Board 8 > What are your thoughts on the Metal Gear Solid series?

(+) Yeah! (+)

I've been in a super deep YouTube loop the last few weeks of just nonstop Metal Gear Solid videos. Story analysis, gameplay footage, codec conversations. This amazing clip of Liquid talking about Big Chungus.

I've just been all in on Metal Gear for a bit now.

I'm of the opinion currently that it's probably the greatest series of all time, but it's definitely not flawless. MGS4 in particular has some serious issues and obviously I don't think the story is going to be for everyone.

My girlfriend was watching an MGS2 playthrough with me and she said it looked like the dumbest game of all time right after the I need scissors 61 part.

I just think Kojima's attention for detail as well as his prescient story-telling and just... his wonky idea of how to translate "fun" into video games like this were tailored specifically to me.

What are your thoughts? Even if you hate some of the games I'd like to hear why before I tell you you're wrong!

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All-time great series from MGS1-4

Everything else I can live without, even if it's not necessarily bad.

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The greatest story ever told across any medium

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Not for me.

I can see why people love it but I just dont get enjoyment playing it.

Edit: Except Revengence, that game was fun.

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only ever finished 1, 2, and 3 since i don't play that many games. 3 is the first one i played and is one of my all time favorite gaming experiences with the music, the dialogue, ocelot, and of course that transcendent ending.

1 felt overly gritty and shitty for controls/graphics (and i am a HUGE fan of 90s graphics), but its intent and cinematic vision were great. 2 felt almost too "digital"-looking and the scope felt too confusing, but the gameplay was pretty beautiful and yeah, the glitcy "i need scissors!! 61!!" part remains incredibly memorable to me.
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Maniac64 posted...

Not for me.

I can see why people love it but I just dont get enjoyment playing it.

for this one, i think MGS1 was a little rough for controls

i tried playing MGS4 but got stuck in the first boss fight and eventually gave up, but i didn't enjoy playing it as much as i enjoyed MGS2 and MGS3
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Love em, need to replay em.


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I think Kojima filled in MGS2's holes extremely well over the years.

But what the FUCK was he thinking giving that game and that story out how the FUCK were we supposed to know what was going on in 2002?!

Leonhart4 posted...

All-time great series from MGS1-4

Shame you feel that way. I think MGSV has the best gameplay in the series by leaps and bounds.

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Maniac64 posted...

Not for me.

I can see why people love it but I just dont get enjoyment playing it.

Edit: Except Revengence, that game was fun.

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SeabassDebeste posted...

3 is the first one i played and is one of my all time favorite gaming experiences with the music, the dialogue, ocelot, and of course that transcendent ending.

It's so flawless dude. I remember powering through the last like 5 hours during an all-nighter and still having to go to school the next day just being physically and emotionally drained. And of course none of my friends had beat it yet so it's not like I could discuss the ending with anyone!

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The gameplay is good, but they didn't surround it with stuff that compels me to go back for more. I can only blow up so many satellites or extract so many soldiers before I need some real substance or greater goal.

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Leonhart4 posted...

The gameplay is good, but they didn't surround it with stuff that compels me to go back for more. I can only blow up so many satellites or extract so many soldiers before I need some real substance or greater goal.

See I'm still six years on trying to complete all four FOBs. I go back to it like once every eight months, run some FOBs, farm some resources, and then leave it for a while.

The gameplay never gets old to me.

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It's a series I really enjoy, but after MGS2 became something different than what I wanted as it moved further away from the time period and characters I cared about.

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My all-time favorite right alongside Final Fantasy.

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ExThaNemesis posted...

See I'm still six years on trying to complete all four FOBs. I go back to it like once every eight months, run some FOBs, farm some resources, and then leave it for a while.

The gameplay never gets old to me.

Yeah, that stuff has no appeal to me. I finished the "final" mission and then I was done.

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ExThaNemesis posted...

It's so flawless dude. I remember powering through the last like 5 hours during an all-nighter and still having to go to school the next day just being physically and emotionally drained. And of course none of my friends had beat it yet so it's not like I could discuss the ending with anyone!

there was only one other person i knew IRL who played it. the ocelot hand gesture became our greeting.

if there were a flaw, it would probably be the fact that it kinda takes a long time to load the survival viewer.
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I've only played MGS1-4 and it's obviously an all-time series, though 2 and 4 are pretty dumb at times. I still contend that MGS1 is the best by quite a bit and there will never be anything quite like it.

I highly recommend playing Policenauts and Snatcher if you need an extra early Kojima fix.

One of the best series ever, and one of history's greatest "what-ifs" is what MGS5 would have been like if Konami let Kojima finish the ending

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God MGS1. It's a revolutionary game to be sure but the controls and gameplay just do not hold up for me at all. Every time I've tried to replay it has felt like torture and I'd rather just watch it on YouTube.

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Maybe I have a low gaming IQ or something because I think MGS1 handles far better than the others in the series I dunno.

you just have low IQ in general sephy it's ok

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better than having low T

Let's talk about how MGS3, despite having the best story in the series, was by far the worst playing game.

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I suspect the menus would probably bother me more today than they used to.

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I never really minded the survival menu. I appreciated the deliberate pacing of MGS3.

I also spend over an hour just calling people on the radio at the start of the game because there's just so much content and the crew is so good.

