It’s been a torrid, intense road for Metal Gear fans. When millions of gamers were taken aback by the ending to Metal Gear Solid 2, some questioned why the franchise had veered off course, while the hardcore remained faithful to Hideo Kojima and the increasingly multi-layered tale. Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater, though, was a complete turnaround for all involved – from Eva in a Lycra bra, to the younger, cocky Ocelot and his arrogant speeches, it was a true gaming masterpiece.

Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns Of The Patriots is going to take the masterpiece idea one step further, if our recent hands-on with it is anything to go by. After sampling the long-delayed conclusion to the stealth saga, we can reveal that it’s a multi-routed trek through a war-torn wonderland, and it’s a highly engaging change for long-term Metal Gear Solid fans. Every situation in Metal Gear Solid 4 confronts the gamer with choice – forget hiding in a box, and sneaking past enemies via a single method. Guns Of The Patriots encourages exploration, and invokes that feeling of having a mini-adventure within the main game.

In fact, during the section that we playtested, all eight of the people that played MGS4 had a different experience with the game, even though they all tried the exact same demo. When we encountered a group of guards in one segment, for example, one of us utilised the Octocamo to assume the appearance of a statue, while another of us decided to crawl through an underground tunnel. For another player, it was a case of finding an appropriate sniping spot, and picking off the guards, one by one. The passive rumble of faraway explosions is convincingly immersive, as well – the 5.1 surround sound dedicates itself to creating the apposite ambience for near-future warfare. If it’s near-miss bullet rips that you’d like to hear, or the subtle, gruff mutterings of our mulleted hero, then the uncompressed audio will very much impress. It sounds a little trite, but the Blu-ray really does give developers the space they need to be creative. With Kojima Productions’ incredible mastery of the audio, we truly were blown away by the hyperrealism of this scarred warzone, and we highly recommend upgrading your speaker system for Metal Gear Solid 4’s eventual release.

The graphics will undoubtedly deliver, as well. Since we’re lucky enough to have a 46-inch Sony Bravia TV in our office (with full 1080p output), we witnessed the visual majesty of Metal Gear Solid 4 in its most triumphant form. Kojima Productions has always been ahead of the game with visuals, and even though this is only its first game with the PS3, it’s looking mighty. We can’t fathom how amazing elements like boss battles will look in the final version – everything is realised in an almost unbelievable, mythical way. The graphics lend each vast environment a movie-scale level of possibility. With games like Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter 2 and Call Of Duty 4, it was extremely easy to pick up on the surroundings that would lead to big set pieces, but every environment in Metal Gear Solid 4 looks tailor-made for epic, explosive events.

Additionally, the artistic direction is astounding. When you leave one area and enter another, there’s an immediate familiarity to the surroundings. Imagine that feeling you had when you entered Strut B, in Metal Gear Solid 2, which was made recognisable by the stream of blood. Alternatively, remember the first arena in which you faced senile sniper, The End, back in Snake Eater – even though the areas would look identical to one another in real life, or even in the hands of other developers, there was a cleverly familiar look to each of them. In Metal Gear Solid 4, the same is applicable, only more so. In what would previously have been divided by screencards, Guns Of The Patriots runs into each environment in a structurally cogent way. There’s no break in the AI, and there’s no quick escape to be made by running through a loading screen.

Right, so we’ve travelled lightly through the boring stuff – Metal Gear Solid 4 is, technically, a kiss to the genitals, but it’s the actual gameplay that will surprise fans the most. The camera is clearly the child of Kojima’s recent experiments. The MGS4 viewpoint is somewhere between the Portable Ops setup, the Subsistence revamp and something altogether new. When you’re shoulder-deep in combat, it’s a lot more helpful than it has ever been in the past.

Gunfights feel less convoluted, as a result. With the camera adjusting in 360-degree motion behind Snake, it doesn’t feel obligatory to rely on the old ‘hold R1 or fire foolishly’ option. You can easily run at enemies in thirdperson, and spray the PMC soldiers with lead, action movie-style – the revamped controls give you more of a chance than ever before. In thirdperson, it feels comfortable to engage enemies in combat. With previous Metal Gear games, it seemed like the camera was an intentional flaw to deter the player from blowing their cover, but now there’s an Unchartedresembling run-‘n’-gun dynamic to heighten the pace.

