Metal Gear Solid 4

Metal Gear Solid 4 is the most anticipated game on the PlayStation 3 and quite surprisingly, lives up to the huge weight which has been put on its shoulders. Fans of the series and newcomers alike will, by the end of the game, be thrilled, amused and saddened by the emotional roller coaster which is MGS4’s story. With an epic ending, more than acceptable enough for Kojima’s highly renowned saga.

When you talk about Metal Gear, especially to either fans of the series or gamers in general, you will get a general consensus of ‘too many cut scenes not enough game time’. This Metal Gear follows on this lineage, if you run through the game on easy skipping all the cut scenes it will take you approximately just under five hours. Some of the especially long cut scenes can last up to about an hour. This type of one way action is necessary to convey the emotions of the story and is executed brilliantly. In terms of gameplay, Metal Gear now plays like a third person shooter in terms of combat. This gives the player a lot of freedom, so now you can confront Snakes enemies in any style you want. Though to achieve the best results stealth is the key, (it’s still a ‘tactical stealth espionage’ game after all!) evasion rather than confrontation will award you with a much higher score, a refreshing break from all the mindless running and gunning found in a lot of games today.

Overall this game is one which can definitely warrant the purchase of a PlayStation 3 console, this is a game that is the complete package when it comes to being entertained, and to top it all off you get a second game with it in the form of Metal Gear Online. The add on is the best online experience you will find on the PS3 at this current time, and there are quite a few reasons which contribute to this. The key reasons are firstly the fact that if you can play the main MGS 4 game you can almost immediately jump in to a death match game on MGO (although of course there is less stealth and more of a focus on the action).

Secondly as, I stated before, Metal Gear Online is like a second game in terms of the amount of feature it offers. An example of this is the complete character customisation and the various lobbies for newcomers to get used to the game and for veterans to play with a decent challenge. Even the training lobbies get everyone involved with players training other players the ropes and skills of the game. This is all enhanced with the hastily released expansion pack which allows players to participate in survival, a series of challenges which award you with points to spend in the MGO shop to further customise your character.

Metal Gear Solid 4 is the complete stealth action game experience for the PS3, available now.