Solid Snake encounters several children in the Zanzibar Land fortress.
The children in Zanzibar Land were war orphans from around the world.[1] They were saved from various conflicts by mercenary leader Big Boss, who intended to train and put them in the battlefield.[2] The children admired Big Boss, with some seeing him as a father figure,[3] while many of them hated warfare due to their past experiences.[4][5] The children would often play around the various areas of Zanzibar Land,[6] while avoiding the soldiers on patrol.[7] The children appeared to share a mutual familiarity with Holly White, as she was known to them as "the blond lady."[8] Similarly, they were also well-acquainted with the former STB agent Gustava Heffner, even when the latter was disguised as one of the Zanzibar Land guards.[9][10]
During the Zanzibar Land Disturbance in 1999, Solid Snake encountered many of these children,[2] sometimes gathering valuable intelligence from them.[11][12][13][14][15][7][9][10][16][17][18][19] Big Boss told some of them to report to him if they saw Snake.[8]
Behind the scenes[]
The children of Zanzibar Land appear in Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake and can provide useful information to the player regarding the fortress' layout. While it is not mandatory to speak to the children, this article assumes that Snake did so. The player is able to kill the children, but is immediately penalized with a loss of health. Although Big Boss describes his intentions to train the children for future conflicts,[2] it is left ambiguous as to whether they were to be used as child soldiers.
Notes and references[]
- ^ Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake (re-release), Kojima Productions (2006).
Holly White: There are lots of children living in Zanzibar Land. They're war orphans, from all over the world... They're just innocent kids, so they won't hurt you... See ya. - ^ a b c Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake (re-release), Kojima Productions (2006).
Big Boss: You [Solid Snake] saw those children, didn't you? Every one is a victim of a war somewhere in the world. And they'll make fine soldiers in the next war. Start a war, fan its flames, create victims... Then save them, train them... And feed them back onto the battlefield. It's a perfectly logical system. - ^ Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake (re-release), Kojima Productions (2006).
Kid: The one-eyed man [Big Boss] is like our daddy. He doesn't like grown-ups. - ^ Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake (re-release), Kojima Productions (2006).
Kid: I hate people who use guns! - ^ Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake (re-release), Kojima Productions (2006).
Gray Fox: No, you've got it wrong. I hate war. Just like all the kids here. - ^ Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake (re-release), Kojima Productions (2006).
Kid: Ah, you found me! ...We're playing hide and seek. - ^ a b Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake (re-release), Kojima Productions (2006).
Kid: Know what? At night, they turn off the power. So all the laser fences get turned off, too. Then we get to play inside, as long as the grown-ups don't catch us. - ^ a b Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake (re-release), Kojima Productions (2006).
Kid: The one-eyed man [Big Boss] told us to tell him if we saw a man [Solid Snake] wearing green clothes. The blond lady [Holly White] says that he isn't here. - ^ a b Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake (re-release), Kojima Productions (2006).
Kid: Wanna know a secret? You know Gustava's brooch? It changes shape when you put it in the sauna or the freezer. - ^ a b Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake (re-release), Kojima Productions (2006).
Kid: Gustava's locker is the one in the upper row, all the way to the right. She always uses it when she comes out of the sauna. - ^ Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake (re-release), Kojima Productions (2006).
Kid: They told us this is a bottomless swamp, and it's too dangerous to get close... But... I saw a big truck driving through here. You believe me, right? - ^ Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake (re-release), Kojima Productions (2006).
Kid: I know what that is! It's a stinger missile! They took some to the factory on the west side of the Zanzibar building's 1st floor the other day. Said they were gonna put them on some tanks. - ^ Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake (re-release), Kojima Productions (2006).
Kid: The one-eyed man [Big Boss] said we shouldn't go against the current. He said you can see lots of new things, if you just go along with the flow... Do you know what he meant? - ^ Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake (re-release), Kojima Productions (2006).
Kid: The grown-ups always stand at attention when they hear the national anthem. It's one of their weird rules. - ^ Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake (re-release), Kojima Productions (2006).
Kid: If you catch a cold, go to the infirmary and they'll give you some medicine. - ^ Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake (re-release), Kojima Productions (2006).
Kid: They keep the animals in a room northwest of here. - ^ Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake (re-release), Kojima Productions (2006).
Kid: I hear owls at night... It's so scary. I can't sleep. - ^ Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake (re-release), Kojima Productions (2006).
Kid: There's lots of rats in the jail. They steal all kinds of things and take them back to their nests. The grown-ups put out sulfuric acid to try and get rid of them. - ^ Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake (re-release), Kojima Productions (2006).
Kid: I want chocolate! Mister, do you have a B1 ration? B1 rations have chocolate in them.