In the heat of war, the idea of stealth is adapted in a mostly unique way. When a battle is underway between two factions, you can make a choice about who to assist while the battle is going on. You can edge towards the side that you wish to favour, or even shuffle past and let the battle play out, without your input. If you choose to help one of the sides, you’ll gain kudos with that particular faction, and begin a relationship that can hopefully be sustained throughout the game.

Aside from that, it was a familiar MGS experience. There’s a revamp of the Close Quarters Combat (CQC) system from Snake Eater, adding more complexity and depth to what was a fairly solid system before. In addition, there’s a number of frivolous Sixaxis manifestations; climb in a bin, and you can roll it with the tilt control, or flip open the lid. They don’t sound like the most essential features in the world, but they function pretty responsively. You can also control the Otacon Mk II robot by using the Sixaxis, and shaking it will rid yourself of the Octocamo.

Like we said, the CQC system has undergone a number of significant changes. In Metal Gear Solid 3, there was implied depth to the system, but not enough malleability or ease of control with the actions. Pressing Circle to initiate the system really felt like twitch gaming, but here it’s a little steadier. Tapping R1 begins the move, as Snake grabs the enemy. From there, you can threaten the enemy with a knife, slam them to the ground, or sit on their backs and choke them to death. We’re sure there’s more untapped CQC madness in the mix, but we didn’t come across anything else. Maybe Snake will put enemies over his knee in the final version, and give them a good, hard spanking – we just couldn’t be sure during our hands-on.

Thoughtfully, the first-person mode now encompasses movement, as well as the ability to just stare around. Although they’re not the most comfortable FPS controls of all time, they work a damned sight better than the horribly slow method in MGS 2 Substance – those controls felt like they were developed by a handless sloth, but Kojima has got something right here. It’s clear that the FPS mode is intended only for minor use, due to some awkwardness with the interface, but there’s the option to play through the entirety of Metal Gear Solid 4 with this enabled. Give it a try, if you want, but Kojima Productions has already Westernised the control system for those that prefer the FPS.

As a matter of fact, there are two different choices for the controls. Pick the outdated, fiddly Japanese controls if you’d like to commit suicide in the heat of battle, but everybody’s banging on about the ‘Western’ controls, these days. Fans of the Kojima Productions Podcast would’ve picked up on the studio’s love for Gears Of War, the piss-ragged, overrated Xbox 360 exclusive, but that’s the tack that’s been taken with the Western control system. Everybody has a preference, and everyone will be satisfied by the choice in Metal Gear Solid 4.

The weapons and items are hugely varied, this time – you wouldn’t have thought this to be of any importance, but it’s actually great to have multiple types of rocket launcher. The dart gun returns, as well, so there’s a definite air of nostalgia to your weapon roster. Expect technologically progressive machine guns, sniper rifles and pistols, but they won’t feel vastly different to the M5, PSG-1 or the USP.

Another neat reinterpretation is the codec, which is now more customisable than it used to be. In Metal Gear Solid 3, the characters were likeable enough to bear the conversation, but not all would say the same about Sons Of Liberty. The constant whining from Rose required skipping, but the strange, pseudophilosophical banter from the Colonel AI really deserved a repeat viewing. In Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns Of The Patriots, the codec will be more of an aid to you than ever before. Now it can be fast-forwarded, but also rewound – considering how full-on the Patriot origin and ideology is (see the ‘Patriotic Puppeteers’ boxout), this sounds like a facility we’ll be in desperate need of.

Overall, we were pretty damned impressed by the post-Tokyo Game Show code that we saw. There are a few things about Metal Gear Solid 4 that still bother us, such as sensitivelooking controls on the right stick, and slightly nail-biting controls, but these are all problems that Kojima Productions is fixing in the delay. The team is ridiculously busy at the moment (they couldn’t even answer our questions), and all of their time is now dedicated to ironing the creases out of this ambitious, triple-A title. Associate producer Ryan Payton put it best, “there’s this tendency (to think) that you wanna hold it back, or bring it back, and just, like finish the game… but that’s not Hideo Kojima’s style.” It shows, with Guns Of The Patriots. Massively.

