This game is a thrilling experience you will not soon forget. It is a must buy, especially for Metal Gear fans.
This game is comprised of two main parts, the tanker chapter and the plant chapter.
TANKER CHAPTER:
In the tanker chapter, you will play as a character who is code named, Solid Snake (the main protagonist from the Metal Gear series). The tanker chapter begins when Snake (with codec call support from Otacon) sneaks aboard a ship that is disguised to look like a typical oil tanker. The tanker is traveling on the Hudson River, which is located in E. New York, and flows into the New York Harbor.
Snake intends to gain photographic proof of the new prototype Metal Gear called "Ray" (a fully armed, bipedal, mobile, amphibious, machine that is capable of being manned) that is being housed in the holds of the tanker under Marine guard. Things get even more complicated, though, when the tanker is suddenly seized by a Russian strike force (flown in by helicopter) with plans to steal Metal Gear Ray...
PLANT CHAPTER:
Two years after the tanker chapter, the plant chapter takes place. The setting of this chapter is on a massive offshore decontamination plant, called the Big Shell, that is located in the New York Harbor, approximately twenty miles from Manhattan Island. The purpose of the Big Shell is to cleanup the large crude oil spill that resulted from the tanker incident in the previous chapter.
In the plant chapter you will play as a new character, code named Raiden, whose only combat experience comes from VR (virtual reality) training missions. Raiden is called into action when the Big Shell is seized by an extremely dangerous terrorist group, that call themselves, "The Sons of Liberty." The terrorists also have hostages, including the President of the United States. Making matters even worse, they have rigged explosive C4 bombs to the Big Shell, and are threatening to blow it out of the water if a ransom of thirty billion dollars is not payed.
If the decontamination plant, Big Shell, were to be destroyed, it would cause an ecocidal catastrophe of epic proportions. Which would render the New York Harbor an inhospitable toxic soup. Raiden has two primary mission objectives, to disarm all C4 bombs and to safeguard the President and any other hostages...
Now, I am going to list the positive aspects of Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty. They are the following:
>This game has an outstanding (yet very complex) plot line.
>The game play in this game is fantastic.
>The graphics are the most stunning I have seen on the PlayStation 2 (in
both the game play and the cut scenes).
>The musical score in this game is amazingly composed by experienced
Hollywood musician, Harry Gregson-Williams.
>The cut scenes have mostly great voice acting, they are interactive, and
highly entertaining (almost cinematic).
>Five difficultly modes (very easy, easy, normal, hard, and extreme) make
this game compatible with casual and hardcore gamers alike.
>The AI are very intelligent in this game, for instance, if an enemy soldier
discovers that a fellow comrade is dead or missing; he will call HQ and
request additional troops to perform an extensive search of the area
(guards can also see wet footprints from you and will follow them
suspiciously).
>This game has an interactive/destructible environment; so you can shoot
and destroy lights, windows, liquor bottles, magazines, steam pipes, slip
on bird crap, and much more.
>This game has alright sound effects.
>This game has a lot of in-game gags that are quite humorous (such as
slipping on bird crap which was mentioned above).
>This game has a substantial amount of replay value.
Finally, I will list the negative aspects of this game.
>The game play in this game does not last all that long (only 3-5 hours
without watching the awesome, long cut scenes).
>Codec calls can get a little annoying and interruptive during game play
(some may not mind though).
>The top-down view in some areas is not the best camera view if you
ask me.
>This game does not support any kind of multiplayer modes.
Do not let these very minor negatives discourage you from buying this intriguing thrill ride of a game! You'll regret it if you don't play it for yourself.