DD or D-Dog (Diamond Dog) was the pet canid of the private military company Diamond Dogs during the 1980s. Like his owner, Venom Snake, the wolf wore an eyepatch over his missing right eye.
Biography[]
Phantom Pain Incident[]
- See also: Hospital Escape and Phantom Pain Incident
As a puppy, DD lost his right eye and was presumably an orphan. The puppy was found alone by Venom Snake during a mission in 1984. DD was later taken by Fulton Recovery to Diamond Dogs' Mother Base, his new home.
The puppy was present with Ocelot upon Snake's return to Mother Base, licking the latter's face as he picked him up. Ocelot explained that the puppy had been a troublemaker after it had arrived, and that he was unsure of its specific breed. Believing that the pup may be useful in the future, Ocelot intended to train him,[1] comparing him to a diamond in the rough that required some polishing. Snake agreed, noting the irony of an ocelot raising hounds.[2]
At some point, as Snake was about to leave on a mission, DD managed to obey a stay command from Ocelot, indicating that he had learned discipline, although DD then ran to Snake before Ocelot could command him to do so, and then Ocelot ordered him to jump up into the UTH-66 Blackfoot chopper. DD attempted to do so, but he ended up falling out because he couldn't quite reach the floor, causing him to run off, with Ocelot vowing he'll be ready soon, just not yet.
After DD had fully grown and been trained for a combat support role, Venom Snake had the wolf accompany him on his missions, at the suggestion of Ocelot.
DD was present on Mother Base when Metal Gear Sahelanthropus was taken there by Diamond Dogs and at the Diamond Dogs ceremony celebrating the short lived global nuclear disarmament.
Behind the scenes[]
DD is a character that appears in Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain. DD will accompany Snake on missions via the buddy system, and meeting him is entirely optional. When DD is first recruited, the iDroid notification refers to him as Wild Puppy.
The concept of a dog accompanying the main protagonist in a new Metal Gear game was first hinted at on the GDC 2012 website Development Without Borders, which included "secret" concept art depicting Big Boss with a dog. The artwork indicated that DD would have been a Rhodesian Ridgeback, which is supported by dummied assets within the game. This artwork was later updated to better reflect the game's development. DD's exact breed is unknown, being described as either a wolf or a dog in various sources, and in some cases, even a wolf dog hybrid. Although the Rhodesian Ridgeback concept was dropped, it did appear in the in-game data, and could be "recreated".[3]
DD runs alongside Venom Snake.
DD made his public debut in the September 19-20 showing of the TGS 2014 demo. During the demo, Venom Snake throws an Active Decoy that piques the pup's curiosity. In the Japanese version, the decoy balloon that popped up was of Lisa, the ghost from the P.T. demo of the cancelled Silent Hills. The English version had a variant of Venom Snake's standard one.
In the TGS 2014 demo, the puppy is found in Central Africa, whimpering near a dead wolf, its presumed parent, with Sean Eyestone implying that it had been killed by a sniper round heard earlier in the demo. However, in the final version, the puppy is found in Afghanistan, and its parent is neither seen nor mentioned. The demo also featured Quiet acting as Snake's buddy, although the final version makes DD recruitable well before Quiet's first appearance.
On May 27, 2015, Hideo Kojima tweeted two photos of a prototype DD figure by Play Arts KAI wearing a Sneaking Suit while holding a knife in his mouth.[4]
On the June 17 demo for The Phantom Pain at E3 2015, some elements of DD's role as a buddy combatant was shown. DD's gender was confirmed to be male in the main menu featured in the demonstration, with the presenter repeatedly referring to him by masculine pronouns, and supported by DD lifting his leg up to urinate at the start of the mission (female canids squat when urinating).
While DD is still a puppy, he'll always be waiting to greet Snake when the latter returns to Mother Base, and proceed to follow him around and excitedly bark. Recruited soldiers will talk about how cute DD is, and express a desire to pet him, (and in one instance touch his paw pads), observing DD, one can notice DD trying to be sneaky while walking. DD does not wear the eye patch as a pup, and his missing eye is clearly visible.
If he is the selected buddy, he will accompany the player to Mother Base, and follow them around. However, he will only stay on the platform the player lands on, meaning if the player wants to take DD around the base with them, they will have to travel by helicopter.
While in the ACC, DD will sit facing towards Snake. Looking at him in first person mode for 5 seconds will raise his bond level; he will bark to indicate this. After a while of inactivity, DD will lie down. He will also bark if the player starts playing a briefing, information, or cassette tape.
If Snake dies while engaging the enemy, DD will howl in sadness. He is the only buddy to show a reaction to Snake dying.
DD's knife attack is similar to that used by Koromaru from Persona 3.