What’s interesting about this Metal Gear, is that we can see it appealing to a wider range of gamers than ever before. Obviously, the story will overwhelm the novice, but the gameplay won’t. It’s accessible, ahead-of-its-time stuff, and the stealth in the battlefield is a commendably implemented idea. Metal Gear Solid 4 is chock-full of flourishing, successful design choices, and there’s nothing to suggest that it’ll fall short of expectations. To be quite honest, Metal Gear Solid is a franchise that divides the Play team and, in a wider sense, the greater PlayStation user base. It’s never been for everyone. Common complaints have cited the camera as an issue, or identified the stealth as being clunky; both of these issues have been fully addressed. This is the perfect Metal Gear Solid game, or is at least as close to perfection as the franchise will ever get.

As for the ever-burgeoning narrative, however, we can only speculate about what’s to come. First, we believe there’s a lot more of the game’s heritage that is yet to show itself. We’ve seen Eva from Snake Eater re-emerge as Mama, an elderly version of the doublecrossing Big Boss-baiter, but there’s certain to be more connections to previous titles. Big Boss, for example, must have a presence in MGS4, and there has to be another story component regarding the Les Enfants Terribles experiment.

Something we’re still unsure about is the Snake at the end of the E3 2007 trailer – who was that man, exactly? Another clone of Big Boss? We would hazard a guess at who it is, but we’re just not certain enough about his identity. Something we’re optimistic about seeing is a Metal Gear RAY and REX duel, which is implied by the trailer from the Tokyo Game Show. We sense that this will either be a really entertaining boss fight, or a deliciously cinematic cutscene; we’d prefer the former, but the latter is more likely. Hideo Kojima is really gunning for this conclusion with everything he has, and no other developer has ever had this much breathing space with the creative process of making a game.

In many ways, this is Hideo Kojima’s last great project. Never again will one man have isolated so much money, hype and importance on a third-party exclusive. Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns Of The Patriots has emerged as the PS3’s raison d’etre, and its enhanced gameplay will impress fans of the series, both long and short-term. By combining the iconography that the game is renowned for, along with a wise selection of new ideas, Metal Gear Solid 4 gets almost everything right with the very genre that it invented.

The wait for Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns Of the Patriots has gone beyond tiresome, but we still maintain that it’s worth waiting for. This is going to be the greatest stealth game of modern times, and it’ll blow ever-mundane shitbags like Splinter Cell out of the water, while still delivering the expertly plotted closure that its fans demand. Well, it’ll be either that, or a barren farrago of nonsense – when we’re privy to something that proves either possibility to be true, you’ll be the first to find out. Until then, continue to regard Metal Gear Solid 4 with the usual anticipation.

Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns Of The Patriots has received massive amounts of unfounded criticism since its announcement, but we want you to know that we don’t care any more. We just don’t. Kojima-san has more than proved his worth over his massive career (all three MGS titles rock, as does Z.O.E and Lunar Knights), and we’d like to reaffirm our undefiled excitement for Snake’s final mission. The E3 trailer didn’t so much whet our appetite as make us giddy, despite the lack of playable code being a letdown.

Still, we were gifted another cinematic joyride, with further plot details unveiling themselves throughout. The trailer was in English too, which gave us a brief opportunity to listen out for David Hayter’s ‘old’ Snake rendition. Unsurprisingly, it’s just a gruffer Snake than usual, but the ancient growl of the old dog just brought us right back to the series. It’s like hearing the voice of an old friend, only our normal friends have a little less backstory than a cloned copy of an ancient super-soldier.

We began remembering things from past Metal Gears: Liquid Snake’s theft of Metal Gear Ray, Naomi’s revelation that she injected Foxdie into Snake, Eva’s betrayal… so many more memories raced through our minds as we watched. This final Metal Gear really is that beautiful resolution and homage that you always hoped Star Wars: Episode III would be. So much about the events of past Metal Gears leave us in confusion (or, on occasion, wonder), but the thought of that elusive concluding chapter is massively satisfying. Remember that philosophical ditch of a revelation in MGS2, the one that proclaimed the Patriots died 100 years ago? It should come to a head in Guns Of The Patriots (see ‘The Sequel To MGS2’).

