Quiet

Overview

Quiet is modelled on, voiced by, and has her facial animations motion-captured from Dutch actress Stefanie Joosten. Quiet is mute and unable to speak in any language, but is capable of vocalisations of pain and physical exertion.

Initially appearing as an enemy, Quiet saves Snake (Big Boss)'s life. At the new Mother Base, Ocelot and Miller argue over whether they should knock her out or kill her due to her knowledge of the classified location of Mother Base. Snake overrules both of them and has her locked in a cell, with which Quiet complies. Quiet later becomes a "Buddy" character, with Snake able to give her commands on the battlefield and coordinate attacks with her. Her abilities as a sniper allow her to provide Snake a means of covertly killing enemies.

Weapons and Abilities

While Quiet doesn't have any supernatural sniper abilities like previous legendary Metal Gear Solid snipers Sniper Wolf or The End, she does possess a "dematerialisation" ability, allowing her to traverse great distances in an instant. This ability would seem to stem from a capability in her to transform her own cell structure, which can also allow her to affect physical objects. For example, she is capable of "dematerialising" her wrists to remove hand cuffs.

Quiet's sniping skills are generally considered to be on par with those of Sniper Wolf and The End. In a demo of the game shown at the 2014 Tokyo Game Show, Snake is task with destroying a high tech attack helicopter without the traditional rocket launcher that would be used to tackle such an enemy. In this instance Quiet materialises beside Snake then dematerises onto a ledge to position herself alongside the helicopter. Snake proceeds to throw a grenade in the air between Quiet and the helicopter, which Quiet shoots into the helicopter, causing it to explode.

Controversy

Some critics identify elements of sexism in Quiet's character. Controversy of this nature first arose after her initial unveiling, where emphasis was put on her revealing attire, which critics not only highlighted as a problem in itself, but considered nonsensical due to her role as a soldier in a warzone. Designer Hideo Kojima came under further scrutiny for, among other things, highlighting the malleability of the breasts on the figurine of Quiet and stating that Quiet was part of a recent effort to make "more erotic" characters, claiming that the primary reason for Quiet's eroticism was to encourage people to cosplay her and buy the figurine of her. Kojima later defended Quiet's design on Twitter by claiming it would tie into a deeper part of the story and that critics would be "ashamed of [their] words and deeds".

Criticism continued on after the release of the game. Some identified sexist overtones in the way that Quiet was deployed and used in the game the same way as the player's robot and animal companions. The overall complaint against Quiet's design and implementation became that as a sexualised character who can be used to aid the player, but who can literally not speak for herself, she is objectified, and that she lacks personal agency as a character, instead taking the place of a tool to be used and aesthetically appreciated by the player. It has however been noted that for those who object to Quiet's sexualised appearance, a costume can be unlocked and applied to dress her more modestly.