The Metal Gear Solid series is home to a variety of villains that range from energizing to enigmatic; on the latter end of that spectrum are the Patriots, who are perhaps some of the more perplexing villains in video-game history. "Who are the Patriots?" was the burning question following the release of Metal Gear Solid 2 in 2001.

20 years later, it's not a particularly hard question to answer now that the Metal Gear saga has come to a close, but it's still one worth entertaining given the group's fascinating history. Here's a breakdown of who the Patriots are, and why they're so important in the story of Metal Gear Solid. 

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Within the Metal Gear series, the origins of the Patriots date back to the early 1900s with the Philosophers – a group of rich, influential individuals from the United States, the Soviet Union, and China. The Philosophers previously combined their wealth to create a vast fortune known as the Philosophers' Legacy, but as luck would have it, the group was later broken up. However, each of the countries that formerly made up the group wanted the Legacy for themselves. This ultimately set the stage for the Cold War.

Metal Gear Solid 3 ends with the United States acquiring the Legacy, but at a cost. The Boss, who was the mentor of Big Boss, gave her life to retrieve the Legacy, and her last words expressed a desire for a united world. Inspired by these words, Big Boss and his commanding officer, Major Zero, used the Philosophers' Legacy to carry out the Boss' will by forming Cipher, which would later be re-branded as the Patriots.

However, the two couldn't quite agree on how to carry out the Boss' will. Zero believed the Boss wanted a world that followed one ruling party, while Big Boss interpreted her will as a desire for the world to become a soldier's paradise united by perpetual conflict. Tensions came to a head when Big Boss discovered clones of himself that Zero had created in secret. This event prompted Big Boss to leave Cipher in the 1970s. Zero would try repeatedly to recruit Big Boss again throughout the next few decades, yet his attempts were not successful.

Metal Gear Solid 5 revealed that Zero was infected with a degenerative disorder courtesy of Skull Face, which rendered him unable to lead Cipher. Zero didn't have much faith in humanity to continue his work, so he created an A.I. system named "The Patriots" who would act according to his beliefs.

The A.I. Patriots were the ones behind the events of Metal Gear Solid 2, which takes place in 2009; they subjected Raiden, the game's protagonist, to an experiment to see if they can successfully control people by manipulating the context around them. In the end, their experiment succeeded, but they happened to change course a little before their next appearance.

Leading up to Metal Gear Solid 4, the Patriots ended up abandoning Zero's will and adopting one of their one; their new approach to achieving world domination was a little less subtle than before. The A.I. group started by creating the War Economy, which effectively turned war into a profitable business for many. By 2014, they established a worldwide demand for war, and to ensure war could exist when it needed to, the Patriots also created the "Sons of the Patriots," a system that allowed the Patriots to control soldiers through nanomachine injections.

Towards the end of MGS4, Solid Snake's ally, Naomi Hunter, claims that The Patriots wanted to apply this level of control to the global civilian population, allowing for absolute control over the world. However, they were stopped by Solid Snake before being able to do so. In addition, Zero, who was in a vegetative state at the time of MGS4 thanks to Skull Face's attack, also died shortly after the downfall of the Patriots, bringing their long and complicated history to an end.

Throughout the Metal Gear series, the Patriots have exemplified some of the worst possible qualities a leader could have. In his self-righteous quest for a united world, Zero betrayed the trust of one of his companions, Big Boss, by cloning him without his consent. Zero's lack of faith in humankind also gave rise to a cold, emotionless A.I. system that decided humanity should be forced to blindly unite, rather than inspired to unite by someone willing to set a good example. Metal Gear Solid's Patriots, along with Zero, should serve as cautionary tales of how leading without respect for those being led can only ever end badly for all parties involved.

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