The trailer started with Snake moving in on Revolver Ocelot (or is that Liquid Snake?) for the kill, only to find him ready for such a situation. It was set in a military compound. Also present was Meryl, and what we assume is the new Foxhound (hopefully less dysfunctional than ever). Ocelot then activated something that affected all of the soldiers with nano implants, and they began to twitch and collapse.

The narration clarified what this means, with Colonel Campbell revealing that Liquid has, “taken command of this immense army”, and is, “now preparing to unleash an insurrection”. Liquid, the old bastard, is using nanotechnology to overthrow the remaining world powers – who, oddly, are still around in this era of “war economy”. Notably, the remaining powers are too afraid of losing money to do anything about the war (cough… Iraq… oil… cough), or indeed, Liquid Snake. Only a dedicated Metal Gear fan would understand an ounce of what was just described, but that is sort of the point with this last instalment.

Although apprehensive about the lack of gameplay, we were thrilled by the E3 trailer. We still can’t believe the detail of the character models, or the incredible animation: how are they doing that with the PS3? How are we this close to reality? The first half of the trailer concluded with a collapsed Snake, on the dirt, raising a gun at the escaping Ocelot. It was skilfully dramatic, we’ll agree, as Naomi concluded with the line, “go… fulfil your destiny”. The Harry Gregson- Williams music added to the impact admirably, and we did lose ourselves in it for a small time.

The battle between Vamp and Raiden occupied the rest of the six-minute trailer, and it was a visual treat. It’s interesting to see the two fighters battling away, as Raiden once again donned his cyber ninja outfit to take on the supposedly ‘immortal’ Vamp. Some of the new Metal Gears were initially in the battle, but Raiden made short work of them with some wellchoreographed swordplay.

The usual hi-jinx occurred after that, with Raiden proceeding to stamp on Vamp with some hidden blades in his feet. After another insane round of sword throwing, the now transsexual-resembling Vamp rounded on Raiden. A second later, Raiden plunged his own sword through his cybernetic chest and then through Vamp. Raiden is no longer all-human, then? Anyway, Vamp pulled out the sword and stabbed Raiden, before concluding with the question: “Will you finally be the one who finishes me?

It was truly astounding stuff, and it surely featured the best combat of an MGS trailer yet. The first half of the trailer perplexed most of the Play team, but we all resumed our brainless state of mind for the violent bits, and were suitably impressed.

Interesting, then. We didn’t really learn anything new from this trailer, but we’re not too unhappy. All of these MGS4 trailers are designed as tech demos of what the game (and the PS3) will achieve in the future. In a general sense, though, they’re doing a good job of setting the tone for the game, and as long as the gameplay isn’t completely outpaced by the cut-scenes, we’ll be happy bunnies. To be perfectly honest, we’re sure that Kojima Productions hasn’t spent all of the last three years just making pretty cut-scenes. The gameplay in Metal Gear has always been, for want of a better word, solid.

Subsistence didn’t earn 94% for nothing back in Play 145, which is very reassuring for MGS4’s eventual arrival. Kojima has always managed to infuse his games with a breath of fresh air, leaving deadin- the-water stealth franchises like Splinter Cell stuffed in a locker somewhere, with bullet wounds in their intestines. Hideo is an accomplished games designer, so the lack of gameplay is nowhere near a worry; it was just a bit disappointing for an E3 showing.

As Kojima declared that this would remain a PS3 exclusive (something has to, after all), we felt very enthusiastic about the game’s global March release. Simply put, we would’ve imported it if it didn’t come out at the same time as the US and Japan, but it’s a nice thought all the same. In spite of the hype and the spiralling expectations, we’re still excited about MGS4. We’re not going to pretend it’s a title that’ll appeal to all, but for those fans that have followed the franchise without any real complaints, you’ll likely regard this as the PS3’s holy grail. If only March weren’t so far away.