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At this point, I think anybody familiar with video games has heard of Metal Gear Solid. It’s a name that carries weight. Or at least it did before the Konami-Kojima fiasco. Like Mario, Call of Duty and Grand Theft Auto among some other big names, Metal Gear Solid is a name that sold. Players were introduced to the world of Metal Gear in 1987 with the release of Metal Gear for the MSX2 and it was unique for it’s stealth gameplay, it’s focus on evasion rather than shooting. It was followed up by Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake, released for the MSX2 in 1990. Both are landmark titles in the stealth genre and are part of the Metal Gear canon as opposed to Metal Gear and Snake’s Revenge, both for the NES which were produced without the involvement of series creator Hideo Kojima. The next game would take the series into the 3D realm.
Developed by Konami Computer Entertainment Japan and published by Konami, Metal Gear Solid was released for PlayStation in October, 1998. Japan received an expanded edition of the game for PlayStation called Metal Gear Solid: Integral which contains added content from the North American and European versions along with a separate disc containing hundreds of VR missions and the VR Disc was released by itself in North America as Metal Gear Solid: VR Missions. The PC version of Metal Gear Solid which features the Integral logo comes with all the VR missions was released in September, 2000 and it should be noted the PC version does feature some differences from the PlayStation version. But wait, there’s more. Metal Gear Solid was remade and released for the GameCube as Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes. For this review, I played the original game for PlayStation along with some VR missions and I did play it on the actual hardware. We will cover The Twin Snakes in a separate review.
I chose the PlayStation version because it includes a bit more content than the PC version and without spoiling anything, I think the way it handles a specific boss is more interesting. Nevertheless, I did check the game’s PCGamingWiki page and there are ways to get the original PC version working on modern systems. The PC version was released on GoG and was modified to run on modern systems and includes some other tweaks. I did download and install it just to check it out and from what I can tell, it’s perfectly playable.
Set in 2005 which was the future at the time this game released, genetically enhanced members of the special forces group FOXHOUND take control of a nuclear weapons facility on Shadow Moses island in Alaska. They threaten to use nukes via Metal Gear REX against the U.S. if they do not receive the remains of Big Boss and one billion dollars. Players are put in the shoes of returning protagonist Solid Snake who is forced out of retirement and tasked with infiltrating the island to neutralize the threat. The game does come with briefings which convey information about the mission and characters. Metal Gear Solid does include overviews of the previous games and they are referenced throughout the plot. You don’t really need to play them to know what’s going on or understand what’s happening but it would provide some context.
It took me over eleven hours to beat the game and I actually thought it would take me longer. Metal Gear Solid is a very story-driven experience and I would say a good chunk of my time with it was spent watching cut scenes and listening to codec interactions. As you may or may not know, series creator Hideo Kojima has a passion for cinema. It’s somewhat evident in the previous games and is definitely evident in Metal Gear Solid. The game is presented in a cinematic style, like a movie. Cut scenes are well directed and edited and the voice acting is quite good, especially for the time this released, and this showcases David Hayter’s first performance as Snake. The plot is one of the best aspects of the game and features mostly well developed characters, twists and turns, and some drama.
Considering how long some of the cut scenes and interactions are, I am thankful the plot is actually interesting and there are multiple endings. There’s a lot of exposition dumps, some characters are certainly over-the-top, and I felt some of the drama comes across as humorous. I would chuckle whenever dying characters told Snake their life story. Metal Gear Solid is a game that will break the fourth wall from time to time and it’s even done in creative ways to help immerse the player into the experience. Metal Gear Solid does convey a somewhat gritty and serious tone with some humor here and there to lighten things up, whether its intentional or not, and I think for it’s time, the game’s cinematic style and presentation did make it stand out and feel unique.
As for the gameplay, if you’ve played the previous titles, this should feel very familiar. Metal Gear Solid is a stealth game but you can run and around shoot bad guys and I actually think the gunplay is quite good. The handgun and assault rifle in particular feel very satisfying to shoot thanks to good visual feedback and cool looking muzzle flashes. Playing this now, some elements certainly feel dated but I do think it’s an overall improvement over its predecessors. The action is primarily viewed from an overhead perspective and the controls can be a bit cumbersome but it’s nothing I couldn’t get used to and you can actually look around in a first-person view which is pretty cool. Snake can run around the environments, punch and kick, hug walls, crouch, and crawl. There’s no traditional lock-on mechanic but Snake will kind of auto aim at a nearby target. Nevertheless, getting attacked from off-screen and being outnumbered can sometimes be frustrating.
