Metal Gear Solid Three: Snake Eater

If there were one series that re-defined adult gaming, and gaming in general it would probably be considered to be Metal Gear Solid on the Playstation. It single handily made stealth cool, and not just cool but it lead the way for other similarly themed games series [Syphon Filter, Splinter Cell]. With it’s Hollywood style production values [cutting edge graphics, and a musical score from Harry Gregson-Williams], complex narrative [with twists and turns, double and triple crossing spies], highly memorable characters [Solid Snake, Liquid Snake, Mei Ling, Col. Campbell, Revolver Ocelot to name but a few] it marked a new era for video games. Anyway that was 1998, since then there has been Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons Of Liberty [On the PS2] set two years after the events of the previous game, this game expanded on the previous games ideas and themes, only with better graphics [it was also the first MGS game to allow you to aim and fire in first person mode] Anyway three years later, and we have MGS3: SE, creator/writer/director Hideo Kojima's 'supposed' final Metal Gear Solid game [with him at the helm]. This is a prequel, it is set in the 60’s, it's hero is Jack [Codename Naked Snake, who is the person they used to get the genes from to create both Solid and Liquid Snake]. Poor things first...the start of the game isn't particularly enjoyable or interesting at all this 'Virtuous' mission however is merely only an introduction to the main game itself, it will take you around two hours to complete and around 80% of the time you will probably be listening or watching something rather than doing anything [of which the mission is to rescue Sokolov, a weapons designer who is being forced to help create the unfortunately named Shagohod, a portable tank-like-thing capable of launching nuclear weapons, think Metal Gear REX, RAY as it’s along those lines.] After completing the introductory mission, you get a brilliant opening-credits with scenes from the game overplayed on pictures of moving snakes and such with a brilliant theme tune as well [very Bond]. Then mission Snake Eater begins, and it's good...brilliant in fact, the first few hours of toiling in discontent pay off in abundance. Fans will love that it's a prequel but newcomers will also enjoy the game on it's own, a stand-out scene early on sees you fight a young Ocelot [he hasn’t picked up the 'Revolver' bit yet] over a ravine, the battle is genuinely a tense and exciting one. Interestingly/hilariously enough if you actually kill Ocelot you get a 'Game Over' screen with the words 'Time Paradox' displayed, this also happens if you yourself die, because obviously if either of these things happen then the events in the previous games wouldn't have ever taken place [it's semi-complex]. This game won't disappoint those who thought MGS2's boss battles were lacking, you get to fight The Pain [he is made from swarms of bees and bee hives, and attacks you with...well bees] Volgin [who's body is for some reason electrically charged and The Fury [a demented ex-Cosmonaut who wears his space suit the whole time and goes around killing people with a flame thrower] among others. One of the main draw points of the game is how many ways you can go about things, this is illustrated perfectly with one of the boss's The End [an aging man said to be 'The Father Of Snipers' who is usually confined to a wheelchair asleep] early on in the game after a cut scene you will see a guard wheeling The End back into a warehouse, here you can either let him be or kill him there and then, later on though if you chose not to kill him when the fight commences you can actually save the game, leave it for a couple of days [or fast forward the clock on your PS2] and then re-enter the game, and you will find out that The End has hilariously died of old age, and you don't even have to bother about fighting him at all, which may come as some relief because the battle in the jungle with this ace marksman is tough and arduous to say the least. The much talked about jungle itself really isn't a jungle at all, just reasonably open corridors with foliage in between, but it is beautiful none the less, and it is brimming with wildlife [Snakes, Crocodiles, Spiders among others] which helps at least create the effect your in a living and breathing world. You still communicate with a team of people who are there to aid you quest but via radio rather than codec [it hasn't been invented yet] disappointingly though the characters aren't nearly as memorable as I had hoped [Stereotypical black guy Signet who is a weapons expect and Para Medic [Is that really her name? Who is a nurse, and also saves your progress in the game]. Those of you who thought the previous too games were un-necessarily long-winded, may be annoyed to find this game is probably even more so [with over five hours of cut scenes, some gamers may be tempted to skip them, but then they would be missing out on what makes this so special and memorable in the first place. There are a million things I haven't mentioned like trying to find all the green frogs hidden away in the game [for a special bonus: Stealth Camouflage]. The hilarious Snake Versus Monkey mini game featuring the monkeys from Ape Escape, and the 'Boss Rush' mode where you can individually battle against any boss from the game. Graphically it pushes the PS2 beyond it's limits and it's the most visually unique and constantly changing nature of the environment in which the game is set what makes it so special. Throw in countless references to films and music from the 60’s, a hilarious joke about James Bond "What would I need a gun shaped like a pen for?" and you have an action/stealth game that goes deeper than most. Returning to the series once again is David Hayter as Naked Snake [voice of Solid Snake in the previous games] and he semi-hams it up as this new character with to be honest, an even gruffer voice than before [hearing him remark "Metal...Gearrr?!??!?!" sleighed me a hundred times over. I have spent a good 7 hours on the game and I am now in a region around the cliffs, high up from the jungle below, in fact I haven't even reached my final destination. This game has got the obligatory man peeing himself through fear scene, and torture scene, it's got an involving love story between Snake and Eva you even get to beat the crap out of/mock MGS2's must-be-queer hero Raiden. This is Hideo Kojima’s defining moment, and a fine way to end a brilliant trilogy of games. This post doesn't do it any sort of justice what-so-ever. 10/10.