Metal Gear Online Review

By Dan Whitehead Published 17 June, 2008

Testing your multiplayer Metal Gear mettle.

Version tested: PlayStation 3

What do you think? Ready to go for another 2000 comments? Or is everyone still too tired from last time? It probably doesn't matter, since Metal Gear's optional online side dish doesn't quite come with the same burden of expectation and devotion as the main course. It is, however, very much a distinct and separate part of the package and thus worthy of its own moment in the spotlight. And, for the benefit of those on both sides, that's exactly how I'll be scoring it - as the first iteration of a standalone Metal Gear Online game that just happens to come bundled with Metal Gear Solid 4.

For those who took part in the beta, the first thing you'll notice is how little has changed. Turns out that the beta test wasn't a glimpse at what Metal Gear Online had to offer, but the chance to play with about 80 percent of the game. They've even retained that awful login system, which I had naively hoped might just have been a long-winded method of tracking beta usage. Sadly not. You still need two logins - a Konami ID and a Game ID - both of which must be registered using a poorly designed website and a very fussy data entry system, if you haven't already set one up during the beta. Names mustn't be the same as your PSN ID, one password must be at least eight alphanumeric characters, the other is more like a pin number...I swear, I have to jump through fewer security hoops to access my online banking.

It is, admittedly, a one-off inconvenience but one that comes at just about the worst time. We've already had to watch Snake blow smoke rings for twenty minutes while the main game installs, and then twiddle our thumbs while downloading another update for Metal Gear Online. After that, forcing players to fill out finicky forms before they can enjoy themselves feels downright perverse. In fact, at one point, having shuttled between my living room PS3 and office PC several times, checking for confirmation emails and digging out old passwords, I felt sure it must be one of Kojima's post-modern pranks and Psycho Mantis would pop up and laugh at me, but no - Konami really is just being awkward.

'Metal Gear Online' Screenshot 1

Sneaking Mission may just be Team Deathmatch with a Snakey twist, but it's the closest MGO comes to finding its own voice.

Itching to shoot people? Sorry, further annoyances await. Right before you create your character, the military avatar with which you will gaily skip through Metal Gear's networked carnage, the game casually informs you that only one such character is allowed per console. That's right - not one character per PSN account, one per console. If you want more, you'll need to head to Konami's proprietary in-game store and buy three more character slots for GBP 3.99 or EUR 5.00. While you're there you can also pick up the game's only other downloadable content at the moment; a pack of new voice clips. That'll be GBP 2.99 or EUR 3.79 to you, squire. It's not quite horse armour, but if Konami is serious about this just being a "starter pack", they'll need to offer some more tantalising expansions sooner rather than later.

So, you finally get into the game itself. Combat is fast, kills are quick and as for patching up your wounds? You'll be lucky. Everyone gets to choose their preferred weapon payload, with further options to change or upgrade your selections each time you respawn. Don't spend too long tinkering though - it's easy to get spawn-camped while debating their merits. The auto-aim feature is still a mixed blessing - handy for swinging your view towards incoming enemies, but useless when it comes time to dispatch them with a headshot. Melee fighting, or Close Quarters Combat, is also a skill best left to those who know what they're doing. The atmosphere is tense, while maps are designed to keep everyone close together, making sure that encounters happen quickly and often.

'Metal Gear Online' Screenshot 2

Few players are using headsets, so the potential for planned strategy is sadly limited.

In addition to the modes already covered from the beta test - Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch, Base Capture, Sneaking Mission - we now also get Rescue Mission, which is Capture the Flag by any other name, and two maps that weren't seen in the beta. Ambush Alley is a Ronseal map - it offers exactly what you'd expect from the title. Lots of cover, lots of blind spots, lots of close quarters fighting. Urban Ultimatum is a more vertical level, with taller buildings to ascend and snipe from, while criss-crossing alleys provide cover for those below. Yet I'm afraid my beta misgivings haven't been assuaged.

Back when we reported on the beta, I expressed concern that the modes of play offered didn't exactly click with the established Metal Gear gameplay and controls. In amongst the expected deathmatch and "capture the base" modes, only Sneaking Mission stood out as something that really took advantage of Metal Gear's established strengths. I was really hoping that the full game - or full "starter pack", if you want to be pedantic - would boast more modes that could only be possible with Snake and pals, with the more generic modes simply there out of obligation. Not so, unfortunately. This is very much a shoot-'em-up in stealth clothing. The same vague sense of opportunities missed holds true of the maps. They're functional, but never particularly inspiring, and I was hoping to see some of the famous locations from past games reworked for online fun. The nuclear facility from Metal Gear Solid. The tanker from Sons of Liberty. That sort of thing. Maybe we'll still see that sort of historical connection in future downloads, but for now the link between Metal Gear Online and its single-player cousin is more technical than thematic.

To split my hairs even more finely, it's more an online game based on the Metal Gear engine than a specific online Metal Gear game. The game relies entirely on the traditional Metal Gear Solid control system, which was developed for single-player stealth, yet game modes like Deathmatch and Base Capture were developed for multiplayer run-and-gun action. As it stands, Metal Gear Online doesn't quite find a way to combine these two elements into anything truly distinctive. You crouch-run into action, but must rely on needlessly complex controls to react to living opponents in an open-plan battle, rather than the AI foes in a linear narrative they were designed for.

The cover system, so integral to the single-player experience, is all but useless here. With no patrolling guards to worry about, waste time creeping along walls and peering round corners here and some l33t player will shiv you from behind or snipe your face off in a heartbeat. Sometimes you can vault over a low wall, other times you can only crouch behind it. Characters are incapable of pulling themselves up onto surfaces that are only shoulder height. The scrolling weapon select system is a poor fit for the online arena, especially when the d-pad is begging for something useful to do, while having your HUD spread out all over the screen, with health at top-left and a tiny ammo gauge at bottom right, is the sort of thing that works in a slower-paced offline game but proves hazardous in a game where access to that information needs to be almost subliminal in nature. Buttons come mapped with multiple functions, all of which come together to form a barrier between you and the simple enjoyment of playing the game. You can see the fun, but it's not always easy to feel it.

