E3: MGS4 PS3 exclusivity confirmed

By Robert Purchese Published 11 July, 2007

Out worldwide next spring.

Earlier this evening Sony America boss Jack Tretton reconfirmed Metal Gear Solid 4 as an exclusive PS3 title.

The announcement was coupled with the appearance of Hideo Kojima at Sony's E3 conference, presenting never-before-seen real-time footage (in the West) of the game. He then revealed that it would be released worldwide in spring 2008.

The trailer filled us in on the hit Snake is hired for, and a little about his history. The veteran hero has to take care of old enemy Liquid Ocelot who will be voiced by Pat Zimmerman.

Kojima assured the crowd it would be the finale to the Metal Gear Series and said although it was a stealth game, it would be built around different elements - such as using dynamic cover on the battlefield. MGS2 character Vamp also popped his head up, with Phil LaMarr reprising his role as the voice.

The trailer was impressive, and Kojima ended the presentation with a promise to show an actual demonstration of the game on 17th July at a PlayStation premier event in Tokyo.

So we won't be playing it this week at E3, but we expect the trailer and screenshots soon.

Picture of Robert.

About Robert Purchese

Bertie is Eurogamer's Senior Staff Writer. When he's not hunting down news stories he's often found playing with his kids or gabbling about fantasy games and strange online worlds. @Clert on Twitter.

Read more articles from Robert by visiting the Robert Purchese archive page.

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Comments (34) Latest comment 5 years ago

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  • sanctusmortis #1 5 years ago

    That's interesting, after a few other sources got cease and desists over saying it was a timed exclusive...

  • Duke_Red #2 5 years ago

    sooner or later it will be on over consoles, its just a question of time and money

  • CitizenGeek #3 5 years ago

    Well, I never believed it would go to PS3, to be honest. However, despite the fact Sony have confirmed it, it won't stop people droning on and on about how it's coming to 360 :(

  • Hunam #4 5 years ago

    I don't know, having Kojima there and then kind of settled it for me.

  • The12thMonkey #5 5 years ago

    Despite it being the only game I want to own a PS3 for, 1 game is still not enough to justify that price tag.

    My 360 (once it gets back from it's free trip to the European Service Centre) is looking like it will be getting quite a few games coming it's way over the next few months, and my Wii purchase is also looking justified with Metroid Prime 3 and Super Mario Galaxy over here before the end of the year. Smash Bros Brawl and Mario Kart Wii next year... and still, the PS3 can only produce MGS4 to tempt me. I know where my money will be going to.

  • TakeTheVeil #6 5 years ago

    aww..just bring it to the 360 so i dont need to buy a PS3 until Team ICO and Team 'Fahrenheit/Heavy Rain' have their next games out

  • penhalion #7 5 years ago

    It's not timed as such it's actually that this particlar version is exclusive i.e. 360 and Wii are likely to get subitance style versions a year or so later. Dispite Sonys cries of foul, Konami isn't owned by the and they can't control what happens to the franchise.

    While I will probably get Killzone 2 I'm actually not impressed by this at all. For all the realtime claims I haven't once see actual gamplay. In game cut-scenes simply don't count as this tell us nothing about the controls, responsiveness, gameplay etc. etc. All it tells me is that the cutscenes look a bit boring.

  • SeesThroughAll #8 5 years ago

    They did show some gameplay, before interrupting it and switching to the cinematic game engine trailer.
    Note how the HUD shows up shortly after the squad lands.
    That is a one level playable demo they're showing at E3. It's not being released outside because according to Guerilla, this actually is a rather early build.

    EDIT: Sorry, misread your post, thought the last paragraph was about Killzone 2, but then noticed you were actually still talking about MGS4.
    Edited by SeesThroughAll at 11/07/07 @ 22:59

  • morriss #9 5 years ago

    NEXT SPRING?! How long do they need?!

  • penhalion #10 5 years ago

    @seethroughall

    I was referring to Metal Gear not Killzone. Sorry for the confusion

  • The-Bodybuilder #11 5 years ago

    Sounds like sony finally handed over that swag bag with the "£" on it to konami.