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Once my favorite video game series of all time - only more recently eclipsed by Yakuza which continues to put out banger after banger.

MGS3 is still my favorite game of all time and the quadrilogy is A+++ all the way through, albeit with very different strengths and weaknesses depending on the game. Revengeance is also a great time. V is some of the best stealth gameplay of all time trapped in one of the most disappointing games I've ever seen.

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KamikazePotato posted...

It's a series I really enjoy, but after MGS2 became something different than what I wanted as it moved further away from the time period and characters I cared about.

This about sums it up for me, arguably extending even to the gameplay. Later MGS games add more STUFF to the gameplay but MGS2 just had a finely honed system there. Extra stuff added in later entries is just baggage and I'd rather keep it simpler.

Rising is awesome though.

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MGS1-4 may be the best series of all time. Every game feels like it gives such a unique experience and story. Gameplay is surprisingly pretty good too and doesnt overstay its welcome. Some of the most creative bosses in gaming and with a surprising amount of personality, given how much screen time they have.

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Doesn't even come close to my top ten series, because...

Maniac64 posted...

Not for me.

I can see why people love it but I just dont get enjoyment playing it.

Edit: Except Revengence, that game was fun.

Revengeance is more my style in terms of gameplay and game feel.

Maniac64 posted...

Not for me.

I can see why people love it but I just dont get enjoyment playing it.

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Metal Gear Solid 3 will probably always be a top 5 game for me. And I adore MGS & MGS2. MGS4 is a near perfect narrative conclusion even if I never want to play it again. Revengeance is just dumb fun.

But MGSV kind of put a damper on the series for me. I'm never really compelled to replay any of the series anymore which is a shame. I just feel like it leads to a whole boat-load of nothing now.

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Yeah, I kinda get what you mean. I think MGS3 is the only game I've replayed since MGSV came out.

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I used to really enjoy the series. Now its something I dont want to play, but have fond memories of. Definitely one of the best/most interesting stories in gaming.

That said, I may give the upcoming remake a try, depending on how they go about it.
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Hey guys are the pre-MGS games worth playing?

ChainLTTP posted...

Hey guys are the pre-MGS games worth playing?

MG1 is pretty archaic and at times cryptic, but it's cool from a historical standpoint. MG2 is legit still a great game.

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I keep meaning to finally get around to playing MGS4 since Ive been working from home with my PS3 right next to my work computer, but just havent committed to it for whatever reason.

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Yes, just not Snake's Revenge (it's not the real MG2) or the NES version of the original MG. The versions on Subsistence (or any of the collections with it) are fine.

That said they can be pretty unforgiving and at times need moon logic to progress.
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I put over 100 hours into V, but I could ever learn to enjoy the gameplay of the first 3, and when 4 came out I was all-in on only playing games with Achievements/Trophies so I waited, and then the update never came (that I know of).

I even beat Metal Gear Survive because I enjoyed the basic movement and controls of that style of MGS though, lol

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Yeah I've heard that the "definitive" releases are the MSX games and Ghost Babel randomly (I know it's an MGS game but it's 2D so whatever).

ChaosTonyV4 posted...

I put over 100 hours into V, but I could ever learn to enjoy the gameplay of the first 3, and when 4 came out I was all-in on only playing games with Achievements/Trophies so I waited, and then the update never came (that I know of).

MGS4 got trophies added in 2012, the same patch that allowed you to install the whole game at once instead of at each individual act.


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JonThePenguin posted...

MGS4 got trophies added in 2012, the same patch that allowed you to install the whole game at once instead of at each individual act.

Say less.

Can I install it on my PS4? I still have it in a box somewhere.

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Not unless there was ever a PS4 version of it I missed, and if so I doubt that's what you would have.
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just find Slowbeef's LP of Metal Gear 2 and it'll cover everything you need to know about the game

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kevwaffles posted...

Not unless there was ever a PS4 version of it I missed, and if so I doubt that's what you would have.

Nope, the game has never had a non-PS3 release.

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Snake5555555555 posted...

But MGSV kind of put a damper on the series for me. I'm never really compelled to replay any of the series anymore which is a shame. I just feel like it leads to a whole boat-load of nothing now.

I don't get this?

MGSV ties everything together at last. You finally see who was working with who the whole time and I for one like the whole Venom thing, especially when you delve into Peace Walker and such.

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Except MGSV doesn't even tie itself together lawl

I mean, really the only thing MGSV gives you that you needed for the overarching story is how Snake managed to kill Big Boss twice

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Not the greatest gaming series of all time, but one of the most important and visionary. The first three games are inarguably 10/10 games, the 4th and Peace Walker are 9/10's, and V is bad. And even though V is an unfinished, difficult to enjoy video game, the foundation of a good game is there.

Brilliant series. It needs to stay dead though, unless somehow Kojima gets the rights back from Konami.

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A+

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I absolutely love MGS1-3. For some reason I havent been able to motivate myself to get very far in 4, though (I think the issue was that I disliked the controls, but Im sure if I pushed past it Id get used to them).

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ExThaNemesis posted...

I just think Kojima's attention for detail as well as his prescient story-telling and just... his wonky idea of how to translate "fun" into video games like this were tailored specifically to me.

Have you played Death Stranding yet?

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