Marines fool military AI with Metal Gear-inspired cardboard box

Marines fool high-tech military AI by hiding in a cardboard box, akin to the legendary stealth technique seen in the Metal Gear Solid series.

As reported by Gamesradar, two U.S marines fooled a high-tech artificial intelligence targeting system by hiding in a cardboard box. Surely, this has to be inspired by the evading skills of Solid Snake and Big Boss?

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You can’t beat this old Metal Gear cardboard box trick

In a series of tweets by the defence editor at The Economist, Shashank Joshi shared a few images from pages of “Four Battlegrounds: Power in the Age of Artificial Intelligence” by Paul Scharre.

Moreover, a page shared in a tweet from Shashank Joshi revealed the cunning tactic used by the two U.S marines. Like seriously, the AI never saw them coming!

You could hear them giggling the whole time. Like Bugs Bunny in a Looney Tunes cartoon, sneaking up on Elmer Fudd in a cardboard box,” reads a passage from Scharre’s book. The Marines were tasked with reaching the AI targeting system over a distance of 300 metres.

metal gear NES
Credit: Konami

The cardboard box technique has been around since the very beginning of Konami’s Metal Gear series, created by Hideo Kojima. What’s more, in the legendary stealth evasion made its debut in 1987’s Metal Gear for the NES. Ever since it’s been a prominent feature in the franchise.

Heed the wise words of Solid Snake!

Furthermore, in 2001s Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty, Iroquois Pliskin aka Solid Snake had a conversation with a young Raiden on the importance of the cardboard box.

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Iroquois Pliskin: The cardboard box that you have is ideal for fooling your enemies. It’s a very important tool for infiltration missions.

Raiden: Really?

Iroquois Pliskin: Of course. I can’t begin to count the number of agents whose lives were saved by a cardboard box…

Raiden: You mean everyone’s using them?

Iroquois Pliskin: Look, I’m not exaggerating when I say the success of your mission hinges on how you use that cardboard box. But in the end, a cardboard box is only made of paper. Handle it with care or it won’t be of much use to you. Don’t think of it as just another box. Treat it with love… Don’t be rough. Okay?

metal gear solid cardboard box
Credit: Konami

We should all use the cardboard box trick at least once in our lives

Have you ever used a cardboard box to evade a tricky situation? We all have, right? If so, sneak your way into our comments section and let us know across our social media channels.

While you’re here, be sure to check out our video of the week. 10 of the scariest horror games of all time are shown off. What is your favourite horror game?

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Featured Image Credit: Konami/Source: Gamesradar/IMDB