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Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots
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Be prepared for extremely long scenes joined by just moments of gameplay. Every character is explored in depth, elaborating on their past and their connections to the current story. As I’ve not finished the game, I can only guess that a lot more answers wait in the following chapters, particularly as this game draws the entire series to an end.
So that’s the caveat; if you are buying a PS3 because of ‘that awesome new Metal Gear game’, you’ll likely be disappointed. Fans, on the other hand, will pretty much be weeping tears of joy as they watch Raiden take on Vamp during perhaps one of the most impressive action scenes we’ve ever seen in a game.
SHE'S GOT THE LOOK
While the game’s story is quite deep and philosophically interesting, the game’s dialogue can be a bit stilted. However, even considering that the game has been translated from its native Japanese, MGS4 shows us how important good writing is. Combine that with fantastic visuals and engaging gameplay and you start to see where all of the perfect scores are coming from.
Visually, MGS4 is right up there. The transition between story scenes and gameplay is almost seamless, and the art direction is both crisp and detailed. We have experienced some slowdown during cut scenes, but when you’ve got a game that looks this good we think it’s a fairly small price to pay.
Textures play a large role in the game, as Snake’s OctoCamo suit is able to mimic any surface that you press up against. Indeed, it’s easy to spend a lot of the game mucking around with camo textures, as they just look so damn cool. There’s a gameplay element to this, too, and you’ll be utilising OctoCamo heaps to evade soldiers in the battlefield. This automatic camouflage system is a step forward from Snake Eater’s manual system, but don’t think that it makes things too easy – those soldiers can be perspicacious buggers and it will take all the skill you have to actually sneak throughout the whole game.
GO GO GADGETS
A second cool gadget that Snake has is the SolidEye, an electronic eye patch that gives you access to binoculars, night vision and data on troop movement and alliances. This uses up battery power, though, so you need to use it tactically to conserve that juice.
Your final helper is the Metal Gear Mk. II, a unit that serves as a reconnaissance drone and point of contact for purchasing and selling weapons. This new ability to equip yourself on the go is perhaps one of the biggest changes for the series, which has until now always been about utilising finite resources and sticking to the shadows or, erm, cardboard boxes.
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