Title: Metal Gear Solid
System: Playstation
Publisher: Konami
Circa: 1998

Metal Gear Solid Titlescreen

Intro
Continuing from the Nintendo series, Solid Snake return to action on the Playstation. Upgrading from the top down view to a fuller 3D environment, Snake goes off to face down enemies once again. This time, he faces someone who knows him better than Big Boss. With a solid support crew, Snake is now departing for “Shadow Moses” to deal with the newest threat.

Story
In 2005, the Special Forces Unit Foxhound leads an armed uprising, taking over the remote Fox Archipelago Island. The Island itself is code named "Shadow Moses" and is a Nuclear Waste Disposal site. They also manage to acquire the Nuclear-capable Metal Gear-Rex. The unit then threatens the U.S. Government with a nuclear attack unless they turn over the remains of the legendary mercenary, Big Boss. Colonel Ross Campbell specifically request Snake for this infiltration mission. He mission is to assess the nuclear threat level, if Foxhound can, in fact, launch the missiles and rescue important personnel. Along the way he will face down the full unit of Foxhound.

Gameplay
The main objective for Metal Gear Solid remains stealth. The player aims to navigate the levels with Snake and do so in a way that the enemy will be unaware of his presence. He has many tricks that he can use to cause misdirection as well as just simply avoid the soldier's notice all together. Almost always, there are multiple ways to navigate any one particular area and do so either with complete stealth or just ducking out of visuals. There are also boxes Snake can use to hide under as well. The Soliton Radar is an indispensible tool that the players can use to see the range of vision of many of the opposing forces. Sometimes, mixing the use of the Soliton Radar with various other things Snake can use to ensure no one will notice them, will make a very difficult section a lot easier. While the game promotes stealth, there are still parts you will find yourself in a fire fight.

Snake also has an improved item system. Using the shoulder buttons, Snake can equip and use a variety of guns and items. At different points in the game, he will need to equip particular items in order to gain passage into the more secure areas of the base. At least outside or in other cold areas, Snake should keep his rations equipped or they will freeze and become unusable until they thaw.

The Codec system makes a return as well, offering a save where all the frequencies you use will be readily accessible. The Codec still offers plenty of back story on the opposing forces, giving the player a chance to figure out their weakness. Talking with the various people you can contact will give the player little pieces of information they can then weave together and deduce what to do. There is one Codec entry that is worth noting: Meryl's. She cryptically means that it is on the back of the box. She is literally referring to the back of the game case for Metal Gear Solid.

The new feature offered in this Metal Gear Solid entry would be the VR training missions. These give the player a chance to practice and build some proficiency with all the Stealth and some basic combat techniques. For players new to the series, this is a wonderful aid.
Solid Snake in the Harbor

Multiplayer
None.

Controls
The basic controls are a bit awkward. The game uses more the Japanese button configuration, where "O" will select instead of "X". It does take some time to get used to the aiming as well,since it is a high-up third person perspective. Still, after some practice or play, it will prove accessible.

Graphics
Overall, the graphics are alright for the Playstation. The Codec images are better than a lot of the on-screen, but they are also still images opposed to animated. The game definitely shows its age in this department.

Sound Effects & Music
The music in this game is fairly distinct and quite good actually. None of it really manages to grate or annoy you at any point during play. Only the alert sound effect has the potential to do that and all that depends on how well you are getting through the area without being detected.

Obscurity
This particular version has fallen into a more obscure category, though it is at least somewhat known.

Summary/Author's Take
This is one of those games that took me a while to get to. While I had a PSX, I was more interested in RPGs and Mega Man. It was not until shortly after beating The Twin Snakes and Sons of Liberty that I got curious about this one. This game offered a lot that I had not expected in terms of challenges. Being called on a turbo controller is one thing, having a few different ways to deal with one situation is something else. I found it to be a very fun, but challenging game because of the difficulty initially with aiming. I came to prefer melee combat, and that is a bit harder to do in a game where all your enemies usually have a gun.

Story: 95%            Deep and well written.
Gameplay: 85%        A fine example of stealth action.
Multiplayer: n/a%        None.
Controls: 79%            Practice is essential here.
Graphics: 80%            Worn now, but good for then
SFX & Music: 86%        Gravy
Obscurity: 60%        You mean the Twin Snakes right? What? It was on PSX?
Overall: 84%            Fairly challenging, decent game.



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