'Metal Gear Online' Screenshot 3

The game's solid clan features are your best bet for truly structured battles.

The effect is jarring, particularly for new players. There's a clever tutorial feature, in which experienced players can mentor newbies in real-time training exercises, and a couple of dedicated beginners servers, but apart from those concessions this is a game that tips the balance strongly in favour of the better players. They get to modify their weapons, they get better abilities and access to more useful items. As with most online games, rounds are often dominated by a few alpha male players, but the effect seems more pronounced here. The same names accrue points at the top of the table, while the same names stay at the bottom until they drop out. Some will find this "survival of the fittest" approach refreshingly brutal, but I suspect that soon only the hardcore will remain, and I fear for the naïve player who blunders into their first game six months from now.

The generous options mean that there are many ways you can tweak the controls to make them more immediate, but the fact that you have to do so manually suggests a game where they took Metal Gear in one hand, online multiplayer in the other, and simply squished them together. The trouble is, if you simplified the controls to better match online play, then most of what makes the game Metal Gear would vanish, leaving only familiar sound effects, porn mag traps and Snake's cameo appearances in Sneaking Missions as tangible reminders of the source material.

'Metal Gear Online' Screenshot 4

Truly, he is a human chameleon. Well done, Snake.

It'd be much easier to make the effort needed to get the most out of Metal Gear Online if it were offering something we'd never seen before in the realms of online play. It's never anything less than a solid online action game, but with a certified loon like Kojima involved it's not unreasonable to expect something out of the ordinary. Yet that's exactly what Metal Gear Online is. It's incredibly ordinary, offering little that the Warhawks or SOCOMs of this world haven't already, but with the distancing barrier of an inherited control scheme that doesn't really benefit the game. Remove the emotive Metal Gear branding that so often demands kneejerk defence or dismissal, and you're left with the bare bones of a decent multiplayer title, brimming with potential but far from fulfilling its promise.

As it comes tucked away for free in Metal Gear Solid 4, that's not such an obstacle right now. It's a robust freebie that will attract a devoted hardcore fanbase quite easily, and fans can feel free to add the score below to Oli's review and declare that Metal Gear Solid 4 is now worth 15/20. If, however, Konami plans to turn this into an ongoing spin-off with commercial potential then it needs serious work to either shape it into something outlandish that could only be done online with the Metal Gear series, or to better blend the Metal Gear elements into the established tropes of the multiplayer action genre. Right now it's neither one thing nor another, and that's a weird place to leave a series as distinctive as this.

7 / 10

Read the Eurogamer.net scoring policy
Picture of Dan.

About Dan Whitehead

Dan has been writing for Eurogamer since 2006 and specialises in RPGs, shooters and games for children. His bestest game ever is Julian Gollop's Chaos.

Read more articles from Dan by visiting the Dan Whitehead archive page.

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Comments (130) Latest comment 4 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • RazorObsession #1 4 years ago

    so basically the online component consists of the punishment part of the sneaking game that is metal gear?

  • syphaa #2 4 years ago

    I absolutely love it.
    Had a mamoth session with a mate over the weekend, once you get deep into it its fantastic!

    Im a bit shocked that there is no mention of the ranking system.
    From your review you portray it as though if a player ranks up highly within their chose expertise then other players have no chance...this is rubbish...if you played the game for more than 30 minutes you would realise as you rank up your skills you lose the ability of keeping your highly ranked attributes together as a play set. So this balances very well and makes even noobs have the ability of scoring highly.

    This review seems like very very little time was spent with the Online portion of MGS4. Shame.

    Highly recommend it personally!
    Edited by 1 at 17/06/08 @ 13:42

  • JonFE #3 4 years ago

    7/10? Lower than MGS4?!? Let's sink EG under a sea of comments, people :)

  • Dizzy #4 4 years ago

    Most online players seem to think it is a bit meh. In an age of uber online games, 7/10 is probably right.

  • CannonAnBall #5 4 years ago

    You are actually better off sneaking around. You will die if you run around like a muppet. Indeed there are some awesome players on MGO and they get better as they go along, so if you're new you're going to struggle for quite a bit.

    Also worth sticking to your team mates and not running off on your own. I'm rubbish to be honest but I've learnt that team play is the way forward. No one talks really which is a shame.

    I think 7/10 is fair enough. It won't appeal to everyone!

  • reddevil93 #6 4 years ago

    15/10 shirley.
    You don't buy the games separately.

  • robg #7 4 years ago

    ONLY 7?? We must kung-fu comment!

  • Peew971 #8 4 years ago

    So the whole package is a 7.5

  • prolific8 #9 4 years ago

    15/20. 75%. 3.75 out of 5.

  • DFawkes #10 4 years ago

    I love it, but could understand someone not liking it. I didn't like it at first myself, but I gave it a chance and ended up liking it.

    Spawn-camping is far too easy though, and the login system is as crazy as indictated, so I think 7 (and more importantly the words in the review) is fair.

  • sargemat #11 4 years ago

    I hate MGO. Its hard to get going in the first place and then its just not that great a game. I can see it getting a small hardcore fan base though.

  • [maven] #12 4 years ago

    As soon as MGO asked me to enter or create 2 online IDs, I went back to the single-player game. No thanks!

  • chudders #13 4 years ago

    Looks and sounds shit.
    Edited by 1 at 17/06/08 @ 13:41

  • Peew971 #14 4 years ago

    At least, you have to admire some sort of objectivity in the EG reviews. I prefer that over the fanboys at IGN. Not commenting on the score, MGS4 may indeed be a 10, but saying that you would love this game even if you hated the first 3 sounds like pure nonsense.

