Konami has officially unveiled Fox Hunt, a brand-new online multiplayer mode coming to Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater — but fans hoping for the return of Metal Gear Online may want to temper their expectations.
While many interpreted recent teasers as hints of an MGO revival, Konami made it clear: Fox Hunt is something new. And even though it’s not MGO4, it’s looking like a solid evolution of Metal Gear’s signature stealth gameplay.
In a newly released developer video, Fox Hunt director Yu Sahara explained the vision behind the mode. Rather than reviving Metal Gear Online, Sahara and his team wanted to build something that both honors the franchise’s stealth roots and feels fresh in today’s multiplayer landscape.
“Fox Hunt is an original online multiplayer mode,” Sahara said. “Although it shares the same world as Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater, its gameplay is completely different.” According to him, the team considered bringing back MGO, but ultimately felt the multiplayer genre had evolved too much to simply recreate what came before.
Classic Metal Gear Vibes, Fresh Multiplayer Approach
From what’s been shown, Fox Hunt leans into the cat-and-mouse tension Metal Gear is known for. The mode draws inspiration from stealth-based multiplayer classics like Spies vs. Mercs (from Splinter Cell) and even MGO’s fan-favorite “Team Sneaking” mode.
Players can blend into their surroundings using a streamlined version of MGS4’s Octocamo system — just touch a surface and stay still for a moment, and your character automatically adopts the texture of their environment. No menus, no clunky interface — just seamless stealth.
Sahara describes the gameplay as focused on “hide-and-seek tension,” where one team might rely on stealth and non-lethal takedowns while another hunts with lethal firepower. While exact rules haven’t been fully revealed, the core of the experience seems to prioritize patience, positioning, and strategy over pure firepower.
Why Not Just Bring Back MGO?
It’s a fair question — and one fans are asking. Metal Gear Online still has a devoted following, especially the MGS4 version (MGO2). But as Sahara explained, the multiplayer scene has changed significantly, and past MGO modes often struggled to maintain player numbers. Even in stealth-based modes, many players just treated it like a flashy deathmatch.
So rather than repeating history, Konami’s aiming to extract the best parts of the MGO formula — the tension, the stealth dynamics, the high-stakes gameplay — and build something that fits today’s multiplayer environment.
Extra Delta Details: Boss Fights, Collectibles, and Secret Theatre
Beyond Fox Hunt, Konami also offered some new details on the core game. Metal Gear Solid Delta will feature rebalanced gameplay systems and updated AI for boss fights while retaining the spirit of the original. The beloved Secret Theatre — originally a hidden collection of goofy alternate scenes created by the dev team — will return as unlockable in-game videos, with new additions hidden throughout the game’s world.
Yes, that means you’ll be able to interrogate enemy soldiers or hold them up to find those silly clips — classic Kojima flair, even if he’s not directly involved this time.
Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater is set to launch on August 28, 2025, for PC and consoles. While the remake itself stays close to the PS2 classic, the addition of Fox Hunt gives fans a fresh way to engage with the world — and shows Konami is willing to take creative risks instead of just playing it safe.
Sure, it’s not MGO4, but Fox Hunt might just be the multiplayer reinvention Metal Gear needs. Time will tell.
