Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes (GameCube) Second Opinion Review

Tthe original Metal Gear Solid was a 1998 PSOne exclusive that is widely thought to be one the best games the console had to offer. The MGS sequel, Sons of Liberty arrived as a PS2 exclusive in the end of 2001 and was met with instant critical and popular success. It sported next generation graphics, game play enhancements (such as first person mode), and an epic, cinematic story. Though it improved on the first in many ways, many thought the sequel's story reeked of being just that, a sequel. As most of you surely know by now, Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes (MGS:TS) is an updated remake of the original MGS. The gameplay has been updated to incorporate all of the improvements and advancements of MGSII: Sons of Liberty, and the cut-screens have been completely recreated, but the game's story progresses much in the same footsteps of the original Metal Gear Solid. As you can imagine, making such hefty changes to a generation old game is no small task... perhaps no easier than making a game from scratch... well, enough commentary for now, let's take a look at the game.

The game begins with a staple of the franchise: a high-quality cut-screen in which you learn the basic stuff you need to know before they immediately throw you ass-long into a deadly situation; you're name is Snake and you are a world-renowned badass of legendary stature, you've got some sort of radio implanted in your head, hit "start" and "a" for help... super, got it, let's kill some baddies. Now, you'd think the first few areas would be simple to allow the newbie some time to learn the fairly unique controls while not getting too aggressively demoralized... hmmm... I'll be honest, on "normal" difficulty level, I must have died half a dozen times trying to get across the first area to the damn elevator that taunted me in the distance. But once the hang was gotten, it was easy to hold.

The game maintains a good level of challenge throughout, and although there is little variety outside of new weapons and the new challenges that make them necessary, it never gets boring. The Boss fights are often a little too easy, but they aren't really the point of the game... it's all about getting there. Progression through the game is marked by the frequent (and LONG) cut-screens that would always give the plot a new twist, and Snake a new headache. New characters are introduced, allegiances are made, villains are dispatched, and sexy she-spies pop up all over the place.

If you are new to the world of MGS, the controls will probably feel a bit wonky and hard to get used to. Some controls, such as running while shooting, or aiming some guns while not shooting, require some rather unique button combos. To effectively pause the game you have to hold start and hit "A" or "B", depending on what you want to do. Also, the contextual use of the "L" and "R" shoulder buttons can be a bit confusing, especially considering the camera relative control scheme in a world where camera angles change pretty damn often. There are distinct pauses between some basic movement operations (at times, it almost reminds me of Capcom's ill-fated P.N.03) that force you to have a fairly good idea of exactly what you're going to do before you do it, lest ye die in a hail of gun fire. Similarly, reacting fast to an unexpected situation can be a tricky wicket. But, once adjusted to the MGS style of gameplay and control, and once you've adopted the "I'm not here to kill this guy... I'm here to kill this guy quietly" mindset, you will likely find yourself gliding through the game fairly well.

Once you have a grasp on the control, and once you have a plan, little compares to the sheer glee of waiting around a corner to hoodwink some dipshit by choking, punching, shooting, drugging, or doing whatever it takes to get by the guy (and "no", you've got the weaponry and training for a reason, sneaking shouldn't be an option). The variety of ways to "deal with" enemy sentinels, and the gameplay involved in doing so, is more than impressive. On top of the standard array of violence, you can create distractions and diversions, which I believe should be used as a precursor to more violence, but can also be used in more conservative ways.

MGS:TS's gameplay is very concise, Snake's movement looks very good, and very rarely will you protest "that's a load of bunk! I didn't do that!" but as we've seen time and time again, concision in execution can often lead to a certain lack of flexibility in play. Take Ubi-Soft's Prince of Persia for example; sure you can run on or jump off just about anything, but you seem to live in this weird world of 90-degree angles. In MGS:TS, you can jump over some rails, but only if there is something to grab on the other side; you can climb on some obstacles, but only if they are about waist high and approved by god to be climbed upon; you can shoot some fire extinguishers, but some are protected by a kind of uber-glass that can hold up to an onslaught of stinger missiles. Such problems with the physical detail of a game's "world" are always present, but I guess they were a little more present in MGS:TS than I had hoped.