So continuing from last week, this week we will look at two more games from the world of Metal Gear. Now there has been some debate as to whether
Ground Zeroes is actually a game or a demo of
The Phanton Pain given that it was priced the same as most newly released triple A titles despite only taking up nearly 2GB of disk space (at least on PC anyway). For me, I'd call it a glorified tech demo that serves as a prologue/prequel to
The Phantom Pain which gives us one main mission and a few additional missions which together help players understand what we could expect from
The Phantom Pain and then some. While Big Boss (voiced and motion captured by
24's Kiefer Sutherland) is the main player character (and Snake) in
Ground Zeroes,
The Phantom Pain gives us someone identified as Big Boss, but may be some other character (also a known Snake). Either way, let's get to it:
Ground Zeroes
Following the events of
Peace Walker, Snake is sent to Camp Omega in the hopes that he can retrieve two of their prisoners (and possibly more if the player decides to). One of them is Paz (voiced by Tara Strong) who
is claimed to have information on a being known as Cipher and is also someone who Big Boss has had some dealings with previously that resulted in her apparent death. The other is Chico (voiced by Antony Del Rio) who was once a child solider before being captured by someone called Skull Face (voiced by James Horan) who is the commander of Camp Omega for trying to save Paz whom he loves. His mission is supported by a couple of his allies, but due to the delicate nature of it, Snake is forced to do the mission alone but with remote help. The game in total has seven missions, but the main one is where the story's focus is. As Snake, you can sneak around to find collectibles, interrogate guards for information and even take part in some gun play where appropriate. Detection (which used to be an on screen gauge) is now determined by visual and audio cues. The binoculars (which were an item that had to be equipped for use in previous games) can now be accessed by the use of a hotkey. Snake uses something called an iDroid which acts as the map, can be used as a means to tag enemies and useful weapons and listen to audio logs that can be found in each mission's map. If detected by an enemy, Snake goes into a Reflex mode where you can take out an enemy before they raise the alarm. Lights can also be shot down should they interfere with the stealth portion of the game. Because of its short length, players are able to replay various missions to do additional objectives they didn't do the first time round, or the same ones but done differently. Apparently there was (and probably still is) an app for smartphones that are in the place of the in-game iDroid which certainly helps (and if the Wii U was still around, the game could've benefited from its tablet controller should the game have been released for it). This game reminds me of the Hitman games because this really is a few missions which can be played differently and have alternative parts for completion just like with the Hitman games. It's those kinds of games that I enjoy playing. The ones that aren't too linear and let players do it their way and not how the developer wants you to play it. But it is a short game that maybe could've been a DLC for
The Phantom Pain than a separate stand-alone game. It doesn't need to be priced so high and could've got away with just being a downloadable game (though admittedly people without internet would've missed out). Apart from all of that, it's a good introduction to the gameplay of
The Phantom Pain even if I'm joining the fanbase later than most (and for those of you curious, my knowledge of the series comes from the Fandom Wiki). 7/10
The Phantom Pain
Nine years have passed since the events of
Ground Zeroes and Snake awakens from a coma. He escapes an assassin called Quiet (voiced by Stefanie Joosten) and attempts to escape the hospital with help from a man claiming to be called Ishmael (also voiced by Sutherland) during an attack from an XOF strike force and beings with supernatural powers. Snake learns that the world wants him dead and works with a group called The Diamond Dogs to build up their ranks and bring an end to those who put him in a coma in the first place. While much of the gameplay is the same as it was in
Ground Zeroes, there are some additional things. A wide array of weapons and items to use, all of which can be developed at the Diamond Dogs base for use on the field. Snake has his own command centre in a chopper as well as his own horse to traverse the open world that is Afghanistan which is full of collectibles, enemies to recruit, seek out information from and/or kill (though developers insist that gamers do not kill in the game if they can help it) and some vehicles to drive as well. Over the course of the game, Snake is in control and can call upon help when needed (but this tends to happen much later in the game). A lot can be said about this game and most people would say that this is the first game of the series to have a bit of freedom in how its played compared to previous games which were a bit restrictive in nature. As this is the third Metal Gear game I have played, all I can say is that its great. I really enjoy a lot of open world games and as long as they offer new things, I'm onboard from day one.
The Phantom Pain could be seen as a mix of Hitman and Just Cause in terms of how you can go about missions and how some elements like items and bringing stuff on the field are similar to the freedom to do the mission your way is in Hitman and the latter stuff for Just Cause. For what may be the last Metal Gear game for Kojima himself due to ongoing disputes between him and Konami, this is a great Metal Gear game. One day I may play the other games if I can access them. But this is a good one. 9/10
So I guess if you were to combine both games together, it would make a more complete experience than what we got. But for what we got, they are both great games which should've just been one big game. But that's OK. 8/10
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