Metal Gear Solid, released by Konami in 1998 for the PlayStation, made stealth gameplay mainstream through Solid Snake's missions to infiltrate enemy bases undetected. Its alert sound became shorthand for detection itself, because players heard it whenever a guard caught Snake and an exclamation mark appeared above the enemy. As clips and soundboards spread online, editors borrowed the sting far beyond gaming, using it as a universal signal for being caught. It endures because the sound is instantly recognisable even to people who never played the original game.