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Play as Solid Snake in Latest Fortnite Update

Since the early iterations of Epic Games' Fortnite, players have been able to customize the look of their player avatar through, what fans call, skins. Many of the early skins were original characters for the game. But as the game grew in popularity, there have been multiple collaborations for skins. These collaborations range from Marvel and DC comic book characters to game characters such as the Master Chief from the Halo franchise or Doom Slayer from the Doom series. There are also anime collaborations with Naruto, Dragon Ball, My Hero Academia, Attack on Titan, and Jujutsu Kaisen. In the game's most recent update, players can now unlock Solid Snake from the Metal Gear franchise.

Initially revealed on December 3 through Fortnite's seasonal battle pass, fans of both Fortnite and Metal Gear have been waiting to unlock the skin. However, purchasing the battle pass isn't enough for players to receive the Solid Snake skin. Players must complete a certain number of in-game challenges before unlocking the character. Of those challenges, a select few borrow from the Metal Gear games and require players to sneak around the battlefield in a box. It's thematically appropriate and fun.

Aside from the Solid Snake skin, players can also receive emotes (non-combat actions), gliders (the in-game parachute), a cosmetic wrap for your weapons and vehicles, back-bling (accessories that characters wear on their back), a pickaxe (used to obtain materials to build forts), and two different loading screens. While this may not seem like much for players to receive for completing the different challenges, it's something to work towards completing.

Metal Gear battle pass items aren't the only things Epic Games has added to Fortnite. In both build and non-build modes of battle royale, players can find two new items to use: the EMP Stealth Camo and the aforementioned Cardboard Box. The former provides players with temporary cloaking and an EMP blast upon the cloak's end that can remove some opponents' shield health or stop vehicles briefly. The Cardboard Box provides shielding from one bullet at the cost of movement speed or your hiding spot. Also, in the northern end of the battle royale map, Solid Snake is there as an interactable character. If you come across him, he will sell you the EMP Stealth Camo, the Cardboard box. You can also hire him as a mercenary who will help you in combat by periodically revealing the location of other players within a certain radius.

Outside of the battle royale game mode, Epic Games has also included a Raiden bundle in the Fortnite store. The bundle includes the Metal Gear character Raiden, his trademark katana as back-bling and as a pickaxe (as separate items), a weapon, and a vehicle wrap. The bundle retails for the in-game purchasable currency of 1,800 V-Bucks (about US$18.00).

The addition of Solid Snake and Raiden to Fortnite is certainly a treat for fans of Metal Gear. The price in V-Bucks for both comes out to 2,750 (about US$22.99). If you want to play as Solid Snake or Raiden outside of Metal Gear, now's your chance in Fortnite. Just know that Solid Snake will no longer be available after the end of the current season.

Sources: Fortnite's website, Twitter account, IGN's YouTube channel