I must admit, Snake was not my main when I started the game, he was my secondary after Ike. I used to really really suck with him, though, but then it finally clicked and I started winning more with Snake than with Ike, so I moved him up from secondary to main. I'm not particularly skilled with him, though, as the only time I actually play Smash is when friends are over, but I'm skilled enough to own my friends in 1v1 and sometimes FFA with him. Although we do play with smash balls on, but I rarely get the ball, so... =P
Also, Leprechaun, I'm inclined to believe that you're confusing the ideal of 'playing to win' with elitism. Not all people who play to win are *******es...
Also, on the Barry Bonds analogy, that doesn't really fit, I think. For one, steroids is considered illegal while Snake is not. For another thing, although using steroids is illegal in the sports world, it's just an addition on top of a player's skill...Barry Bonds was probably already a good player before he touched the 'roids, how else did he get to the major leagues?Unless he was already using them beforehand, in which case my argument is wrong.
People who main Snake just because he's top tier, on the other hand, are not cheating, or doing anything illegal. In fact, using Snake doesn't even guarantee skill, it just gives you tools to use. You can't do **** with Snake if you don't know how to use him....
What would you all say if, say, Psychomidget had played Snake without ever playing MGS? He paved the way for many techniques that Snake users use today, and is/was the best Snake player on the forums for a while. Would he then not deserve respect if he only played Snake to win?