It's fair to say that, prior to its release in 2001, Metal Gear Solid 2 had lots of people excited.
The PS1 original had become one of the most critically acclaimed games on that console, bringing Hideo Kojima's brilliance to a broader global audience and transforming the dormant Metal Gear franchise into a blockbuster series.
It also turned series protagonist Solid Snake – who starred in the 8-bit originals – into a marketable face, so it was a real surprise when people played MGS2 and discovered that the lead character was, in fact, Raiden.
It turns out that David Hayter, the English voice of Snake in all of the games apart from Metal Gear Solid V, was just as taken aback by the choice we were.
Speaking to PC Gamer, Hayter recalls when he was told the news:
"I was surprised as anybody that Snake wasn't going to be the protagonist. I found out in the booth while we were recording. And I'm like, 'What the hell?' And they were like, 'No, no, it's gonna be Raiden as the player character. I was like: 'Wow. Okay… well, we'll see how people feel about that.' The game came out and was amazing but there was understandable conversation about that. And then, yeah, Metal Gear Solid 3 really came back home again, my favorite game in the series. It just really dialled-down into what Snake is about, what Metal Gear is about."
Hayter, who recently reprised the role of Snake for Metal Gear Solid Delta, a remake of the third title, also reveals that he never had that close a relationship with the creator of the series:
"The funniest question that I get, so many people are like 'what was it like working with Kojima?' And I'm like, I have no idea. I never worked with him, you know, he would direct the Japanese versions of the games, and then Kris Zimmerman Salter would be the director that all the English actors would work with. So I've met Mr. Kojima a few times. He's a very nice man, obviously a brilliant, brilliant game maker. But I didn't feel much impact from his input, except for the game which obviously speaks for itself."