Metal Gear Solid 2 – The Misunderstood Entry in the Series
Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty is the entry into the series that a lot of gamers shudder when they look back on. In this article I’m going to discuss the negative reaction gamers have to this entry in the series and then cover why this game really is surprisingly great today even when held up against other entries in the series.
Just to warn anyone that wants to play the game and hasn’t this article will contain mild spoilers to the plot and direction of the game.
Even for the time this game was critically praised by almost every major gaming magazine but there was a few things that just didn’t sit well with gamers. Lets get the infamous one out the way and that is the character of Raiden. Yes, we all bought that glorified mech demo, Zone of the Enders just to be able play a demo of Metal Gear Solid 2 and replay as our gaming hero Solid Snake. We sunk £40 into this game in Europe ($60 in the US) and yet people lose there minds when Konami releases Metal Gear Solid 5: Ground Zeroes for £20 ($30 in US) despite you paying for a game that you want to play, but I digress. When you finally got your mitts on the full retail game of Metal Gear Solid 2 – after spending another £40 ($60 in US) mind you, it’s okay Konami you just take my money – your grinning from ear to ear as you play through the game as Solid Snake, but that lasts for what seems like five minutes and then the game forces you to play the remaining ninety percent of the game as this feminine Raiden (insert Mortal Kombat intro music here) character. Raiden wasn’t cool, he was dorky, and lacked that testosterone rugidness we were used to from our main man Snake. Also he didn’t have any special abilities that featured lightening. So people were not too impressed by this, sure Snake was lingering in the background but it just wasn’t as cool as playing as the guy. It was the moment in Metal Gear history where fans thought Kojima had truly lost his mind.
Stop What You’re Doing Right Now and Play Metal Gear Solid! (on Playstation because meh to the GameCube Remake)
In honour of Metal Gear Solid season I wanted to kick off what I hope will be a new season of articles telling you by force to play certain games. Boy, do we have a good one to start with. Metal Gear Solid on the Playstation is most peoples first entry into the Metal Gear Solid series. However, if by some bizarre fluke this game has completely passed you by then here are some reasons why you need to drop what you are doing right now and go play this game. If you have already played the game then maybe this article will give you incentive to go revisit it again.
Before we begin this list may contain mild spoilers so if you haven’t already played the game and want to you may want to come back to this later. Also the opinions in this article do not represent the opinions of other writers for Gaming History 101. With that out of the way, let’s get on with it!
Podcast: We’re Nothing Without You!
This week Fred and Jam are discussing the publisher Working Designs, best known for bringing many non-traditional Japanese titles over to the West complete with heavy localization. Thanks in part to president Victor Ireland, Working Designs is responsible for key titles in the libraries of the Turbografx-16 (and CD), Sega CD, Saturn, Playstation, and Playstation 2.
Metal Gear Solid Review
There were so many excellent games that came out on the original Playstation that certain paramount titles could pass you by. The reasoning is actually two-fold because you may not have missed them – I was acutely aware of the presence of Metal Gear Solid when it released and even played a little of it – but it was back in a time where if a game didn’t click with you, typically you would shrug it off and move on to the myriad of other titles out there. That was my experience when I first played Metal Gear Solid. I remember having a heck of a time sneaking to the elevator in the beginning, even harder time getting into the vents outside Shadow Moses, and by the time I find the D.A.R.P.A. Chief only to discover most people got there in 20 minutes I was so frustrated I just quit. It would appear I not only passed on one of the best games on one of the best consoles of all time, but that I was abandoning a series that stands quite high in my top game franchises of all time. That’s the thing, though, when you look back on Metal Gear Solid. It broke so much ground and basically invented the stealth mechanic (after two earlier attempts I might add) that it’s easy to appreciate it but there are a heck of a lot of caveats if you’re going to revisit it today or play it for the first time. It has much more historical value than replay value, although I did have a smile on my face most of the time.
