{{#REDIRECT [[List of Metal Gear Character|characters]]
image=[[Image:Psycho Mantis.jpg]] |
bgcolor=#039|
fgcolor=#fff|
codename=Psycho Mantis|
aliases=The Dream Robber, The Parasite|
realname=Unknown|
nationality=[[Russia]] |
affiliations=Former [[KGB]] and [[FBI]];
[[FOXHOUND]]|
gender=[[Male]]|
actor=[[Doug Stone (voice actor)|Doug Stone]]|
japanactor=[[Kazuyuki Sogabe]]|
motionactor=|
}}
'''Psycho Mantis''' is a [[fictional character]] and [[boss (video games)|boss]] in the [[computer and video games|game]] ''[[Metal Gear Solid]]''. His real [[name]] is unknown, although he is also known as ''The Dream Robber''. In the game, he has been affiliated with [[FOXHOUND]], with mention of past [[history]] in the [[KGB]] and the [[FBI]]. His special abilities include the [[parapsychology|psychic]] powers of [[telekinesis]] and [[telepathy]]. He is 190 cm tall.
{{spoiler}}
==History==
Psycho Mantis was born in a small [[Russia]]n village before the [[collapse of the Soviet Union]]. His [[mother]] died giving birth to him, which made his [[father]] resent and hate him. He discovered his father's true [[emotion]]s one day while accidentally reading his mind. He wondered if his father would kill him, and the shock of this revelation awoke his sub conscious, and inadvertently caused the [[death]]s of everyone in the [[village]] (approx. 1,000 people). This release of psychic energy caused severe burns across his [[body]], particularly his [[face]].
The official cause of death for the people of the village was found to be [[brain hemorrhage|brain hemorrhaging]] and he was then taken into custody by the KGB, who found his psychic powers impressive. He was taught to control his abilities in a boarding [[school]] owned by Soviet Intelligence, along with other possibly psychic children.
After the collapse of the [[Soviet Union]], Mantis was drafted as a psychic profiler by the FBI. He moved to the [[United States]] and began to work immediately for the FBI. He would enter the minds of a suspected [[killer]] and uncover the truth about their [[crime]]s. He eventually delved too far into the mind of a [[serial killer]], and the killer's thoughts infected his mind, driving him [[insane]]. This created a violent multiple personality called ''the parasite''.
''The parasite'' caused Mantis to go into killing rages, but he found he could use his mental abilities to control his alternate personality. This greatly reduced his psychic abilities, so after he was recruited by [[FOXHOUND]], he let ''the parasite'' roam free in his [[mind]], allotting him even greater psychic ability.
By this time he had taken to wearing a [[gas mask]], partially to hide his deformed facial features, but also to prevent the thoughts of others from entering his mind involuntarily.
In the current incarnation of FOXHOUND, its members ([[Liquid Snake]], [[Vulcan Raven]], [[Revolver Ocelot]], Psycho Mantis, [[Sniper Wolf]], and [[Decoy Octopus]]) grew tired of their roles as puppets to the [[government]], and attacked [[Shadow Moses Island]], a [[nuclear waste|nuclear disposal]] facility. Psycho Mantis used his powers to gather the aid of the ''[[Genome Army]]'', a group of genetically enhanced [[soldier]]s.
This is the point where the game ''Metal Gear Solid'' takes place.
During the course of that game, Mantis attempts to stop Solid Snake's progress, at first taking control of [[Meryl Silverburgh#Metal_Gear_Solid_version|Meryl Silverburgh]], then revealing himself. Psycho Mantis is ultimately defeated by Snake, and tells Snake of his past before revealing the route ahead in his dying moments. He remarks that it is the first time he has used his powers for good, and that it felt "nostalgic" (in the English original translation of the game, "kind of nice").
==Gameplay==
When [[Solid Snake]] faces Mantis, Mantis demonstrates his psychic powers by breaking the [[fourth wall]]. In the pre-battle cut-scene, he activates the controller's rumble feature, then reads the player's [[memory card]]. Then, at the begining of the actual battle, Mantis yells "Blackout!" and causes the screen to go completely black except for the words Hideo (a reference to the director [[Hideo Kojima]]) in green all capital text in the top right corner of the screen, much like TV or VCR on-screen-displays. Many players mistook this to be a glitch in the game, while it was supposed to trick the player into thinking that he or someone else changed the TV or VCR input, as a slight attempt to throw the player off.
In the original [[PlayStation]] game, he reads off the titles of Konami's other games (''[[Castlevania: Symphony of the Night]]'', ''[[Suikoden]]'' among others), while in the remake ''Twin Snakes'', he reads Nintendo's games (''[[Super Smash Bros. Melee]]'' and ''[[Eternal Darkness: Sanity's Requiem]]'', among others). In the [[Japan|Japanese]] versions, if the player has save data from ''[[Snatcher]]'' and ''[[Policenauts]]'', they will receive a special message from [[Hideo Kojima]].
The easiest way to defeat Psycho Mantis is to for the player to remove the memory card (re-insert STRAIGHT after battle), plug the controller into the Player Two portal (which prevents The Parasite from predicting your battle moves) and equip both the FA-MAS and the Thermal Goggles (FA-MAS is useful for attacking Mantis with speed and power, while the Thermal Goggles prevent him from turning invisible on Snake [by detecting his body heat] and making Mantis unable to hide from your attacks). The battle should be a lot easier now, if not impossible to lose (on easier difficulties). Occasionally, Psycho Mantis takes control of [[Meryl Silverburgh]], in which case the player should not shoot her, but instead punch and kick her enough to knock her out.
Psycho Mantis was ultimately defeated by Solid Snake.
{{Foxhound}}
[[Category:Fictional telepaths]]
[[Category:Fictional people with psychokinetic abilities]]
