Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots - Everything you need to know |
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This article was originally posted on June 11, 2008 at 12:50 p.m.
The Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots fever is officially off the charts and we all know why, don't we? The game is set to launch in a matter of hours and the wait is almost too much to bear.
There's a big chance that if you own a Sony PlayStation 3, you already know pretty much everything there is to know about MGS4. If for some reason you don't, you should stick around and be enlightened.
For all of you out there who find yourselves scratching your heads and asking, "What's the deal with MGS4?" this post is for you. We've prepared 10 questions and answers that will hopefully fill you in on one of the biggest gaming events this year. Let's get started.
Q: What is MGS4?
Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots is a PlayStation 3 exclusive game developed by Kojima Productions and published by Konami Digital Entertainment. It's technically an action title, but as its makers would like to classify it, it's a "Tactical Espionage Action" game heavy on stealth elements.
Q: So what do you do in a tactical espionage action game?
Basically, it differs from a regular action game in the sense that rather than fight enemies straight on, the Metal Gear series has always had players avoiding confrontations. Sneaking past guards and obstacles, using wits and the environment to conceal you, and taking out the enemy only when absolutely necessary is the name of the game here. Going all Rambo oftentimes will get you killed.
Q: Where's the fun in that?Using patience and finesse has a fulfillment all its own. In a sense, sneaking inside enemy territory and keeping a low profile is the best thing to do. It's also the more realistic approach to the game's mission types which will have you playing solo with limited weapons and ammo most of the way. There's really no lack of action in Metal Gear games as boss fights have always been known to be some of the best encounters in the business.
Q: Is the story any good?
We're 99.9 percent sure that it's going to rock. The game is set in the not so distant future where the world's economy is running on war trade. As it was stated in one trailer, war is to the 21st century what oil was to the 20th. Entire economies could collapse if someone puts an end to conflicts happening across the globe.
The war trade is mostly controlled by private military companies (PMCs) which could be bought and sold like corporate assets. The main villain in MGS4's storyline, Liquid Ocelot, controls a mother company that commands the five biggest PMCs in the world. He plans on using his finances and arms to mount what he calls an "insurrection" against the United States which is controlled by The Patriots.
Q: Who are The Patriots mentioned in the title and what exactly is a Metal Gear?
We're really not sure if "who" is the right word for that question. People like Revolver Ocelot may have helped establish the organization, but in one MGS4 trailer, it was stated that The Patriots are no longer human. They were said to be the "law of the world created through generations". Pretty heavy stuff, eh? You might want to check out our feature on them in our MGS4 character countdown for a deeper profile and analysis.
A Metal Gear, by the way, is a giant bipedal tank capable of launching nuclear warheads from any terrain towards any target on Earth.
Q: Are the graphics good?
If you're looking for a game that truly flexes the PS3's muscles, this might very well be it. Few games, if any, are comparable to what we've seen in videos so far. This may very well be that realization of the "interactive movie" concept that Hideo Kojima has always talked about. However, we'll have to see when it launches later if the trailers and the gameplay demos are consistent throughout the entire thing.
We already know that the game will have next-generation graphics and audio, but there seems to be a lot of other things in it to freshen the experience up for seasoned vets in the series. A new camouflage system has been introduced called OctoCamo. Now, there seems to be no more need to go through menus to change your appearance in order to match the environment. The OctoCamo blends automatically to the terrain to conceal the player from the enemy.
Also, Old Snake seems to be reliant on drugs now to stay in good form during his missions. He'll also be assisted by a small robot created by sidekick Otacon. A high-tech knife was also seen in a gameplay demo, along with other firearms in the arsenal.
MGS4 will also contain an online multiplayer mode called the Metal Gear Online Starter Pack. MGS3 had something similar, but you had to get MGS3: Subsistence separately to play against other people. In MGS4, the online play comes with the disc from the get-go.
Q: I'm confused. Is the official MGS4 PS3 bundle an 80GB unit or a 40GB unit?
There are two bundles. The 40GB Gun Metal Gray bundle is exclusively available via the Konami site and it includes the following:
- Gun Metal Gray PS3 with a 40GB Hard drive.
