Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater

Game Info

Publisher: Konami

Developer: Konami Computer Entertainment Japan

Platform: PS2

Genre(s): Action

Players: 1

ESRB Rating: M (Mature)

Release Date: November 17, 2004

Intro:

As in all of the Metal Gear Solid games, Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater begins with an extended cinemagraphic.  Just prior to loading the game, the player is asked if they are new to the franchise, liked Metal Gear Solid or Metal Gear Solid 2.  The decision makes a small difference in the beginning cut scene but, ultimately, that difference won't make any sense in gameplay.  More or less, it's an easter egg for previous fans of the franchise.  The back-story and major players are introduced and the player is deposited in the center of the woods. 

Getting Going:

The first task Snake needs to complete is the retrieval of his backpack.  This lets the player know that Snake can now climb some trees.  In addition, the use of the weapons system and stealth play are introduced as well as a new camouflage system.  The basic tutorial fails to introduce the player to the new sonar systems which, without the guide, left me thinking I was without any form of radar in this game for a time.  

Fun:

I found myself a little lost in the timeline.  I had played the other games in the franchise and was familiar with the main characters.  And yet, it had been a while since I'd played either of those games so I found myself reaching to try to remember the dates of the games.  Things seemed off and I couldn't figure out why.  MGS3 is actually a pre-quel to the other two games.  Since confusion isn't fun in general and other details, such as the aforementioned "easter egg", don't fit the story, I wasn't really having fun. 

Visuals:

While this is still a PS2 game, the visuals have been ramped up in this iteration of the franchise.  The grass moves and Snake can move into first person view to see what's there.  Bright green frogs move about in the grass, causing individual blades of grass to move.  Snakes travel along the ground, allowing Snake to crouch and kill them for food, which is consumable for health and stamina.  Stamina improves healing time.  Various camouflage options allow Snake to hide in multiple environments, blending in to varying degrees depending on the combination chosen and the terrain he's on.  Texturing is improved immensely including facial expression in-game, clothing, and environmental textures. Codec calls have received a visual upgrade showing a slightly animated Snake in the background while a thumbnail in the upper left corner shows either a picture of the current speaker or flashes of mission objectives. 

Sound:

The grass rustles and the nature sounds abound.  During calls between Snake and his handlers, all other sounds are obliterated, keeping calls clear.  The music and background sounds are a bit repetitive, but much of the game is voice-acted.  David Hayter is back as the familiar voice of Snake.  

Story:

MGS3 borrows heavily from the Cuban Missile Crisis and rising tensions between the U.S. and Russia under President Johnson and Khrushchev.  Therefore, the game takes place in 1964; Metal Gear Solid takes place in 2005 and Metal Gear Solid 2 takes place in 2007 and 2009.  The previously claimed "easter egg" brings in an element from MGS2 which could not be present in 1964, creating confusion.  In addition, Snake has a different name and some important non-player characters seem out of character until you understand the timeline.  All of the games in the Metal Gear franchise are story-driven games; MGS3 is no different.  The story is compelling and well-formed.  Characters are familiar, but also have specific personalities.  They may not be well-rounded, but the thought is there.

Intelligence:

It is harder to sneak past enemies in MGS3; notable since this is a stealth game.  Enemies no longer show line of sight on the radar so you must keep them in vision.  The binoculars are much more useful in this installment, however.  Enemies send up an alert, bringing scores of enemies.  Items, such as guns and ammo are less plentiful and lose their value with use.  Scopes run on batteries, which run out so, if Snake relies on them too much, they lose their usefulness.  All of this increases the reality of Snake's situation and forces more resource management in the play experience.  Enemies are tenacious and will pursue Snake with a vengeance.  Alerts are extremely long in Snake Eater, increasing from just the alert phase to now include an alert phase, evasion phase and then a caution phase in which the enemy is still on high alert.  In Metal Gear, Hideo Kojima tends toward abstract stories told by the person holding Snake's save function.  These stories function as gameplay hints.  In Snake Eater, Para Medic tells Snake movie stories.  The movie references distract from gameplay, are basically humorless and, as an empowering or hint-giving device, fall short.  Often, they just come in too late.  For instance, Para Medic refers to The Creature From The Black Lagoon to warn Snake about hazards in the water long after Snake has already crossed, and been killed in, a crocodile-infested lagoon. 

Immersion:

Events happen in real time, at least from the point of view of stealth missions.  The enemies have their patterns and Snake must wait until the time is right to sneak past them.  While waiting in grass, there are animals such as crocodiles and poisonous snakes that Snake must also remain aware of.  These things tend to keep the player focused during missions, but the continued problem of extremely long cut scenes still ruin any immersive quality that Snake Eater may be trying to attain.

Cameras:

Using binoculars, three types of scope, or simply the camera, Snake has a fairly large vision field.  The cameras are smooth and swing easily, allowing a 360 degree view.  A quick squeeze on the L2 button allows players to look around a corner or to look in first person view.  Even while immersed in weeds, the camera swivels easy enough to allow you to catch a look at an enemy without revealing your position.

Controls:

The controls aren't all that intuitive.  Konami has the tendency to use circle instead of triangle as the main action button while x takes you back.  This requires a small learning curve for those of us used to x being the primary action button.  There are three menus to access and then scroll through, keeping the player constantly thinking about what it is they want to do instead of intuitively accessing items and maps on the fly.  In addition, the map is under the Start button menu, causing frequent stops in play to check the map. 

Ideas:

Hideo Kojima made an unusual choice and put the beginning credit video 2 hours into the game.  It's as if, after completing the first mission, the game has only just begun.  The video is a James Bond-style opening complete with similarly-styled theme song.  I enjoyed this opening but was perplexed by this choice of placement.  An intro should draw the player into the game, excite them and make them want to play.  This video would have done an excellent job of doing just that if it had been placed at the beginning.  Instead, it's placed a good way into play which is confusing and yet another excuse to put the controller down.  

Memory:

I left MGS3 to find the timeline in the database on PSN.  In the end, I couldn't get past the discrepancies.  This is a hazard of franchise games; players want the familiar qualities of the game. Some franchises change the players completely, while keeping the elements that make the game fun to play.  This works well, but is not the case in MGS3.  However, a great quality of franchise development lies in finding, and keeping, what makes that game great while adding in new elements of play.  This, MGS3 does exceedingly well.  The graphics are greatly improved, stealth is more challenging, the items list is more realistic and healing adds a new, empowering element to gameplay.