No 360 . . . what to do?

In my 360's absence I've had to find alternate ways to pass the time. Playing Guitar Hero, MLB: The Show, Halo 2. I've even popped in Gran Turismo 4, Killzone, and Ninja Gaiden Black. What I should do is go back and finish Jak III, yet I haven't gotten the urge to play it again. I'm a big fan of the first two games though, so I don't know what is wrong with me. Weird.

Anyway, one game I have decided to play (which I never got to try the first time around) is Metal Gear Solid III: Snake Eater. Well, in this case it is the "director's cut" of that game, Subsistence. Now, I don't remember playing the original Metal Gear (NES version) but I know I did. Metal Gear Solid for the PS1 was a damn fine game, although I felt it was a little over rated. It had a decent story (although a tad confusing), great attention to detail, fantastic graphics, great use of the controller's vibration function (I remember this being a big deal at the time since the dual-shock was new) and the best damn (real-time) cinematics ever!! When Konami showed the first footage of Metal Gear Solid 2 for the PS2, it was the most impressive thing I had ever seen. When the actual game was released, it got rave reviews, and I echoed those reviews . . . for the most part. The game's visuals were unreal for their time, the cinematics raised the bar yet again and proved to be the most stylized, entertaining cinematics in the business. I thoroughly enjoyed the game, but it was far from perfect. I actually didn't mind the "switch" of playing through the main game as Raiden instead of Snake (I'm sure that is not a spoiler by now). Yes, he was a whiny girly-man, but it didn't really bother me. What did end up bothering me was the completely ridiculous, convoluted storyline and the endless Codec conversations. I didn't mind watching the cut-scenes - as I mentioned, those are fantastic and I look forward to them - but the Codec conversations were at times dreadfully drawn out, redundant, preachy and boring!!! I would actually groan out loud when I felt one of them coming up. So, overall, MGS 2 was a solid game that did many things right, but was flawed in a few areas.

When MGS III: Snake Eater was announced I thought the setting and premise sounded interesting, but I was getting a bit tired of the MGS "formula". I was tired of all the backstabbing, hidden motives, mysterious agenda's, being apparently the last person in the game to find out what is going one, being a puppet, all far fetched plots, blah-blah-blah. I played a demo of Snake Eater and again, I was blown away by the cinematics, but the gameplay to my surprise seemed to have aged terribly. The game's controls and camera system seemed archaic now that I had been playing the Splinter Cell games, and I couldn't really get into the demo. Not to mention that the game's radar system was completely gone, making the over-head camera seem even more cumbersome. So, Snake Eater was released and I never paid it no mind. The rave reviews ("Best Metal Gear yet!") peaked my interest, but I never felt inclined to buy the game.

Now, with no 360 to entertain me, I started Snake Eater (the main reason being that Subsistence boasts a new camera system more akin to other 3rd person games). Let me first say, that if not for the new camera system, I do not know if I could play this game. It gives you the option to switch between the new camera and the traditional MG camera on the fly, and wow, the game seems practically unplayable with the tradition overhead camera. Good choice Konami by finally giving in and admitting that the old system was dated.

I just recently beat the game I thought the game was great. Overall. Best Metal Gear ever? You know, it just might be. But wow, the MGS play mechanics really, really need to be addressed for the PS3 sequel. The new camera helps a ton, but the rest of the controls and gameplay definitely need a big-time face-lift. It is a testament to the game's level design, story, cinematics and overall atmosphere that the game is still extremely entertaining and engaging, because a lot of the time I felt frustrated by how un-intuitive the game controls. I mean, in order to fire a weapon you sometimes need to press three buttons, not to mention aim!

Example. Firing your weapon is completely pointless from the 3rd person view, so you need to press and hold R1 to go into 1st person view. Then you need to press and hold the square button to bring up your weapon. Depending on the weapon and the type of firing mode you are in (automatic, semi-auto, or single shot) pressing square too hard will shoot the weapon (the PS2 pad has pressure sensitive buttons remember) or if not on automatic, you need to release the square button to fire. But wait, unless you are using the pistol, aiming with just the 1st person view and the square button is not enough, you need to also press L1 to bring the weapon up close to aim down the barrel. So you are holding down R1 to be in 1st person view, holding down L1 to aim down the gun and making sure you are pressing square the correct way to even have your weapon out and fire. Wow, talk about making something as difficult as possible. Try doing all that when you've sounded an alert and you have four enemies and a dog bearing down on you. I know the game is about stealth and not action, but c'mon!!!

