Ke
Play Arts KAI logo.
Play Arts 改 -KAI- (プレイアーツ改, Purei Ashi KAI, lit. Play Arts "Revolution") is Square Enix's line of improved (and upsized) Play Arts action figures that debut in November 2009. It is also under Square Enix's "Black Label Collectors" line-up. Unlike its predecessor line-up "Play Arts," Play Arts KAI includes franchises outside Square Enix and Eidos such as Konami, Ubisoft, Microsoft Studios, Sony Computer Entertainment, Platinum Games, Capcom, EA, Sega, Hollywood movies, comic books and manga - with the Metal Gear series being one of these franchises. Play Arts KAI figures are sculpted by OOParts.
Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker[]
Play Arts KAI's first involvement with the series was the announcement of the Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker figure of Snake in his MSF Sneaking Suit. The figure included 2 Mk22 Mod-0 pistols, 1 Hush Puppy suppressor, a ballistic shield and a pair of extra hands. The figure also included a code to download a special recruited solider onto the PlayStation Portable version of Peace Walker as well as a FOX T-shirt uniform if the player doesn't already have it. The Sneaking Suit ver. was released in June 2010.
A Vol. 2 set of figures was released this time being the AI weapons, PUPA, CHRYSALIS and BASILISK. Each one also came with a PSP code. They were released on September 2010.
Vol. 3 featured Snake again, this time in his Jungle Fatigues attire. The figure came with a Mk22 Mod-0, a M16A1, a Stun Rod and a extra hand. The set also involved the COCOON and ZEKE AI weapons as well, all 3 of them came with PSP codes. They were released on November 2010.
The final set (Vol. 4) contained Snake in his Battle Dress attire and Kazuhira Miller. Snake came with a Mk22 Mod-0, a M60, a RPG-7, a extra head resembling a MSF soldier w/ helmet and a extra hand. Miller came with a Mk22 Mod-0, a M16A1, 2 pairs of sunglasses, a extra head resembling a MSF soldier and a pair of extra hands. No PSP codes were included in this set. The figures were released on June 2011.
During the time of the last set's release, Square Enix Products shop did an offer that whoever purchases Snake (Battle Dress ver.) or Miller from their online store or official store at events and conventions received a limited edition accessory pack containing the Love Pack cardboard box to display the figures in. The offer was exclusive only to Japan and available throughout June - September 2011.
3 limited edition figures were released for the Peace Walker set. The first being the Version ZERO of the Snake - Sneaking Suit ver. figure. The differences between it and the original is that his suit is now chrome and the Ballistic Shield is colored orange. The figure was limited to 500 units worldwide and was only sold at the conventions Japan Expo, Hong Kong Toy Fair, New York Toy Fair and San Diego Comic Con throughout 2010.
The last 2 were the Snake - Battle Dress ver. Premium Package ver. and Kazuhira Miller Premium Package ver. These figures were only included with the Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker HD Edition Premium Package which was released in November, 2011 in Japan only. Snake was included inside every single unit whereas, Miller was only obtainable via Konamistyle by adding an extra ¥5000 to the Premium Package's total. The difference between these and their original counterparts is that they were chrome painted (Snake's armor being light sliver and Miller's BDUs being dark green).
Metal Gear Solid[]
The next set was announced to be Metal Gear Solid, via Hideo Kojima's Twitter account and released as part of the 25th Anniversary of Metal Gear. The first to be released for this was the Cyborg Ninja, equipped with a katana, arm cannon and a extra hand. The figure was released on February 2012.
Solid Snake was the second be to released bundled with with a SOCOM, Suppressor, FAMAS and a pair of extra hands as accessories. The figure was released in March 2012.
Meryl Silverburgh was the next in line when she was announced via Kojima's Twitter and came with accessories of a Desert Eagle, a combat knife and a set of extra hands. The figure was released in November 2012.
The fourth and final figure of this set was revealed as Liquid Snake via Kojima's Twitter. Liquid comes with the accessories of a FIM-92 Stinger, a USP, dog tags, a pair of extra hands and a display stand. Liquid was originally planned to be released on September 2013 and was delayed til November 2013. After being delayed twice, Liquid was finally released on December 2013.
A limited edition was released for this set. The Cyborg Ninja was re-released, this time in his red appearance. Dubbed "Red ver." the figure came with the same accessories as the original along with the inclusion of a extra head of his face exposed. The figure was limited to 500 units worldwide and was sold only at Hong Kong Toy Fair, Japan Expo, San Diego Comic Con, Tokyo Game Show & New York Comic Con throughout 2012.
Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty[]
The next set announced was Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty with the reveal of Solidus Snake on Kojima's Twitter as part of Metal Gear's 25th Anniversary. Solidus comes with accessories of a set of extra hands, 2 katanas, sheaths, 2 P90s, and a changeable chest plate. It was released on November 2012.
The second and final figure for this set was announced on Kojima's Twitter account to be Raiden. Raiden will come with a set of extra hands, dog tags, a high-frequency blade, a SOCOM, a suppressor, the scuba mask changeable head and a display stand as its accessories. Like the Liquid Snake figure, the Raiden figure was originally planned to be released on September 2013 and was delayed til November 2013. Raiden was eventually released on December 2013.
Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance[]
The next set announced by Square Enix Products is Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance with the announcement of a Raiden figure posted on Kojima's Twitter account on February 2012. Raiden comes with his high-frequency blade, sheath, survival knife, 3 kunai, kunai pouch, changeable visor head piece, a pair of extra hands, a pair of extra feet and a display stand. The figure was released in March 2013.
The next figure announced is a re-release of Raiden, this time in the White Armor attire that he wears in the game via DLC. Although the figure isn't counted as a limited edition it was only obtainable via limited editions of the game: the Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance Premium Package (Konamistyle exclusive) and the European limited edition. The European version is limited to 14,000 units worldwide. The figure was released on the game's Japanese and European release date of February 21, 2013.
3 limited editions have been announced for this set. All being re-releases of Raiden, but based on the 3 custom bodies of Yellow, Red and Blue that were unlock-able in the game. Each one is limited edition to 1000 units worldwide and region exclusive to certain websites and conventions.
- Custom Body Red ver. was released in May 2013 and is exclusive to the USA and to websites Anime-Island, Hobby-Fan, Toy Let, BigBadToyStore and Diamond Comic Distributors.
- Custom Body Yellow ver. was released in July 2013 and is exclusive to Japan and websites KONAMISTYLE, Amiami, Hobby Search, HobbyLink Japan and Square Enix Shop Japan.
- Custom Body Blue ver. is exclusive worldwide. It can be purchased only at Guangzhou '13, Japan Expo '13, ChinaJoy '13, San Diego Comic Con '13, Tokyo Game Show '13, New York Comic Con '13, MCM London Comic Con '13 and Japan Expo '14.
Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes[]
Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes was the next set in the Play Arts KAI range with the announcement of a Snake figure via Hideo Kojima's Twitter account. The Snake figure will come with a Wu Silent Pistol, a AM MRS-4, a combat knife, a changeable head resembling Snake wearing his NVG, a set of extra hands and a display stand as its accessories. It was released in May 2014.
A limited edition was announced for this set. The Snake figure was re-released in a chromed suit (similar to the ZERO ver. Snake from the Peace Walker set), but under the title "Metallic ver." The figure is only available in the Japanese Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes Collector's Edition exclusively from Konamistyle. It was released in March 2014.
Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain[]
Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain is the final range in the Play Arts KAI collaboration with the Metal Gear franchise. The first figure of the range was Venom Snake who was announced Kojima's Twitter. The figure's accessories include a Wu Silent Pistol, a SVG-76 with removable magazine, a iDroid, a survival knife, a changeable head resembling Snake wearing desert goggles, a cloak, a set of changeable hands and a display stand. The figure was released in December 2014.
Skull Face was the next figure announced for the MGSV set as revealed via Kojima's Twitter. Accessories include a set of changeable hands, a mare's leg shortened rifle, a fedora hat and a changeable head resembling his appearance in Ground Zeroes. The figure was released in February 2015.
The next Play Arts KAI in the range is Quiet, revealed via Hideo Kojima's Twitter. Quiet will come with a set of changeable hands, a changeable head, a WICKED BUTTERFLY, a AM D114, a survival knife and a display stand. The figure was released in May 2015.
The next figure was revealed was the Man On Fire on during San Diego Comic Con. The Man On Fire will come with a set of changeable hands, a changeable torso and a display stand. The figure was released in September 2015.
The next figure announced was Tretij Rebenok, who was revealed via Kojima's Twitter. Kojima refers to the character as "Man-chan". He also included a quote stating "Wow! Are you also PlayArts?" Various websites reviewed the announcement calling the character "Kid Mantis." The figure's name was confirmed to be Tretij Rebenok and was released on November 2015 with a display stand as its sole accessory.
At Tokyo Game Show 2014, after showing the new game play trailer for The Phantom Pain, Hideo Kojima and his staff announced the newest Play Arts KAI revealing to be Venom Snake this time, sporting the new Sneaking Suit featured in the new trailers. This version of Snake will come with a Wu Silent Pistol, a AM MRS-4 with removable magazine, a SVG-67 with removable magazine, a set of changeable hands and a display stand. The figure was released in September 2015.
