Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain guide and walkthrough

Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain is a truly enormous game. If you take into account all the side missions, the customisation of Mother Base, the optional online Forward Operating Base mode, and eventually the multiplayer suite Metal Gear Online, it’s a truly staggering amount of content.

We’re here to help you through. One of the great things about The Phantom Pain is that you have so many options, and so much flexibility, so the guidance we offer in these pages is designed to make sure you get through efficiently, see what you need to see and collect a decent amount of resources – not tell you how to play.

In many cases, how you execute is up to you, but be warned: every action has consequences. Rely too much on sniping, and enemies will start armouring up against you. Depend too much on the cover of darkness, and they’ll pop night vision goggles. You’re best bet is to mix it up, keep experimenting, and where possible, ghost it. But don’t forget, if it all goes to pieces, Snake has the skill needed to fight his way out. Big Boss is, after all, the ultimate soldier.

Getting started

• 15 beginner’s tips for playing Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain

• How to master close quarters combat

• The 11 best tactics you’re not using right now

Collectibles, Blueprints and more

There’s a lot to explore, see and do across Metal Gear Solid 5’s maps. Here you’ll find locations for collectibles and Side Ops in one handy list.

• Blueprint locations for all weapons and gear

• Where to find all 10 Memento Photos

• Where to find all music cassette tapes

• How to unlock all story cassette tapes

• How to get all 12 acquired cassette tapes

• How to make GMP quickly

Mother Base

Mother Base is a great management sim-style task in Metal Gear Solid that can help you develop better weapons and gear for the main game, as well as improve the effectiveness of your troops. Here’s how to micromanage and automate some of its best features.

• Build the best Mother Base without spending money on your FOB

• Which of the Mother Base platforms to expand first
• How to level-up Mother Base platforms
• How to stop the staff from fighting at Mother Base
• Forward Operating Bases: How to build them and how to defend them from invaders
• How to get around Mother Base quickly
• How to customise your Mother Base
• How to identify and cure infected staff members

Easter eggs & secrets

Hideo Kojima is a master of hiding secrets and little surprises in Metal Gear games and The Phantom Pain is no exception. We’ll add more as we find them…

• How to recruit Hideo Kojima in Metal Gear Solid 5

• How to find the Silent Hills P.T. Easter egg

• Hideo Kojima discusses what the MGS series means to him

• How to have fun with the Fulton device

• Metal Gear Solid 5 celebrates your birthday with you

• The Phantom Pain – watch the true ending

• The Phantom Pain – watch Quiet’s ending here

• The really easy way to beat the Quiet boss fight

Main story missions walkthrough

• 00 – Prologue Awakening

• 01 – Phantom Limbs

• 02 – Diamond Dogs

• 03 – A Hero’s Way

• 04 – C2W

• 05 – Over the Fence

• 06 – Where do the Bees Sleep

• 07 – Red Brass

• 08 – Occupation Forces

• 09 – Back up, Back Down

• 10 – Angel with Broken Wings

• 11 – Cloaked in Silence

• 12 – Hellbound

• 13 – Pitch Dark

• 14 – Lingua Franca

• 15 – Footprints of the Phantoms

• 16 – Traitor’s Caravan

• 17 – Rescue the Intel Agents

• 18 – Blood Runs Deep

• 19 – On the Trail

• 20 – Voices

• 21 – The War Economy

• 22 – Retake The Platform

• 23 – The White Mamba

• 24 – Close Contact

• 25 – Aim True, Ye Vengeful

• 26 – Hunting Down

• 27 – Root Cause

• 28 – Code Talker

• 29 – Metallic Archaea

• 30 – Skull Face

• 31 – Sahelanthropus

• 32 – To Know Too Much

• 33 – [Subsistence] C2W

• 34 – [Extreme] Backup, Back Down

• 35 – Cursed Legacy

• 36 – [Total Stealth] Footprints Of Phantoms

• 37 – [Extreme] Traitors’ Caravan

• 38 – Extraordinary

• 39 – [Total Stealth] Over the Fence

• 40 – [Extreme] Cloaked in Silence

• 41 – Proxy War Without End

• 42 – [Extreme] Metallic Archaea

• 43 – Shining Lights, Even in Death

• 44 – [Total Stealth] Pitch Dark

• 45 – A Quiet Exit

• 46 – Truth: The Man Who Sold the World

• 47 – [Total Stealth] The War Economy

• 48 – [Extreme] Code Talker

• 49 – [Subsistence] Occupation Forces

• 50 – [Extreme] Sahelanthropus

Side Ops

• 01 – Extract Interpretor (Russian)

• 05 – Secure the [RIOT SMG] Blueprint

• 06 – Secure the [STUN ARM] Blueprint

• 11 – Extract the Highly Skilled Soldier

• 47 – Extract the Little Lost Sheep

• 48 – Capture the Legendary Brown Bear

• 51 – 60 Extract All the Wandering Mother Base Soldiers

• 61 – Unlucky Dog 01

• 62 – Unlucky Dog 02

• 66 – Eliminate the Heavy Infantry 01

• 82 – Make Contact with Emmerich

• 83 – Mine Clearing 01

• 114 – Eliminate the Tank Unit 01

• 152 – Target Practice (R & D Platform)

• 153 – Target Practice (Support Unit Platform)

• 154 – Target Practice (Base Development Platform)

• 156 – Target Practice (Medical Platform)

• More coming soon.