Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons Of Liberty

Written by Tom Clare in PS2 Game Reviews, Sunday 27 August, 2006

"You'll Never Escape The La-Li-Lu-Le-Lo!"

Perusing through some old issues of Play magazine, I recall the immense, all-consuming hype that surrounded the release of Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons Of Liberty. The coverage of Konami's next-generation stealth adventure was unparalleled, as was the seemingly unending wait to see what score it would be awarded in the gaming press; in my experience, only Namco's long-awaited Ridge Racer Type 4 and the expectation as to whether it could retake the racing-genre crown back from Gran Turismo in 1999 came anything close.

So anyway, backtrack to 2001 and Play magazine issue 85 features a massive eight page review of this gaming goliath, one of the first in the country as they had tracked down an import copy. But far from the skyscraping score that was expected almost as standard, Metal Gear Solid 2 receives a strikingly unremarkable 77 percent. Over the following months, a slew of outraged fans send in letters of complaint and vow never to read the publication again. Were Play being intentionally controversial? After all, they had not long awarded the excellent Silent Hill 2 a score of 72 percent…Having eventually managed to buy a copy of MGS2 a good while after the media storm had died down, I found myself in agreement not with Joe Public, but with the publication that came under fire for what seems like a totally accurate critique.

It certainly isn't that I'm not a fan of the series; the original Metal Gear Solid was my second favourite game of the PlayStation-era, and considering I've sampled the delights of over 300 games on the old grey box, it stands very healthily in my estimations. Dissecting MGS2 is a tricky task; it has more highs and lows than nearly any other game in recent memory.

For those unfamiliar, Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons Of Liberty is a top-down stealth-adventure, where the onus is firmly on sneaking, going about your business quietly and, at all costs, not being spotted. There are two main sections to the game - the 'Tanker' level, which serves as an introduction and prologue, and features long-time series favourite Solid Snake. And then there's the 'Plant' which provides the main meat of the adventure and features new-boy Raiden partaking in his first mission in the field. His aims are to find and rescue the US President and a number of hostages from the "Big Shell", an offshore cleanup facility in New York, as well as looking into the presence of the mysterious quartet that make up the organisation "Dead Cell" and their involvement with the rumoured return of 'Metal Gear Ray', the super-weapon of the 21st century.

What made the original Metal Gear Solid so brilliant was that, underneath the raft of clever ideas and innovations it presented, lay a relatively simple foundation. It didn't try to overcomplicate the basic hide-and-seek gameplay and was always fair on the player. If you blundered through a puddle or crossed the path of a surveillance camera, then naturally you were going to be detected, but unlike games such as Tenchu and Splinter Cell, it didn't make you labour unnecessarily or punish you for absurdly small things - pushing the analogue stick slightly too much when sneaking up behind an enemy for instance. To Konami's credit, MGS2 manages to build upon the core strengths of the original, most notably the ability to sneak up on an enemy and then perform a 'hold-up'. Then, using the excellent new first-person aiming feature, you can either shoot the unlucky-blighters' radio so they can't call for back-up; their arms so they can't use weapons against you or their legs so they can't run away. A head-shot, as ever, will put an end to your sadistic games and their misery. The first-person aiming can also be used to shoot various bits of the scenery; to blow-out search lights and even set-off fire extinguishers if there is an enemy in close proximity.

Lovely new touches include the ability to drag the bodies of immobilised enemies - you'll need to hide them out of the way on higher difficulty levels as the failure for guards to respond to radio transmissions results in search parties being deployed in the area. Snake and Raiden can hide in lockers, as well as do a little bit of swimming this time around too. The controls are beautifully responsive and everything works just how it should; switching between weapons and items is a doddle and though some of the more advanced techniques require practice to execute effectively, there are no major control-based ailments.

Sadly, it isn't the gameplay mechanics that lets MGS2 down in the long-run - it's a host of other areas. The story is very disappointing to say the least; Hideo Kojima's storylines are known for being a tad convoluted, but the number of revelations, contradictions and counter-contradictions thrown in towards the latter stages of the game leave you wondering precisely what he was trying to get at. The game is blighted by numerous stoppages and extremely lengthy cut-scenes, and first time through, you'll probably find yourself watching the game for more time than you are playing it. The ultra-sentimental ending with a long-winded, moral epilogue accompanying pictures of real New York also hits a major bum-note.

