The Nuclear Disarmament Event Was Triggered in Metal Gear Solid 5 and Konami Has No Idea Why

The nuclear disarmament event locked away within Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain was activated in the PC release over the weekend to the surprise of many, including the game’s publisher, Konami.

The cutscene was mined from the PC version of the game in 2015, but it wouldn’t actually trigger in-game until every player chose to disarm their nuclear missiles within the Forward Operating Base multiplayer mode. Since there is an extremely small chance that every PC player of the game suddenly decided to flip a switch, Konami is now looking for answers.

The nuclear disarmament event was triggered in the Steam version of METAL GEAR SOLID V: THE PHANTOM PAIN on Feb 2nd at approximately 12:00 GMT. We are still investigating, but can confirm that the event was triggered while the nuke count hadn’t reached zero. (1/3)

— METAL GEAR OFFICIAL (@metalgear_en) February 4, 2018

We will share more information as soon as possible, but you can play the game normally and other platforms have not been affected. (2/3)

— METAL GEAR OFFICIAL (@metalgear_en) February 4, 2018

We would like to apologize for the inconvenience and reassure you that we will investigate the matter as well as take the necessary action to avoid this in the future. (3/3)

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— METAL GEAR OFFICIAL (@metalgear_en) February 4, 2018

The publisher has no idea why the cutscene unlocked, but a few theories have surfaced, courtesy of Eurogamer. Conspiracies ranging from Konami accidentally triggering it themselves to the action being an act to get Konami’s name on the lips of players ahead of Metal Gear Survive’s release later this month have been floated, but one carrying allusions to the actions of Ozymandias in Watchmen has emerged as the most popular: a hack.

MGSV Nuke Watcher is a tool utilized by players to track the nuke count within the game. It’s been used for some time now, and it shows that a drastic reduction in nuclear missiles began in January. It’s a drop so steep that it could only be artificial.

No one knows for sure just yet, but one player’s actions to trick the system into thinking nuclear missiles were a thing of the past might be one of the most poignant questions of power and its influence in modern media. That, or they just did it for the lulz.

You can see the nuclear disarmament event cutscene for yourself below.