Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes review

This snake venom isn't quite as potent as it should be...

So Metal Gear Solid has had a controversial return to the market after a long absence from its main line-up. Ground Zeroes is put on the shelves at half price of full retail and more of a premium teaser or in the director's own words a "tutorial" rather than the full experience that is coming sometime next year, and not everyone is happy with this. People from critics to die hard fans seem split on determining whether or not this is a cash grab, or just a short and sweat budget game. I got some time with it on the PS3 version, and now I'm prepared to give my view on this title from how good and bad the game is.

The game throws you (playing as "Big Boss" Snake) into an American military base within Cuba with the goal to rescue some hostages. Despite past entries, this time around the cut-scenes aren't that big of a deal. They're still probably long-ish by some game standards, but they don't build up to anything serious and the real ones happen before and after the level while past games could pop up at any minute during gameplay. I'd still say the two big cut-scenes do deliver enough for the usual presentation you would expect though, especially when we're talking about the intro. It opens in a way leaving you very curious, the scene was backed by an interesting song and the usual interesting yet cheesy dialogue of the series, and gives the playable character and the villain a silly but welcomed introduction. This feeling with the cut-scenes can honestly be applied to the rest of the game. It constantly reminds you that something is different, but not the sort of thing you would panic over. The main formula has been reworked and toyed with, yet the heart and power that was always behind the series is still present and gripping you in a way that only comes from the MGS series.

Speaking on those changes, there's a lot of good and bad. To get the sour side out of the way first, many things feel comparable to the typical stealth market. You have a limited inventory now with a single pistol or tranquilizer slot, a rifle slot, a special weapon slot, 4 throwable slots, and a goggle gadget spot that only had Night Vision for this game. This also includes special equipment, and as you can imagine there's a reason I didn't say a slot for food or health packs.... there isn't any in this game and the health is purely regenerative like many action games. Likewise you just wont have many tools at all like you're used to having, the new inventory just isn't made to hold much beyond basic weapons. I do have to say though that its nice to have the tranquilizer show some limits, that's always been sort of an overpowered toy for those that knew what they were doing... and now you wont always have that as a plan because you might need to make room for something else. The next big change in format is codec calls are replaced by a radio which works on the go and with a single button. This is viewed by some to be nice as you wont be interrupted and get to run around while your commander talks and relays important messages. However it also means you wont be selecting your own call frequencies, chatting with multiple characters, or even saving the game at your own will. Plus to be honest I kind of liked having my gameplay and chats disconnected to provide better focus and more quiet gaming or more developed conversations. The commander will sometimes throw in his dialogue right over top of me trying to listen in on enemies, or even cutting himself off to say another scripted piece if I'm moving over another trigger point for his lines. Finally, there's a giant change in the alarm process, which I originally wrote an entire paragraph of ranting on how backwards its gone before realizing I was drawing it out a bit. To try and shorten the point though... When spotted you go into an overpowered reflex mode where everything slows down for a pretty good chunk of time so that you can pull off a headshot. Its not that bad of an idea, but just lasts way too long and really breaks any tension whatsoever. It also has no cool-down, and you can actually run out into the open and activate it again and again with multiple guys around the same area. As long as they didn't both catch you at the exact same time, there will be multiple reflex modes. Now the game has a way to turn this off and even rewards bonus points for it, however the fact is the game is balanced more in favor of it. The other extreme is where the guy spots you and that flash second of spotting results in the entire base chasing you down. This binary choice of too easy or instant detection is a massive step backwards from the more advanced protocol-like multi-step alert phase from the older games. Its less fun, and the skill level is whacked out towards perfectionism rather than a fluid reaction. Oh and while I'm mentioning the alert problem, I'll point out that guys who die in fights during the alert phase wont go noticed until AFTER the alert phase is down, making it so that the idiot AI gets surprised and thinks there is a new invader threat from spotting a corpse they should have detected long ago. Its ok to face palm there, this type of flaw should not be acceptable for a "next gen" step in the series.

However I'm glad I wasn't scared away by the new changes when I first heard about them, because once you actually play it the Metal Gear Solid charm and heart is still very much alive. Despite my compressed rant on the alert system, and the fact I dislike many of the staple changes, there's a lot new and entertaining changes that are welcome and the fun that is had in this game far outweighs the criticism you just read. Not to mention even the bad changes often have their fun twists to them. A lack of infinite inventory gives me motivation to track down what I need if I decide to change up the style, making better use of the big world. The radio feels less personal and interactive, but you will be in the gameplay more often because of its change. However the best change to the series is the level layout, and it is fantastic! No more frequent loading screens, tiny guard count following tight scripted spots, and its a real and good break away from the nostalgic isometric camera we remember the classics in. It takes full use of a large scale environment to sneak through, and buildings that are part of the same world rather than a stage. Oh yeah and then there are vehicles. There's a better feeling of fluid and natural stealth within a huge layout where you're up against spotlights, jeep patrols, guards that often have a big radius, and that when the alarm comes on reinforcements can come in large quantities. The spotting also carries over from longer distances, leaving the line of sight and staying hidden to be a bit more realistic and immersive. You also have a higher sense of exploration that most of the missions use to an advantage. The first mission has you going after two hostages which is easy until you realize the 2nd one was moved into a special location for interrogation and may or may not have been killed. You have to listen to a tape recording of the path the hostage traveled, and find the spot based on the sounds. However you also overhear guards talking about an optional hostage location that you can go to, and they will give you more details if you promise to save them. Then there's two side missions later in the game that involve you scanning through the base's guards with your binoculars to look for a specific face. These kind of missions simply couldn't be done in the old stage layout, and are a very welcome addition to the new MGS.

