Was expecting this to be that one bad entry in the series that you would have to slog through to play the actually good games (Yakuza in particular has a couple of these). But no, this game ruled. I will now scatter before you various nodes of my thoughts about Metal Gear Solid.

The first couple of hours were a slog, but after powering through the hooks of Hideo were firmly in for the whole game. I can see how the backtracking might annoy people but I liked it. Usually I would also be driven to madness by it, but here the quiet moments in between the action really helped slow down the pacing; something that was sorely needed in such a linear, rollercoaster-like game. I've been playing Final Fantasy X at the moment and, if you look at voice acting alone, it is absurd this game came out first. There are some truly terrific performances mixed in here. The ending kept going after what I thought was a really poignant note that worked better than the actual ending, but that is assuredly a nit-pick.

I suppose I am now Kojima-pilled, praise be to the messiah.