A farewell to arms Available on: PlayStation 3 Much of Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots has an air of finality about it, as far as I\u2019m concerned. Not only because it marks the chronological endpoint of Snake’s … Continue reading ![\"Oldboy\"](\"http:\/\/www.satrapov.net\/mysst\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/Oldboy-300x203.jpg\" "\\"Oldboy\\"")
<\/a>Much of Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots<\/em> has an air of finality about it, as far as I\u2019m concerned. Not only because it marks the chronological endpoint of Snake’s story, but also because it turned out to be the last MGS game I ever played. On a technical and gameplay level, it’s functional: nothing spectacular, but also nothing abysmally wrong (apart from long loading times), and if combat is what interests you, then you probably won’t find much to complain about here. The graphics still look good today, the soundtrack is decent, and there are some interesting narrative choices. But I\u2019ve also never really felt the urge to pick up another MGS game after this one, nor the urge to actually replay it, which may sound surprising, considering the hyperbolic praise this game received upon release. Maybe I just got tired of the nonsense, which stopped being epic and just became nonsense. Maybe because all they can do now is prequels, unless they want to continue with Raiden. Maybe because I don\u2019t actually like what they’ve decided to do with Raiden’s story in Metal Gear Rising<\/em>. Maybe because I hit my cutscene saturation point. Maybe because the game finally went overboard from ‘puerile’ to ‘offensive’ in some of its characterisations. Or maybe all of this at once.<\/p>\n![\"Knockout\"](\"http:\/\/www.satrapov.net\/mysst\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/Knockout-300x168.jpg\" "\\"Knockout\\"")
<\/a>Let\u2019s start with some positives though. Combat now takes place with an over-the-shoulder camera, which you can actually switch sides for an easier time looking around corners, as well as switching to first-person mode. Camouflage makes a return from MGS3, as Snake wears an enhanced bodysuit with camouflage properties, which he can further supplement with face camo after a specific boss fight. He\u2019s also equipped with a \u201cSolid Eye\u201d, which looks like an eyepatch (to further enhance the similarities with Big Boss) and functions as binoculars or night-vision goggles, as well as informing Snake of things like what weapons the soldiers use or footprints that wouldn\u2019t be visible to the naked eye, and providing a mini-map. As MGS4 was one of the first games developed for the PlayStation 3, the rumble feature was only implemented late into the game\u2019s development cycle, meaning that it uses a system called the Threat Ring, which appears around Snake and becomes visibly distorted when an enemy is detected nearby, indicating which direction they\u2019re coming from.<\/p>\n![\"Butt](\"http:\/\/www.satrapov.net\/mysst\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/Butt-zap-300x169.jpg\" "\\"Butt")
<\/a>Two other additions are the Psyche Gauge and the Metal Gear Mk. II. The former indicates Snake\u2019s stress level, which affects things like aim or the likelihood of passing out after being wounded, and serves to humanise him a bit and make him more relatable. He can stress out from stuff like extreme temperatures or bad smells, while having a smoke, eating something or looking at a naughty magazine will help him relax. The Metal Gear Mk. II is a small robot on wheels designed by Otacon to serve as a mini-reconnaissance unit. It functions as a mobile codec to communicate with other characters, can scout for Snake, but also deliver electric shocks to enemies to temporarily stun them. All in all, the fact that I can’t really remember much about the combat is probably a positive point, since it means that it flowed seamlessly enough for me not to notice it.<\/p>\n![\"If](\"http:\/\/www.satrapov.net\/mysst\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/If-only-saluting-would-end-this-game-300x169.jpg\" "\\"If")
<\/a>The problem is that the game often prevents <\/em>you from actually playing. The series\u2019 trademark cutscene bloat reached an all-time high in this particular opus. Hideo Kojima\u2019s career has been one long, arduous battle against his hardwired desire to make films rather than games. By all accounts, he has managed to get it under control for MGS5, but this is probably as a direct result of what happened with MGS4. As of 2015 (I don\u2019t know if this is still true today, but it very well might be), it held Guinness World Records for the longest single cutscene (27 mins) and longest cutscene sequence (71 mins\u2026) in a videogame, the former being included within the latter as part of the game\u2019s ending. Someone did some number crunching on this and came up with a staggering 44% cutscene-to-gameplay proportion. By comparison, MGS2, in second place, had a 41% ratio, but its longest cutscene was only 20 mins long. <\/p>\n![\"Could've](\"http:\/\/www.satrapov.net\/mysst\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/Couldve-saved-you-a-lot-of-trouble-300x169.jpg\" "\\"Could've")
<\/a>Combine this with what is possibly the most convoluted and poorly-written storyline in the series and, by the end of it, I was basically in a cutscene-induced stupor. There are just too many twists-that-aren’t-really-twists, red herrings and overly-convenient (or nonsensical) explanations, and once the game is done, and you think back on what’s happened, you may well be forgiven for wondering whether all of that was really necessary. The key facts, though, are that it\u2019s 2014 and that \u201cwar\u2026has changed\u201d, as Snake\u2019s voiceover takes pains to remind you over and over again in the intro sequence. The world economy is now somehow fully dependent on war, resulting in a constant global conflict where private military companies fight each other for\u2026reasons. As a result of the events of MGS2, Liquid Snake\u2019s consciousness has taken over Revolver Ocelot\u2019s body (well…it’s complicated) and basically established a single mega-mercenary company, fuelling the chaos. Colonel Campbell has asked Solid Snake to off him, and that\u2019s where the game begins.<\/p>\n![\"For](\"http:\/\/www.satrapov.net\/mysst\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/For-old-times-sake-300x172.jpg\" "\\"For")
