Alright, so long story short, I’ve been playing all the Metal Gear games in chronological order, with absolutely no prior knowledge before diving into the series. All my opinions are based on my own experience going through the games blindly, not even really knowing what the general community based opinion is on each game.

I wrote here about:
Metal Gear
Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake
Metal Gear Solid

Metal Gear Solid 2 is complicated to me. Not that I didn’t understand its message, no, that was quite clear, but rather the game was complicated in the sense that it kept swinging me back and forth, simultaneously being both impressive while also tediously annoying.

One second I would be absolutely flabbergasted in the visuals and controls this game had for coming out in 2001, only to be thrown back into needing to use these updated aspects to do the most boring and monotonous task ever. I get that in the end it’s purposely supposed to be this way as the end message ensures that the player knows the whole point of Metal Gear Solid 2 is to just complete what the Patriots had intended for you. Learn to hate Solidus, even when what he’s fighting for is well intended, as you complete what you were fighting against and destroy the Patriots only remaining opposition. Metal Gear Solid 2’s ending is absolutely beautiful in having not just Raiden, but also the player (as they very clearly break 4th-wall in letting you know that) learn to realize that just because you were told something doesn’t mean you should accept it as true, but still it’s easier to continue to do what is expected of you first and foremost (which in this case is kill the Patriots largest threat).

It’s really a lesson that has been seen throughout all of the Metal Gear series, with Big Boss breaking your trust in the original Metal Gear, Grey Fox & Petrovich in Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake, and Campbell in Metal Gear Solid. It’s directly mentioned at the end of the MGS1 where Liquid taunts Snake for still following orders when he should have learned his lesson at this point. MGS2’s final message is very strong, but I think it was weakened a bit with the earlier games already bringing this theme up, albeit not as front and center. The ending overall really is MGS2’s strongest point, and is very emotional in relaying its message. I can completely understand how much it must have blown people’s minds, especially being so beautifully cinematic while telling its story (in 2001 in NYC on top of it all). But ultimately, I’m a person that significantly values the gameplay aspect of a game to the overall opinion of a game, and Metal Gear Solid 2’s actual gameplay in telling the story was a bit meh.

Controlling Snake/Raiden has never felt better, that’s for certain, as we finally get the ability to do this cartwheel thing which is the closest we’ve ever gotten to a jump yet. Everything feels and looks amazing, but the actual gameplay of MGS2 is a legit drag, forever trapping you on either the tanker or the plant running back and forth and back and forth with 15 minute cutscenes put into the game to cut it up a bit more evenly. Gameplay was mostly just disarming some bombs, running from point A to point B, and escorting Otacon’s stepsister (who seems to be very sexually into her own step-brother which is um… definitely a plot point). It all helps continue the story that Kojima wanted to tell, but really isn’t that fun to play through, and starts to feel more like that dreaded video formula I always groan at of just running back and forth in order to “continue the game” aka just see the next cutscene. MGS2 felt 50/50 in gameplay to cutscene time in comparison to MGS1 which felt like 70/30 and MG2:SS which felt like 85/15. Again, I GET that as video games advance, the creator is going to be excited to be technologically available to SHOW story elements over PLAYING them or even just telling them in words, but it is very much a personal pet peeve of mine to get excited to play a game, only to end up feeling like I’m watching a movie instead.

Even though the cutscenes take up a good part of the game, I’m guessing they were a bit budget restricted, as the characters constantly keep switching to the codec even when right next to each other as it’s easier to animate, but makes it all the more boring. I know they put an in-plot reason that was something like they didn’t want to be overheard, but it was pretty obvious (and ugly oops) why they kept doing it. Speaking of the radio, I was SO disappointed to see the gorgeous sprite artwork from MGS1 gone, now replaced with their models talking. It’s cool and very advanced for the time don’t get me wrong, and I’m imagining they changed it to show off their improved technology, but man it’s not remotely as gorgeous/good at setting the mood - but in the end, it’s more of a personal complaint than something truly wrong with the game.

