Game
Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain
Kojima Productions (studio)
18 (certificate)
01 September 2015 (released)
14 September 2015
If you've played any other entry in the Metal Gear Solid series, you will be familiar by now with how they all attempt to close in a way that could peacefully let the series lie at that point. MGS4 was the most obvious example, tying up nearly every characters story to a permanent end and closing the book on Solid Snake’s trials. You get the feeling that Kojima is not just trying to end the series; he wants to make sure that, if the tale is ending there, or if you as a fan cease to play the series any further, that you can feel content that your favourite characters got an ending. You got a full story, beginning, middle and end.
Metal Gear Solid V: Phantom Pain has been on the radar of every Metal Gear fan for a long time now, and even more so in the last two years for a very important reason; this will be the last MGS game involving Hideo Kojima at the helm, as he prepares to leave Konami for an as yet unknown future. For many, this is the absolute finale to the series, closing out one of the hallmark series of video-games. And yet, this game doesn't FEEL like an ending. Hell, the story doesn't even feel like it has a true ending, merely a revelation. And that feeling creates a sense of detachment to the game and its story as a whole, knowing that it may well be the last true Metal Gear game we ever see.
To those coming in without knowing the story, some references and nods to future events will fly right over your heads, but fear not: Those are not required to understand the plot. If you played Ground Zeroes or not, the goal of the main character, Big Boss/Snake, is very clear; He’s been in a coma for nine years, and his band of mercenaries have been forcibly disbanded by Cipher, and their leader, Skull Face. On a quest for revenge, Snake sets out to regroup with fellow allies Miller and Ocelot in order to exact revenge, and rebuild his army under a new title of ‘Diamond Dogs’, by whatever means necessary. As you go along, you’ll meet a myriad of characters, some new, some familiar, and they never fail to be interesting. Of particular note is the silent sniper, appropriately named Quiet. Despite remaining silent, she is one of the most curious characters in the game, even though you learn about her mostly through others. The ability of the developers to craft such interesting and three-dimensional characters has always been second to none in the Metal Gear series, and Phantom Pain does not fail to deliver here.
As for the gameplay, old fans of the series will note how much more fluid and open-ended the controls allow your play style to be. Even though MGS4 was the first game where I really felt like action was a suitable option at times, this game perfects the art of blending stealth and action, allowing you to easily choose between the two at any time and even have a ‘Plan B’ at the ready whenever things get too hot on the field. Want to go all stealth and non-lethal? Nearly every weapon type provides some form of non-lethal option, be it a rifle that shoots rubber bullets, or a shotgun that fire shock rounds to stun the opponent. Fancy going in Rambo-style, all guns blazing and screw all tactics? Throw on a battle suit, grab that machine gun, drop right into an enemy base by helicopter and wreck the place.
Despite the ability to raise hell with the humongous arsenal that you can develop, stealth is still a key factor in this game as it always has been, and the best rewards lie in wait for those who exercise patience and pacifism wherever possible. Much like MGS: Peace Walker, retrieving enemy soldiers alive is something you’ll want to do as often as possible in order to raise your army to its maximum potential. But regardless of how you play, you’ll be spoilt for choice. As if taking a page from the books of Far Cry, the beautiful open world maps of Afghanistan and Africa will give you one hell of a view from your binoculars as you scout the next outpost, considering your options. The gameplay, in conjunction with your area of operations, allows for a broad approach in how you deal with objectives, whether you go with a traditional style of gameplay, or think outside the box.
Or inside an actual box, if you prefer.
The base building gameplay from MGS: Peace Walker also returns, and while it can feel like a chore meeting the requirements for everything you want, you never feel the need to break away from the gameplay, as the whole thing can be managed while on the move, even when in the middle of a story mission. Those that are familiar with Peace Walker’s base-building system will note its expanded form in comparison. While the staple of the mechanic remains the development team, which creates and upgrades your equipment for you, more teams now have a direct role to play in your game, such as the support team, which acts as your go-to for air support, supply and Fulton recovery (which is vital to assembling your army and its staff) and the intel team, which can seek out enemy positions ahead of your arrival, giving you a chance to prepare the perfect infiltration early.
Accompanying this expanded system is the FOBs, which serves as the game’s first online game mode in a taste of PvP. Some ways into the game, you’ll be able to build a second base to further increase your resource gathering and staff limits beyond what the Mother Base can handle. It also serves, however, as a point that other players can infiltrate, and steal assets and manpower from, even when you’re not playing, so it’s best to make sure you keep Mother Base at the forefront of development lest you gamble too much on the FOBs. More bases can be purchased through the game’s micro-transactions using MB points, and while you can earn these coins freely through daily bonuses, the pace at which you earn them is appallingly slow, meaning that those who pay will have a strong advantage.
Sadly, the main online portion of this game has yet to be released, so a review of that will have to wait, naturally. But from what previews have shown so far, it should be a good experience for players of the game. Hopefully this lasts longer than MGS4’s online mode.
