We think no one would miss the FOB system much, that time would likely be better invested in additional multiplayer maps and classes. Due to a skewed risk-reward system, players will either not bother invading, or will be left to their own devices by the base owner, neither resulting in the one-on-one battles FOBs are supposed to facilitate.

The Forward Operating Bases? Not so much. Especially the Cloak and Dagger mode that fits the essence of the game exactly. Metal Gear Online was an interesting game that never gained the attention it might have deserved. Metal Gear Solid led to two online spin offs: 1) Metal Gear Online and 2) The ‘Forward Operating Base’ (FOB) mode. Exploring how Big Boss becomes the antagonist of the series, not the FOXHOUND leader, should be the first order of business, with up to ten years of MGS lore yet to be explored as a game although we do have a broad timeline of events that runs through this period as captured by the excellent MGS wiki. The Phantom Pain might be the more recent title, but covers the chronological year 1984 in MGS lore, while Metal Gear - originally released on the MSX system in 1987 - is set in 1995 in MGS canon.

For all the possible scenarios Metal Gear 6 could explore, there’s an opportunity to bridge the gap between The Phantom Pain (released 2015) and the first Metal Gear (released 1987).

Now that we know what happened to Big Boss, or rather the ‘Big Boss’ of MGS5, his story still remains untold, at least in a game. However, there’s a compelling argument that MGS5 was meant to feel ‘unfinished’, mirroring the game’s themes of identity and the phantom pain of unresolvable trauma. Metal Gear Solid 5’s non-ending was much-discussed, and possibly a victim of mounting tensions during the development of the game.

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