Metal Gear Solid

I apologize in advance for this almost-entirely video game related post. I try to avoid blogging about video games, but this has been burning in the back of my brain and I had to get it out.

I've had a long-time obsession with Metal Gear Solid. The original MGS on the original Playstation was the first video game that really made me love video gaming in general. It had a modern story full of crazy characters and amazing twists that gave you the impression that there was a gigantic amount of secrets to be plundered hiding just under the surface.

I played through MGS2 when it came out on the PS2, and as much as I loved it still, with its better graphics and evolved game play, I had a hard time adjusting to both the tonal shift in a much much more complex story and the addition of playing Raiden instead of Snake through most of the game. I still loved it, like I said, but it doesn't hold that same place in my heart.

I tried playing MGS3: Snake Eater at the time it was released. I was a bit skeptical of playing MGS in a jungle, but we were back to full-time Snake (which I wouldn't realize until years later was actually the original Snake that the one we love from MGS1 and 2 was originally cloned from), and I was ready to jump back in. I was immediately intimidated. The game play was challenging, and I felt like I would be dead in the water just trying to get past the first guard without my little map to guide me through the level.

I had to give up on MGS for a while, and it was a dark age for me. Sure I still played and loved tons of video games over the years, but nothing captured me quite like the original MGS.

Fast forward to a couple years ago when we get our PS3 and I find out I can download the original MGS and play it straight on the PS3. Sure the graphics have aged, but the story was just as engaging, and I couldn't wait to play to the finish.

More recently I picked up the HD collection of MGS2 and 3 for my Vita, and I think I found my all-time favorite video game in MGS3. It hit everything just right. I had heard for years that MGS3 was the best both from real-life friends and on the internet, but I hadn't experienced it for myself. Now I'm looking to get the big Legacy Edition soon that will allow me to play the entire saga right on my PS3. I can't wait.

So what's with this Konami commercial of a blog post anyway? I just wanted to give some context, and would love to hear other people's experience with the series, when I say that Metal Gear Solid 5 looks like a massive leap in story-telling and, just from the director's cut of the trailer alone, is something you'll want to be emulating for your tabletop games.

Watch it below. It's a red band trailer, so probably NSFW, and it does have some pretty intense scene.



Seriously, Hideo Kojima, the writer/director of the franchise, is really going to be pushing some boundaries and looking at some really ugly questions. This looks to essentially be the "Episode III" of the series (or at least what we all hoped Episode III would depict) in that it shows one of the series' main antagonist finally make his fall and make some poor decisions that put him into the position of not being that great a guy to be around. I can't wait for this game.