Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots is the long-awaited end of the Metal Gear Solid franchise. If this is in fact the last title in the entire Metal Gear saga all together, then Hideo Kojima picked a good note to go out on.Synopsis: In this game you play as Old Snake, an aging hero with a back story that trails through Metal Gear Solid 1 and 2. In reality, Old Snake is actually only around 40 or so, but physically he's aged far beyond that. Throughout the game, he discovers more about his dark past, which greatly revolves around his "Father" Big Boss, the main protagonist of Metal Gear Solid 3. Also during his adventure, Old Snake meets many new and interesting characters, including Drebin 893 and the new Boss Gang, "The Beauty and The Beast Squad."Over-arching story: A group known as the Patriots, which has total control over the entire planet, has installed nano-machine systems into millions of soldiers worldwide. These nanomachines link up to a system known as SOP (Sons Of Patriots) which tricks the carriers body and mind into suppressing emotions and physical ailments. This system contributes to the "War Economy," which is a type of economy in which the flow of money is solely based on the fighting of worthless proxy wars. These wars kill thousands of people that don't even care what they are fighting for, thanks to SOP. In the game the main antagonist, Liquid Snake, hijacks the system in an attempt to break the world free from its grasp, but also to cause destruction. It's up to Solid Snake to stop this from happening by any means necessary. "But remember Snake, this is a sneaking mission."Gameplay: This game boasts an extremely deep stealth system, using a new technology called OctoCamo. With this OctoCamo, the player is able to blend into any surface that he or she takes cover against or lays down on top of. The levels are almost completely rigged so that, with enough patience, the player can reach the end of the game without being seen by a single enemy guard. The game also includes a good shooting system, which allows for running and gunning as well as slow progression by way of skillful head-shots. The engine also boasts extremely good physics, ladder climbing, advanced Close Quarters Combat, along with crouching crawling and "play dead" features.Gear: There are an absolute ton of items and weapons to pick up, from playboy magazines to anti-tank missile launchers, this game contains so many interesting ways to take down a enemies you'll be playing through again just to see how many there are. New gear can be purchased from the salesman "Drebin 893" at any time throughout the game, and each gun boasts quite a few different add-ons and mods. In fact, to be a bit more specific, one gun actually has bullets that can give guards different emotions, one being laughter which makes a guard run around killing his own team members whilst howling like a man that just heard a really fantastic joke.Along with all this, you have the Solid Eye, which can switch between binocular mode, night vision mode, and normal mode. All three of these modes allows you to see the stats of enemy troops, including which faction they come from and how much health / stamina they have remaining. It also gives you active radar and the ability to see items more clearly using a highlight system.EDIT: IMAGE LINK BROKENOld Snake sporting the Solid Eye and his new OctoCamo
(Notice any anti-aliasing issues? Yeah? Well that's from a build about a year or two ago...)Multiplayer: I have absolutely nothing to say about this game's multiplayer other than the fact thats its almost completely flawless. The ranking system is harsh though, and fast deaths may aggravate some players. However, the integration of SOP makes it extremely innovative.Nostalgia: For those of you that have played the old Metal Gear games, there is an absolute ton of nostalgia to be had here, in fact I'd even recommend picking up a copy of Metal Gear Solid 1 and playing through it before you start this one.FINAL THOUGHTS / SCORES:Presentation: This game absolutely blew me away, with decent jokes and a fantastic storyline, there really isn't anything to be wished for here, however the cinematics can be a bit lengthy at times for gamers who just aren't used to Kojima's storytelling methods.
(9/10)Graphics: The graphics in this game are stunning. With quite a few real-looking scenes to be watched, the cinematic quality is top notch. Also, the game boasts and extremely well done dynamic lighting system. However. there are a few textures that look just a bit blown-up.
(9/10)Sound: Metal Gear Solid 4 has not only the single best soundtrack I've ever heard in a game, but also extremely immersive ambient effects and some ridiculously well done voice acting.
(10/10)Gameplay: With everything I mentioned above and more, it's safe to say that playing this game is a heck of a lot of fun.
(10/10)Lasting Appeal: With online play, which I could probably do an entire other review for, and a deep reward/medal system, this game will have you hooked. There's also about a couple hundred thousand ways you can play through it, along with all the weapons, unlockables, and fun little easter eggs.
(10/10)FINALE SCORE: 48/50
I'm going to be honest with you people, I really would have given this a perfect score, in fact it really probably deserved 10's in the areas that it didn't get them, but I'm trying to review from the point of view that a critic who hasn't played a single other game in the series because if I reviewed from my standpoint, I would've fanboy'ed the entire thing and given everything 11/10.Honestly, if you have a PS3, buy this game. If you don't have a PS3 but are thinking about purchasing one, JUMP ON THE BANDWAGON NOW!I'd like to apologize for the fact that I didn't include any pretty pictures, but there are quite a few high quality videos bouncing around the internet, look for them.EDIT: Nevermind, now you can see a neat picture of Old Snake at the top there!EDIT: Hah hah! Nevermind again!!! Box art as well now!