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...and now to burn it all down!

There are still plenty of staples to the series in place as well. You still hold up guards, hurt them in knock out, sleep, or death states, and there are still fun gadgets to play with. You also have that feeling spread into the new layout. Listening to guards can reveal details that change the dynamic of the mission, you can shove enemies or hostages into vehicles or stow yourself away on the back of a truck in motion, and there's a new end level set-up where you signal a helicopter to escape in. The game holds a lot of the depth and even trivial effects its been known for, proving that its generic bits aren't exactly turning it into the splinter cell clone it sounded like it was going to be. Throughout my time sneaking, taking information from held up guards, finding new weapons, and escaping from an angry base full of guns aimed at me I was having the sort of fun that just doesn't come from just any stealth or 3rd person action game. The game also retains a strong sense of humor that shows up in between serious parts. You'll hear it in from silly dialogue to 4th wall breaking gags. It earns the name it wears and it reminded me why it was so much better than what I've been playing it the series absence. Its only a shame that it all comes up a bit short as we've all heard.

Now I hear lots of people dismissing the game as a demo, or just a tech showoff. I'm not sure how much I'd agree with that, but it certainly is that sort of a prologue experience we're occasionally seeing around the market every once in a while. Its a budget release set with a limited show. There isn't much of a story despite the big presentation the cut-scenes set up. Character development is practically gone as well as you could imagine, except for the villain which is odd because you practically never see his face. So... when the most developed character is nearly faceless in a MGS game you know something is a bit weird. The weapon selection is limited, the missions are pretty disconnected and yet all set on the same chunk of land, and the game can start to feel predictable within 3 hours. That's also saying IF you're even playing for that long, as the game's credits are often hit within the hour mark and everything beyond that is just optional stuff. Yeah... that game is really short. However I'm actually not going to really complain about the length itself so much, and I'm especially not going to beat the dead horse on price for length ratio as that's been taken way out of context to stupid proportions for this game. The replay value is still really high thanks to the natural replayability out of a MGS game, and even the new editions that add more of an arcadey sense of replay. You get graded on your playstyle after every mission, end level comments on special ways you may have completed them, and have collectibles to fetch as well as a pile of audio tapes that could write themselves a freakin' novel worth. It has a ton for major fans and completionists. However like I was saying, that's not my concern....

Instead I'm complaining about this because there's a weird feeling of underdevelopment tracing through the whole game. Once your first few hours are done, you've practically seen everything and things begin to feel predictable. You have about 10 firearms in the game, even less gadgets (only one thing, nightvision, goes into your left slot the entire game) there's only but so many buildings, and the missions are easily identifiable and once accomplished they don't really play out with many surprises.  Its not about length per value in this case (it probably takes hours upon hours to probably hit 100%), its about the fact that it feels like there's still an underwhelming use of the world. The gameplay itself is very fleshed out, but nearly nothing else is. The same base, the same enemies, the same weapons, the same vehicles, the same voices, and a story and general experience that doesn't go far at all. Its not exactly what I would call a serious flaw, but it is the short end of the bargin with this budget release. I suppose that's the problem with an open world premium demo of this sort. Meanwhile an epilogue to an adventure game such as Ratchet and Clank: Into the Nexus feels fully fleshed out, and has a clear beginning, middle, and end with replayability tagged on as well. Same with something like those "experience" artsy games such as Journey. It comes to a solid and fulfilling closure. This game just slaps you in the face with a feeling that it was only a beginning without any feeling of climax, progress, or the usual amount of surprises a new game or complete experience would often pack.



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Sneaky snake is sneaking

Now the game does present itself as the first game using the new Fox engine. It is fantastic! Going through a rental I was kind of forced to take the last generation PS3 version, yet its not bad at all. The lighting, amount of texture detail, and the fact that bodies have full physics presents a fantastic level of graphics that few games have bothered to match. Rather than wishing I had it on the PS4, it actually reminded me more of the question about why some were in such a hurry for better hardware, as this is damn impressive and doesn't leave me wanting much at all. The only two downsides are how flat the patches of grass and bushes look, and how dead bodies will inconsistently disappear (some stay for the whole level, others fade as soon as you look away). The new engine in the end is very impressive, and if this really was a "premium tech demo" it is a really good one.

Verdict & closing notes:
Click for the score card...

It was a tough game to grade due to the fact that it may not even be a game by some standards... its more of a premium teaser. However despite all the controversy, hate, and negative attention this move was given I feel like the consumer end got more carried away than the publisher here. The game is still absolutely fantastic in terms of fun value, and anyone that really was right for this series will know how to get their value out of it. The new interface and gameplay changes took some getting used to, but in the end this was a clear blast to play that reminded me why I love the series as much as I do... even if I had to play it a bit differently than the exact ones I sort of grew up with. The over the top humor, interactive player choice, and intense stealth is not lost on this small package, even if its not as fleshed out as it should be. However because it sells itself short and feels like its in need to be fleshed out more, there is no way I can give this game the legendary status I feel like the upcoming Phantom Pain MGS will be. Its just a really awesome and fun game, but a teaser of a much grander experience. While I think the price moaning has gotten out of hand, I'll admit I can't exactly find myself agreeing with it 100% either. My advice is to be a smart consumer and take advantage of this short and sweat game with a rental like I did. Heck I spent triple the time it would have taken me on the first mission just to make this review. So unless you feel like you're MGS's #1 fan, I can't recommend an immediate purchase. Still... I'd say its pretty much more fun than any stealth game save for maybe Dishonored, so if your desperate for just sneaking this is the best recent release you'll get for such a short price.