The next in the series is Ocelot, who was revealed on the Christmas 2014 episode of Kojima Station by Satoshi Mikami. Ocelot will include a set of changeable hands, a changeable head resembling Ocelot wearing his J.F. Rey sunglasses, a TORNADO-6, a URAGAN-5 and a display stand. The figure was released in October 2015.
The next and final figure of the MGSV range and Metal Gear franchise was revealed to be DD who was unveiled on Hideo Kojima's Twitter account. DD will come with accessories of 2 changeable face plates resembling DD with a ballistic mask and DD with an eyepatch, 2 changeable jaw pieces, a survival knife, a stun rod and a display stand. The figure was released in December 2015.
3 limited editions was announced for this set. The first was the "Sneak Preview" version of the first Venom Snake figure sporting his Punished Snake name. The whole figure and it's accessories was colored top to toe in bronze, and his bionic arm colored gold to mimic that of a statue. The Sneak Preview ver. was limited to 1000 pieces and released exclusively at San Diego Comic Con 2014, Gamescon 2014, Tokyo Game Show 2014, New York Comic Con 2014 and MCM London Comic Con 2014.
The second was a re-release of the first Venom Snake figure, but sporting the Gold Tiger camouflage instead. Dubbed "Gold Tiger ver." it was released exclusive to Amazon Japan on July 2015.
The third was another re-release of the first Venom Snake figure, this time sporting the Splitter camouflage and the Rocket Bionic Arm. The "Splitter ver." of this figure was released in at various toy, video game and comic conventions throughout 2015.
Counterfeit & Bootlegs[]
Like most merchandise related to anime and video games, various cheap knock offs of Play Arts KAI figurines have been made and flogged within the Chinese market. A bootleg figure can be told apart from it's original counterpart by the cheap PVC material, poor paintwork and cheap, flimsy material made packages, as well as being sold cheaper than their official counterparts. Bootlegs are commonly found and sold on websites like eBay and Chinese based websites like AliExpress and Wish.
Like various companies before them that's been hit by cheap knock offs of their products, Square Enix Products has been informed about this, and warn their customers about them, their bad quality and how they harm the company due to not receiving any profit. They also inform anyone not to buy them as customers deserve to get their money's wroth of figures and not have it wasted away by badly made knock offs.
As of now the Cyborg Ninja (Metal Gear Solid), Raiden (Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance), Venom Snake and Quiet (Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain) are the most commonly bootlegged figurines.
Trivia[]
All figures from the Metal Gear Solid and Metal Gear Solid 2 ranges are based on the HD re-designs by Yoji Shinkawa during the time Metal Gear Solid: HD Collection was in plans for release, but were never used for the final prints (minus Raiden who was used for the Japanese box art.) However, the Cyborg Ninja figure was used as the direct inspiration for the Gray Fox skin in Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance and the Solid Snake figure's concept, was used twice. First as a trading card in Metal Gear Solid: Social Ops and secondly, part of the cover art for Metal Gear Solid: The Legacy Collection.
The Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance figurines of Raiden all came with kunai accessories, a weapon not obtainable in the final game, (but seen used in a cutscene where Raiden saves George in the sewers.) This could possibly be due to the fact that the figurine was revealed at the time Metal Gear Solid: Rising was still in the works before it’s cancellation and rehashing into Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance, as the said weapon has appeared in very earlier concept art of the cancelled project.
A modified version of the original Raiden figure, sporting series creator Hideo Kojima's face instead of Raiden's, respectively, was supplied to Kojima by Square Enix Products as a gift. He would also place the head of his Solid Snake figure too for a joke.
The Liquid Snake and MGS2 Raiden figures do not sport the 25th Anniversary logo sticker on their packeting windows like the previous figures in their lines did due to them being released in late 2013, a year after the celebration.
Due to being based on earlier concepts, the Venom Snake figurines do not sport the digital watch or Walkman. These was later added to the Sneaking Suit version.
On May 11, 2014, Kojima revealed on his Twitter account that that according to Yoji Shinkawa, the Quiet figurine's breasts were given soft plastics in order to have them be flexible enough to move around.[1] This tweet (and the character's popularity) has caused this figurine to become a very sought after piece of memorabilia, despite it being a standard non-exclusive release with second hand sellers and scalpers flogging it for very high prices of almost and over $500+. Five times the cost of its original pricing.
Snake (Big Boss) has the most figurines, with a total of 7. If Venom Snake was included, the total of figurines would increase to 12.
Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes has the least figures in their set with only 2 figures released under that title.
Gallery[]
- Figures
- Prototypes