JAKE CURNOW PRESENTS
Metal Gear Solid V The Phantom Pain
Playstation 4 Version
Look no further for the epitome of stealth action than to Hideo Kojima’s Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain. With the best gameplay in nearly seventeen years of franchise history, The Phantom Pain exemplifies the textbook definition of what it means to be a stealth action video game. A brand new code name in check, “Punished ‘Venom’ Snake” finds himself on a quest for vengeance against an organization known as “Cipher”, which was responsible for the destruction of Snake’s “Militares Sans Frontieres” (MSF) organization. Approximately nine years earlier during Phantom Pain’s Prologue, Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes, Cipher’s personal strike team (called XOF) raided and destroyed Snake’s MSF facility under the guise of a fake nuclear inspection by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). Snake, also referred to as Big Boss, was rapidly growing the MSF organization, eventually posing a danger to rival militant organizations with his development of nuclear technology. Snake’s desire to prove to the world that he wasn’t dangerous was the perfect opportunity for Cipher’s strike team to discover the location of Snake’s military fortress, pose as a nuclear inspection team, and take down MSF once and for all.
During Cipher’s raid on the MSF fortress, Big Boss and his right hand man, Kazuhira Miller, were seriously injured in the attack due to an explosion near their escape helicopter, putting Big Boss into a coma for nine years.
The opening of Metal Gear Solid V features one of the most intense sequences in the game, with Big Boss waking up from a coma in the hospital. As the doctor explains to a disoriented Big Boss what happened, Cipher’s personal strike team (XOF) begins raiding the hospital in a violent rampage to locate and kill Big Boss. Barely able to walk and weakened to the bone, Boss is lucky to have an accomplice aid him in an attempt to escape the hospital.
Escaping from the hospital is both spectacular and chilling. Never before have players seen Big Boss in such a weakened and vulnerable state; he’s clearly the prey this time around. As Big Boss moves through the hospital, the only thing he can do at first is evade the Cipher hit squad. Without a fire arm or the ability to fight back, the opening of Phantom Pain feels more like a suspense filled horror game than a third person stealth action title. Thankfully enough, Big Boss happens to be one of the biggest targets on earth, with an additional creature looking to kill him only known as the “Man on Fire”. With supernatural abilities in his arsenal, the Man on Fire ends up taking down several of Cipher’s strike team commandos like yesterday’s mid afternoon snack, originally confusing the player as to whose side this being is on. Big Boss doesn’t take any chances, however, and uses the opportunity to acquire a firearm from the incapacitated strike team. The instant Big Boss get’s his hands on a firearm, the tables are turned and the entire tone of the game changes, making it much easier for him to escape the hospital.
During Big Boss’ escape from the Man on Fire and Cipher at the hospital, he meets up with one of his strongest allies, Revolver Ocelot, who takes Boss into hiding to aid his recovery. Big Boss is able to quickly recuperate, and meets back up with Kazuhira Miller.
With Boss and his allies working together again, players witness a Kazuhira Miller infuriated like never before due to the destruction of MSF. Miller, Ocelot, and Big Boss agree to a quest of vengeance against their enemies, and to the rebuilding of their military organization, bigger and better than it was before, now called “Diamond Dogs”.
The remainder of Metal Gear Solid V features Big Boss on a quest to build up Diamond Dogs and exact vengeance on Cipher. Compared to previous franchise titles, however, The Phantom Pain focuses more on gameplay than it does on elaborate cut scenes and story-telling, but that doesn’t mean the story isn’t there. Story information that isn’t found through direct campaign progression can be located by listening to optional cassette tape conversations, which are found on the in game menu. Although these cassette tape conversations aren’t as spectacular and thought provoking as the elaborate cut scenes in previous entries, they’re still able to fill any gaps in Metal Gear Solid V’s story. But just because Metal Gear Solid V’s cut scenes are limited, doesn’t mean that they aren’t spectacular. Not only is the opening segment a 10 out of 10 (in my book), but other in game scenes, such as Big Boss extracting a female enemy sniper only known as “Quiet”, can be equally as intense. At the heart of Metal Gear Solid V, however, is a focus more on gameplay rather than story. Whether or not this sits well with series veterans, many of which have been carefully following the franchise for seventeen years or more, remains to be seen. Fan reception thus far, however, seems to be mixed.