<\/a>Snake has been ageing rapidly, due to being a clone, and is now an old man, which makes for an interesting take on the traditional hero persona. Instead of your usual battle-hardened muscle-head, you have to deal with an elderly, disillusioned, often bitter man whose only real prospect in life is impending decrepitude and death. This only has minimal impact on the gameplay, as Snake\u2019s bodysuit also compensates for his physical deterioration (he still gets back pains though), but it does impact the storyline, especially when he inevitably bumps into Meryl again (and I still can’t quite believe that they decided to end her character arc as they did). EVA also resurfaces, and it\u2019s disconcerting to see her son looking the same age as her. Although I have to take exception to the fact that, at 78, she\u2019s still rockin\u2019 that damn cleavage\u2026Was there really<\/em> no way to tastefully depict a woman of her age? Also, her introduction, verbatim: “Call me Mama…*dramatic pause* Big<\/em> Mama”. I’m sorry, I just can’t. A perfect example of a typical MGS tonal shift falling flat on its face.<\/p>\n![\"Dat](\"http:\/\/www.satrapov.net\/mysst\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/Dat-smirk-300x169.jpg\" "\\"Dat")
<\/a>Anyway, Snake now lives with Otacon (platonically, although, by the end of the game, you gotta start wondering, because poor Hal\u2019s disastrous track record with women unfortunately holds), and they have essentially adopted Olga Gurlukovich\u2019s daughter, Sunny, whom Raiden managed to rescue from the Patriots with EVA\u2019s help. However, he was later captured by them and, in a rather shocking development, turned into a cyborg. The only remaining organic parts of him are his spine and head, minus the lower jaw (and yet, he\u2019s somehow still sexy). His relationship with Rose has also broken down, and all of this basically turned him into a brooding badass \u2013 so much so that he fights an entire battle with his sword held between his teeth<\/em> at one point, due to being unable to use his hands \u2013, much to the surprise of those who complained about his whining in MGS2. His feud with Vamp is also alive and well, and practically drowning in fluid-drenched innuendo, especially since Raiden’s ‘blood’ is now white. Be that as it may, it results in two eye-catching duels. All in all, he was probably my favourite part of the game, and I appreciated the way his story ended. And then MGR happened. But I digress.<\/p>\n![\"Incandescent\"](\"http:\/\/www.satrapov.net\/mysst\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/Incandescent-300x168.jpg\" "\\"Incandescent\\"")
<\/a>An MGS game wouldn\u2019t be complete without a Foxhound-like villain squad, and, sure enough, there is one here, called the Beauty and the Beast unit. They push the similarities to imitating the original Foxhound codenames mixed with emotion-based epithets, \u00e0 la<\/em> MGS3’s Cobra Unit, which doesn’t bode well for their originality. There\u2019s a Laughing Octopus, a Raging Raven, a Crying Wolf and a Screaming Mantis. However, I have a real problem with their portrayal. You see, they\u2019re all female and based on fashion models. Now, in itself, an all-female villain squad might\u2019ve been a welcome novelty, and I can\u2019t deny that they\u2019re all beautiful, especially Raging Raven, who is nuclear levels of hot. But any characterisation they get comes after they’re dead, which never gives them the chance to establish themselves as anything but pretty faces. On top of that, they all suffer from extreme PTSD, to the extent that they can\u2019t function normally when outside their robotic armour. Cue them writhing around in agony in skintight, glistening wet (for some reason) bodysuits when Snake inevitably destroys said armour (i.e. forcibly invades their personal space), while the camera frantically shows off butts, boobs and cameltoes, like it\u2019s being handled by an overeager horny teenager. Apparently, the original idea was for them to be naked<\/em> during these sequences, but it proved unworkable for obvious reasons. However, if Snake doesn\u2019t damage them for a long enough time after they\u2019re out of their armour, they\u2019ll both be transported to a white room where he can take pictures of them while they strike sexy poses. I mean, yes, MGS is known for its fanservice, but, in previous games, it was limited to psychologically functional ladies showing off cleavage or underwear (and balanced by the presence of shirtless gentlemen). This feels uncomfortably like exploitation, and the fact that the trend continued in MGS5 with Quiet is not a good sign at all. Raiden was completely naked in MGS2, you say? Yes, but the camera wasn\u2019t staring up his bum as he was having a full-on nervous breakdown while crying, moaning and panting suggestively. Nor was his torture sequence fetishised. And while he admittedly also has PTSD, it was never portrayed as anywhere near that level of debilitating.<\/p>\n![\"I'm](\"http:\/\/www.satrapov.net\/mysst\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/Im-bustin-outta-here-300x143.jpg\" "\\"I'm")
<\/a>To sum things up, my main feeling throughout this game was just that it had to end. And once it did, I felt that there was sufficient closure for all involved \u2013 for better or for worse \u2013, so the decision to continue the franchise could only appear misguided to me, and nothing I have seen, heard or read about the topic has suggested otherwise. If you\u2019re a full-fledged MGS fan, chances are you\u2019ll disagree, and perhaps you think that MGS5 and\/or MGR were brilliant. I, however, remain of the opinion that MGS3 was the best in the series and that it all should just have ended with MGS4. It\u2019s been fun, guys. Wish you\u2019d managed to not slip up until the end.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"