Hal Emmerich

Otacon
Metal Gear character
Shinkawa's concept art for Metal Gear Solid
First game	Metal Gear Solid (1998)
Created by	Hideo Kojima
Designed by	Yoji Shinkawa
Voiced by (English)	Christopher Randolph (Credited as Christopher Fritz in Metal Gear Solid)
Voiced by (Japanese)	Hideyuki Tanaka
Fictional profile
Real name	Hal Emmerich
Nationality	American-British
Affiliations	Former employee of ArmsTech (2005) Co-founder of Philanthropy

Dr. Hal Emmerich (ハル・エメリッヒ, Haru Emerihhi), nicknamed Otacon (オタコン, Otakon), is a fictional character from Konami's Metal Gear series. Created by Hideo Kojima and designed by Yoji Shinkawa, Otacon was introduced in the series in Metal Gear Solid.

In Metal Gear Solid, Otacon, an ArmsTech employee who designed Metal Gear REX, becomes a close ally of Solid Snake upon learning of REX's nuclear strike capabilities. After the events of Metal Gear Solid, he helped Solid Snake form Philanthropy, a group whose main objective is to prevent proliferation of Metal Gear-type weapons. Snake and Otacon infiltrate the military installations and facilities of the world, delving into their compounds through stealth and cyber hacking. In a sense, Snake is the brawn and Otacon is the brains behind "Philanthropy."

A devoted fan of anime, Hal's chosen nickname is the short form of the Otaku Convention, with reference to Otakon held in Baltimore each year. The name "Hal" is a direct reference to the computer HAL 9000 from the film 2001: A Space Odyssey, one of several references to the film which is present in Metal Gear Solid; in the Otacon ending of the game, Hal and Snake make direct comparisons to the film.

"Hal" is a tribute to 2001: A Space Odyssey. Kojima states that he created Otacon as his way of glorifying the otaku stereotype by having a character who fights the terrorists with his intellect rather than his brawn. He added that the original idea for Otacon was to make him "heavier, wearing a cap, and programming while eating a chocolate bar". However, the design Shinkawa did for the character was a slender one instead. Lead character designer Yoji Shinkawa stated in an interview that Otacon was designed to look somewhat "tougher" than he did in Metal Gear Solid.