Comparing Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots to other
games is an exercise in futility—not only because it’s such a
fantastic work of art, but because most of it simply isn’t a game.
The vast majority of your time in MSG4, the latest entry in
creator Hideo Kojima’s beloved series, isn’t spent playing the game so
much as, well, watching cutscenes. Think that’s hyperbole? Take, for
instance, the third act: According to the screen detailing my exploits,
I’d spent 10 hours and change “playing” the game by this
point—but I’d be amazed if the amount of time in which I was
actually controlling the action amounted to much more than 20 percent
of that.
Add to that the mandatory install times (an initial eight-minute
instance, followed by one at the beginning of each of the game’s five
acts) and you have a game that only vaguely fits the definition of the
word.
Still, it says a lot about MSG4‘s gripping plot and quality
storytelling that I never once opted to remove the disc from my
PlayStation. The plot is as highbrow and multifaceted as the most
pretentious works of Stanley Kubrick (and equally as confusing to
players unfamiliar with the backstory), and when you’re occasionally
given the chance to actually control protagonist Solid Snake, gameplay
is equally nuanced and inventive. From the huge range of customizable
firearms to the endless ways to complete mission objectives, anything
you think you should be able to do in the game, you can: Want to snipe
enemies? Want to slit their throats? Want to leave them alone to live
full, happy lives as menial grunts? It’s all up to you. The freedom
offered to players here makes the sporadic bouts of gameplay as
enjoyable as any game, ever. With MGS4, Kojima has crafted his
magnum opus. If you own a PlayStation 3, you need to buy this game. If
you don’t, steal one. I don’t care how you get it—just do not
miss Metal Gear Solid 4.