I would actually recommend first-time players jump into the VR Missions first just to get used to the controls. I did this, myself, and found it to be helpful. Not that the controls are difficult to master but I’d rather fumble around with them and test things in the VR missions than in the story. Metal Gear Solid does come with some VR missions that task you with specific objectives to complete and once you complete them, you can try them again in a Time Attack mode. The VR Missions disc comes with hundreds of VR missions. These include sneaking objectives, weapon-specific challenges, and more advanced stuff. If you’re a big fan of the Metal Gear Solid gameplay, the VR missions are basically more of that but without any plot. As you complete missions, you’ll unlock stuff including new modes and even though the missions start to feel repetitive after a while, there’s plenty on offer to keep the player occupied for quite a while.
Stealth basically works like it did previously. To remain undetected, you want to stay hidden and quiet. That means staying behind things, hiding under things, crouching behind low walls, and evading or quietly dropping foes. Snake can sneak up behind enemies and throw them to the ground and even strangle or choke them. Walking or running on certain surfaces will result in noise that enemies can hear and Snake can leave behind footprints that enemies can track. He can knock on walls to distract or lure enemies and if Snake is discovered, enemies enter Alert mode which is very similar to that of Metal Gear 2. Reinforcements will typically arrive and you have the option to blow everyone away but you can also try and hide until the Evasion timer counts all the way down to zero.
On the HUD is a radar which will show nearby paths, Snake’s current position and the positions of enemies. When Snake is detected, the radar is jammed. None of this should be new to veterans of Metal Gear 2. If you play on the Hard or Extreme difficulty levels, you get no radar for a more challenging experience. One nice new feature is that the radar will show enemy and camera field of vision. This means you can see which direction they’re facing and how far they can see. The inventory system works almost the same as it did before which means it still sucks. You can only equip one item and one weapon at a time and will have to switch between items frequently in certain areas which can be tedious.
As expected, progression will require you to find and use certain items. You can interact with certain NPCs via the codec and they will give you tips and information on how to progress, handle certain situations, and defeat bosses. The bosses are one of the more interesting aspects of the game. Every boss battle feels creative and requires specific strategies. Psycho Mantis is easily the most memorable boss mainly because of how you’re supposed to defeat him. Despite each boss battle feeling unique, that’s not to say I enjoyed each one. The Sniper Wolf battles are cool in concept but the fact that her shots would spin Snake so he’s facing a different direction drove me nuts. And the first phase of the fight against Metal Gear became frustrating for me because of the controls. I would use a combination of Chaff Grenades and Stinger Missiles and since you can’t move with the Stinger Launcher equipped, I would frequently press the wrong button and take damage as a result. I was eventually able to survive the battle unscathed after numerous attempts and, of course, I learned of some other and easier ways I could have beaten it after the fact.
Much of the equipment that was present in the previous games is here and Metal Gear Solid is a game that encourages exploration. I would recommend exploring so you can find all the items, weapons, and ammo. You can easily get stuck if you don’t pay attention so it’s often wise to reach out the appropriate NPCs via codec for tips and information. One thing I really like about Metal Gear Solid is all the little touches and discoveries you can make either by accident, from experimentation, or maybe because of information you received via an interaction. And in today’s world, you can always look these things up online. If you contact Mei Ling and select “not save” enough times, you’ll annoy her and she won’t talk to you anymore. There’s a segment in the game where you’re accompanied by a character named Meryl and the two of you must progress through a cave populated with wolves. If you punch Meryl and quickly hide in a cardboard box, a wolf will piss on it and you can then proceed through the cave in that box without being assaulted by wolves. Psycho Mantis will actually mention Castlevania: Symphony of the Night if you have a save file from the game on your memory card. I find stuff like this awesome. Little things and easter eggs, stuff that’s not obvious but can be helpful, funny or interesting.
