Metal Gear Solid 2 Substance “Emma yeeting” glitch was bizarrely fixed by Windows, speedrunners discover 

A handy glitch in Metal Gear Solid 2 Substance has been accidentally fixed, much to the frustration of RTA speedrunners. However, it wasn’t Konami that prevented them from sending poor Emma on an unexpected time-traveling trip, but the quirks of a Windows 11 update. 

Escort missions in games can be a pain. Not only do you have to fight off enemies, but you also have to make sure that the (usually) defenseless character you are babysitting makes it through unharmed and doesn’t suddenly develop suicidal tendencies (looking at you, Ashley in Resident Evil 4). Leading Emma through the Big Shell in Metal Gear Solid 2 is no picnic either. With Otacon pressuring you over the Codec about keeping his stepsister safe, you must get Emma, hobbling on her injured leg, through flooded areas and claustrophobic enemy-patrolled corridors. It makes the offshore structure feel twice as big as normal, and requires a good deal of patience, severely eating into your playtime on the harder difficulties like European Extreme. 

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Therefore, it’s no wonder that speedrunners on the PC version of Metal Gear Solid 2 Substance (the “director’s cut” version of Metal Gear Solid 2 Sons of Liberty) have been exploiting a handy time-saving glitch for years. This odd glitch allows you to push the hapless Emma out-of-bounds in two places- in the elevator in Shell 2 Core and shortly after in the corridor just before the KL connecting bridge. She then respawns further on down the escort route, helping speedrunners shave precious seconds off their run. Yeeting her through the wall just before the KL connecting bridge is especially helpful as it saves you from having to drag Emma along the exposed outdoor bridge monitored by a Cipher gun camera and an enemy soldier. 

With Window 11’s latest update, (possibly OS version 22621.4112 or 22631.4112) MGS2 speedrunner ApacheSmash reported that this trick was no longer possible. 

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Since then, speedrunners have been frantically testing different OSs to see whether or not you can still make Emma do the time warp. So far, they have confirmed that the MGS2 glitch cannot be performed on Windows 8, XP and 11.  

This glitch was apparently bizarrely specific to one PC release of the game (Note: it cannot be performed in the Metal Gear Solid Master Collection Vol. 1, which contains Metal Gear Solid 2 Sons of Liberty, not Substance). So far, speedrunners are scratching their heads as to what part of the update could have caused Emma to be fixed.  

Metal Gear Solid 2 still has many other secrets and unusual techniques that can be used across all versions of the game though, such as knocking out guards with seagulls in no-kill runs.