  • dr_faulk #15 4 years ago

    2,000 comments, here we come!

  • Physically_Insane #16 4 years ago

    The problem I think is that there is hardly no stealth involved. It should be more like the Splinter Cell multiplayer.

  • CannonAnBall #17 4 years ago

    There is stealth involved! The problem is that people are running around like fuckwits at the moment.

  • spongebob #18 4 years ago

    I know we can reach 2000, I know it in my heart.
    Edited by 1 at 17/06/08 @ 13:49

  • bad09 #19 4 years ago

    Rational comment -

    7/10 is fair. I said at the beta it's an acquired taste and some will not like it. Personally I love it and for me it's the best part of MGS4! Little touches like waking your sedated teammate or being thrown to the floor only to turn over and unload a clip in someones face make it even more enjoyable! :)

    The set up is a pain ('cough' Xbox Live 'cough') but luckily I signed up for the beta so the hassle was already out of the way!


    Fanboy comment -

    Oh so Halo gets 10/10 etc etc......

    This review is an insult to gamers everywhere! You bunch of MS paid Xbots EG. I'm never coming back to this site!!!!!

    / sits in corner and cries at review score.

  • absolutezero #20 4 years ago

    Exactly, right now the game is fucking horrible. Im not going to try and say that no one understands it. Its more they understand but just dis-regard to play in a style that their used to.

    Its pretty much just CoD4 in third person at the moment.

  • MrXBob #21 4 years ago

    Chaos Theory will always be the king of stealth-based multiplayer gaming.

  • Adielr #22 4 years ago

    You're just gloating. Just admit that you were after page views.

  • Moz #23 4 years ago

    It's a difficle game to score, if everyone is playing it "properly" and sneaking around using team tactics then there's very little fault, unfortunately they'd didn't manage to find away to make people play it that way so it get spoiled by people just running about. Can see clan on clan gaming becoming big in this game.

  • DFawkes #24 4 years ago

    It took me a while to get the stealth/action mix right, but it does kind of work. The first time you spring from your hiding place and choke someone out, then slink back into the shadows as a teammate investigates, then pop out and slit his throat - that's where the fun lies!

    It's a pity it's so inaccessible, as it has potential, especially when you're Snake with the Octocamo, hiding in plain sight then sniping skulls.

  • slivir #25 4 years ago

    It might be a good way to review all SP/MP games like this actually, as two separate scores.

    (The single player campaign of Halo 3 was absolute dog shit for example, I couldn't have cared less about the multiplayer)

  • americorloliveira #26 4 years ago

    It´s oficial from now on i am a eurogamer.pt reader, by eurogamer.net

  • Zappa #27 4 years ago

    EG suck!

    yeah post the lowest scores on the net just for hits..how sad:(

  • McBradders #28 4 years ago

    It's like the beta piece all over again :/

  • sport #29 4 years ago

    2000lol

  • layleeloo #30 4 years ago

    @ slivir

    Well said. Ive been saying for the last 2 years SP and MP should be made, and reviewed as 2 separate entities. recently the SP games have suffered - yes like halo etc. Personally, I couldnt stand the Sp of halo either and hate the MP too so was gutted on both sides (no fanboy, i own xbox, ps3 and wii) butit has become evident and a sign of the times that every time you read a fucking review, or preview you get the obligatory "no sign of multiplayer" etc. So bloody what? Does it make the SP game worse - no - usually better so why is it bad. I understand some bots like MP too, so I think all games should be made and reviewed as two separate entities - then perhaps the fans of each genre will have better products for it. At the end of the day - the industry would not be where it is if it wasnt for us SP freaks who have been playing and piouring money into the industry for 25 years to allow then to develop MP side of things. So dont forget about the fanbase that allowed you make party games, casual gaming, MP and the like.

  • Widge #31 4 years ago

    Hmmm, I wonder what the consensus of Call Of Duty 4 would have been with MP stripped out.

  • LeD #32 4 years ago

    "Love it. Prefer it to TF2, COD4, Resistance, TF2, Warhawk, BF, etc."

    Nobody's interested in your opinion, you muppet. Go back hiding in the forum.

  • tonynibbles #33 4 years ago

    ANOTHER BALLBAGS MGS REVIEW!

    For the love of god. So many lame ass, off the target points made in that review.

    MGO is one of the most fun online shooters ever.
    Graphics stunning, sound is stunning, FUN is off the scale, so many LOL moments. So much attention to detail throughout the game. Get someone with an interest to review it, ffs.

    Perhaps this should have been reviewed with MGS4 as these two games make a bumper £35 package that has not made me feel quite as good since the Orange Box. Seriously.

  • absolutezero #34 4 years ago

    Eurogamer Defence Squad?

    OH LOL.

  • SpaceMidget75 Verified Senior Software Developer, Minerva Computer Services #35 4 years ago

    *awaits Sony Fanboy mathmatics to appear*

    "15/10 then!"

  • BradMillette #36 4 years ago

    Metal Gear sucks.

  • lovely2cu #37 4 years ago

    "Chaos Theory will always be the king of stealth-based multiplayer gaming."

    Maybe not always but for now it's still the stealth action MP game to beat.

    Might fire it up this avvie for a go, wonder if anyone still plays it.

  • Darren #38 4 years ago

    I tried MGO for the first time a few nights ago, having failed to get the beta working because stupidly I didn't realise the Game ID password had to be numbers ONLY! D'oh! LOL

    Anyway, it seems fairly decent, although not much different from any other online shooter out there. It does, however, show just how good the MGS4 engine is that it makes a decent third-person shooter. As a bonus to the main single player game it's brilliant value and I'm sure I'll continue to dip into it every now and then when I fancy a mindless blast.

