Having finally picked up my PS4, I proceeded to speed through Metal Gear Solid V (which took 51 hours lol). So here it is, my first review in a long time:
Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain
Platforms: PC, Playstation 4, Xbox One, Playstation 3, Xbox 360 (played on PS4)
Score: 9.0/10
To begin with, The Phantom Pain is infinitely more satisfying than Ground Zeroes. The decision to go open-world fits perfectly within the world of Metal Gear. Kojima has flirted with open-world in the past, but it wasn't until now that it has been fully realized. The locations of Afghanistan and Central Africa are beautifully rendered and run great at 1080p and 60 frames per second. As with any Metal Gear, nearly everything can be interacted with. The story completes the Metal Gear saga and gives us a very satisfying, albeit abrupt ending.
As already stated, MGSV is the final part of the Metal Gear saga, showing us Big Boss' transition from hero to villain, essentially the Revenge of the Sith of Metal Gear. The story picks up nine years after Ground Zeroes, with Snake waking up in a British military hospital in Cyrpus. Snake, along with the help of a bandaged patient and Ocelot, must escape from Cipher, who are attacking the hospital and the group that attacked Mother Base in GZ. From there, Snake is tasked with recovering Kazuhira Miller from behind enemy lines in the Soviet-Afghan war and rebuilding Mother Base. Snake continues his war against Cipher and it's leader Skull Face. As with any Metal Gear, there are betrayals and lies galore. The ending contains the mother of all twists, but any MGS vet, will probably figure it out long before the true final cutscene plays out. The game touches on far more mature subject matter than most games on the market. Human trafficking, child soldiers, rape and ethnic cleansing all play out to create a more visceral experience than any previous Metal Gear game
Technically, the game is one of the most beautiful around. Everything is incredibly detailed and the game runs perfectly in 1080p at 60 fps. The enemy AI is far superior to previous. Gone is the blue-cone shaped field of vision. The new enemies can see and hear much farther, making stealth more of a priority than before. Though, the game can easily be played guns blazing. The gameplay is also better than ever. The animation and motions have been tightened and Snake is far easier to control than previously. Motion capture has obviously helped this a lot as all the actions seem more natural and not artificial.
The soundtrack is better than ever. Using a mix of original and licensed music, MGSV sounds incredible. The soundtrack perfectly complements the tone of game. The voice acting is excellent. It may sound strange not having David Hayter voicing Snake, but Keifer Sutherland does a great job. Ocelot is probably the strangest. Voiced by Troy Baker this time around, he sounds less like the seasoned CIA agent and more of a southern boy. Baker voices Ocelot with his best Joel voice and makes it seem very out of place in this setting.
Despite everything great about this game, there are some issues and the reason that I did not give it a perfect 10. Number 1, is one of the most evil words in all of gaming: MICROTRANSACTIONS. Destiny implemented them to horrible reception. So did Diablo 3. MGSV is no different. The Forward Operating Bases, which aren't necessary to complete the main campaign, but are to achieve 100% completion, utilize in-game currency to operate and expand. The currency can be amassed simply by logging in daily, but this will take forever, hence the pay wall. The other big problem, most likely, is the result of the tension between Kojima and Konami. The game, towards the end, feels unfinished. Chapter 1 feels tight and concise. However, Chapter 2, despite having some of the most important story elements in the game, is a haphazard collection of missions, with half of them being non-story missions that are replays from earlier in the game with the difficulty ramped up. Not all of them, but some are required to unlock the final story missions. For a game as polished as this, it's a strange, immersion-breaking requirement. The other issue with the end of the game is it's abrupt end. It's already been discovered in the files of the PC version that episode 51 was cut from the final game and a title card for a Chapter 3 has been discovered. It seems that Konami forced the game to release as it is well known they were unhappy with the game's long development time and ballooning budget. Several cutscenes from released trailers do not appear in the final game. It definitely appears that Chapter 2 and the alleged cut Chapter 3 were victims of Konami's impatience with the game's development.
Despite these glaring and borderline unforgivable issues, Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain is still a grand achievement. The story, gameplay and graphics are all top-notch. Hideo Kojima has put together a great final chapter that closes out the Metal Gear saga in style. However, we'll forever wonder what could have been had Kojima been allowed to finish the game the way he wanted. Maybe we'll get some story-based DLC, but it won't be the same.