Another problem I have is that Snake can only move around either standing up or crawling on his stomach. Again, I have been spoiled by Splinter Cell in which 90% of my movement is done walking while crouching. That sort of hunched-back movement we've seen in the SC games which I have grown fond of. When looked at in realistic terms, maybe many spies don't move around like that, as it is fairly difficult to do and not very comfortable, but Sam makes it look so natural. I can't tell you how many times I wish Snake would just try it. C'mon Snake, just once!!! It makes you less visible!!!

There are a few new additions to the MG series this time around. Gone is the ever-so handy radar (which showed you your immediate surroundings complete with enemy locations and their "vision cones"). New to the mix is camouflage, the need to feed to keep your stamina up, and curing Snake when injured.

The camouflage system is pretty cool, as you can mix and match face and body patterns to blend in with your immediate surroundings. A "camo index" in the top right of the screen gives you a percentage of how well you are hidden. Many things get taken into account, such as the type of camo used, your body positioning (standing, crouched, prone) and your rate of movement. At first it seems like a pain to always have to constantly be going into a menu to change camouflage, but you soon just accept it.

Also new is a Cure and Food system. Snake now not only has to heal his wounds manually (bullet wounds, burns, cuts, broken bones) but he also has to eat to keep his stamina up. Rations no longer give you a health boost, instead, they give a stamina boost, which in turn helps you regenerate your health quicker (health regenerates over time). The higher your stamina the faster you gain health, the better you will aim, the longer you can hold your breath under water and the longer you can hang from ledges (grip meter). It is a pretty good system. Rations are not the only things Snake can consume either. In fact, they are quite rare. Instead, you will have to hunt for your food. Since about 85% of the game takes place in the jungle, you are free to capture (either alive or dead) all the flora and fauna of the area. And there are quite a few critters to catch. Snakes, frogs, birds, mushrooms, fruit, insects, rats, the list goes on and on. Some taste great, some don't, some are poisonous, some can even spoil if you keep them in your inventory for too long. Pretty detailed stuff.

The rest of the game is very similar to Sons of Liberty, just refined. Snake now has CQC moves (Close Quarter Combat) allowing him to pull off a variety of moves from close range. You still advance through the game one section at a time (think big screens), you still face off against a number of bosses, each sporting a silly name and super-natural powers, you still have your cardboard boxes to hide under, your Codec conversations and your long periods of just watching instead of playing. But Snake Eater's story is far more entertaining than anything in the previous two Solid games and the gameplay - while definitely aging - has been ironed about as much as it can be, without changing the MGS formula outright (which they need to probably do for part 4), to make it an enjoyable experience throughout.

One thing that stood out for me was how incredibly realistic and detailed some aspects of the game and how completely unrealistic and game-like other aspects are. Snake Eater - much like its predecessors - has a lot of game "staples" in it, that really detract from its realism. This is intentional from Konami, but it is something I hope they address for part 4, since as the series' graphics have become more and more realistic, these elements just stand out more and more and kills the level of immersion for me. Things like the big exclamation point or question mark that appears over enemies' heads when they notice snake, the fact that all items/food appear as floating containers that spin and hover in the air, Snake changing his camouflage in an instant, or just being able to enter the Codec no matter what is going on and have your enemies just wait for you to finish your conversation. Also, I would like to know how all these bosses got these super powers . . . and why they explode after you defeat them, But maybe that is just me.

And as long as we're nitpicking, I have an issue with the way Snake animates. During the cut-scenes Snake moves around realistically, especially when sneaking and taking cover, but when you are playing the game he has the same pathetic looking walk and looks very robotic. I would like some more variation with his animations and maybe some contextual stuff like in Chaos Theory where Sam's sneaking animation would actually change the closer he got to an enemy. That was very cool. Oh, and what the hell is up with Snakes' walking up and down the stairs animation? Is that not the most ridiculous thing you have ever seen?!?!?!?

Ok, enough Snake Eater bashing, because I really did enjoy the game. Even with all my nitpicks, it is probably the best Metal Gear game to date and has rekindles my interest in the series enough to look forward to part 4 on the PS3 and maybe even Snake Eater's PSP sequel.