  • Restart #12 5 years ago

    I guess I'm the only one that finds the MGS series extremely overrated. I got sick of MGS 3 after around 5 minutes, mostly because he ran about like he'd shit his pants :(

  • The-Bodybuilder #13 5 years ago

    >"For all the realtime claims I haven't once see actual gamplay. In game cut-scenes simply don't count as this tell us nothing about the controls, responsiveness, gameplay etc. etc. All it tells me is that the cutscenes look a bit boring."

    Welcome to the wonderful world of metal gear.

  • Khanivor #14 5 years ago

    So this gonna be exclusive like COD4, Kane & Lynch and Burnout Paradise, etc?

  • peeetah #15 5 years ago

    People its time to accept that this is not coming to 360 eveer especially since the ps3 sales appear to be picking up.

  • sonsonate #16 5 years ago

    Metal Gear Solid: Borefest

    Really enjoyed the first MGS on PS. It was new and shiny and fun. PS2's final MGS game was basically the same game, repackaged. And all that gawdawful lip-flapping about God-knows-what..

    I hope PS3's 1st MGS avoids the mind-numbing philosophy lessons and hopefully includes a game.


  • penhalion #17 5 years ago

    Philosophy.

    One thing about metal gear is that it makes no sense at all. How is it that grafting a mans hand to someone else causes that person to turn into the man. What was the point of the metal gears if they are beatable by one man (namely solid snake). I'm sure the metal gear that had raiden in it even pokes fun at this obvious flaw.

    Only the first PS metal gear was any good and they've been chasing that games style ever since.

    I have a PS3 but, I really and truly don't feel any urge to buy this game. I simply keep remembering how boring I found the last one er snake eater I think. I'm sure I'm in the minority as even xbox fans seem to want this game. It boggles the mind why they'd care about it.

  • Vandrius #18 5 years ago

    Yes, and Halo is coming to the PS3.

    Oh wait, the sun isn't green.

  • drumbaby #19 5 years ago

    But but but but

    etc

  • Blerk #20 5 years ago

    /surfs wave of fanboy tears

    Gnarly!

  • menage #21 5 years ago

    I don't care, 10 hours of cutscenes is not my idea of fun anyway. I quit MGS3 after 5 hours, thought it was a slow moving piece of shit with the broken camouflage gimmick (they should at least bring back the radar, that was the only thing that made it playable)
    Edited by menage at 12/07/07 @ 08:31

  • kingmob #22 5 years ago

    Well Sony's definition of the word "exclusive" does differ from that found in the dictionary.

  • Steroyd #23 5 years ago

    I don't care, 10 hours of cutscenes is not my idea of fun anyway. I quit MGS3 after 5 hours, thought it was a slow moving piece of shit with the broken camouflage gimmick (they should at least bring back the radar, that was the only thing that made it playable)

    MGS Snake Eater or MGS Subsistance?

    The camoflague System was broken IMO because you had to enter the menu select screen every five seconds, it looks to be remedied in MGS4 because it's a auto camo.

    Well Sony's definition of the word "exclusive" does differ from that found in the dictionary.

    I think your mixing them with Microsoft.
    Edited by Steroyd at 12/07/07 @ 10:02

  • manic_mouse #24 5 years ago

    More importantly, Konami are ruining Silent Hill. Why isn't this news?

  • AcidSnake #25 5 years ago

    Someone remind me, was Phil Lamarr the guy who got his face shot off in pulp fiction?

    "Oh man, I shot Marvin in the face..."

  • LeShin #26 5 years ago

    lol, i don't believe what I'm hearing....
    I thought that announcement would be the end of all this speculation about it being ported to another console. It's an EXCLUSIVE for the PS3. Get over it. Jack said it in front of Kojima. If it was to be a timed exclusive, don't you think Microsoft would've mentioned it by now as it's such a big game? Unreal Tournament 3 is a timed exclusive, so it was mentioned. Not so with MGS.
    ...and sorry to disappoint, but it looks like it's going to stay that way as it seems Konami have been forcing Kojima to port it to the 360, but he has point blank refused to.
    See for yourself: [link url=http://www.computerandvideogames.com/article.php?id=167633
    ]http://www.computerandvideogames.com/art...[/link]

    Reason he can refuse in the face of Konami is that he and his development team legally owns all the rights to the franchise of MGS so he can really do what he wants with it.

    As for the people who said MGS is a bore fest, fair enough, that's your opinion. But I suggest you go and look at the reviews across the internet about MGS games. They all scored bloody high! Me personally, I love the narrative it brings as it sets it apart from any game in it's genre. It makes you think. Of course, some people don't like that....which is why you have the choice to buy Splinter Cell.