  • Darkedge #39 4 years ago

    sounds like a 6/10 or a 5 from the review tbh.

  • Darren #40 4 years ago

    @Peew971- "So the whole package is a 7.5?"

    I don't view it like that. After all MGS 4 would have been every bit as awesome had it shipped without an online mode because prior to the revamped MGS 3: Subsistence, the MGS games have always been single player experiences. Thus, MGO should be viewed as a freebie, a bonus to the main game, rather than the 50:50 thing you're implying. Of course, for those people that love MGO, it extends the life of the game for as long as they play it. Let's face it most other shooters have short offline campaigns because the online component is the meat of the game, e.g. Halo 3, Gears of War, Call of Duty 4, etc., but that certainly isn't the case here. If anything it's obvious that the single player mode has received most of the love and attention, and for that I'm eternally thankful! :)

  • betahoven #41 4 years ago

    Post deleted at 09:36:16 17-12-2011

  • Eighthours #42 4 years ago

    yeah post the lowest scores on the net just for hits..how sad:(

    You actually believe that? Really?

    In that case, you're an utter moron. You might try actually reading the review.

  • iancognito #43 4 years ago

    Had a mamoth session with a mate over the weekend, once you get deep into it its fantastic!

    I hope you are talking about the game ;-)

  • tonynibbles #44 4 years ago

    @ Nick_JC1 - I agree with the 8/10 and 7/10 scores for this game.

    I sincerely hope you've completed MGS4 and have a good solid 20 hours / level 3 or above under your belt in order to say that.
    And that's unlikely - come back later.

  • bad09 #45 4 years ago

    Playing now actually and just done my first turn as snake...failed big time :(

  • Katsumoto #46 4 years ago

    Ironic diss considering most people whining about the scores actually hadn't played the game at the time.

  • Widge #47 4 years ago

    I love the Snake mode. Fantastic being near invisible with Octocamo, holding up people while red and blue slog it out.

    Will give it a go once some clans are up, Warhawk still reigns #1 until that point.

  • CannonAnBall #48 4 years ago

    I had some guy (who was awesome by the way!) kill me a few times and each time he saluted me just before he ran off to kill someone else. Nice little touch which I thought was funny until I realised he was taking the piss. Damn you!

  • Tuffty #49 4 years ago

    So shall I run a bet on when the Sony/MG fanboys arrive to denounce EG, call us all biased gays and declare MGO as the best online game ever?

    I mean really, I've been to several game forums and the amount of bashing of EG and GameTrailers for giving MGS4 an 8/10 is ridiculous. On GT forums especially, the debate on why they've given MGS4 an 8.7 for story whereas Halo 3 gets a 9.8 is always mentioned at some point. It's not like these reviews are some kind of holy scripture. They ultimately mean nothing to MG fans as they buy the game anyway and to non-MG fans as they could look elsewhere to find the 'perfect' 10/10 review they need to justify the purchase of the game.

  • CannonAnBall #50 4 years ago

    So far no one has been that way. I agree with EG to be honest and so do a few others. Some like it, some don't - other people have arrived in this thread, taking the piss without ever actually having played either MGS4 or MGO.

  • bad09 #51 4 years ago

    "On GT forums especially, the debate on why they've given MGS4 an 8.7 for story whereas Halo 3 gets a 9.8 is always mentioned at some point."

    Halo 3 is ALWAYS mentioned by PS fanboys, I think the constant hate come from them secretly wanting H3 as they weep playing Haze and Resistance :)
    Edited by 1 at 17/06/08 @ 15:44

  • DFawkes #52 4 years ago

    @CannonAnBall

    Might be taking the piss, but if it's a salute or teabagging, I'll take the salute thanks you very much :)

  • CannonAnBall #53 4 years ago

    ...there is no way I want Halo anywhere near the PS3! It's not that great to be honest and I don't miss it one bit.

  • bad09 #54 4 years ago

    @ lolerdongs

    LOL look at the sad little person taking my comment seriously :)

  • Big-Swiss #55 4 years ago

    7/10

    after playing COD4, Teamfortress2, The Club, Warhawk, I have to agree, 7/10 is fair enough. I really love it, but you can't give it a 10/10, because those 2 points for personal love need to be taken away. For me 7.5 but at EG we don't have 0.5s, so fair.
    and there is always 1 point to take away, because that 1 point would have to be filled with something that isn't there, but would have ben cool.

    I am more the guy, that thinks MGS4 should be better than 8/10, but that is a other problem;-))
    Now the guys will come and say: it is only a score, well I got news for you, EG has weight. so when a score has so much weight, it isn't just a score, got it?

  • bad09 #56 4 years ago

    @ lolerdongs

    You sir are a fool even Konami treat MGSO as separate to MGS4, hence the separate review . Where does Sony find it's fanboys?

  • Darren #57 4 years ago

    @bad09 - Hmmm, well PS3 owners can play Call of Duty 4, which is arguably a superior, more intense, atmospheric FPS than Halo 3 anyway. ;)

    Having played both games, MGS 4 is for me a far, far more enjoyable game than Halo 3 and the more memorable of the two. I actually thought Halo 3's single player was a little underwhelming, especially graphically, whereas MGS 4 has exceeded my expectations... that's coming from someone who wasn't a great fan of the previous MGS games as well. Never cared for the online mode either so I'm judging both games as single player only experiences.

  • drumbaby #58 4 years ago

    "At least, you have to admire some sort of objectivity in the EG reviews. I prefer that over the fanboys at IGN"

    You've read the Eurogamer fanboy spoogefests aka HL2/ GTA4 reviews, right?

  • NorfolkNClue #59 4 years ago

    @[mavin] I agree completely. It really is the one area that you can truly say the 360 pisses all over the PS3 from a great height, and that's the online integration of games. Why can't I just use my PSN name?