I’ve come to learn from friends that apparently being baited and switched to play as Raiden was very controversial when the game first came out. I guess I can see why, as while Metal Gear Solid is a very beautiful and artistic video game series, it also still fulfills that male fantasy of being a badass untouchable gunman/spy who gets the ladies. Fans who fell more into liking the series for the latter reason (and somehow missing EVERYTHING else about what Metal Gear is about apparently) are understandably going to be disappointed at not being able to play as Snake, and Western fans especially are not going to understand Raiden’s very trendy (in Japan) “feminine”-looking male protagonist design. I can understand why these fans would be upset, but I don’t think it’s really a valid complaint at the end of the day, as Raiden is fine, and the true reason WHY we have to play as him throughout the game makes the story much stronger. It does get a little annoying having Snake, I’m sorry, I mean Pliskin, kinda do a lot of the work for you throughout the game though. AGAIN, I KNOW IT’S PLOT RELEVANT (we all want to be a cool unbeatable fictional character like Snake, but that’s not what real life is blah blah blah, closest you can get is a cheap intimidation) but ultimately, it’s a video game first and foremost, and holy shit did it suck constantly being given help and an abundance of rations, even when on normal difficulty, getting rid of the fun a good challenge brings.


The strongest parts that Metal Gear Solid 2 has going for it are the parts that make Metal Gear what it is, and that’s its very clever 4th-wall breaks and beautiful story-telling, particularly its strong ending. Both of these are so insanely good that even acknowledging the issues I have listed above, I can see how and why this game would be a perfect 5/5 for a lot of people. The 4th-wall breaking in MGS2 has to be the best out of the whole series, hell, it might have the best 4th-wall breaking in any video game I’ve ever played. I can still feel the chills of being a naked Raiden who just accidentally alerted the guards and having the corrupted Colonel AI immediately call me, turn to directly face the camera, his face now just a skull, and tell me, “What happened? I thought you played this game enough to be good at it by this point.”

I also would love to note that when I first saw the Colonel when starting as Raiden, I couldn’t help but compare that his codec image looked very similar to the way he appeared in Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake, to the point that I even mentioned to my friend how much younger the Colonel looked here than he did in MGS1 and how his portrait really brought a MG2 resemblance to me. I don’t know if it was intentional, or I’m just still so obsessed with Metal Gear 2 that I’m trying to pick any callback that I can muster and just sound insane lol.

While the more bland gameplay elements mixed with the constant cutscenes had me more annoyed with MGS2 than with the earlier games, I can’t ignore just how insane the game looks graphically, and how amazing the story they tell is too. While it picks at a lot of my gaming pet peeves, it also completely blew me away in other aspects that were so impressive it’s easy to ignore the less fun parts. Metal Gear Solid 2 really opens up a can of whoop-ass, both with all the characters being literally caked up, and because of how insanely powerful the message it portrays is, especially now, 20 years later, when we need it even more than ever. What a truly beautiful and special series.

Well, well, well, the time has finally come for me to play the Solid part of the Metal Gear series and can now come to understand what everyone online is always talking about!! As stated in my earlier reviews, I’m going into this series completely blind, so my opinions of Metal Gear are pretty unaffected by other people. I absolutely LOVED Metal Gear Solid, and completely understand why it’s so many people’s favorite game. It’s genuinely a masterpiece, even now 15 years later.

After Metal Gear 2, I had my expectations set pretty high for how Metal Gear Solid was going to improve on an already very ahead of its time game and Jesus Christ, MGS did NOT disappoint. The games both do have quite a few similarities, so I’ll be referencing MG2 a lot throughout this review.