Elsewhere, the characters are also rather mediocre, especially when compared to the memorable, inspired protagonists of its predecessor. For example, the bad-guys this time around include a vampire with a dodgy accent and a fat bomber on roller-skates - "Laugh, and grow fat!" being his perplexing motto.

There are similarities that run so close to the PSOne Metal Gear Solid that Sons Of Liberty seems almost a parody of its own predecessor. Button-bashing torture sequences, blood-splattered corridors littered with dead soldiers, shooting down aircrafts with missiles, and meeting a mysterious Ninja who disappears after dishing out bits of info - they've all been done before and the trouble is, they were better first time around. The amount of times the original game is mentioned in the guise of the 'Shadow Moses Incident' is frankly alarming, and make comparisons utterly inevitable.

Then there's the slightly more worrying aspect of the level-design. It is very inconsistent - whilst many of the in-door areas are nice, detailed and have scope for some interaction, the fact that the 'Plant' level is set on a rig out to sea means there are several samey, orange connection bridges to negotiate, and these quickly become a chore. They feel distinctly like filler-material from which the developers could lay a few routine challenges; the odd guard here, a mine or trip-wire there…at times, it borders on the mundane. The environments start to pick up a little towards the end, though your enjoyment of them will be curbed somewhat by the story and its rapid descent into the unfathomable.

Nevertheless, it does have its moments. At various points, you get the chance to locate and defuse explosives that are situated around the Plant - in this instance the game makes good use of gadgets and items through which the bombs can be detected. Fighting multiple Metal Gear's near the end will be a dream come true for die-hard fans, and the ability to dress up in enemy uniform and walk amongst the opposition is a cool touch as well.

Graphically, Sons Of Liberty is truly stunning. Be it cut-scenes or in-game, the characters, surroundings and everything in-between are packed with detail and very smooth. The first-person view shows-off the games aesthetic excellence even more - the 'Tanker' level features pouring rain, and looking towards the sky will blot Snake's vision slightly with raindrops, which is a super little touch. There's an impressive amount of destructible scenery as well which adds to the sense of realism Konami have created. It's nicely presented as well, mimicking its predecessor solidly, with Hollywood-esque production values even if the plot is lacklustre.

The soundtrack is disappointing. Having witnessed the rousing, exhilarating music that played through the previous game, MGS2's efforts are far less exciting and for the most part, distinctly forgettable. For once, I think it would have benefited from remixing some of MGS's tunes - not very original I know, though they would have guaranteed a positive sense of familiarity. Fortunately, the voice-acting makes up for it somewhat and credit must go to the 'voice-talent' for reeling off such large quantities of dialogue.

MGS2 has six difficulty settings that range from 'Very Easy' to 'European Extreme' (sounds dirty, I know) and with each, you'll notice subtle differences. The higher the difficulty setting, the more guards there are, and the cleverer they will act. If they spot you, they'll often take cover so as to radio for back-up. Reinforcements often carry shields, and the crafty beggars will even use fallen comrades as a means of absorbing your bullets. Anything above the second difficulty level will prove a stern test for gamers - the bosses get notably tougher too.

In terms of length, it's more of less on a par with the last game - so in all likelihood you'll get around ten hours gameplay time before the end credits role. There aren't, to my knowledge, any alternate endings and so instead, the lifespan MGS2 relies on are provided by its difficulty settings and 'dog-tags', which can be taken from guards throughout the game; the more you get, the more bonuses are uncovered. Not a bad idea in truth, though not really enough on its own to keep you coming back for more.

It's got a '15' certificate from the BBFC because of the occasionally-bloody nature of the adventuring, though it isn't as bad as the Silent Hill's and the Grand Theft Auto's. Those who've played the earlier game should adapt to the controls relatively quickly, whilst novices may require a little more practice - though the various difficulty settings help a fair bit.

Ultimately, Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons Of Liberty delivers flashes of brilliance at intervals, but is ultimately suffocated by a mixture of its own incredible hype and the uninspired design of many of its areas. The storyline and characters also leave a lot to be desired, especially when compared directly to its great older sibling, and though it's a technical marvel, MGS2 proves that you need more than a solid foundation and decent graphics maintain the interest of the expectant modern-day gamer. It's no classic sadly - perhaps worth renting.

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