Earlier this year, the full source code for Konami’s 2001 action-stealth game Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty, leaked online. Multiple versions of the game were available to download with fans aiming to turn the leaked assets into homebrew ports.
As it turns out, Konami, who still actively sells versions of the 25-year-old game, is not pleased with the leak. Following months of searching for the leaker, the Japanese games company has filed a lawsuit designed to uncover their identity and file for damages.
In a report by Aftermath, Konami revealed that it has issues numerous takedown requests to 4Chan, the source of the leak, as well as multiple file sharing websites. Additionally, the company has conducted an internal investigation to find the source of the leak, but turned up empty.
In the lawsuit, Konami claims “an urgent need remains to uncover the source of the leak and to ensure that similar or further public disclosures do not occur”. The game studio also demanded that the associated file-sharing websites “retain and segregate any data that would be useful for identifying the persons responsible”.
Konami’s requests to subpoena the file-sharing websites has been denied without prejudice at the time of writing. While Konami claims it has conducted investigations, a judge found that the studio did not provide enough evidence to show their investigation into the leaker’s personal details. The company can file again in the future.
As Konami continues to hunt for the leaker of Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty, fans are already scouring the game’s source code and assets for secrets. In many cases, leaks of this magnitude allow for fans to restore cut content that never made it into final releases, or even allow them to create more extensive mods based off new knowledge of the game. In the past, fans have even been able to port games to unsupported systems.
With that said, the issue with these releases would be the legality of it all. Cut content mods coming from this leak would be known to be using said lead, and with Konami on the prowl, it may not be the wisest choice right now. Furthermore, as Konami still actively sells Metal Gear Solid 2 via the recent Master Collection remasters, the developer will likely be looking to take out any unauthorised ports.
Furthermore, Konami is investing heavily into the Metal Gear franchise after a long period of absence. The company’s recent remake of Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater was designed to teach a new generation of devs how to make an MGS game, which means we should see more titles in the future.
