By all accounts this is a game I should probably detest, and in a lot of ways I definitely do, but there's something to this trainwreck that I can't help but admire.
Following in the painful trend of disregarding unique elements of the original in favor of later game's features and throwing in what's "hip" at the time, Twin Snakes opts to sand down any potential challenge the original had by making it play similar to Sons of Liberty, featuring first person aiming, hanging on ledges, lockers, and the dreaded M9 tranquillizer gun. All of this adds up to an experience that not only fails to add to the original in any meaningful way, but also runs the risk of ruining the perception of the original for future generations.
Having said that, at some point these changes boiled over in my mind and morphed the game into something completely new. Something funny?
I'm sure we're all aware of the "so bad it's good" label that gets thrown around for the consumption of art. People of all cultures and tastes are able to spin great enjoyment from the worst of the worst. Something like The Room immediately springs to mind as art that fails in almost every meaningful way the author was trying to accomplish, but has garnered a cult following that enjoys it dearly, presumably either to make fun of it or display adoration for the confidence and passion that went into it. I think games are harder to attain this status, as a level of interaction is required that isn't present in other mediums (from a distance a game like Devil May Cry 2 might be astonishing, but you couldn't pay me to play that game again) and as a result the "worst games ever made" usually just transform into a lesson for future designers to learn from and little else.
As you could probably imagine, I don't feel comfortable staking the claim that Twin Snakes is "so bad it's good" or nearly any other game in existence for that matter. Instead I've found a way to justify the game in my mind different from the one I've just described: I'd like to make the bold assertion that Twin Snakes shines not in spite of it's flanderization of the original, but because of it. Twin Snakes, with all the asinine gameplay additions and tacky Matrix-adjacent cutscene direction, doubles back on itself and becomes a parody of the original in a way I've never seen before.
It might sound hypocritical of me to hold up this disaster as a shining beacon of joy while talking down on other remakes that, for all intents and purposes, adjust the game in more "tasteful" ways (I'm not the biggest fan of the Shadow of the Colossus remake, but the only thing that actually changed in the process was the graphical overhaul, the game design itself remains near untouched) but hear me out on this. How many games do you know of, whether it be a remake or original title, can actually claim to be a genuine parody of something? I don't fully know why this game checks all the right boxes in my mind, but when I see Snake backflip to avoid a sniper shot only to flip his own rifle into the air like a skateboard and spin around before making a shot at his target, it feels like fireworks go off in my brain.
Given this admittedly-nebulous write up and my overall rating of the game, it's very possible this all comes across as the ramblings of an insane person, but that's what it feels like to sit down and experience the game.
Despite my best efforts I can't succinctly pin down my thoughts on this game. I expected to come in here and quickly describe it as a parody and little else, but as it tends to do, Twin Snakes managed to tangle itself in my mind and I can't get it out. In one moment I loathe all the additions to gameplay, but in the next I recall the quote on the back of the box stating that this was "the way it was always meant to be played" and I can't help but laugh.
Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes is a nut that I can't seem to break open, but this new way of thinking about it has certainly made it crack. Split between two ends of the remake spectrum, it lands with the eloquence of a plane crash as a game I simultaneously can't stand but also adore. We may never see another game like it if in being honest. I don't have a final mic dropping statement on Twin Snakes as it's a piece of art that I constantly shuffle between two states of mind on, but hopefully if you've played the game yourself you understand the origin of my meandering around the point. I'd never in a million years want this game to replace the original in the public consciousness, but I think I'd hate just as much for this car crash to fade from our memory.
Following in the painful trend of disregarding unique elements of the original in favor of later game's features and throwing in what's "hip" at the time, Twin Snakes opts to sand down any potential challenge the original had by making it play similar to Sons of Liberty, featuring first person aiming, hanging on ledges, lockers, and the dreaded M9 tranquillizer gun. All of this adds up to an experience that not only fails to add to the original in any meaningful way, but also runs the risk of ruining the perception of the original for future generations.
Having said that, at some point these changes boiled over in my mind and morphed the game into something completely new. Something funny?
I'm sure we're all aware of the "so bad it's good" label that gets thrown around for the consumption of art. People of all cultures and tastes are able to spin great enjoyment from the worst of the worst. Something like The Room immediately springs to mind as art that fails in almost every meaningful way the author was trying to accomplish, but has garnered a cult following that enjoys it dearly, presumably either to make fun of it or display adoration for the confidence and passion that went into it. I think games are harder to attain this status, as a level of interaction is required that isn't present in other mediums (from a distance a game like Devil May Cry 2 might be astonishing, but you couldn't pay me to play that game again) and as a result the "worst games ever made" usually just transform into a lesson for future designers to learn from and little else.
As you could probably imagine, I don't feel comfortable staking the claim that Twin Snakes is "so bad it's good" or nearly any other game in existence for that matter. Instead I've found a way to justify the game in my mind different from the one I've just described: I'd like to make the bold assertion that Twin Snakes shines not in spite of it's flanderization of the original, but because of it. Twin Snakes, with all the asinine gameplay additions and tacky Matrix-adjacent cutscene direction, doubles back on itself and becomes a parody of the original in a way I've never seen before.
It might sound hypocritical of me to hold up this disaster as a shining beacon of joy while talking down on other remakes that, for all intents and purposes, adjust the game in more "tasteful" ways (I'm not the biggest fan of the Shadow of the Colossus remake, but the only thing that actually changed in the process was the graphical overhaul, the game design itself remains near untouched) but hear me out on this. How many games do you know of, whether it be a remake or original title, can actually claim to be a genuine parody of something? I don't fully know why this game checks all the right boxes in my mind, but when I see Snake backflip to avoid a sniper shot only to flip his own rifle into the air like a skateboard and spin around before making a shot at his target, it feels like fireworks go off in my brain.
Given this admittedly-nebulous write up and my overall rating of the game, it's very possible this all comes across as the ramblings of an insane person, but that's what it feels like to sit down and experience the game.
Despite my best efforts I can't succinctly pin down my thoughts on this game. I expected to come in here and quickly describe it as a parody and little else, but as it tends to do, Twin Snakes managed to tangle itself in my mind and I can't get it out. In one moment I loathe all the additions to gameplay, but in the next I recall the quote on the back of the box stating that this was "the way it was always meant to be played" and I can't help but laugh.
Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes is a nut that I can't seem to break open, but this new way of thinking about it has certainly made it crack. Split between two ends of the remake spectrum, it lands with the eloquence of a plane crash as a game I simultaneously can't stand but also adore. We may never see another game like it if in being honest. I don't have a final mic dropping statement on Twin Snakes as it's a piece of art that I constantly shuffle between two states of mind on, but hopefully if you've played the game yourself you understand the origin of my meandering around the point. I'd never in a million years want this game to replace the original in the public consciousness, but I think I'd hate just as much for this car crash to fade from our memory.