As good as Metal Gear Solid is overall, there are some parts of the game that are not so enjoyable. I think the way the whole torture sequence is handled is actually pretty cool for the time this came out, but playing it now, having to quickly mash that button becomes annoying and tiring. Yes, that’s the idea. I get it. And despite the multiple ways to escape the cell, not all of them are obvious so you may have to endure the torture repeatedly and that can be annoying. Then there’s the PAL Key sequence where you have to take the key to different locations so it molds or transforms into the key that you need and then run it back to the area where you have to use it, hoping it doesn’t transform again during the journey back. I can’t say I found this sequence difficult but I wouldn’t say it’s fun, either. It’s just tedious.
The game is fairly linear with little hand holding. There will be plenty of areas and rooms to explore but no section ever felt maze-like to me. You’ll progress through numerous indoor and outdoor locations and will need to acquire certain key cards to open specific doors to access new areas. You will have to backtrack from time to time but I can’t say it ever felt excessive. Story progression can result in changes to previously explored areas. For example, you can progress through an area clear of enemies and then revisit it later on and enemies can be found patrolling the area. I thought that was a cool touch because it means you always need to be alert. If you don’t pay attention or skip cut scenes, you can easily get stuck because you won’t know what to do. Progressing through certain areas or getting past specific obstacles may require a specific approach, item, or weapon. You’ll walk through a lot of corridors, take elevators to different floors, use C4 to blow through portions of walls, and learning how to overcome the obstacles in each area is all part of the fun. Remaining undetected will require patience. You’ll have to move slow, study your surroundings, crawl if necessary and avoid things like enemies, cameras, lasers and claymores.
After you beat the game, you are given a code name based on your actions during your playthrough, just like in the previous games. And as expected, to earn the best possible code name, you would need to be as stealthy as possible. There is actually quite a bit to unlock in Metal Gear Solid and the VR Missions. Unlocking everything will require you to beat the story more than once and play through all the VR missions. You will unlock and see new things like different endings, the Extreme difficulty and additional VR modes among some other stuff. Needless to say, the game gives you plenty of reasons to come back.
Visually, I do think Metal Gear Solid was impressive for its time. There’s a lot of detail in the environments and each location looks and feels distinct. Visual effects like explosions and muzzle flashes look cool and the animations are solid. The gameplay is backed by a phenomenal soundtrack. A lot of memorable and catchy tunes along with more ambient and dramatic sounding stuff that helps heighten the tension and add to the suspense of the gameplay. On the technical side, the game seemed to run pretty smooth with the frame rate noticeably dipping only in a few situations. Other than that, I did not encounter any major bugs or issues. Ultimately, I would say Metal Gear Solid is an audiovisual feast, especially the PlayStation version.
Just as a heads up for those curious about the PC version, according to the game’s PCGamingWiki page, the music and sound effects are of lower quality and certain tracks are missing and some visual effects do not display properly. There may be fan patches and fixes you can apply. I know for a fact there is a version of the game floating around that is modded to support 1080p and Xinput controllers. As I mentioned before, in my experience, the GoG release is perfectly playable on modern systems and the visual presentation of the PC version is “cleaner” for lack of a better word.
I really enjoyed Metal Gear Solid. However, it’s age does shine through. But I can’t say I found it as frustrating or as tedious as the previous entries. I’ve heard some players say Metal Gear Solid is kind of like a “soft remake” of the previous games. To be clear, it’s not a remake but I get what they’re saying. If you’ve played Metal Gear and Metal Gear 2, a lot of stuff in Metal Gear Solid will be familiar. From the equipment to the boss battles, certain elements feel like they were simply taken from the previous games. Regardless, I think Metal Gear Solid was the gateway for many players. Not just to the Metal Gear series but to the stealth genre in general. It was unlike a lot of other games out at the time. I think the emphasis on evasion and its cinematic style was refreshing. Not only that, but it’s actually fun to play. The gameplay is fun, the stealth works well, and I would even say the gunplay feels great. It’s a very well made stealth action title.
I would absolutely recommend Metal Gear Solid. It’s a classic and I would even say it’s one of the best games of its generation. Playing it now, not everything about it has aged gracefully but the good outweighs the bad and I think it does hold up better than the previous games do. I’m playing through these games in release order and I have a feeling this will not be my favorite title in the franchise but it is a great time and definitely worth playing through and it is a must-play if you’re in it for the overarching plot of the series. Definitely check it out.