There is a wide variety of camo patterns you can wear in MGS3. Each one affects your "camo index" - a percentage displayed in the upper-right portion of your screen that determines how difficult it is for the enemy to spot you. It's common sense to wear camo that blends in with the environment.
Normal camouflage[edit]
Naked[edit]
Selecting this camo will remove the upper part of Snake's uniform. Only use this if you're confident in your sneaking skills (and have a lot of food - because your stamina will deplete faster while naked). No, there is no way to take off your pants, as Sigint will attest if you call him while wearing this.
Olive Drab[edit]
The most basic uniform, a solid green color. This is somewhat useful indoors, but there is little point elsewhere.
Leaf[edit]
Forest camo, designed to blend in with tall grass and bushes. You'll be using this a lot outdoors.
Black[edit]
Use this one to blend in with dark rooms, dirt, or just about any other shadow. Also works quite well indoors and at night.
Tiger Stripe[edit]
Good all-around camo. Doesn't excel at anything in particular, though. Use in grass or rough terrain.
Tree Bark[edit]
Good when hiding against trees and logs, obviously, but also against dirt and rock.
Squares[edit]
Great in Rassvet and other brick areas, but elsewhere stands out too much.
Raindrop[edit]
Found in the alcove under the bridge in Dolinovodno. Occasionally it will rain, and this camo becomes very effective.
Choco Chip[edit]
Found in a tree stump in Bolshaya Past South. If you missed it there, look on the balcony outside the Graniny Gorki lab (you'll need to go inside and then come back out from the top floor). The brownish pattern of this outfit is best suited to desert or rocky areas (like the mountains). It also works somewhat decently against some buildings.
Splitter[edit]
Also found in Bolshaya Past South, on a ledge. Good in buildings or metal surfaces.
Snow[edit]
Take the right branch in the cave before fighting The Pain and keep going through the crawl spaces. Good in Rokovoj Bereg. This is the best camo for fighting The Boss, because she cannot see you unless she is nearby. If worn with the snow facepaint when fighting The Pain, his hornets will not attack.
Water[edit]
Bolshaya Past Base. Run to the Southwest of the base and you'll find a ladder on the outside of one of the buildings. Climb it, on top of the roof you'll find the Water camo
Special Camouflage[edit]
All of these camos have a special effect. Most of them are obtained by stamina killing bosses.
Animal[edit]
- Obtained from: Ocelot.
- Effect: Fur print pattern. Your gun will always stay perfectly steady when aiming in FPS view. Does not work well with the SVD or Mosin Nagant. Works wonders (95%) in the mountains.
Hornet Stripe[edit]
- Obtained from: The Pain. You can acquire it by lowering the pain's stamina bar to 0. There will be a walkway near where you exit. Walk up the ledge and jump off of it. Land on the platform that The Pain was standing on and there will be a box. Grab it and now you have the hornet stripe.
- Effect: Leeches, bats, and spiders will not attack. Hornets will not affect you, and will attack nearby enemies when you approach them.
Spider[edit]
- Obtained from The Fear.
- Effect: Camo Index stays at 80% (75% when walking), but only when you have stamina left. Wearing Spider drains stamina extremely fast.
Moss[edit]
- Obtained from: The End, by holding him up and threatening his head with your gun while his stamina gauge is low (approximately 1/4 of full stamina).
- Effect: When combined with Woodland and used in grass, your camo index skyrockets. Also, standing in the sun restores health and stamina. Used best in the area where you fight The End.
Fire[edit]
Obtained from The Fury. Halves fire and explosive damage and gives immunity to burns.
Spirit[edit]
Obtained from The Sorrow, but you must reach the skeleton at the end of the river. It will be in your backpack when you get it from EVA. This one works particularly well indoors, and gives the added benefit of restoring your stamina when you choke enemies. Also dampens the sound of your footsteps. It is the best camo to use when fighting The End, because he can't hear you move, and you can sneak up on him easily.
