Metal Gear Survive system requirements announced (Updated)

Metal Gear Survive is a Kojima-free base defense shooter that you may or may not have some interest in playing when it comes out in February. Tim quite enjoyed his brief time with it in June of last year, but more recently James expressed somewhat more ambiguous feelings, describing it as "just a functional survival game built in the shell of one of our favorite stealth games ever." Before you decide if you want to play it, though, you need to know if you can play it. That's where I come in. 

PC building guides

Need a new PC for Metal Gear Survive? Check out our build guides: 

Budget gaming PC
(~$750/£750) - A good entry-level system.
Mid-range gaming PC
(~$1,250/£1,250) - Our recommended build for most gamers.
High-end gaming PC
(~$2,000/£2,000) - Everything a gamer could want.
Extreme gaming PC
(>$3,000/£3,000) - You won the lotto and are going all-in on gaming.

Prefer to buy a prebuilt than building it yourself? Check out our guide to the Best Gaming PCs.

At the bare minimum, Konami recommends you have: 

  • OS: Windows 7x64, Windows 8x64, Windows 10x64 (64-bit OS Required)
  • Processor: Intel Core i5-4460 (3.40 GHz) or better; Quad-core or better
  • Memory: 4 GB RAM
  • Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 650 (2GB) or better (DirectX 11 card Required)
  • DirectX: Version 11
  • Network: Broadband Internet connection
  • Storage: 20 GB available space
  • Sound Card: DirectX 9.0c compatible sound card

For a better experience, Konami recommends you equip yourself with:

  • OS: Windows 7x64, Windows 8x64, Windows 10x64 (64-bit OS Required)
  • Processor: Intel Core i7-4790 (3.60GHz) or better; Quad-core or better
  • Memory: 8 GB RAM
  • Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960 (DirectX 11 graphic card required)
  • DirectX: Version 11
  • Network: Broadband Internet connection
  • Storage: 20 GB available space
  • Sound Card: DirectX 9.0c compatible sound card (Surround Sound 5.1)     

Those of you packing Nvidia display adapters will also want to pick up the new Game Ready Driver, which will include support for ShadowPlay Highlights, enabling the automatic capture of videos and screenshots of highlight in-game moments.   

Metal Gear Survive has previously been scheduled for release on February 20 in North America and February 22 in Europe, but the Steam page says February 21. Splitting the difference, perhaps? I've reached out to Konami to clarify and will update when I can. In the meantime, distract yourself from the confusion with six minutes of Metal Gear Survive single-player action

Update: After confirming that the release dates remain February 20/22 as previously announced, Konami has now clarified that those launch dates apply only to the console versions of Metal Gear Survive. The PC edition will be out worldwide on February 21 as indicated on Steam.

Andy Chalk

Andy has been gaming on PCs from the very beginning, starting as a youngster with text adventures and primitive action games on a cassette-based TRS80. From there he graduated to the glory days of Sierra Online adventures and Microprose sims, ran a local BBS, learned how to build PCs, and developed a longstanding love of RPGs, immersive sims, and shooters. He began writing videogame news in 2007 for The Escapist and somehow managed to avoid getting fired until 2014, when he joined the storied ranks of PC Gamer. He covers all aspects of the industry, from new game announcements and patch notes to legal disputes, Twitch beefs, esports, and Henry Cavill. Lots of Henry Cavill.