XBox 360 News

Metal Gear Solid 4 for Xbox 360 'already in production'

By Stevie Smith Jan 2, 2008, 11:48 GMT

Confirmed? Metal Gear Solid 4 coming to Xbox 360 in 2009? Credit: Konami.

The ‘will it, won’t it’ rumour mill has once again shifted into overdrive concerning the popular belief that Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots will shrug off its PlayStation 3 exclusivity in favour of appearing on the Xbox 360 console.

Specifically, the Internet is positively abuzz with chatter started by a report posted on XboxFamily.com claiming that Konami’s latest instalment in the Metal Gear series is definitely coming to Microsoft’s powerhouse console. If true, the news is unlikely to sit well with PS3 fans already nursing out-of-joint noses following the steady migration of once Sony-exclusive gaming properties.

"This is not a rumor. This is straight from a Konami distribution representative’s mouth," trumpets the report, which could well emerge as 2008’s first major scoop. "The game is already in production and has been since early in 2007."

While the Konami representative has seemingly insisted on remaining anonymous, XboxFamily insists that the news is "pretty concrete" and that the rep had revealed that Guns of the Patriots will make the leap to the Xbox 360 some 12 to 14 months after the initial PlayStation 3 edition is released to retailers.

Naturally, Microsoft PR refused to confirm or deny the rumour, choosing to keep the report’s author at arm’s length by way of a wordy and padded e-mail response culminating in little more than "no comment."

With Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots expected to hit the PS3 in June of this year, Microsoft Corp. – if it has indeed secured Konami’s eagerly-awaited title – will probably withhold officially unveiling the game until just prior to its launch on Sony’s system in an effort to lessen its impact on a rival platform.