  • bad09 #60 4 years ago

    @ Darren

    Yeah I know mate I just like rattling the fanboy cage by waving the halo red flag at 'em, it's quite fun :)

    As for H3 vs MGS4, it's hard to compare for me, both are great games but very different to each other.

  • bad09 #61 4 years ago

    @ lolerdongs

    What are you talking about???? MGSO has ALWAYS been a "starter pack" included with MGS4 with the rest coming as DLC later.

  • potter73 #62 4 years ago

    Being a really piss poor gamer (trust me , I would struggle at 'Online sudoko') I think the MGS online game is brilliant. So nice to go online and not get wiped out in the first 10 seconds, think this complements the single player game very well (just wish the muppet who was on my team would stop knocking me out:-) )

  • Darren #63 4 years ago

    @bad09 - Ah so you admit to being a shit stirrer then!!! LOL

    As for the Halo 3 vs. MGS 4 thing... for me it's easy to judge them because one gripped me throughout and compelled me to finish it and the other didn't. Can you guess which is which? ;)

    If a game keeps me hooked enough for me to complete it then it's bloody good in my book as too often I get bored of them long before I get to the end. Kameo, BioShock, Call of Duty 4, Oblivion, MGS 4, Gears of War... all awesome games, all completed. Mind you I did actually complete Haze too but that is definitely not as good as Halo 3 so maybe there are odd exceptions to my rule! LOL

  • johnnybrn #64 4 years ago

    @ lolerdongs

    Are you swam?

    Sony would be proud of you!

    Halo 3 RULZZZZZZZZ!

  • mcbi4kh2 #65 4 years ago

    Why is the single player and multiplayer being reviewd seperately? I can only imagine the scores other games would receive without the inclusion of multiplayer.



    "MGS4 is now worth 15/20" that really is some poor logic. MGO and MGS4 are the same game! How can the online portion make the game worse?! Already giving the single player an 8 means the online can only add to it.



    20 minute install? It Was 8 on my machine. Your PS3 may have xboxitis :/

  • Darren #66 4 years ago

    I'd imagine that EG have reviewed MGO separately because at the time they reviewed the main game no-one was actually playing it online. I believe it's the same reason they review most other games' online modes separately and later. ;)

  • bad09 #67 4 years ago

    @ LOL yeah I like to stir now and again, hey it makes the thread more interesting watching them get angry :)

    See that's funny you say H3 didn't grip you, maybe the gameplay helped with me as I played on legendary and was gripped to the point that hours just melted away (so did my 360!), MGS4 is doing the same (although with MGS4 the lengthy cut scenes and Naomi's cleavage help loose a lot of time!). There are very few games that keep me playing for hours (single player) but both H3 and MGS4 have done that.

    @ mcbi4kh2

    As I said to lolerdongs, MGSO is a separate game to MGS4, that is how Konami want to treat it although I myself am not sure why does anyone know?
    Edited by 1 at 17/06/08 @ 16:28

  • mcbi4kh2 #68 4 years ago

    @Darren
    Uttur rubbish, 99.9% of game reviews come out on the day or a few days before the game is released. They all consider online in their reviews. Can you link to a review of a console game where there are distinct scores for the online and single player portions please (besides this one).

  • oreillymj #69 4 years ago

    Annoying log in system = FAIL.
    I deleted the beta demo after hearing about this. That was after wasting 1.6Gb of my download allowance and before downloading patch 1.

    Konami's history on the PS3 isn't really up to much. I'll be waiting for ISS 2010 when hopefully they'll have a working game.

  • Razzajazz #70 4 years ago

    Whether it is now currently a seperate game or not, Konami did treat it as such in the beginning, and by saying that they have opened themselves up to having seperate reviews. It's really not the end of the world!

    I still haven't played MGS4 or MGO yet, and I'm looking forward to it, but I came into the comments section looking for more information from people who had played it, only to find twats like Lolerdong shouting insensical rubbish. EuroTRASH-GAYMER? I mean really? Is that the wittiest and most cunning riposte you've got? Why can't people just go and play the damn games instead of acting like fools on the internet?

    I'm sorry, I know I've gone off topic, but I've seen too much of this foolishness on EG recently to maintain radio silence any longer!

    So, from a couple of peeps who've actually played it, is it any good? Apart from controls (obviously) how similar is it to Portable Ops?

  • gohda #71 4 years ago

    i agree

  • DFawkes #72 4 years ago

    @Razzajazz

    Agree with your sentiments totally. I have played it for around 2 hours (a lot more if you consider the beta too) and I really enjoy it. I wouldn't regard it as that similar to MGS:pO, although if you've played that you'll probably have a good idea how the stealth fits in with the more action orientated feel of an online game. Certainly give it a go :)
    Edited by 1 at 17/06/08 @ 16:51

  • hahayou #73 4 years ago

    @layleeloo

    What about co-op? Put it in singleplayer and only treat adversarial multi seperately? Then what about adversarial co-op where you compete for high scores (Serious Sam, most 2D schmups)? What if someone hands you a controller for Gears of War where you might not even realise the second character you were playing with is a person? Is playing against bots singleplayer or multiplayer? What if you're playing a 64-player FPS with you, 1 other guy and 62 bots so you don't even meet the other player? What about the UT3 campaign which is botmatches but has characters, a story and cutscenes? What about online leaderboards? Racing for achievements? Is Spore multiplayer if you don't have direct contact with others but interact with their creations? How about Core Wars? Racing against your friend's ghost car? Racing against a developer's ghost included in the game? What if you play a Guitar Hero duel against the Guitar Hero playing robot?

    What if that robot could pass the Turing test?
    Edited by 3 at 17/06/08 @ 17:33

  • NewbieZilla #74 4 years ago

    "@Darren
    Uttur rubbish, 99.9% of game reviews come out on the day or a few days before the game is released. They all consider online in their reviews. Can you link to a review of a console game where there are distinct scores for the online and single player portions please (besides this one)."

