Metal Gear Solid 4 is the only MGS i haven't played before, for some reason i was putting it off for a while now, i don't know why, maybe i just wanted to know that i still have another Metal Gear game to look forward to, or maybe i just wasn't ready to finish this franchise yet, either way, it's over now.

After finishing this game i went through a variety of emotions, and i still can't decide what i really think of it, It's the conclusion of the entire franchise, this game ties everything together and as a fan of the series, I feel tickled and satisfied, but i also feel like this game kinda undermines the whole series, with over exposition and answers that i didn't want. A story that didn't need to be told, A game that didn't need to be made...But i'm so glad it exists.

You know, Kojima likes to toy around with his fans, he likes to betray players expectations, ever since the Ultimate Troll game that was MGS2, a deconstruction of MGS1 that was more brilliant and thought provoking than anything, i've ever played, yet MGS4 deconstructs the whole damn series and the result is really baffling and overwhelming, and it doesn't quite work.

The whole game feels like a giant fan-service, the amount of references and callbacks is kind of obnoxious... yet i smiled every time, i can't tell if it's strictly my bias and emotional connection to the series, but it evokes all the memories and feelings, back when i played these games, years ago, it hits the spot in a masterful and effective way. There's about 5 hours of gameplay and 10 hours of cutscenes yet i was never bored or tired of it, it constantly switches gears and every new act feels like a joy to watch, seriously the cutscenes are never-ending, and i adore that mentality of not giving a fuck, here you have a 15 minutes of characters cooking eggs... here you have a 30 minutes of over the top, ninja fight scenes... here you have 40 minutes of recap on the previous Metal Gear games... here you have 2 hours of epilogue... it's crazy, and i love it. I finished this game in 2 days and it was very difficult to put away my controller, It was consantly luring me back in, it's seductive and fascinating.

This game is amazing in so many ways, it pretty much invented the seamless transitions from cutscenes to gameplay, the gameplay itself is fantastic, there's a ton of ways you can play and experiment, with plethora of items and weapons at your display, i probably used like 10% of my items in the game, there's so many. I love what they've done with Snake in this game, the fast aging-arc added a lot of urgency to the story and it's quite sad really, the action set-pieces and cutscenes are all amazing, creative and brilliantly presented, there's so many satisfying encounters, resolutions, moments and details that'll keep thinking about.

The tonal shifts are absolutely Kojima-esque to the extreme, juggling between serious and silly: death of an extremely important character is followed by a... dancing monkey, smoking a cigarette... constant 4th wall breaking, ass and cleavege close-ups, goofy melodrama, complicated philosophical ideologies, juxtaposed with 'extremely' cheesy and cringy dialogue, deeply sad characters with complex emotional issues mixed-in with ninjas, cow robots and a vampire... and so on, and so on... you love it or you hate it.

I have plenty of issues with this game, but in a grand scheme of things, they don't bother me that much. I can see why a lot of people hate it, and feel underwhelmed by it, but i also think, this game is a unique experience, that'll never forget. I really can't decide if this is Kojima's Grand Masterpiece or his most self-indulgent, pretentious and unnecessary Metal Gear in the series, i think it's both, and i don't care, i loved every second of it... and who knows, maybe in the future, i'll change my mind on it.

I salute you MGS!... and Farewell

STEALTH-ACTION - The closing chapter in Solid Snake's legendary life, as he tries to save the world by stopping Liquid Ocelot from controlling the SOP.

PROS:

++Excellent gunplay and stealth. Gameplay-wise, MGS4 far surpasses all the previous titles. This is the first game in the franchise where all three major playstyles are actually viable (ghost, assassin, run & gun) since the gunplay is incredibly smooth and satisfying, the camera and controls work perfectly, the CQC was further improved upon and is much simpler to use, and because the player is given such a wide arsenal of tools and weapons to use. It's just too bad there was very little opportunity to play.

++ The emotional highs. The biggest reason why I place MGS4 as my favorite in the series is because of all the emotional highs this game provides. Even though the overall narrative felt convoluted, it was eclipsed by all the amazing, unforgettable moments. Here's just a few I loved: The epic return of Raiden, Raiden saving Snake, Raiden's reunion with his family, Return to Shadow Moses, the microwave hallway, the final fist fight with Liquid Ocelot, Solid Snake and EVA meeting, Solid Snake reuniting with Big Boss. I could go on and on about everything I loved about this game.

++ Impressive production quality. This game looks incredibly impressive for a game made in 2008. The cinematography and choreography in the cutscenes were top-notch, voice acting was great, the transition from cutscene to gameplay was so smooth, and the music! I've been saying it all series, but especially in this entry, the music is just amazing and evokes so much emotion!

++ Fun bosses. Even though the B&B were not that interesting (and also really weird when they came out of their shells), their fights were fun! Laughing Octopus was creepy and unique, and Crying Wolf combined aspects of Sniper Wolf and The End which obviously made it a great boss fight. Outside the B&B's, the REX vs. RAY mech fight was amazing, and the final confrontation with Liquid was unforgettable. The only boss that I felt was "meh" was the battle with Vamp.