Cold War[edit]
Obtained from Colonel Volgin in the Groznyj Grad hangar. Be quick about picking it up after he goes down; you have about 10 seconds before the cutscene. On the front is the USSR's flag; on the back is the USA's. The camouflage on this one is horrendous, but more importantly, enemies looking at the Soviet side will hesitate to attack, sometimes not shooting at all.
Snake[edit]
- Obtained from: The Boss.
- Effect: Gives great cover in every environment (25%), but it's better to change camos in each new area.
Sneaking Suit[edit]
On your second visit to Groznyj Grad, check the locker where you stashed Raikov (it has a red stripe and cannot be broken open). This is the best uniform in the game; it reduces stamina use, damage, and the chance of receiving serious wounds. Additionally, though it provides only 10% camouflage, it ensures that your base Camo Index never drops below that amount.
GA-KO[edit]
Found in Chyornyj Prud. When wearing this, enter and leave the Survival Viewer and the area's Kerotan will croak four times, helping you find him. Use in conjunction with the Directional Mic to aid your frog-hunting.
Banana[edit]
Get the best score on all the Snake vs. Monkey levels to unlock this permanently. Lousy camouflage, but makes all food taste great, like bananas.
Fly[edit]
Kick down the last stall door in the bathroom on the second floor of the Graniny Gorki Lab. When an enemy guard attempts to hit you in close combat, they will gag and take a few seconds to recover. You are constantly surrounded by flies, which can be annoying when using first person mode.
Disguises[edit]
You cannot use most of your weapons or items in disguise (save the cig-gas spray, hanky, and C3) but enemies will not immediately recognize you as an intruder if you wear a disguise.
Scientist[edit]
This is a Russian scientist uniform from the Graniny Gorki weapons lab. Use this to get around Graniny Gorki without alarming the guards (though the scientists will still run for alarm panels if you get too close to them). Press 
while wearing this to adjust your glasses in true Otacon fashion. Remember to not have any facepaint on while wearing it, same goes for any other disguises.
Maintainance[edit]
This is the uniform the workers in the Groznyj Grad hangar wear, and is found in the second locker from the north in the easternmost bank in the locker room. You can still plant C3 in this outfit, as long as nobody sees you.
Uniform[edit]
This is the uniform that you steal from Raikov in Groznyj Grad. Wear this in combination with the Mask (under facepaint) to disguise yourself as Raikov and walk around Groznyj Grad without being spotted. You can punch or knock them out and even take their stuff without them retaliating. Press while wearing this to salute (which the guards will respond to by saluting back). It has no effect during your return to Groznyj Grad (after the torture).
Tuxedo[edit]
Available at the start in a clear data file. You can use most weapons in this disguise (excluding facepaint), but enemies won't be fooled for very long if you're seen. If you want to feel like James Bond, run through the game wearing this and using only the Patriot and silenced M1911A1. For a laugh, put it on after retrieving your backpack at the start of the Virtuous Mission and call up The Boss.
Clear Game Camouflage[edit]
These special camo patterns are only available in the PAL version of Snake Eater or MGS3: Subsistence if you selected "I like MGS3" from the starting menu. They can also be accessed by using a Gameshark with Snake Eater.
Desert Tiger[edit]
Like its name implies, this is a tiger-stripe outfit in a desert color scheme. It is also effective in wooded areas. As an added bonus, wearing this camo prevents attached suppressors from wearing out.
Flecktarn[edit]
This is a more advanced woodland camo, bringing your index up into the 90's - even if you're crawling in the open. However, it doesn't work too well in dirt, bark, or indoors. This camouflage prevents your battery from draining.
AUSCAM[edit]
This white camo is intended for use in alpine forests and such, and will make you stick out like a sore thumb if used in the jungle. To counteract being so obvious, wearing the AUSCAM reduces all damage to 2/3 normal.
Facepaint[edit]
The right camo pattern is only half of the equation. A bare face can be a dead giveaway, so it's important to conceal your face with a wide variety of different paints.
