. The publisher also announced that the game’s price tag will be increased to $125, a $16 increase from its previous price of $109. IDW mentions that those who’ve already pre-ordered will still be charged the game’s previous price and that no payments will be processed until March next year. To assuage fears of further delays, IDW Games also mentions that the game has already entered its final round of playtesting, explaining in-depth:

“The big question you probably have right now is “why?”. The answer is simple. We will not compromise our standards for the quality of game our community deserves. We are steadfastly committed to working with acclaimed designer Emerson Matsuuchi to bring his vision for this title to life on the tabletop no matter how much time it takes. Before you start to worry about the possibility of another delay, we are pleased to share that the game is entering its final round of playtesting this week!”

In the meantime, IDW Games also shared its plans for the coming months in the wake of the board game’s delay. The publisher will be sharing more details about Metal Gear Solid: The Board Game in the following months, including more information on gameplay, components, and missions. It also plans to share a set of tutorial and playable missions with all of the game’s backers as a “special holiday gift” this December. Lastly, backers will be able to try out the game virtually via Tabletop Simulator and Tabletopia sometime in March next year. Coincidentally, IDW Games is also working on other video game-based board games including the Bomberman and Contra board games, which were announced last year.

In spite of the delay, it looks like IDW Games isn’t leaving backers of the board game completely hanging and in the dark. Hopefully, with the additional year-long delay, the developers will finally be able to finish up the game and have it ready for release next year. Fortunately, which is definitely a good sign. Apart from the board game, a Metal Gear Solid movie is also in the works and director Jordan Vogt-Roberts recently shared concept art for the project.

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Source: IDW Games