    I know Gamespy included MGO in their thing.. And IGN US did. I don't know of others that included MGO. The servers weren't up yet at the point they did their reviews. Only later reviews got play time of MGO.

    MGO review: [link url=http://www.ugo.com/ugo/html/article/?id=18743&se ctionId=51
    ]http://ww w.ugo.com/ugo/html/article/?id=...[/link]

    Apparently Games Master gave MGO 92%.
    Edited by 1 at 17/06/08 @ 18:16

  • Bluetribe #75 4 years ago

    "Hideo Kojima: I always include it to bring to mind the avoidance of war and violence. The harder it is, the bigger is the satisfaction if you make it: playing without killing. The hurdle is very high, yet if you jump over it, it is an experience that the player may remember for a long time. That it was a huge accomplishment to avoid violence. This is the message I want to communicate. However, you also get better equipment, bigger rewards, a better rating in the game itself, if you make it without killing."

    And then this comes along... riiiiight

  • monkie_king #76 4 years ago

    I AM IN DENIAL!

  • Diomedes #77 4 years ago

    This is crap,they offer you two games for the same price and you had to review them separately and as if each of those was carrying a full price burden..

    Well ,with each and every respectable magazine giving MGS4 a 10/10 you have demostrated enough how stupid you are.Be happy ,in the bandwagon of the pedantery along Edge.

  • NewbieZilla #78 4 years ago

    Diomedes, please link to reviews that had both components reviewed. The servers were not up at the time they reviewed MGS 4 (main game). Besides, if it was, who would they have been playing a week or so before it was released?

  • Skurmedel #79 4 years ago

    If you think it's so fucking horrible that they get alot of comments on articles like these, why do you comment?

  • EmiliasHorse #80 4 years ago

    Must say I love the whingers who threaten to boycott EG when they dare to give a game a lower than expected score. When the two main multi format mags (Edge & GamesTM) gave the exact same scores and highlighted the same problems. If you want big scores go for the vapid FHM or Maxim, those guys know gaming.

  • NewbieZilla #81 4 years ago

    Or Fox News. They seemed to love it.

  • Gaol #82 4 years ago

    "fans can feel free to add the score below to Oli's review and declare that Metal Gear Solid 4 is now worth 15/20"

    Notice the distancing between the reviewer and what he terms metal gear 'fans' and the derisive tone directed at them. He's clearly not, and this is another slip up that shows EG's blatant prejudice against a game (presumably due to its PS3 exclusivity). And I mean prejudice in the literal sense - judgement before the facts.
    Edited by 1 at 17/06/08 @ 19:33

  • NewbieZilla #83 4 years ago

    You got a tone from "fans"?

  • EmiliasHorse #84 4 years ago

    Yeah MGS Fanboy's!!


    Humbug!

  • Gaol #85 4 years ago

    Yeah I did, its clearly a piss take remark; as if the online component holds equal weight with the single player campaign.

  • EmiliasHorse #86 4 years ago

    @Goal

    I think any game offering online should only do so if they can honestly say it is of equal value to the solo play.

  • Gaol #87 4 years ago

    "I think any game offering online should only do so if they can honestly say it is of equal value to the solo play. "

    Why?

    GTA4's online is nowhere near the value of its single player but is an interesting diversion.

    CoD4's single player is nowhere near the value of its online but is an entertaining campaign.

  • Gaol #88 4 years ago

    And out of curiosity why are you 100 comments deep in an MGO thread when you clearly don't own a PS3? Why do 360 owners feel the need to whine and generally wank off to these fairly crap articles?

    Don't see taking that interest in a Fable or NG2 comments thread or whatever.

  • EmiliasHorse #89 4 years ago

    Because you bite Gaol....

    Seriously though I am interested in peoples comments. Can I only read threads that I have a direct ownership right to view?

  • Gaol #90 4 years ago

    Fair enough, but I still think your point on an online part of a game having to be the equal of one player in all instances is rubbish.

  • monty2k #91 4 years ago

    @ Gaol:

    I think the "15/20" remark was aimed at the rabid MGS zealots who appear to think a 8/10 score is an intensely personal slight against them and their family/religion/sony/whatever they care deeply about.






  • EmiliasHorse #92 4 years ago

    Actually I was wrong to say they should be given equal status. But I do think online should only ever exist if it adds to the overall package, and is not just a tagged on deathmatch for the sake of it cash-in. Which MGS is not I readily admit.




  • Gaol #93 4 years ago

    @monty2k

    Yeah I do too, which is why I mentioned it. Only EG panders to fanboy audiences in a 'professional' review, whether its hyping them up or goading them. Too much self-importance would be the nicest thing I could say about it.

    @Emilia'sHorse

    I would agree with that. I think MGO should have been part of the main review though. Its pretty deep considering how much value is already in the one player, and it all works great (except the ID shit).
    Edited by 2 at 17/06/08 @ 20:35

  • bad09 #94 4 years ago

    @ monty2k

    absolutely and a well deserved dig I think :)

    Speaking of rabid MGS zealots I think many have been true to their word and not returned to EG. 100 posts? With the 7/10 score I was expecting A LOT more angry insulting posts claiming EG are paid by MS.

    Shame, the MGS4 thread was comedy gold!

  • Genome #95 4 years ago

    Dear God, please kill the fucking MGS fantards in the most brutal fashion possible.

    Oh, and bring me a good new Black Adder series.

  • NewbieZilla #96 4 years ago

    Not nearly enough win here.

  • bad09 #97 4 years ago


    "Oh, and bring me a good new Black Adder series."

    LOL! great totally random post genome and something I've also been wishing for since goes forth ended, never gonna happen though :(

    Perhaps we should all argue our favourite Blackadder series as most of the MGS fanboys seemed to been silenced. Mine is 2, of course.

