what a perfect game. as someone who's interested in the metal gear lore, as well as the metanarrative surrounding each game in the series, i'm truly satisfied with how much it delivered on both fronts.

I'm so glad this was the last game in the series under KojiPro, the way it concludes the saga's loop is the coolest thing ever, and the truth ending cutscene is probably my favorite scene in the whole series. it's just so powerful.

I was initially planning on writing a super detailed review to talk about everything surrounding this game and such, but honestly, aside from long analysis not being something i excel at. i don't think there's much i can add that hasn't been talked about yet.

...aside from one thing, i'm super disappointed by how everyone i've seen talking about the truth ending sees it as a gloomy one. sure, if we see it purely from Venom's perspective, he was certainly robbed of his identity. But i don't like how barely anyone ties Venom being an extension of the player into the ending. Big Boss is essentially thanking you, the player for sticking with him all this way! you've been with him practically his whole life, and he calls you his best man because you've essentially been playing and experiencing all of it! even Ocelot assures him not to worry and says that "he", as in "we" can handle it! it's SUCH a good send-off to the fans -and the creators, if we think of Big Boss as a self insert of the team- I absolutely adore it.

I also just wanna mention how rad Code Talker being voiced by an actual indigenous guy is, i feel like that's something that doesn't happen often. it's super cool.