Throughout the campaign, players are able to build their very own fortress for Diamond Dogs, called “Mother Base”, which can be customized and physically expanded. Metal Gear Solid V’s system of customization, development, and expansion is so vast that explaining every mechanic in detail is out of the question. The basis of development, whether for Mother Base or equipment, is going out on missions to recruit soldiers, acquiring money (called GMP), and securing resources.
Big Boss is able to tackle two different types of missions, which are side ops and the main campaign missions. Obviously the campaign missions end up progressing the games story, but so do some of the side ops. Very similar to Phantom Pain’s predecessor, Metal Gear Solid Peace Walker, players are able to take on one mission at a time by entering (and then exiting) the mission area by helicopter. Since Metal Gear Solid V features massive open world environments, one in Afghanistan and the other in Africa, players also have the option of deploying to an area of their choice and then taking on several consecutive missions before extraction. Prior to a mission, players also have the ability to choose their loadout, which includes the selection of equipment, vehicles, time of day, buddies, and even different MSF characters.
Equipment selection is self-explanatory, but in addition to bringing vehicles (ranging from a jeep to a tank) players also have the option of bringing a buddy with them. The four buddies that I currently have available are D-Horse, D-Dog, Quiet, and D-Walker. Quiet, who was briefly mentioned above, is a mute sniper with supernatural abilities. She is awesome to have out on mission, but players be warned! Big Boss is given the opportunity to kill her early in the game and I’d recommend to avoid doing that if you want to have her as a buddy.
In addition to Quiet, players are able to bring along D-Horse, who is used to travel faster through the open world environment. D-Walker is another interesting buddy, which is basically a miniature, lesser equipped version of Metal Gear, customizable with a plethora of different weapons and upgrades. Last but not least is D-Dog, who can perform a wide range of useful tricks from stunning enemies, to sniffing out enemy positions. In addition to selecting a buddy, players can also select which equipment to use for that buddy. This same process holds true for Big Boss himself, as well as any playable MSF character. Be cautious what you bring on a mission, however, since every deployment costs both money and resources.
The mission system in Metal Gear Solid V features Big Boss taking on objective based assignments ranging anywhere from rescuing weapon scientists, to eliminating high profile targets. When out on a mission, Boss has the opportunity to locate and extract resources, weapons, animals, and people. Smaller resources can be picked up and immediately added to your inventory, but remember, Big Boss and Miller are on a quest for vengeance, with one of their prime directives being the expansion of Diamond Dogs. Since Boss is trying to build an army, he needs soldiers, and he’s able to recruit soldiers by going out on missions and extracting them via Fulton recovery system. As players upgrade the Fulton recovery system, it’s possible to extract much larger items like tanks, advanced weapon systems, and cargo containers.
Many of the missions in Metal Gear Solid V are similar in nature, and the majority of side ops are nothing more than rinse and repeat missions in different locations, but that’s where the expansion of Mother Base comes into play. I can say without a doubt, that as repetitive as missions were, I still found the process entertaining since I was always able to find new recruits and resources. After extracting soldiers and convincing them to join Diamond Dogs, they are automatically assigned to units on the base, whether it be the Combat, Intel, or Research and Development team. There’s more units than what I’ve listed, and players have the option to manually assign their new recruits to whatever team they choose. This is an excellent feature since each recruit has a grade, corresponding to their level of skill, ranging from E all the way to S (highest). The better and more expanded a particular team is, the better the perks that come along with it.
Expanding the Mother Base platforms is an excellent method for upgrading teams, since each of the platforms correspond to a specific team while simultaneously expanding the maximum number of members that can be assigned to that team. Upgrading the Research and Development team, for example, will make the process of weapon and equipment development far more effective. And there’s no shortage of toys to tinker with in Metal Gear Solid V… Players can develop, upgrade, and customize a massive amount of weapons, gadgets, and items; including invisibility suits, anti-material sniper rifles, ballistic shields, and wormhole extraction devices. In addition to weapons and devices for Big Boss, equipment can also be developed for your helicopter, as well as for your buddies.