    Okay, rant went on longer than I expected. I'm just sick of this talk of exclusives being ported to other consoles when NO-ONE has mentioned such a thing. It's like Sony fanboys saying that Gears Of War and Bioshock are coming to the PS3, which I think is just as stupid (luckily, I've got a good powered PC, so i'll be getting those brilliant games on there).

  • freedumb #27 5 years ago

    The rumours that it was coming to 360 brought fanboys about saying 'OMGZ! teh PS3 is teh D000MZed!'

    Its still exclusive (at least atm) and now we didn't want it anyway becuase it's a borefest.

  • ChromeMud #28 5 years ago

    Kudos to the Sony platform.
    I'm somewhat relieved that MGS4 is exclusive to the PS3.My wallet will be
    stretched enough this year with what's coming to the 360.
    No bad feelings,got my eye on atleast ten titles that look like musthaves is all.

  • messiahtj #29 5 years ago

    Just one word for that xboxers: OWNED!!!! MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAAAA

  • Cougar #30 5 years ago

    I'm getting really tired of people whining about there not being any gameplay in these trailers. If you go watch the TGS 06 trailer somewhere, you're proven wrong.
    Context is as important as gameplay, always. Think about it. The trailers first sets the characters, environment, mood. Just like when you start playing an MGS game. And then they show game mechanics, enemies, the goal. The first trailer set up Snake's condition, the environment, the enemies and the amazing skill of the people at Kojima Productions. Inside "the cutscenes", they show gameplay elements and mechanics all the time, and the enemies you'll face. They showed Snake using his whatever-its-called suit to blend in with what's next to him, camoflague was a big part of the third game, and in a sense, the first game too, but optically and you got invisible.
    The story is amazing. If there's something that doesn't make sense in THAT world, then it's because it's not finished or you didn't pay attention and missed it, or you simply didn't understand it. That seems to be common when it comes to the second game. Liquids arm is a perfect example of something that one isn't supposed to understand yet, neither is the last phone conversation in the 2nd game.
    Now for the love of god, stop whining about!

  • sonsonate #31 5 years ago

    Explain to me how MGS has changed since its inception. How is it any different from its predecessors, all the way back to the NES version I've played..? There is a lot of story, a lot of convoluted story in this game now.

    If you still appreciate this series after all its rehashes, fine by me, but I feel I'm pretty jaded by MGS at the moment. Oh, enjoy all the cool cut-scenes -- you can't play a cutscene, mind you. Ahh, and all those codec moments. Jeez, couldn't we have a NEW way of telling a story? All I'm hearing is people constantly talking, talking, talking in all of the MGS games I've played. Blah, blah, blah, endless drivel.

    Enjoy the Mooing Mechas. Those are quite new to me. I've also never heard of a mooing mech, but grreeeeeeeat! Unhh, Unhh, Unhh, Unhh, Unhh, *crack* (neck breaks).

    Edited by sonsonate at 12/07/07 @ 18:27

  • captainrentboy #32 5 years ago

    ''I think your mixing them with Microsoft''

    Quite possibly the poorest comeback ever :) I just had to comment on it.
    ''Your mum's fat''
    ''No, YOUR mum is fat''
    ''PWNED!!!''
    Ohh and I hate MGS games btw, just to chuck that in there.

  • Kelduum #33 5 years ago

    Someone remind me, was Phil Lamarr the guy who got his face shot off in pulp fiction?

    Hes the voice of Samurai Jack, Hermes from Futurama, and quite a few others from lots of other things (Family Guy and so on).

    And yes, he was Marvin, who met with the unfortunate demise in Pulp Fiction. :)

  • Les #34 5 years ago

    Funny thread.

    Glad to see another exclusive. That's what this generation needs: more exclusives. So physics based games on PS3, beautiful games on 360 and original and accessible games on Wii.

    I've only finished the first MGS and loved it. Never played a stealth game before and at first didn’t really enjoy it until at one moment it clicked. The story is great, boss fights were incredible but the humour was what attracted me the most. I love games that don’t take themselves too seriously. Which is probably why there are few Western-developed games that I like. The second one has been lying on the shelf for some time. After finishing FF XII I'll pick that one up.