Everything about the actual gameplay of Metal Gear Solid is perfect. The graphics? Groundbreaking. The music? Perfect. The scenes with real people? Hard-hitting and emotional. The voice acting? Very, very good, especially for the time. UI? Simple, yet stylized. And the sneaking and fighting component? Perfected. There’s so much I could say about just how much of a masterpiece this game is just as a video game. The cards immediately conjoin into one ID card (thank GOD), the weapon variety is fun while not being overwhelming and also now includes an awesome grenade that jams the cameras. Saving isn’t necessarily as quick and tidy as in Metal Gear 2, but it involves interacting with the cast and using your equipment which is super charming. I think I ended up preferring it. The maps of the entire game are much neater and packed together than in Metal Gear 2, which started to feel a little too spread-out. Metal Gear Solid’s layout I feel was the perfect size to not get tedious but without taking away the exploring premise. While Metal Gear 2 secured the sneak element of the series by removing your map when alerting the guards, I feel Metal Gear Solid really perfected it in making the game impossible levels of difficulty when you get caught. They add more into the gameplay of course to make sneaking your first priority! The angles to check for guards are perfect and very cinematic, the first-person view also allows you to see where guards are located without being caught, and now there’s three boxes to use to get around, conveniently sending you to different buildings depending on the box you choose. Thank God, no more accidentally getting in the wrong truck anymore lol. Metal Gear and Metal Gear 2 both had 4th-wall breaking aspects that were pretty clever and added to their respective stories. I went into Metal Gear Solid expecting some pretty awesome 4th-wall breaks, and I would say I’m pretty satisfied. I already knew about Psycho Mantis, but liked the little details such as checking the CD-case and such.



Storywise, Metal Gear Solid comes crashing in to let its players know it’s more than just a generic 80’s action film story plot. Though it’s still very clearly heavily influenced by them. I mean, hell, it wouldn’t be Metal Gear if it wasn’t. There’s certain aspects I brush off on its storytelling as being too cheesy, but that really is just part of the series’ charm at this point, as were the movies they’re inspired by.

I go back and forth on how I feel about the story reusing so much of the story from Metal Gear 2. I guess in the end, I can confidently state that it’s not a negative thing, as they really added so much new to the story that I’m fine with the amount they reused. It did make knowing what to do next for the plot a bit easier, as I just naturally did what I did in the past game, such as noticing their emphasis on Meryl being the one female soldier in the building, so I went to wait for her outside the women’s bathroom like with Gustava in MG2. A lot of the stuff they repeated from the past game was just done a lot better too, specifically the FUCKING BROOCH which is now a key card. THANK GOD. They must have listened to me from the distant future and now instead of needing to change the shape of the item ALL THE WAY IN ENTIRELY DIFFERENT BUILDINGS, you just need to change the shape with some rooms in the building you’re already in! Ugh, it felt like sweet, sweet candy not needing to figure out how the hell I was going to get back to the area I started in.

This game definitely secured Grey Fox as my favorite character in this series. Nothing hit me harder in a game than fighting this robot ninja and having him slowly start to demand fighting mano-a-mano. Hmm… That’s what I did with Fox at the end of the last game… interesting. Then, he starts taunting you, “Don’t you remember this?” “Doesn’t this feel right?” etc etc. I remember my gut hitting the floor when he started saying this. There was no way, Grey Fox had to be dead! But no, here he was reconstructed and forcing me to fight him like we did at the end of Metal Gear 2. To say I got a little emotional would be an understatement, I was kind of a mess. All right after some dude pisses himself in front of me, too lmao.

Otacon is probably the new character added in that sticks out the most, in a positive way! Hell, the second I met him pissing his pants and talking about Japanese animes, I thought he was hilarious. Him bringing me fucking ketchup of all things to help when locked in the jail cell sealed him as being one of my favorites. He’s super memorable, and a very good Yin to Snake’s Yang, being the super nerdy scaredy cat that goes against Snake’s very smooth cool guy persona, and end up both complementing each other’s weaknesses. I really enjoyed his little romance with Sniper Wolf as well, I’m always a sucker for a nerdy guy with a badass woman, and liked that they had a character lose his love from the troubles of the battlefield.