With Metal Gear Solid V offering players such a wide assortment of weaponry to use, one of the complaints I’d have is the fact that a lot of this weaponry may be considered useless by many players. Phantom Pain is a title that will immerse players into its environment, and the more immersed one becomes, the more they want to build up Mother Base and its staff. The only way to recruit additional staff members to Diamond Dogs, however, is by taking them down (while on missions) using non-lethal methods. With that said, the majority of lethal weapons are going to be considered pointless to the hardcore player. Missions in Metal Gear Solid V give players the opportunity to approach them in any way they see fit. However, the majority of hardcore players are going to approach missions with the intention of non-lethally subduing their enemies.
As players continue to expand Mother Base, they’re able to witness its development from a front row seat, since Big Boss can visit the base at any time. Despite the overall size of Metal Gear Solid V, it’s really the little things that make this game shine, such as how Big Boss arrives by chopper to Mother Base only to have his subordinates waiting for him at the helipad in salute formation. The expansion of Diamond Dogs doesn’t stop at Mother Base, however, since players can expand their territory from the offline Mother Base into the online environment, where Forward Operating Bases (FOBs) can be constructed. Since the official Metal Gear Online for Solid V didn’t launch until one month after the release of the game, the FOB system was its first online competitive component.
FOB is an attack and defend online competitive mode for Metal Gear Solid V where players put their Forward Operating Base on the line against real players. Every players FOB has resources that can be taken control of by another online player, should that person choose to target their base with a successful infiltration. FOB mode heavily favors the defender, however, and a successful acquisition of the defender’s goods requires the attacker to make it the core of the defenders FOB, which is quite a challenge. Perhaps the most controversial aspect of the FOB gameplay type is the fact that attackers can raid your base when your Playstation 4 isn’t even on, but that’s where networking comes into play.
Not only do defenders receive an alert upon detection of the attacker, but defenders are also given the opportunity to immediately go to their FOB and personally defend their stronghold. In addition, players can network with each other using the relationships tab to form an alliance. If a player has chosen to support another player, the supporter will then receive a message asking if he or she wants to defend the others FOB upon detection of an intruder.
With seventeen years of evolution under its belt, Metal Gear Solid V offers the best gameplay of the entire saga, hands down, and no question about it. Previous entries in the series, such as Metal Gear Solid 3, took the original stabs at gameplay enhancement. But nothing, and I mean ZERO GAMES in the Metal Gear Solid saga, come anywhere close to matching Phantom Pains stealth abilities, precision of movement, weapons arsenal, and options to approach a mission. Despite the fact hardcore MGSV players may limit their method of play to non-lethal enemy takedowns at first, this doesn’t mean that a plethora of options aren’t available, because they are. Not only does Snake have an advanced prosthetic arm with a wide range of abilities, but there is a massive amount of different weapons and gadgets to use.
In addition to the surplus of weapons and gadgets players can use, they can also take control of heavily armored tanks, machine gun turrets, and mortar systems. But it doesn’t end there… Big Boss also has the ability to call in a helicopter attack run on a location of his choice, or simply order a bombardment of a specified area using artillery, smoke, sleeping gas, or chaff. With the click of a button, weather modification is also possible, whether players want to create rain or even a sandstorm.
Despite the advanced weaponry players have access to, the close quarter combat options are better than ever, giving Snake some of the most devastating CQC options in franchise history. Metal Gear Solid V doesn’t exactly give Snake the skills of an Olympian boxer, but he has just enough inside fighting skill to takedown enemies if they get too close for comfort. Brutal Judo throws and combination punches are able to ruthlessly knock enemies unconscious in slow motion detail.
Being a knockout artist isn’t Snake’s only specialty, though, since he also has levels of speed never before seen in a Metal Gear Solid video game, thanks to the addition of the run button. With the simple click of a button, Snake is able to viciously speed through the map like a marathon sprinter without the need to stop for a snack or water break. As simple as the run button feature may be in other titles, the way it plays out in Metal Gear Solid V makes your character feel vigorously fast, and like he’s got a purpose.
