Metal Gear Solid

Title: Metal Gear Solid
Platform Played On: PC
Release Date: September 23, 1998
Date Played: Winter 1998, Summer 2000
Time Played: 20 hours
Completed (Y/N): No (99%)
Score: 5/5

Opinion: 

I got my first PlayStation in the summer of 1998 (Twisted Metal 2 was the console seller for me). I remember going to Sears and picking up newly released Dual Shock PS1 along with a copy of Twisted Metal 2 (both of which I still have in my closet).

It so happened that I came across a demo of Metal Gear Solid, which consisted of the first level (a good 20-30minute chunk). After playing it for the first couple minutes I was in love with it. It was one of the coolest games I have ever played. Snake was a cool character, the enemies looked super cool with their white suits and masks. And the stealth genre was still in its infancy, it was something new and interesting.

It was not until the year 2000 or 2001 though that I got my hands on the full version of the game. I was visiting a local GameStop at Westminister Mall and saw a copy for PC selling for around $20. And the rest was history.  I got home, installed the 2 disc game and spent the next 5-6 hours playing it.

I distinctly remember the first mission (probably due to playing it multiple times in the demo). I also remember that the game was not easy at all. Trying to take out guards silently and sneak into the base undetected was quite a challenge, partially due to the fact that I have never played a stealth game before, and as a new concept there was much to be learned.

I made my way through MGS over about a course of a month, with no readily available FAQ's it was a pretty challenging game, but its mechanics were fun, and the story kept me engaged. Eventually I made it to the final boss, Metal Gear Rex. After spending a few hours trying to beat him over the course of a couple of days I gave up. He seemed impossible. To this day I have not killed him, and my MGS progress remains at 99%.

Metal Gear Solid was a pretty amazing game.  Its innovative mechanics and fun sneaky (James Bond like) gameplay kept me interested all the way through and made me a fan of the series. I have since beaten MGS2,  3 ,MGS Acid1 and 2 on PSP, and bought a PS3 for MGS4. This game was a masterpiece of its time and inspired many other franchises, such as Splinter Cell. It's graphics do look very dated by today's standard. But perhaps it will look pretty good if played on a PSP, or perhaps Konami will some day release an HD version of the game like it did with MGS2 and 3. I would definitely recommend this game (and the franchise) to those not familiar with it, but it may be too difficult to look past the PlayStation (once spectacular) graphics.

Final Boss - Metal Gear Rex