Gameplay[]
Recruitment[]
Once Mission 02 has been cleared, DD can be recruited as a Buddy, and is found near the deployment points of Mission 03, 04 and 05. The main points he appears in during free roam are near Shago Village, the Eastern Communications Post, and Wakh Sind Barracks. If Mission 01 is replayed, he can be found on a hill before the first guard outpost or near Wakh Sind Barracks. The puppy can be recovered via Fulton when he is found (tranquilizing him is not necessary).
If the player misses DD in the mission he is recruited at, the player may go back to the location he is found at during free roam or a mission to recruit him at any time. While accompanying Snake, DD will sniff out guards and plants, and bark to warn of any enemies, objectives, animals, weapons, and hostages nearby. DD will occasionally urinate and mark territory.
Here is a video showing how to get DD.
MGS5- Phantom Pain - Getting D-Dog and Cutscenes- Secrets Part 11
Overview[]
DD can be commanded to distract nearby soldiers by barking, as well as attack or stun enemies depending on the equipment allocated to him by the player. DD can also be outfitted with Fulton balloons and can extract prisoners and enemies when ordered to, providing the subject is accessible and able to be recovered safely. DD is also capable of detecting nearby medicinal herbs, enemy, and prisoners. A good partner to have at the beginning of the game when the player has a low level intel unit and especially during the Quiet battle and even more useful during the Quiet extreme battle. DD's ability to spot enemies is only used when he's around. If the player dismisses him, any enemies DD has detected but the player has not mark, will simply disappear. During the battle against Quiet, DD will hide. He will go to the player's side for a few seconds if they call him, but he will go back to hiding immediately afterward. Once the duel is over, DD will go on ahead to look closely at Quiet and will not leave her to be at the player's side.
When DD's relationship has been maxed out, the player has the option to customize DD's eye and coat color. Dummied data in the game also indicated that he would have gotten outfits based on that of Miller and Ocelot, in a similar manner to Quiet's Sniper Wolf costume.[5][6]
D-Dog has 12,000 health and 6,000 stamina.
Upon accessing both sets of the Sneaking Suit equipment for DD and neutralizing any guard posts/outposts with DD as your partner and specifically neutralizing all the enemies via DD, DD will proceed to make a victorious howl.
Bond level[]
Like Quiet, D-Dog has various variations on increasing a bond level with Snake, which unlocks new skills.
| Action | Condition | Variation |
|---|---|---|
| Watch a cutscene at Mother Base involving D-Dog. | - | +2 |
| Visit D-Dog. | Once per stay on Mother Base. | +0.5 |
| Convert a provisional marker from D-Dog into a permanent marker. | Up to ten times per mission/free-roaming sequence. | +0.3 |
| Clear a mine sensed by D-Dog. | Up to ten times per mission/free-roaming sequence. | +0.3 |
| Collect a medicinal plant sensed by D-Dog. | Up to ten times per mission/free-roaming sequence. | +0.3 |
| Whistle to call D-Dog or tell him to wait. | Up to five times per mission/free-roaming sequence. | +0.3 |
| Use the Keep 'Em Busy command. | Up to five times per mission/free-roaming sequence. | +0.3 |
| Have D-Dog kill an enemy with the "Do it (kill enemy) command. | Up to five times per mission/free-roaming sequence. | +0.3 |
| Have D-Dog incapacitate an enemy with the "Do it (knock out enemy)" command. | Up to five times per mission/free-roaming sequence. | +0.3 |
| Have D-Dog critically wound an enemy with the "Do it (wound enemy)" command. | Up to five times per mission/free-roaming sequence. | +0.3 |
| Have D-Dog extract a soldier or animal with the "Get it" command. | Up to five times per mission/free-roaming sequence. | +0.3 |
| Have D-Dog bark. | Up to five times per mission/free-roaming sequence. | +0.3 |
| Use the command "DD" and D-Dog reacts. | Up to five times per mission/free-roaming sequence. | +0.3 |
| Pet D-Dog. | Up to five times per mission/free-roaming sequence. | +0.3 |
| D-Dog is critically wounded. | - | -2 |
| Stare at D-Dog in first person view for at least five seconds while inside the ACC. | Once per visit. | +0.5 |
Skills[]
| Skill | Requirements | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Wait | - | D-Dog is waits at the current position. The stronger the player's Bond, the farther they can go before the dog automatically starts following you again. |
| Whistle | - | Call D-Dog to the player's current position (only available when he's far away). |
| DD | - | Call D-Dog to the player's current position (never available at the same time as "Bark"). |
| Bark | Bond level: 25% | D-Dog barks to draw the attention of an enemy (never available at the same time as "DD"). |
| Keep 'em busy | Equipment: Naked | D-Dog attacks the enemy at the center of the screen and keeps them busy for a while, long enough for the player to intervene. If the player doesn't incapacitate the target, D-Dog will eventually be repelled, and the soldier will raise the alert. |
| Do it (kill enemy) | Equipment: Sneaking (Knife) | D-Dog attacks the enemy at the center of the screen to kill him. |
| Do it (knock out enemy) | Equipment: Sneaking (Stun) | D-Dog attacks the enemy at the center of the screen to stun him. |
| Do it (wound enemy) | Equipment: Battle Dress | D-Dog attacks the enemy at the center of the screen to leave him critically wounded. |
| Get it | Equipment: Tactical (Fulton) | D-Dog Fulton recovers the closest human being or enemy that can be extracted, using the same Fulton type as your current equipped model. Equipping D-Dog with this also takes away his ability to attack enemies as the "Attack" command will be replaced with "Get it". |
Scouting distances[]
D-Dog's scouting distances vary depending on bond levels with Venom Snake.