The gameplay in Metal Gear Solid V is so well-designed that it’s hard to isolate any serious problems besides the repetitiveness of missions. But even with this issue, players have so many different ways to approach a mission that the repetition can be somewhat overlooked. The controls are tight, the weapons pack a punch, and the movement feels crisp and clean. It’s never been easier to do the things you want to accomplish in a Metal Gear Solid video game. Interestingly enough, however, one of the most iconic features of a Metal Gear Solid title, which is getting into cover, comes across as lackluster and sloppy. Getting into cover requires players to press their character up against a wall until he attaches himself to it. Afterwards, players are able to move from side to side or target an enemy from behind that cover point. Trying to pull this maneuver off under pressure can be frustrating, though, since the process feels counter intuitive, loose, and unresponsive. The previous game in the series, Metal Gear Solid Peace Walker, let players get into cover by pressing a button, which is what Phantom Pain should have done. One would assume that Big Boss, one of the most legendary soldiers of all time, could perform basic actions such as getting into cover or climbing over a small rock, but in some cases, he seems to have trouble performing either of those two actions.
The decision to make Metal Gear Solid V and open world video game was questionable. The graphics are some of the best I’ve seen on the Playstation 4, and the scenery is breathtaking. It’s interesting that sand and rainstorms can affect how the game is played, and it’s interesting to have the option of approaching missions however you want. But not every gaming franchise can pull off an open world environment, which is part of the reason why games like Grand Theft Auto are so incredible. The Phantom Pain, on the other hand, should be given props for (almost) pulling off an amazing open world environment.
Aside from the mission areas, the majority of the Metal Gear Solid V open world comes across as lifeless fluff, despite the amazing graphics. With that said, there’s no legitimate reason to explore other than to locate various guard posts and plants for resources. Locating the various types of plants in Metal Gear Solid V isn’t exactly an exciting process, and although they can be valuable resources, it’s not even necessary to hunt them down. Many of these plants can be found during missions, and players can send an automated team on a “Combat Deployment” mission to gather them in that way as well. So the majority of the open world comes across as unnecessary territory. I never stumbled across a Bigfoot… I still haven’t come across a secret T-Rex boss fight… I haven’t discovered a star gate teleporting me to an alien moon base. I definitely haven’t found a rocket pack yet, and I absolutely have not seen any UFO’s. There’s literally nothing interesting about the environment other than mission areas, random animals, sand storms, and the occasional waterfall. But is this game breaking? Absolutely not, because it just keeps you focused on the mission areas… But if players are supposed to concentrate on the mission area, then why even go through the trouble of creating such a lifeless landscape outside of those areas?
Regardless of my gripe with Phantom Pain’s environment, the good news is that the game features some of the best sound, music, and voice acting the gaming industry has to offer. Harry Gregson-Williams returns, yet again, for another spectacular musical score designed for Metal Gear Solid V. Williams is a mastermind producer, and one of my complaints about previous titles is that background music wasn’t featured during some of the gameplay operations. Whereas Metal Gear Solid 2 had background music playing almost one hundred percent of the time, Metal Gear Solid V seems to activate its musical score in mission based areas.
One of the most notable changes in Metal Gear Solid V is the change in Snake’s voice actor. The former voice actor, David Hayter, is a legend in his own right, but is now replaced by mega hit TV show 24’s Kiefer Sutherland. Fans were upset about the change in voice actors at first, but I found Sutherland to be an excellent fit for the role of Big Boss. Major plot twists can be found all throughout the Metal Gear Solid saga, and even though Hayter’s version of Snake had a level of intelligence to him, I couldn’t help but feel sorry for how confused Snake always was during these plot twists. Interestingly enough, Kiefer Sutherland comes across as a more intelligent version Big Boss; definitely the type of person it would take to build an army. Kiefer isn’t the only great voice actor in Metal Gear Solid V, however, since the franchise has a 17+ year history of defining what it means to be a high quality voice actor in the gaming industry.
The conclusion to Metal Gear Solid V’s story wasn’t exactly pleasing to the fan base. After following Metal Gear since the inception on the MSX and Nintendo, I saw Phantom Pains ending as an interesting plot twist wrapping up loose ends, but I can understand the complaints of others. Although the storyline of MGSV isn’t exactly horrible, there’s something about the game, when compared to its predecessors, that makes it feel incomplete, lacking, and hollow.
