Thoughts on Metal Gear Solid 4

I just finished Metal Gear Solid 4 after a 15 hour-long playing session - almost one full year after its original release - and I feel like I should say something, like I should get off my couch and salute it with a nostalgic look on my face.

Hideo Kojima is just days away from revealing more details about his next project, and after playing this game I feel very strongly that it should not be another Metal Gear Solid game. Not only does the saga feel perfectly round and complete, but MGS4 serves as an incredibly well-crafted conclusion. A future MGS could certainly take place at any point in time, but going beyond the number 4 would deprive this game of its ultimateness and finality, and that would be as stupid as it would be unfair. If another MGS is released, it should at least be called something different, out of respect for MGS4.

Back to the game. There were a considerable number of things that surprised me very pleasantly, and I think the only design decision I disagree with is that you can still blaze through some stages triggering alarms that will be forgotten as soon as hit the transition to the next stage. What I enjoyed the most, of course, was the use of strangely innovative and unexpectedly compelling storytelling devices like the split-screen, the dream and the flashbacks (trying to keep it spoiler-free).

Kojima’s attenion to detail is again the glue that holds an incredible experience together. But the true value of MGS4 lies in the masterful way in which it handles nostalgia and delivers emotion. MGS4 is what every TV show fan wishes the last episode of his favorite show were, it is both a “flashback episode” and a worthy conclusion. It is the knot to tie all loose ends. It’s the bar where five old friends meet after tweny years of not seeing each other to have one last, incredible adventure.

Metal Gear Solid 4 is, without a doubt, one of the best games I have ever played.