The narrative explores war, child soldiers, simulation versus reality, and anti-authoritarian themes through traditional male protagonists Snake and Raiden, with Raiden's heterosexual relationship to Rosemary including codec calls about their domestic life and plans for a child serving as a minor subplot. No character creation, pronoun systems, gender-swapped established figures, or identity-politics framing exists, keeping the focus squarely on philosophical and anti-war ideas. The sole identity-related detail is an incidental Codec mention of antagonist Vamp's bisexuality, named for the trait and tied to a rumored past with Scott Dolph, presented as a one-off villain quirk rather than any plot driver or thematic element.

Released in 2001, the game reflects Hideo Kojima's emphasis on information control and anti-war philosophy without any consultancy involvement or creator statements pushing representation mandates. Traditional heterosexual romance and male leads dominate, with no modern identity exploration or DEI elements. Reception shows no critic-audience gaps or controversies linked to progressive messaging; backlash to Raiden's design centered on the bait-and-switch reveal and androgynous appearance aimed at female appeal, not ideology.