Revolutionary, Emotional, Confusing, Convoluted, Controversial and Epic. This all equates to a Gaming masterpiece!
To set the scene without spoiling the story too much, it begins with THE Solid Snake infiltrating a Tanker rumoured to house a new Metal Gear. And then as we all know things take a turn for the worse for Snake and we end up being in control of the floppy haired androgynous Raiden on an environmental cleanup rig known as Big Shell … that's as much as I dare to give away so not to spoil anything. (Yes that many things in the story are integral)
Story
Right I have already expressed my views on the story but this section will contain a few spoilers!!! ……. The story is EPIC the way how it all comes together right at the end is a credit to Kojima's ability to write a story. Literally every event, cutscene codec call and word of the story has meaning. Everything from the Cyborg Ninja/Gray Fox look-alike right up to Raidens codename for the mission. To get the true experience of the story I highly recommend calling round on the codec after scenes to get added back story and character incite … many people over look the standard codec call as a means of story telling. Despite Raiden being feminine looking (He also confused Fatman with his shiny golden locks :lol: ) he turns out to be a complex character and even in the end he never truly resolves his issues, leading to us feeling like we want to know more about Raidens personality and journey. The expansion of other characters in series was another highlight for me. Otacon was the best one. He was only touched upon in MGS1 when we killed Sniper Wolf and to see his character revealed more was a joy and seeing his relationship with Snake in person was quite touching, the 2 nomads only having each other left, and you got the true sense that those 2 know the most about each other (The goofy hand shake was awesome :lol: ) and of course his relationship with his sister during her final moments was so touching, and the parrot was a nice touch Kojima that was THE tear jerker.
Graphics
Despite this being a PS2 game it can still outshine some modern games. The cutscenes all use the in game engine, like all MGS games, and they outshine most CGI PS2 era cutscenes. Most of the story will be told out through theses so it is a damn good they look so good. In game graphics are stunning no slowdown despite the number of enemies that can turn up on screen (especially if you get into the bad habit of getting spotted … not that I did) and the First person view was a stroke of genius. It is so satisfying to nail an unsuspecting guard square between the eyes. And the detail is impeccable especially on the Konami Eyes posters ;).
Gameplay
The core gameplay remains unchanged mostly (Don't fix what ain't broken) but the added addition of pinpoint FPS elements make the stealth action more varied. It never feels like a FPS mode tacked on to a stealth game for kicks. It also spices up boss battles, the risk reward weigh up of standing still to take a head shot on a boss who could shoot you right back and deal damage all in aid of dealing extra damage. This can make the difference from a win or loss. The hold up system is a cool new feature and warrants more playthroughs for the completionists. The Dog tag collecting is addictive and the hardcases you come across are the perfect opportunity for the sadistic side in you to come out, watching them go from cocky to cowering wreck after a swift shot to the daddy jewels is oh so fun. The varied boss battle rmain from the oh so annoying Fatman to darn right freaky ass Vamp. The individual strategies needed to take them down can be adapted and I had fun coming up with multiple different ways to dispose of them. Right now to the meat of the gameplay, TACTICAL ESPIONAGE ACTION (The Stealth). All the core actions remain creeping, crawling and wall tapping. Again due to the layout of the maps all of these tools work great (which is where my gripe for Snake Eater comes in) and the camera works well within the hallways and industrial settings. The satisfaction of being inches away from a guard with out him knowing is immense as your mind races with all the different way to dispose of him.
This review may just seem like a pure praising of MGS2 and Kojima's genius but there are a few gripes which although minor stop the game from reaching perfection. The Bosses are less defined as characters in comparison to the MGS1 bosses. The game overall is no where near as difficult as the original and the game will only posses a challenge to series vets on the hard difficulty and above. With that being said there are some moments early on where due to lack of direction I got a little stuck and became frustrated.
To all of you who managed to get this far (Congrats first) I implore you to just play the game and form your own memories of the game as every one who's played it has their own memories and experiences. This is one game that will leave a mark on you in some way shape or form, trust me it is an experience and a mile stone in gaming you do not want to miss!