At the end, it took a more serious turn with Liquid bringing up a valid point towards Snake, just why does he keep listening to his higher ups when over and over again they keep betraying him? Of course, he has to enjoy the chaos and killing of war just as badly as the “bad guys” do, too. The message of what a soldier has to do with their life in a peaceful world was brought up at the end of Metal Gear 2, and I’m very happy they brought it back as the main theme for Solid as well, as it is a very strong and emotional message.

The final fight with Liquid was very cool, especially when he’s in the Metal Gear attacking you. I was practically jumping in my seat when I saw the full 3D Metal Gear and how I was allowed to run around it and finally physically see how big it would be in scale to Snake. The fight was fucking AWESOME too, definitely took me a moment to figure out how to defeat, but after figuring out the good middle of running between the laser and the missiles, I felt so cool. I really was fighting the Metal Gear!! The final fist fight with Liquid was a little lame in my opinion though, as we already went through that in Metal Gear 2, and as we saw earlier in the game, the fist fight aspect was really special and unique to Fox. I felt that giving it to Liquid in addition kind of took away how desperate and sad the final fight with Fox was in MG2 and his follow-up fight in Metal Gear Solid. Though I can’t lie, doing a fist fight ON TOP OF THE DESTROYED METAL GEAR was super fucking cool. Just wish it didn’t take away the connection it had with Grey Fox.

The cons I have with the game are pretty small, but still exist. I’m going to be blunt and say I really don’t like how they wrote Meryl. I can complain, but at the same time I should just know how women in the Metal Gear series are going to be written at this point. Holly and Diane in the past games were obviously not the strongest written characters ever, but I did really like Holly (okay, I kind of fell in love with her, shut up), but I have no idea what the hell they were thinking with Meryl. They took this recently turned 18-year old girl and pushed her to be 33-year old Snake’s love interest, all while constantly mentioning how young and new she is throughout the entire game. On top of all that, they put in this weird mind control thing to make it so she’s not attracted to the opposite sex, which doesn’t really serve any plot reasons (that I know of right now) besides just giving this weird plotline to have Snake successfully seduce a woman that’s supposed to be impossible for men to attract. Some people online say that she’s “cured” (ugh) of it after defeating Psycho Mantis, but it’s not directly brought up. But hey, I guess that kinda writing sounds straight out of an 80’s action film, so whatever, I guess. I’m still not going to be the biggest fan of that decision, and as a lesbian, I don’t know if I’m ever going to come around to a “woman not attracted to man gets swayed off her feet and falls for him” plotline.

This was more so an issue at the very beginning that sort of lost steam throughout, but I personally wasn’t the biggest fan of how weird Snake talks to the female characters, mostly Mei Ling and Naomi. MGS has a lot more dialogue and talking cutscenes than MG2, which I guess they used to their advantage to have Snake hit on Mei Ling every second he talks to her, and asking for Naomi to let him “body search” her as a reward for being good. Again, I know I’m not the target audience for that kind of appeal, but the amount of horny coming out of Snake’s mouth got a little annoying after the first few times he spouted it. It’s me being a bit picky, that’s for sure, but I’m mostly going to pass it off as them figuring out a more strong personality that they were now able to give him in the game and playing with funny dialogue.

I think my only con with the gameplay was my wimpy ass getting upset that the rations no longer completely heal you, instead only filling up a small amount of your Life instead. Hey, it forced me to get good at the game at least!

Overall, Metal Gear Solid is a very, very, VERY good game, I can not stress that enough. It has perfect pacing, a clever story and clearly influenced the future of gaming in massive ways. To tell the truth, I’m already thinking about when I can replay it so I can test out my newly earned bandana! If you haven’t played the Metal Gear series, I really recommend playing MG1 & MG2 beforehand, as it really strengthens all of it, making Metal Gear Solid a truly beautiful game.