Wonders of Kojima

By Hardflip

Having recently gone through Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes for the Nintendo GameCube, and then Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty on the PlayStation 2, I can say i’m completely hyped up for the next adventure with Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater. If you have not played either of the first two, I suggest you do. You’re missing out on some of the best known games in gaming history. Reinforcing that, if you have a GameCube, opt for the MGS1 re-make (MGS:TTS) over the PS1 version. It’s superior in every way, if just by a graphical standpoint.

Metal Gear Solid 1 brought real stealth into the gaming industry, and along with that Kojima also supplied us with one of the best plots you could get in a game, and with some really interesting characters. Not only that, but he chose the best possible voice actor for the lead role of Solid Snake; David Hayter. He has the voice of God, and you’ll recognise him from all the “It’s in the game” EA Sports adverts. The PS1 version wasn’t exactly a masterpiece from an aesthetical perspective, but the gameplay and plot made up for it.

Metal Gear Solid 2 was, no doubt, a bit more crazy than MGS1, and it seemed Kojima had been on the crack for a while. The graphics and gameplay was superb, even if there was a lack of it after the suprise of Raiden being introduced. However, the plot did make sense if you thought about it, and I didn’t mind the constant FMVing, since I play for games for entertainment; not the sake of being a game. I think Kojima has realized this, and tried to make a balance between the cinematics of MGS2 and the gameplay of MGS1.

He’s introduced us to Snake Eater, which evidence shows starts in 1964 where you take the role of ‘Snake’, in jungles near the Pakistani border. In this, there’s the rescue mission, and the plot which shines through in the trailers, but it’s also jungle gameplay. I don’t think anyone has successfully made an interactive jungle the way MGS2 has. You can climb trees, live off the environment by eating animals, and you can supposedly even break your leg.

The graphics are probably the best out on the PS2, having looked at the screenshots. It seems Konami might have finally found the potential of the PS2. It’s no Doom 3, but still. The music is spot-on again with Harry-Gregson Williams taking up another Kojima title. Even David Hayter is back for the role of ‘Snake’, who, as many may know, is probably not Solid Snake. It’s rather a more father figure.

I just hope that MGS3 is another masterpiece of the gaming art form, since Britain looks like it will be waiting 4-5 months for the exact same game as the American version, again. Waiting for other people’s languages to be translated is very, very annoying.