Spring Break
The legacy of Solid Snake: A crash course in 'Metal Gear Solid'
Russ Aaron, Entertainment Editor, raaron@smu.edu
Issue date: 7/1/08 Section: Entertainment
In the fourth and final installment of the "Metal Gear Solid" video game series, creator, director and mastermind Hideo Kojima has crafted an absolutely perfect gaming experience. Yes, you heard it - "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots" is by far the best video game of all time.
Hero Solid Snake has seen a lot of action in his life. He's fought battles on numerous systems including the original Nintendo Entertainment System and all three Sony Playstation systems. He even traded in his guns for playing cards in a title on the Playstation Portable system. However, in the "Solid" chapter of the Metal Gear saga, Snake has earned quite the reputation for blowing up giant, nuclear-toting weapons of mass destruction, hiding in cardboard boxes and saving the world.
Snake was first introduced back in 1987 in his debut game "Metal Gear" for the NES. However, it wasn't until 1998 when "Metal Gear Solid" for the original Playstation was released that Snake earned his well-deserved iconic status in the video game world. The game followed our hero as he made his way through an Alaskan military base, interacting with colorful characters and making yet another attempt to save the day. The game played out like a Hollywood movie with hours of cinematic sequences and voice acting. Not to mention the actual gameplay itself was something entirely new to a video game. Even though Snake has quite the arsenal of weaponry to choose from, the whole idea of the game is to make it through to the end while killing as little as possible. In other words, it's a game of stealth, a tactic that would be heavily focused on in every subsequent "Metal Gear Solid" game.
Three years later, Snake made his way from the Playstation to the Playstation 2 in "Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty." The game received mixed reviews from critics. The graphics received a major overhaul, as did the gameplay. Snake could do much more this time around including holding guards hostage, and hiding their unconscious bodies in empty lockers, among other things. The game was complete with more cinematic scenes, more voice-over work and more colorful characters. And yes, you could hide from guards in a cardboard box until your heart was content. So what was the problem? You only played about an hour as Solid Snake. Kojima and crew introduced Raiden, an extremely whiney character who could do pretty much everything Snake could, but it just didn't feel the same. Also, the story was so convoluted it pretty much did everything except make sense. At least it was fun to play.
Hero Solid Snake has seen a lot of action in his life. He's fought battles on numerous systems including the original Nintendo Entertainment System and all three Sony Playstation systems. He even traded in his guns for playing cards in a title on the Playstation Portable system. However, in the "Solid" chapter of the Metal Gear saga, Snake has earned quite the reputation for blowing up giant, nuclear-toting weapons of mass destruction, hiding in cardboard boxes and saving the world.
Snake was first introduced back in 1987 in his debut game "Metal Gear" for the NES. However, it wasn't until 1998 when "Metal Gear Solid" for the original Playstation was released that Snake earned his well-deserved iconic status in the video game world. The game followed our hero as he made his way through an Alaskan military base, interacting with colorful characters and making yet another attempt to save the day. The game played out like a Hollywood movie with hours of cinematic sequences and voice acting. Not to mention the actual gameplay itself was something entirely new to a video game. Even though Snake has quite the arsenal of weaponry to choose from, the whole idea of the game is to make it through to the end while killing as little as possible. In other words, it's a game of stealth, a tactic that would be heavily focused on in every subsequent "Metal Gear Solid" game.
Three years later, Snake made his way from the Playstation to the Playstation 2 in "Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty." The game received mixed reviews from critics. The graphics received a major overhaul, as did the gameplay. Snake could do much more this time around including holding guards hostage, and hiding their unconscious bodies in empty lockers, among other things. The game was complete with more cinematic scenes, more voice-over work and more colorful characters. And yes, you could hide from guards in a cardboard box until your heart was content. So what was the problem? You only played about an hour as Solid Snake. Kojima and crew introduced Raiden, an extremely whiney character who could do pretty much everything Snake could, but it just didn't feel the same. Also, the story was so convoluted it pretty much did everything except make sense. At least it was fun to play.
Viewing Comments 1 - 1 of 1
Robert Perez
posted 7/01/08 @ 11:44 AM CST
I just spent the last weekend porting about 13 hours at this game as a first timer to the MG Solid gaming experience. Let me tell you, it didn't take much for me to take full advantage of the cam-stealth suit that Snake is equipped with off the jump. (Continued…)
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