Released on October 6th, 2015: Metal Gear Online is the third consecutive multiplayer attachment to a Metal Gear Solid title, with the original MGO coming as an attachment to an upgraded version of Metal Gear Solid 3. The core gameplay mechanics of (single player) Metal Gear Solid V carry over into online play, which is excellent, since the single player has the best gameplay in franchise history.
Metal Gear Online features class-based competition spanning three different gameplay types. The three classes to choose from are scout, infiltrator, and enforcer, each with their own unique perks. Players also have the option to customize their loadout, gear, and appearance of their character before going into Metal Gear Online’s three competitive gameplay modes: Bounty Hunter, Comm Control, and Cloak and Dagger.
Bounty Hunter is, essentially, a modified version of Team Death Match, where each team is to either kill or Fulton extract members of the opposing team. Cloak and Dagger is fundamentally different from the other game modes with its structure. Attackers are armed with stealth camouflage and non-lethal weapons, and are tasked with securing (and then extracting) a data disc. Defenders, on the other hand, are to prevent the attackers from taking the disc, and are armed with lethal weapons. The twist in this game mode is that neither team has any respawns, and the mode ultimately seems similar to Splinter Cell’s Spies vs Mercs. The difference between this mode and Splinter Cell’s is that Spies vs Mercs is better designed, whereas Cloak and Dagger feels a bit thrown together.
Comm Control is the game mode I mostly played from October 6th on forward, and I did well enough to nearly break into the top 1,000 at launch. Comm Control is a modified version of King of the Hill, consisting of three simultaneous hills, but with an attack and defend structure. I had fun with it at first, and the action is focused and methodical. Rarely in competitive online play do players consistently pressure the objective, but in Comm Control, I found other players to be right on point.
As refreshing as it was to have team mates pressuring the objective in all three gameplay types, it was equally as frustrating to deal with players using invisibility. Outside of the Cloak and Dagger gameplay type, invisibility suits are exclusive to the Infiltrator class, although I feel the game would have been more balanced if these suits remained exclusive to that gameplay type.
The last thing I expected, going into Metal Gear Online, was to discover that eighty percent of players would be invisible. Is this game breaking? Not necessarily, because the Scout class has a device to reveal and mark the location of players, whether they’re invisible or not. But it seemed that every time I had an opportunity to take someone out, a second person (usually invisible and from behind) would pop up out of no-where and kill me. One of the most effective counters to the invisibility suit is an invisibility suit of your own, but having to beat these players at their own game makes the competitive environment feel more one dimensional than it should.
Another issue with Metal Gear Online is the difficulty in identifying enemies by sound. Other great third-person shooters, like Gears of War and Monday Night Combat, give skillful listeners the opportunity to diagnose enemy positions by sound. Monday Night Combat, for example, is a class based, tower defense, third person shooter. One of the classes has an invisibility suit, yet careful listeners can identify this particular enemy by sound, since the developers designed her suit to make a slight humming noise at close range. But having good vision, hardware, and sound isn’t good enough for Metal Gear Online, since a person with an invisibility suit may always be lurking behind, just when you think you had an opportunity on someone else.
As unique as Metal Gear Online is, you’d think developers would design equally unique gameplay types, but that’s not the case. Although I’ve had my share of great games, I can’t help but feel like some of them were over too quickly. With Metal Gear Solid placing a focus on sneaking and stealth, it’d be interesting to see an elaborate tower defense gameplay type complete with booby trapped fortresses for the attacker to infiltrate. A game mode like this would slow the action down because, quite frankly, Metal Gear Online doesn’t seem to be designed for players to function at such a high rate of speed. Nonetheless, Metal Gear Online was still a free add on to the overall single player experience, and despite its flaws, it still functions as an effective online addition to The Phantom Pain’s single player experience.
Metal Gear Solid has been around for a very long time. Not only does Konami and series master mind Hideo Kojima continue to deliver after 17 plus years of history, but they do so in spectacular fashion. Although Phantom Pain has its flaws, it also has the best gameplay the series has ever seen. And even though Metal Gear Solid V may come across as having something missing that you can’t quite put your finger on, ironically enough, it’s still able to deliver an experience worthy of being called a Triple A title.
Overall Rating
8.8/10