Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 2 will not include the version of Metal Gear Online featured with the original release of Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots.
Konami confirmed the omission, as well as many other details about its recently announced collection of ports, on its official website. Buried beneath information about both MGS4 and Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker is a single line confirming the multiplayer offering will not return when the former finally sneaks onto more platforms this August.
Screenshot from the Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 2 website. Image captured by IGN.
This iteration of Metal Gear Online launched with MGS4 as a bundled-in multiplayer experience in June 2008. Featuring a variety of game modes that ranged from standard team deathmatch to a unique encounter that saw one player assume the role of Old Snake – the offshoot tied together elements from the fourth mainline Metal Gear Solid game for players to enjoy in an online setting. It received several post-launch expansions through the years before Konami shut down the servers in 2012.
Bringing back MGS4 multiplayer for Master Collection Vol. 2 seems to be too tall an order for the publisher, but the second installment in its series of collections won’t be completely without an online component. Konami’s website also confirms that, unlike the first half of the bundle, its Peace Walker port will support online multiplayer.
Details on its returning Co-Ops mode promise classic team gameplay for the Big Boss era of the series, allowing two-to-four players to complete missions together. Versus Ops is for the more competitive-minded fans and features matches for up to six players. Local wireless play is also included, but only for the Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch 2 versions.
Although the lack of Metal Gear Online support for MGS4 may come as a sad surprise for fans of the original PlayStation 3 release, other tweaks coming to the base experience may pique their interest. As described in a PlayStation.Blog post, Konami said the new version of MGS4 will feature improved internal resolution, a maximum framerate increase, and customizable controls. It’s unclear if Peace Walker will also benefit from visual adjustments, but it will at least come with custom controls. Ghost Babel, a bonus Game Boy Color entry from 2000, will not see the return of its two-player Vs. Battle mode, but it will come with screen filters, pixel-perfect screen settings, a rewind function, and custom controls.
Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 2 has an August 27, 2026, release date for PC via Steam, Switch, Switch 2, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X | S. Those who pre-order their copy will gain access to the Cardboard Camouflage for MGS4 and the Love Box unfirom for Peace Walker. If you also happen to have save data from Vol. 1, you’ll earn the Gold Camouflage and Gold uniform.
For more, you can read about what Konami is doing to make sure it doesn’t suffer the same launch problems as Vol. 1. You can also see how the publisher revamped the multiplayer experience for Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater with its Fox Hunt mode last year.
Michael Cripe is a freelance writer with IGN. He’s best known for his work at sites like The Pitch, The Escapist, and OnlySP. Be sure to give him a follow on Bluesky (@mikecripe.bsky.social) and Twitter (@MikeCripe).
