"No Raiden, Snake is not a factor in this simulation."
The gameplay is much improve from the first game, with subtle improvements like first person view to shoot as well as being able to crouch walk. There are more challenging boss fights this time around, and the game seems to move at a much faster pace than the first one. You can also do cartwheels which allow for quicker maneuvers. All of this heps to make gameplay faster and easier to enjoy for newcomers to the series. Like I said before however, you will spend much of your time watching cutscenes, more than playing the game in fact. Also, if you were to skip every cutscene, the game can be speed through in a matter of 3 hours or less. Otherwise the game is a much improved version of the gameplay introduced in the original Metal Gear Solid.
The graphics are pretty impressive for the early days of the Playstation 2, with character's faces showing emotion and explosions looking rather tasty. The only negative is that the game is rather brown, and grey...not a very interesting look. Otherwise the graphics are more than good, and the cutscenes are pieced together masterfully which is just as impressive. Seeing characters like Solid Snake remade in PS2 form is quite the treat, after the blurred mess that they were in the original game. The game has definitely aged well, being up to par with some of the latest games on the console.
This series never seems to do a bad job at voice acting or music, and this game is no exception. In fact this game did a better job at it than the original. The MGS2 theme song is among one of the most unforgettable songs in gaming. The intensity of conversations is personified by the stellar voices of the characters involved. The sound is just pure perfection.
Substance has quite the few amount of extras to keep the biggest MGS fiend busy. The game itself is short but with 5 different difficulty settings, and about 3 or 4 extra gameplay modes like skateboarding, this game can easily last you a very long time. I wouldn't say the same about Sons of Liberty by itself, but the Substance version succeeds in providing the player with a hell load of extras. You usually can't say that for most Metal Gear games. The game is truly a welcomed treat for any dedicated fan.
This is the definitive version of Metal Gear Solid 2.
PROS:
-Complex, engaging story
-Improved gameplay from MGS1
-Graphics hold up even to this day
-Perfect music and voice acting
-Ridiculous amount of re-playability
CONS:
-More cutscenes than gameplay
-Story may cause an extreme headache when piecing together
-Raiden
-Really short minus the cutscenes
-Rose
Story: 5/5
Gameplay: 4/5
Graphics: 4/5
Sound: 5/5
Extras: 5/5