Metal Gear Solid: HD Edition (Premium Package)

Metal Gear Solid: HD Edition (Premium Package) is the kind of collector’s box that feels satisfying before you even decide where to put its hefty art book. Japan-only and built around the HD Edition, it adds a Vocal Tracks album and a 450-plus-page look at the first three Metal Gear Solid episodes, turning a game purchase into a more complete series keepsake.

The extras have real weight rather than feeling like throw-ins. The music is an easy excuse to linger with the series away from the console, while the book is substantial enough to reward slow browsing. If you care about Metal Gear Solid as a body of work, this is a notably stronger proposition than a standard release.

Retro Replay Review

Gameplay

The immediate draw here is straightforward: you get Metal Gear Solid: HD Edition as the centerpiece, then a set of physical extras that makes returning to it feel more deliberate. This is not a package built around a small in-game bonus or a novelty item; its value comes from spending more time with the wider Metal Gear Solid material once you put the controller down.

That changes the rhythm of ownership in a pleasant way. You can play the HD Edition, pull out the music album afterward, or browse the art book between sessions. It is a collector’s edition with room to become part of a routine instead of a box that is opened once and shelved.

For a comparison point within this corner of the series, the earlier Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater Premium Package is a useful related release. This package’s focus is broader: it frames the first three episodes together rather than centering its extras on a single entry.

Graphics

The main visual extra is “The Art of Metal Gear Solid: The Original Trilogy,” an art book covering episodes one through three and running to more than 450 pages. That sheer page count matters: this is a substantial book for lingering over the series’ artwork, not a thin sampler tucked into the case.

Story

The package’s story value comes from its trilogy-wide perspective. By pairing the HD Edition with an art book devoted to the first three episodes, it invites you to view Metal Gear Solid as an ongoing body of work rather than as one isolated game.

The music album deepens that retrospective mood. “Metal Gear Solid: The Original Trilogy — Vocal Tracks —” gives the set a second route back into those episodes, one that does not require another play session. For fans, that is more meaningful than another generic disc of packaging material.

It also makes this a better fit for someone who already has affection for the series than for a buyer hunting only for the cheapest way to own the game. The package asks you to value the surrounding art and music, and it delivers enough of both to justify that emphasis.

Overall Experience

Metal Gear Solid: HD Edition (Premium Package) earns its premium label because the extras are substantial, specific, and closely tied to the trilogy. The art book has real heft, and the Vocal Tracks album complements it well; together, they make the HD Edition feel like the center of a curated Metal Gear Solid collection.

The Japan-only release status naturally gives the box added collector pull, but the contents are the stronger reason to care. You are getting something designed for revisiting the series beyond playtime, not merely displaying it.

If Metal Gear Solid already means something to you, this is an easy package to appreciate. Its payoff is quieter than a dramatic in-game addition, yet more lasting: a large art book to revisit and music to keep around after the console is off.