- A DualShock 3 wireless controller
- Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots Limited Edition
- Exclusive Blu-ray disc including over 2 hours of additional content - "Hideo Kojima's Gene", a behind-the-scenes vision of Hideo Kojima's production team & game and "The Making of Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots" documentary
- The official Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots CD Soundtrack, including 16 never-before-released tracks by Harry Gregson-Williams (Shrek, Armageddon, The Rock), Nobuko Toda, and Ennio Morricone.
Q: What's the deal about these 90-minute cutscenes in the game?
There have been conflicting reports about the truth in this one. Konami's gag order on reviews didn't help much either. The word is that the final cutscene is almost "the length of a feature film" but we have yet to confirm that. What's likely, though, is that you can either pause or skip these scenes to give yourself a break from the cinematic storytelling.
Q: So what does MGS4's release mean to the PS3 as a player in the console war?
For starters, this game is thought of as a console-mover by many analysts in the game industry. It is certainly a big franchise and is popular on an international level. It commands a loyal following all over the world and may give a lot of people a big reason to buy the PS3 now. It's also seen by some experts as the game that will kick off a big 2008 for the console.
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Comments [refresh]
Very simple, but yet very good for newcomers and those living in a cave for these past years.
I've been a fan of the Metal Gear Solid series since the very beginning. In fact, it's my favorite games series of all times. I got all the Metal Gear Solid games, including Metal Gear Ac!d.
I just finished them all yesterday, played them to refresh my memory, and damn, I'm too excited now. I'll go to the Midnight Release if I have the chance. I did for GTAIV, and Halo 3... MGS4 deserves to be picked-up at 12 more than them.
Anyway... The wait's almost over. And I'm looking forward to spend a lot of time on it, and keep my Xbox 360, PSP, DS, and Wii eating dust for a while.
If any of you guys need someone to play MetalGearOnline with, don't doubt in contacting me on the PlayStation Network, the PSN ID is Xulap.
Thanks a lot for this faqs and countdowns, QJ. They really helped me to understand more the story.
I like the way you worded that just like the guy above me been playing it sense the beginning and is also my favorite game series
is the Last Part of the character countdown coming today???
We're putting the finishing touches on the last part of the character countdown. :) You can probably guess who'll be in it.
We're glad that you're glad!
Watch out for the final character countdown post, which will be up in a little while. :)
you guys alreayd told us last week LOL
But still cant wait to hear about snake
Les Enfants Terrible...
Or one of them.
Simply LOL
But I'm not going to post any spoilers for anyone who has never heard of the game.
My mother, for instance... whom I also call "Big Momma" (Hi Mom!).
currently at pokegearsolid.blogspot.com
there is a 48 hour gaming marathon of metal gear solid including the new one coming out tomorrow.
Watch out for the review, fellas
Thanks for the kind words, man. We appreciate it. I'm happy that the wait is almost over too. My PSN ID is SepticTank12 if anyone wants to play GTA4 or MGO with a noob like me. LOL!
Gamestop by my house isn't having a midnight release...sad...but anyway...i'm mega excited...fan since i heard of it for the psone put many days time in these games and i'm willing to do it all again tomorrow. Also, the beta for mgo was just amazing and i'm excited to see the new maps from out of the strat guide. don't worry didn't spoil myself...lol...but yeah thank you QJ.net for the MGS countdown and all the superanalysis on my favorite IP.
PSN ID: ninjashark
well actually outside of gamestop no.. Just one more hour till mid-night.. cant wait...
Metal gear solid is my favorite series so far. No story or gameplay has caught my attention more then these Metal gear games.
Add Eclipse[dc] on MGO when you get on. See you guys online.
Don't forget to put some good music while playing online. They added way more then just those two that were on the beta lol.
I just got home from gamestop. Waited online for 20 minutes and got to pick up the 80 gig mgs4 dualshock3 bundle. I'm excited, i waited a while to get a ps3 and i'm glad i did. ok, enough talking.. time to hook it up and start playing!
another thing you need to know is that it has a very cool manual!
Do you think the new 80gb PS3 has the 65nm cell?
the only difference between the 80 gig and the 60 gig is the HDD. (i'm pretty sure, reply if i'm wrong.)
i played metal gear in the psp which was not good but mgs4 for ps3 will be great i watched all the trailers and other vid its really awesome