  • Genome #98 4 years ago

    I'm in complete agreement on 2. The best putdown in comic history is without a doubt:
    "Edmund:What, are you wearing round your neck?
    Percy: Ah! It's my new ruff!
    Edmund: You look like a bird who's swallowed a plate!
    Percy: It's the latest fashion actually and as a matter of fact it makes me look rather sexy!
    Edmund: To another plate swallowing bird perhaps. If it was blind and hadn't had it in months."

  • Apostle #99 4 years ago

    Just plus one to the 2000 post count.

    OMG EG Microshaft pay your rent!!1

    Fair play.

  • EmiliasHorse #100 4 years ago

    It has to be 2 then 4 then 3 and a distance last place for 1. Back and forth + the Christmas Carol scrooge ones do not count.

  • bad09 #101 4 years ago

    Dont' get me started on Blackadder quotes we'll be here all night :)

    In fact just been looking at a few online to wallow in comedy genius and found one from good old general Melchett that many of the MGS fans seem to live by :)

    "If nothing else works, a total pig-headed unwillingness to look facts in the face will see us through."

    Edit - couldn't agree more Emilia'sHorse it is a close call between 2 and 4 though!
    Edited by 2 at 17/06/08 @ 22:41

  • suicida #102 4 years ago

    Oh come on, the best Blackadder series by far has to be 3. The writing is just so much better than 2. The supporting cast get some of the best lines ever:

    Prince George: "Well, tish-and-pish to your advice, Blackadder! Get them here at once! Damn it, I'd fed up with you treating me as if I'm sort of like some kind of a thickie! It's not me that's thick, it's you and you know why? Because I'm a bloody Prince and you're only a *butler*. And now go and get those actors here this minute, Mr. Thicky-Black-Thicky- Adder-Thicky."

    or

    Duke: "Two other trifling things Highness.. The men had a whip-round and got you this. Well, what I mean is I had the men roundly whipped until they got you this. It's a cigarillo case engraved with the regimental crest of two crossed dead Frenchmen, emblazoned on a mound of dead Frenchmen motif. "

    Oh yeah, MGO, boo hiss sounds rubbish...

  • bad09 #103 4 years ago

    @ suicida

    True but one thing stops 3 going above 2 or 4

    [link url=http://www .youtube.com/watch?v=Lx3eH-E6v5E
    ]http://www .youtube.com/watch?v=Lx3eH-E6v5E
    [/link]

    [link url=http://www .youtube.com/watch?v=2xTm7Z_6Dcs
    ]http://www .youtube.com/watch?v=2xTm7Z_6Dcs
    [/link]

  • suicida #104 4 years ago

    Heh heh, I'll see your Lord Flashheart clips and raise you a:

    http://www .youtube.com/watch?v=CEhDRG-jEwE

    and a

    http://www .youtube.com/watch?v=EcgGgpodYzQ
    Edited by 1 at 17/06/08 @ 23:59

  • bad09 #105 4 years ago

    Oooh good raise! :)

    OK..

    [link url=http://www .youtube.com/watch?v=TmqbO-lY0LM
    ]http://www .youtube.com/watch?v=TmqbO-lY0LM
    [/link]

    and

    [link url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=328Q79GoR7g&feature=rel ated
    ]http://ww w.youtube.com/watch?v=328Q79GoR...[/link]

    I'm liking this, I'm round my girlfriends and she's lost in Spiderwick on 360 so checking out Blackie on you tube is a great fun!

  • suicida #106 4 years ago

    http://www .youtube.com/watch?v=ukqzcC_jf_0

    http://www .youtube.com/watch?v=7598af_aCYo

    Love it. This has to be the best program after Blackadder:

    <a href=http://www .youtube.com/watch?v=-LVA_JboUMc>http://www .youtube.com/watch?v=-LVA_JboUMc</a>

    <a href=http://www .youtube.com/watch?v=55YCNmaoFS8>http://www .youtube.com/watch?v=55YCNmaoFS8</a>

  • Vandrius #107 4 years ago

    Mleh, EG lost my interest in the coverage of MGS4 when I played it.

    Their 15/20 is obviously just MGS hatred. From a MGS fan of sorts (I've played them all, but not always finished), MGS4 is absolutely brilliant and EG can go shove it up their collective rear ends.

  • stallion185 #108 4 years ago

    Honestly... why do people care so much about EG scores? If you like the game then you like it. It's that simple. If you give it a 10 then that is your right and good luck to you. Who cares that much about what someone else thinks about a game?

    "Their 15/20 is obviously just MGS hatred"??? So fucking what?!

  • Machiavellian #109 4 years ago

    The crazy part is all the people up in arms about the MGS4 review are the same people who praise EG when the score a game like Gears of War the same score. During that time, EG was being honest and rightfully tough on a GOW. Here is MGS4 which is a very good game but does have a lot of flaws that have dropped scrores for other games but MGS4 should be immune. I am very much enjoying MGS4 but it is not something that I feel that I couldn't miss. It does have it's flaws that does hamper it from being the complete epic. If you are a fanboy of the series you can also throw 2 extra points on the review but for a lot of people, 8 will be pretty much close to the correct score.

  • #110 4 years ago

    ]I completely disagree with this review.

    I only recently got a Ps3, but I did have the opportunity to play on a mates over an entire day playing MGO. At the start I thought it was too slow and dry to enjoy coming from all the shooters ive played in the past.

    But the more you play it THEY WAY ITS INTENDED, ie, slow and stealthy the more enjoyable it becomes. This is with out a doubt one of the best online shooters ive ever played and Ive played probably as many as anyone here from early consoles,PC etc. The SOP system is fun, why hasn't that been mentioned? And headsets? Ive witnessed some of the most intense heart-pounding games as 2 people are left against the other team and watch them co-ordinate attacks. I cant wait to get MGS this Friday if only for this portion of the game. And why review it seperately? This is just absolute bullshit. They didn't do it with GTA4.

