Look, I get that you can technically understand the plot of this game without playing Metal Gear 1 & 2, but man, I am so glad I did play them. A couple moments here wouldn't have been near as great as they were without that context.
Anyway, it's my somewhat hot take that early 3D gaming has aged possibly the worst of any period in gaming; this game simultaneously is primitive enough in its gameplay to be annoying while simultaneously too advanced to really forgive it in other areas. Metal Gear 2's story was impressive for pixelated faces speaking text, but fully voiced and animated cinematic cutscenes bring a much higher standard. The controls of this game were a real bitch to get a grip on, and even after I got used to them the lack of analog inputs and some of the problems specific to the PC port still annoyed.
And yet, in the times I found myself not playing this game, I was more eager to jump back on and play than I was for MG1/2, or hell, for any game for quite a while. I have my gameplay qualms and problems with the story (basically anything related to female characters, bar maybe Naomi) but both were still more than enough to suck me in and keep me itching to play more. I beat this in only nine and a half hours with HowLongToBeat averaging eleven, so clearly something had me motivated. This was a damn good time and a very good direction for the series, and I'm eager to see it improved into hopefully something amazing.
Anyway, it's my somewhat hot take that early 3D gaming has aged possibly the worst of any period in gaming; this game simultaneously is primitive enough in its gameplay to be annoying while simultaneously too advanced to really forgive it in other areas. Metal Gear 2's story was impressive for pixelated faces speaking text, but fully voiced and animated cinematic cutscenes bring a much higher standard. The controls of this game were a real bitch to get a grip on, and even after I got used to them the lack of analog inputs and some of the problems specific to the PC port still annoyed.
And yet, in the times I found myself not playing this game, I was more eager to jump back on and play than I was for MG1/2, or hell, for any game for quite a while. I have my gameplay qualms and problems with the story (basically anything related to female characters, bar maybe Naomi) but both were still more than enough to suck me in and keep me itching to play more. I beat this in only nine and a half hours with HowLongToBeat averaging eleven, so clearly something had me motivated. This was a damn good time and a very good direction for the series, and I'm eager to see it improved into hopefully something amazing.