++ Satisfying conclusion to Snake's story. This game solidified him as one of my favorite videogame protagonists!

++ Unique multiplayer component. Even though it's no longer available, I had a lot of great memories with Metal Gear Online! It was special, and set itself apart from other multiplayer experiences.

CONS:

-- Too much exposition & technobabble. The biggest weakness is obviously the excessive amount of cutscenes and exposition dumps thrown at the player with the goal of tying up all the loose ends. This results in a videogame that has significantly more cutscenes than actual stealth-action gameplay. So I completely understand those who place MGS4 at the bottom of all the MGS games. If this game had more concise cutscenes (and specifically less technobabble) and had more opportunities for stealth (as seen in Acts 1 & 2), this game would be a clear-cut masterpiece.

-- Some scenes missed the mark. There were some scenes that were intended to be emotional but failed to evoke emotion from me (the backstories of the B&B, and the death of Naomi).

-- Too easy. I think the biggest reason why was because the player was given the option to buy ammo at any time, even in the middle of a boss fight. And even though I love the OctoCamo, it made stealth incredibly easy (still super cool though).

-- Annoying enemy late-game. I hate the unmanned drones (the bowling balls with arms) that littered Act 4 & 5. One of the most annoying and least interesting MGS enemies to fight. Why couldn't we just fight normal soldiers or the FROGS?

-- The tailing mission. The tailing mission in the beginning of Act 3 could have been done so much better. It was way too easy and required no critical thinking from the player.

-- Occasional drops in FPS.

Ladies and Gents, let me start off by saying that if you have never played the Metal Gear Solid series like me up until recently, then you truly are missing out. For the longest time I never played Metal Gear Solid seeing it as a complicated mess with clunky controls, and cut scenes and dialogue that dragged out too long for its own good. I was quite mistaken. Series creator Hideo Kojima crafted a deep, convoluted story that all wraps together with Guns of the Patriots, and everything from the cinematography in the cut scenes to the character interaction via codec calls and general dialogue has a dynamic flair that you just can't help but enjoy. That applies to all the games, not just this one too! Not to mention the incredible action/stealth game play that was built upon from the past 3 Metal Gear Solid games.

As the story goes, you are playing as Solid Snake, an American agent born from the DNA of his former mentor, his father Big Boss. Snake is rapidly aging from the nanotech in his body injected prior to Metal Gear Solid and thus appears older than he actually is. PMCs have risen all over the world due to war taking over the global economy, and technology has advanced to the point these PMC soldiers are injected with more refined Nanomachines that enhance their senses, allow them to see through eachothers eyes, suppress pain and desensitize triggers of certain emotions. All in all they make you a soldier without the years of training or experience needed to be one. Snake's greatest enemy, Ocelot is now making his move towards global domination through certain large faction PMCs and AIs entitled "Patriots" and Snake is well and truly the only one who can stop him. Over the course of the story there are many surprises, plot twists, and intrigue as you experience Snake's final mission.

Action has been toned up in this entry, and stealth has been downplayed a bit over past entries. In this technical age, Snake uses a suit that helps regulate his reflexes, and helps him hide from enemies using tech that morphs the color palette of the suit to match whatever Snake is leaning up against. An indicator ring has also been added that helps the player visually see what direction enemies are at and how high his chance is of being detected. Meters have been added that make you judge between going loud and staying quiet, titled Psyche and Stress. Maintaining low stress levels helps maintain psyche, keeping Snake's aim straight and ability to recover any lost psyche over time from long periods of crouch walking, or hiding in the middle of a fierce firefight between 2 opposing PMCs. Combat highs can occur if you end up in a firefight with several enemies, which maintain high stress and steady psyche, but bottom out over time and unless stress is reduced, will deteriorate psyche which throws Snake's aim off, and inhibits his ability to recover using healing items.

The voice work is excellent, the characters are all well fleshed out, and the plot is neatly wrapped up with all loose ends and crazy, convoluted plot details explained sometime, somewhere in the story. I believe my playthrough was around 21 hours, but I think the story itself was 16-18 hours if I'm not mistaken. Various secrets, from the par easter eggs of finding female models or konami employees hidden in posters throughout the game to more bizarre secrets like photo shoots and crazy camo designs, there was plenty of fun to be had in all the seriousness of the situation. Dialogue between characters ranges from serious to downright silly, with my personal favorite being an exchange between Otacon and Snake about switching to Disc 2 at a certain point, referencing Metal Gear Solid 1, only to hear "Oh, we're on PS3 now, and Dual Layer Blu-Ray discs too! What will they think of next!" showcasing the self referential fourth wall breaking fun that Hideo Kojima and crew has.

5/5 stars, 10/10 score, 2 thumbs up, whatever you can call it this game is an example of pure perfection. A perfect mix between stealth/action when you dig a bit into the systems, of plot and character if you pay attention, and of fun/serious that only can be found in Hideo Kojima helmed project.