    I don't get the review at all. Again in my opinion this is just grabbing for hits. Pathetic because Eurogamer is loosing its credibility. EG deserve people to leave this site, their reviews recently just aint adding up.
    Edited by 1 at 18/06/08 @ 07:40

  • timberwolf #111 4 years ago

    mgs4 act 1 + 2 are great. 3 - 5 stank. too short, too many boring over explanatory movies, completely pointless 15 min breifings that add nothing to the story, too many on rails sections, too much recapping for people that don't yet know mgs1,2 + 3 plot, for once (shockingly if you know the series) an overly predictable and simplistic plot with simple predictable plot twists, too easy and very very anti climactic... but bags of fun, and mgo is the gameplay the singleplayer is missing. online 8/10. offline 7/10. overall as good as it is bad...an average all round game.

  • 3william56 #112 4 years ago

    "buy three more character slots "

    EPIC FAIL.

  • bad09 #113 4 years ago

    @ 3william56

    Couldn't agree more, that's one thing I will not shell out for on MGSO. They made it so you can't change characters as well so you think you have to pay for more slots. Ridiculous fleecing.

  • captainrentboy #114 4 years ago

    For the folks wondering if this type of thing has ever been done before, y'know, 2 separate scores for the two core components of a game. Well, just look for Gears Of War on the 360, that too had two reviews.

  • monkie_king #115 4 years ago

    Also Konami expressly forbade MGS4 reviews from covering MGO, so go figure.

  • BobsUncle #116 4 years ago

    SAM FISHER R0000LZZZ!!!11!1!

  • Yaz #117 4 years ago

    DaemonB wrote: "Pathetic because Eurogamer is loosing its credibility. EG deserve people to leave this site, their reviews recently just aint adding up."

    Yeah, I mean, how dare Eurogamer have an opinion that differs from yours.

    :p

  • DFawkes #118 4 years ago

    Not only do you have to buy slots past the first, it has to be for every other PSN ID - it's one per console. That's bullshit. I realise you could've just kept making PSN IDs, but this way means if you have good reason to have 2 people in your household playing it, one has to buy extra slots just to get their own character.

    Although I don't mind much - it means the other gamers in my house have to use my character, so we all contribute to one characters levelling. They don't play much though, but I'm sure there will be many multi-gamer households pissed off by this.

  • bad09 #119 4 years ago

    @ BobsUncle

    Sam Fisher rules for one thing alone (well the games are great as well)......

    [link url=http://www .youtube.com/watch?v=LqDIDMqxH1o
    ]http://www .youtube.com/watch?v=LqDIDMqxH1o
    [/link]

    @ DFawkes

    Very true but I had the same problem with H3. Before I got her a 360 my girlfriend developed a taste for the MP on my console. She wasn't very good to be honest and was killing my rankings on my profile :(



  • #120 4 years ago

    @Yaz.

    Please! My opinion echoes mostly the good praise on this forum by the users and by many many other users across the internet. I really wish they would clarify why they used two reviews when the online componet is clearly a part of the actual game which you dont have to pay for. Say what you like but his is nothing more than manipulation of users to get page hits.

    Very sad, whats up is the credit crunch hitting your pockets too much?

    *******
    What do you think? Ready to go for another 2000 comments? Or is everyone still too tired from last time? It probably doesn't matter, since Metal Gear's optional online side dish doesn't quite come with the same burden of expectation and devotion as the main course.
    *****************

    Kinda like GTA4 and Halo3. Oh right, its different simply because YOU say so.


    ***************
    As it comes tucked away for free in Metal Gear Solid 4, that's not such an obstacle right now. It's a robust freebie that will attract a devoted hardcore fanbase quite easily, and fans can feel free to add the score below to Oli's review and declare that Metal Gear Solid 4 is now worth 15/20.
    *******************

    The guys a twat, sorry.
    Edited by 2 at 18/06/08 @ 13:42

  • andywilkie35 #121 4 years ago

    metal geeeeaaaaar

  • Yaz #122 4 years ago

    DaemonB wrote: "Please! My opinion echoes mostly the good praise on this forum by the users and by many many other users across the internet."

    Actually, from what I'm reading, 7/10 for MGO seems to be fair.

    "I really wish they would clarify why they used two reviews when the online componet is clearly a part of the actual game which you dont have to pay for."

    Because apparently, Konami imposed restrictions on the reviews. Hence look around, notice how none of the MGS4 reviews on other sites include MGO (unless I've missed a few), therefore Eurogamer are not acting differently to others. Stop looking for a conspiracy. ;)

    http://ww w.kotaku.com.au/games/2008/05/r...

  • Bitkari #123 4 years ago

    This isn't olympic figure skating, you know.

    7/10 is still a good score, 8/10 a very good score.

  • #124 4 years ago

    LOL@Bitkari

  • timberwolf #125 4 years ago

    think the scores are the wrong way around in my opinion. way more game in mgo.

  • MasterNameless #126 4 years ago

    @Bloodkult

    +1

    I couldn't agree more. As someone said on the MGS4 thread, MGS fans have indeed proved themselves to be the whiniest on the planet! It truly is hilarious watching them constantly wetting their knickers!

  • etyk #127 4 years ago

    that's it i'm changing to EG.pt I don't want to read anymore reviews by you. ;P

    I'm glad I'm Portuguese ^_^

  • GitSomE_UK #128 4 years ago

    Jeez Bloodkult and Arbiter get a room FFS.

  • Mudo #129 4 years ago

    Get a room?! It's funnier in public!

  • Rash' #130 4 years ago

    Personally, I don't believe this portion of the package really merits a review. It is after all a component that was designed to evolve over time through DLCs and updates.