No Paint[edit]
Selecting this will remove the paint from your face. There's not much point to doing this, but it might add a bit of credibility if you're wearing the Scientist disguise.
Splitter[edit]
Looks cool and is effective in most areas, especially buildings.
Woodland[edit]
This paint works best in conjunction with the Leaf or Flecktarn outfits. With the Moss Camo you will have 100% in the camo index while in The End's area.
Black[edit]
Black face paint, obviously. Effective in the dark or against dark backgrounds.
Oyama[edit]
Found in the courtyard vent in Graniny Gorki Lab, this wacky camo makes Snake look like a geisha or Kabuki actress. This will increase your camo index by 5 while fighting the boss.
Zombie[edit]
After defeating the Ocelot squad in Rassvet, look behind the barrels to the left of the exit for this facepaint. Usually provides the same benefits as Black face paint, and it looks cooler.
Desert[edit]
Found on the first floor of Ponizovje Warehouse near the sealed doors.
Kabuki[edit]
After meeting EVA at the Tikhogornyj waterfall, go back out and look in the pond. Essentially, the male version of Oyama--no lipstick or rouge, but still a pale white.
Snow[edit]
Under a plank in a trench on the west side of Bolshaya Past Base. Good for the final battle in Rokovoj Bereg, but fails miserably elsewhere. If worn with the snow camo when fighting The Pain, his hornets will not attack.
Water[edit]
After fighting The Fear, return to the entrance of Ponizovje South. It should be in the water (unsurprisingly). It's good if you need to swim past enemies. You can also find it on the roof of the building at Bolshaya Past Base.
Mask[edit]
You start the game with this mask (and it's also shown in the introduction cutscene, if you selected "I like MGS2!" when starting the game). According to Signt it was designed for a mission to impersonate a Russian officer, when it didn't go through he didn't want to throw it away, so he put it your backpack. The mask looks a lot like Raiden from MGS2, although it was designed after a Russian commander - Major Ivan Raidenovich Raikov. Wear this with Raikov's uniform to disguise yourself as him. It also looks better with the scientist disguise, because there's no bandana. Wear the Mask during the boss fight against Volgin and he will hesitate in attacking you. You can get a few shots in before he notices that you are not Raikov, but will attack more frequently than before. The trick only works once during the fight.
Infinity Face Paint[edit]
Beat the game with the Foxhound Rank or with a live Tsuchinoko in your inventory to get the IFP, which incurs penalty to your Camo Index but gives unlimited ammo for every weapon (except C3).
Facepaint - Subsistence Only[edit]
In MGS3: Subsistence, selecting "I like MGS3" will start you with a whole slew of patriotic facepaints.
USA[edit]
Show your American pride as you empty your American-made M63 into your foes, who saw you right away because you're wearing the worst camouflage in the game.
USSR[edit]
The Soviet flag. It might be helpful in red areas. Also, it might cause enemies to hesitate before shooting like with the Cold War camo.
Germany[edit]
This facepaint looks just like the German flag.
Italy[edit]
This one looks like the Italian flag, and for some reason, also works well in wooded environments.
Not Quite Camouflage[edit]
Cardboard Boxes[edit]
Like every other Metal Gear game before it, the cardboard boxes make a complete return. You can use them to blend in with storage areas, or climb into trucks and convince the guards to drive you around Groznyj Grad (providing that the shipping address on them is correct). Just don't park yourself in the way of a patrol, or the guards will kick your box right off. If it is hit with enough damage it will break apart and you will have to find a replacement.
Monkey Mask[edit]
Unlocked by completing all the Snake VS Monkey missions. This doesn't really give you any tactical advantages, however it can be worn during cutscenes. It limits your field of view quite a bit. It does, however, amuse/confuse the final boss, which could give you a free shot.
Stealth[edit]
When equipped, your camo index skyrockets to 100% and stays there unless you touch an enemy or pick up a body. In Alert Phase or during boss battles, your camo index stays at 95%. There are two ways to get this camo; shoot all 64 green frogs hidden through out the game or complete the game with no alerts excluding evasions and cautions.