But disregarding the online and the feeling something is missing from the story, this game is almost everything you could have expected it to be. A near-sublime experience from start to finish with freedom to proceed how you wish through it all, and one hell of a way to say goodbye to Metal Gear, by virtue of the gameplay being close to flawless. The Phantom Pain is easily one of the best Metal Gear Solid games in the series and a masterpiece for action gaming.
A PS4 copy of Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain was provided by Konami
Metal Gear Solid V: Phantom Pain has been on the radar of every Metal Gear fan for a long time now, and even more so in the last two years for a very important reason; this will be the last MGS game involving Hideo Kojima at the helm, as he prepares to leave Konami for an as yet unknown future. For many, this is the absolute finale to the series, closing out one of the hallmark series of video-games. And yet, this game doesn't FEEL like an ending. Hell, the story doesn't even feel like it has a true ending, merely a revelation. And that feeling creates a sense of detachment to the game and its story as a whole, knowing that it may well be the last true Metal Gear game we ever see.
To those coming in without knowing the story, some references and nods to future events will fly right over your heads, but fear not: Those are not required to understand the plot. If you played Ground Zeroes or not, the goal of the main character, Big Boss/Snake, is very clear; He’s been in a coma for nine years, and his band of mercenaries have been forcibly disbanded by Cipher, and their leader, Skull Face. On a quest for revenge, Snake sets out to regroup with fellow allies Miller and Ocelot in order to exact revenge, and rebuild his army under a new title of ‘Diamond Dogs’, by whatever means necessary. As you go along, you’ll meet a myriad of characters, some new, some familiar, and they never fail to be interesting. Of particular note is the silent sniper, appropriately named Quiet. Despite remaining silent, she is one of the most curious characters in the game, even though you learn about her mostly through others. The ability of the developers to craft such interesting and three-dimensional characters has always been second to none in the Metal Gear series, and Phantom Pain does not fail to deliver here.
As for the gameplay, old fans of the series will note how much more fluid and open-ended the controls allow your play style to be. Even though MGS4 was the first game where I really felt like action was a suitable option at times, this game perfects the art of blending stealth and action, allowing you to easily choose between the two at any time and even have a ‘Plan B’ at the ready whenever things get too hot on the field. Want to go all stealth and non-lethal? Nearly every weapon type provides some form of non-lethal option, be it a rifle that shoots rubber bullets, or a shotgun that fire shock rounds to stun the opponent. Fancy going in Rambo-style, all guns blazing and screw all tactics? Throw on a battle suit, grab that machine gun, drop right into an enemy base by helicopter and wreck the place.
Despite the ability to raise hell with the humongous arsenal that you can develop, stealth is still a key factor in this game as it always has been, and the best rewards lie in wait for those who exercise patience and pacifism wherever possible. Much like MGS: Peace Walker, retrieving enemy soldiers alive is something you’ll want to do as often as possible in order to raise your army to its maximum potential. But regardless of how you play, you’ll be spoilt for choice. As if taking a page from the books of Far Cry, the beautiful open world maps of Afghanistan and Africa will give you one hell of a view from your binoculars as you scout the next outpost, considering your options. The gameplay, in conjunction with your area of operations, allows for a broad approach in how you deal with objectives, whether you go with a traditional style of gameplay, or think outside the box.
Or inside an actual box, if you prefer.
The base building gameplay from MGS: Peace Walker also returns, and while it can feel like a chore meeting the requirements for everything you want, you never feel the need to break away from the gameplay, as the whole thing can be managed while on the move, even when in the middle of a story mission. Those that are familiar with Peace Walker’s base-building system will note its expanded form in comparison. While the staple of the mechanic remains the development team, which creates and upgrades your equipment for you, more teams now have a direct role to play in your game, such as the support team, which acts as your go-to for air support, supply and Fulton recovery (which is vital to assembling your army and its staff) and the intel team, which can seek out enemy positions ahead of your arrival, giving you a chance to prepare the perfect infiltration early.
Accompanying this expanded system is the FOBs, which serves as the game’s first online game mode in a taste of PvP. Some ways into the game, you’ll be able to build a second base to further increase your resource gathering and staff limits beyond what the Mother Base can handle. It also serves, however, as a point that other players can infiltrate, and steal assets and manpower from, even when you’re not playing, so it’s best to make sure you keep Mother Base at the forefront of development lest you gamble too much on the FOBs. More bases can be purchased through the game’s micro-transactions using MB points, and while you can earn these coins freely through daily bonuses, the pace at which you earn them is appallingly slow, meaning that those who pay will have a strong advantage.
Sadly, the main online portion of this game has yet to be released, so a review of that will have to wait, naturally. But from what previews have shown so far, it should be a good experience for players of the game. Hopefully this lasts longer than MGS4’s online mode.
But disregarding the online and the feeling something is missing from the story, this game is almost everything you could have expected it to be. A near-sublime experience from start to finish with freedom to proceed how you wish through it all, and one hell of a way to say goodbye to Metal Gear, by virtue of the gameplay being close to flawless. The Phantom Pain is easily one of the best Metal Gear Solid games in the series and a masterpiece for action gaming.
A PS4 copy of Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain was provided by Konami