Resident Evil 2 Remake Ends Fan Made Remake, Happy Ending Ensues
Ever since the recent announcement from Capcom that a Resident Evil 2 remake is incoming, we here at GH101 have been wondering what will become of the ongoing development of a fan made remake. It was revealed yesterday by PC Gamer that Capcom has officially send a cease and desist (C&D) order to those developers halting the project. On the plus side, it seems everyone wins in this situation unless you were planning on playing the Unreal 4 developed project as it entered completion this summer. The team working on that project have announced that its ultimate goal was to have Capcom proper release a remake and furthermore that Capcom is meeting with them to discuss this development. It’s possible the team could be brought in as consultants or even contractors to work on whatever this remake will be, which I am certain is barely in the planning stages.
Fred’s Take: I’m always cautious with remakes (as opposed to remasters, which often take the original game and upres or upscale the assets) because by definition changes and creative liberties will be made. It could go either way, but the feedback I keep hearing from contemporary games press is that most hope to thwart tank controls, ink ribbons, and possibly even the static camera perspective (opting possibly for the forward thinking over-the-shoulder cam started in Resident Evil 4). As an avid fan of those early games, I think that all three of those aspects should still be included and you can easily overcome the tank controls by offering the modern controls found in Resident Evil HD Remaster. It does appear, however, that given the fact that the fan remake was using the over-the-shoulder cam and given the current landscape of games (not to mention the term “remake”) that we very well may lose those static angles I covet so much. Who knows what the overall changes will be and I will most assuredly play whatever this becomes when it finally sees the light of day sometime in the next 2-3 years. I also dream of a world where two teams make an old school and new school version of the same game, utilizing the features of both, but I can’t possibly see how that’s an effective development cycle.
Extra Credit: Sega CD/Mega CD Top 10
It’s that time again where Fred and Jam bring a whopping 40 games to the table to judge, debate, explain, and dissect until the elite top 10 get lined up and find out who takes home the coveted top spot. Be sure to submit your personal list for the Community Top 10!
Lost Treasures of Gaming: Ghostbusters The Video Game (2009)
This week Lost Treasures of Gaming interviewed Ken Rogoway for not only his work on Ghostbusters: The Video Game but also last week’s game Rescue on Fractalus! (the Tandy Computer version) and many others. Here we play one of my favorite parts of the game, a rematch between the Ghostbusters and Stay Puft marshmallow man on the streets of New York.
Check out OMG Nexus for its other shows, including Lost Treasures of Gaming, and content!
Extra Credit: Comicon
Jam and Me10dee get together to discuss their recent visit to Comicon.
Life is Strange Episode 4 Review
Please Note: Many reviewers out there seem to think it is appropriate to discuss the events of previous episodes of Life is Strange as if everyone who would read it damn well should have already played the previous episodes. It has been my experience that if you have held out this long and haven’t already played this episode then you are most likely wondering how the game progresses throughout the season and will decide whether or not to buy when all episodes are out. This is why each episodic review is spoiler free for the entire season, not just this episode.
Episode 4: Dark Room
We have arrived at episode 4, nearing the end of the season and who knows, perhaps this episode contains the major climax for the arc. I say this without assurance because episode 3 had such an unexpected cliffhanger that I didn’t think it was possible to get me again. I was wrong. That being said I need to come right out and say I was a little unimpressed overall with episode 4, proving that the warning I gave in the first episode’s review may have actually come to fruition. Whereas episodes 2 and especially three can begin to fork based off of your choices and possibly even suggest that two playthroughs is more of a recommendation rather than an option, episode 4 is forcing you down a corridor. Granted, it’s a well calculated corridor that presents itself with the illusion of choice, but I’ve seen this trick before in The Walking Dead series from Telltale and without sounding catty, I thought Dontnod was above that. There’s a decent amount of substance here still, with the story having easily its highest moment yet as the episode closes and again there are some strong emotional scenes that make up a very heavy episode. One thing I do find a bit troubling is the fact that as certain plots unfold, others are left almost unmentioned, which nets a lot of catch up, wrap up, and resolution required for the fifth and final episode. I’m just hoping that it remains as interactive as the others have been and doesn’t become the 90 minute ending of Metal Gear Solid 4. Dontnod has yet to convince me they don’t know how to craft a story and without a doubt they know how to catch my interest, here’s hoping the ending stands as strongly as the jaw-dropping cliffhangers of previous episodes.
Gaming History 101 