| Bond requirements | Scouting distance |
|---|---|
| <25% | 60m |
| 25-50% | 80m |
| 50-75% | 100m |
| >75% | 120m |
Easter eggs[]
Several Easter eggs animations can be done with DD.
Mother Base absence[]
If Snake has been absent from Mother Base for several days, one in three cutscenes will happen when Snake returns; if DD is still a puppy, he will run to Snake and Snake will pick him up and let DD lick his face in affection. If Snake has a low bond with DD, he will approach Snake and lick his face while growling in affection. If Snake has a high bond with DD, he will pounce on Snake as he opens the helicopter door and lick him repeatedly while growling in affection. In each cutscene, Snake will apologize for his absence. Ocelot will criticize him for doing this as it sets a poor example to Diamond Dogs and because DD also gets lonely.
Poor hygiene[]
If Snake has not showered in extended periods of time and has DD as his active buddy, upon returning to Mother Base, DD will run ahead of Snake and shake his head in disgust due to Snake's poor hygiene. Similarly, in the cutscene that plays when returning to Mother Base with poor hygiene, DD can be seen hunkering down and putting his front paws on his muzzle in an attempt to block out the smell.
Happy Birthday[]
DD is present during Snake's birthday party, standing next to Code Talker.
Capture of Quiet[]
After the capture of Quiet, DD can be seen sitting next to Pequod in the co-pilot's seat when an XOF fighter jet appears and when Kazuhira Miller tries to prevent Pequod from landing on Mother Base with Quiet aboard.
Gallery[]
References[]
- ^ Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain , Kojima Productions (2015).
Ocelot: The puppy's training is going well. There'll come a day when he'll be able to join you on missions. But you know, he uh... he gets lonely easily. You should come visit him every once in a while. - ^ Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, Kojima Productions (2015)
Ocelot: DD! Come back! // (the puppy runs up to Snake barking constantly then puts his front paws up on his leg) // Venom Snake: This... // Ocelot: ...is the dog you brought back. A bit of a troublemaker. (Points to the pup) Not sure about the breed, though. // (Snake picks up the puppy, and it proceeds to lick his face) // Snake: He'll get bigger? // Ocelot: Uh-huh. (Spreads out his arms, alluding to Mother Base's development and Diamond Dogs) Like this. You know, I can look after him. He's still a pup, so he won't listen. But I have a feeling he'll someday be useful. I suspect you found a real diamond in the rough. A little polish, and I'd say we've got a true diamond dog on our hands. (camera zooms up on Snake's Diamond Dog patch as Ocelot says this.) // (Snake then lifts DD up, with DD then barking up in response) // Venom Snake: "DD," right? Ocelot raising hounds... fine. (Snake puts DD down) // Ocelot: Come on, DD! (DD was about to approach Snake again when Ocelot called out to him, causing him to follow Ocelot back). - ^ https://tcrf.net/Metal_Gear_Solid_V:_The_Phantom_Pain_(Windows)#Original_Appearance
- ^ https://twitter.com/HIDEO_KOJIMA_EN/status/603813783333572609
- ^ Kojima Productions (2015). Metal Gear Solid V The Phantom Pain. Konami. ., (v1.1). August 28, 2016.
File:tpp_Item.eng.lng2 (chunk0.dat)<LangId="name_dd_24006" Color="1" Value="MILLER" /> <LangId="name_dd_24007" Color="1" Value="OCELOT" />
<LangId="info_dd_24006" Color="1" Value="Costume for D-Dog. Now you can finally go into battle with Miller... or the next best thing." /> <LangId="info_dd_24007" Color="1" Value="Costume for D-Dog. Now you can finally go into battle with Ocelot... or the next best thing." />
- ^ https://tcrf.net/Metal_Gear_Solid_V:_The_Phantom_Pain_(Windows)#Extra_Costumes