Ever since the Hideo Kojima’s Metal Gear series’ humble beginnings on both the NES and MSX (ten geek points to you if you remember the MSX), it’s always had a special kind of spark that’s made each and every release an essential purchase.
Last year’s Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater absorbed many critical knocks that Sons of Liberty received from fans – mainly about the huge amount of lengthy cut scenes – and created yet another absolutely stunning stealthy game to sink our teeth into. Plus, it let us play dress up too as we tinkered with Snake’s clobber to blend in with the background.
Subsistence arrives with little fanfare, unlike the recent Metal Gear Solid 4 showings off on the PS3 which have been drooled over by fans worldwide. Rather than a straight sequel, Subsistence takes the Snake Eater game, takes the edge off the bad stuff and adds online play for us connected gamers.
But is it worth shelling out again for what is essentially the same game?
They say:
PSW Magazine: “If you don't own Snake Eater but you don't want multiplayer, then hey, at least you'll be buying one of the best action titles PS2 has ever produced.”
IGN: “For the price and the extras, you can't go wrong with Subsistence - even for those that have played and beaten the first game once or several more times, it still can't be missed.”
1UP: “As with all the Metal Gear Solid re-releases to date, Subsistence has enough new content to warrant a repurchase (especially at the lower price point) by those who already played the premiere version.”
We say:
The big addition for fans of the original Snake Eater is the inclusion of a user controlled 3D camera. Now, all those times you were spotted purely because you didn’t have the forethought to peer through your binoculars at the oncoming jungle wilderness are a thing of the past. And for those inherently frustrated by Kojimi’s odd reliance on the overhead camera, this is a much craved addition indeed.
But that’s not all when it comes to additions and tweaks. For those of you who regularly take your PS2’s online – yes, both of you – you can hook up with your pals and cause merry hell during team based multiplayer action. Seriously, it kicks the Splinter Cell’s ass in our humble opinion.
And for those who didn’t know about the series’ MSX beginnings until it was mentioned at the beginning of this review, well, you can now play the original games in their full emulated glory.
Yes, they may both be from the late 80’s and lack that trademark MGS sheen, but they’re both damn good games and well worth your time. And this is the first time they’ve been available in English too, so even more reason to pick this up.
You wouldn’t expect Konami to go fiddling with what’s been such a huge success over the years, so that’s where the additions and tweaks end. You still need to stop dead and pop into a first person viewpoint before you can accurately fire of any of your weapons. Would it be so difficult to allow us to move a tad while in this first person mode?
The same critically acclaimed Snake Eater game is in there too, so for those out there who never picked up the original, then this is the version to get.
But for big fans who’ve already played the original to death, you might need to think a little more carefully before picking this up, especially if you’re not an online gamer. Are you really willing to shell out on another title, purely to play the same game yet again with a few tweaks?
Like this? Try these:
Metal Gear Sold 2 – PS2, Xbox, PC
Metal Gear Solid – PS1
Hitman: Blood Money – PS2, Xbox 360, Xbox, PC
FORMAT REVIEWED
PS2
OTHER FORMATS
None
POSTED...
Tue 17 Oct 2006 at 8:19pm
