Review – Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of The Patriots

Publisher: Konami
Developer: Kojima Productions
Platform(s): Playstation 3
Genre: Third-Person Action

ESRB Content Descriptors: Blood, Crude Humor, Strong Language, Suggestive Themes, Violence

The Scoop: From the same company that brought us great games like Policenauts, Zone of The Enders, Super Contra and countless others, here we have one of the finest representations of visual art from one of the most popular gaming series since the 1980′s. Metal Gear became legendary and is known as the first ever stealth video game and the game that popularized the stealth genre in gaming. Little did we know that this series would lead on to influence many games and encourage several more.

Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of The Patriotshas gotten rave reviews just like it’s predecessors have over the years. The game has received perfect scores from practically every gaming critic in existence and has won numerous Game of The Year awards. Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of The Patriotsis definitely one of the most prized games you can own in your gaming collection.

The Setup: Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of The Patriots is the sequel to Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty and takes place five years after, in the year 2014. The setting for the game varies from several locations across the globe but generally stems off of one idea, stopping his brother, Liquid Snake from hijacking the Sons Of the Patriots (SOP) system which controls all soldiers and unleashing his insurrection. Solid Snake is called back to the battle field for one final mission, and that is to finally put down his brother once and for all and that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

What’s Hot:

• Story: For those that have played past Metal Gear games, it’s very apparent that the Metal Gearfranchise has been one of the more story oriented games in the history of gaming. MGS4 definitely proves me right as the story is the deepest story I’ve ever played through.
• Graphics: This review being more then two years after the release of the game and I’m confident enough to say that MGS4, graphically, is competition for games like Uncharted 2 and Modern Warfare 2. The graphics that are present are top notch and some of the most gorgeous I have seen. The bloom effect is present here, but real is definitely not brown in this game as the colors are bright and vibrant and the look of the game is completely flawless. Graphically, this game is definitely a looker.
• Cutscenes: The cutscenes in this game are really phenomenal and can not just hold a candle but hold a flamethrower to some recent cinematics we’ve seen on the big screen. This game definitely plays like a movie at times and that’s what makes it such a joy to experience.
• Controls: Nothing about the controls has changed which is what makes the MGS series so great. If it’s not broke, don’t fix it as they say.
• New Gadgets & Online Gameplay: There’s tons of new gadgets to play around with in MGS4. From the Solid Eye to the MKII to new weapons to etc. etc. etc., you’ll definitely kill a few hours messing around with the graphics. The online that’s present in MGS4 is really amazing as well. Metal Gear Online is probably one of the better online games out there and definitely reason alone to own a copy of this game.

What’s Not:

• Cutscenes: While the cutscenes are a pro for some, there also a con for some as well as it seems you’ll be watching them for a good majority of the game. Beating the game takes about 30 hours depending on skill level and what difficulty you’re playing it on and out of 30 hours, you’ll be watching cutscenes for about 90 minutes, which is no big deal to me, but to others it will be found quite annoying as to how long the cutscenes are and how frequently you’ll find yourself viewing them.
• Updates: While the updates add new stuff for Metal Gear Online, you’ll also be downloading them quite frequently. The updates are also quite large as well, so you’ll be finding yourself setting your controller down and waiting several hours for the update to complete.

Final Verdict: Several games have been released, played a few times and then gathered dust on my shelf for several years. Metal Gear Solid 4however, remains a frequently played game in my library, not just for the amazing online, but for the memorable story. No video game has ever brought me so much all at once. Definitely an emotional roller coaster and probably one of the best written games of all time. A must buy for any fan of cinematic art. While this game remains practically perfect in my eyes, there have been a few known complaints.