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Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots
The North American box art for Guns of the Patriots
Developer(s)	Kojima Productions
Publisher(s)	Konami
Designer(s)	Hideo Kojima (Producer, Director) Kenichiro Imaizumi (producer) Yoji Shinkawa (character designer)
Writer(s)	Hideo Kojima Shuyo Murata
Composer(s)	Led by Harry Gregson-Williams and Nobuko Toda
Series	Metal Gear
Engine	In-house engine
Platform(s)	PlayStation 3
Release	June 12, 2008
Genre(s)	Stealth action
Mode(s)	Single-player, multiplayer online (Metal Gear Online only, downloadable content)

Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots (メタルギア・ソリッド4・ガンズ・オブ・ザ・パトリオット, Metaru Gia Soriddo 4 Ganzu obu za Patoriotto), commonly abbreviated to MGS4, is a third person stealth action video game developed by Kojima Productions exclusively for the PlayStation 3. Guns of the Patriots is the latest addition to the Metal Gear series and was directed by Hideo Kojima, Shuyo Murata and Yoji Shinkawa. The game's worldwide release on June 12, 2008 is ten years after the release of Metal Gear Solid and twenty years after the US release of Metal Gear. The game has received wide-spread critical acclaim, garnering Game of the Year awards from several major gaming publications, including Gamespot, which hailed the game as technically flawless. As of December 31, 2008 more than 4.5 million copies have been sold worldwide.

Gameplay

In MGS4, the player assumes the role of Old Snake, utilizing stealth, Close Quarters Combat and traditional combat techniques. The game eschews the overhead camera of earlier Metal Gear games for a full-rotation, third person camera. First Person View and Over The Shoulder cameras are also available. CQC has been significantly expanded from MGS3.

A further addition to gameplay mechanics is the Psyche Meter. Psyche is decreased by non-lethal attacks, much like MGS3's stamina, and is influenced by battlefield psychology. Stressors (including temperature extremes, foul smells and being hunted by the enemy) increase Snake's Stress gauge, eventually depleting his Psyche. With low Psyche, aiming becomes more difficult, back pain is more frequent and Snake may pass out upon receiving damage. Among the available methods of restoring Psyche are eating, drinking, smoking and reading a Playboy magazine.

Snake has a few gadgets to aid him in battle. The OctoCamo suit mimics the appearance and texture of any surface, decreasing the probability of Snake being noticed. The Solid Eye device highlights items and enemies, and can operate in Night Vision and Scope mode. It also offers a Baseline Map, which indicates the location of nearby units. The latter function is also performed by the Threat Ring, a visualization of Snake's senses that deforms based on nearby unit proximity.

Metal Gear Mk.II and Mk.III are robots assembled by Otacon, offering CODEC functionality and the ability to hold Snake's items. Moreover, they can be used remotely to stun enemies and provide reconnaissance . Their design is based on the robot of the same name from Snatcher, also made by Hideo Kojima.

The Virtual Range, similar to the Virtual Reality training of previous titles, functions as a test facility for weapon performance and gameplay controls.

Plot

MGS4 is set five years after the Big Shell incident (depicted in MGS2), in 2014. The world economy is based on continuous war, fueled by Private Military Companies, now comprising the majority of nations' armies. PMC soldiers are injected with nanomachines to ensure only they can operate ID tagged weapons and to regulate their battle capacity. The control network created by these nanomachines is called Sons Of the Patriots. Liquid Ocelot is preparing to take control of the SOP system and launch an armed insurrection. Snake accepts a request by Roy Campbell to terminate Liquid Ocelot. Otacon and Sunny, Olga Gurlukovich's daughter, raised by the Patriots, are ready to provide support in any way, from a large fictional transport aircraft known as "Nomad."

Synopsis

Act 1 — Liquid Sun

Snake infiltrates a Middle Eastern urban battlefield to rendezvous with UN informants who have further information on Liquid. He meets up with Mk.II on site, and heads to the Advent Palace hotel where the UN team is situated. While making his way there, he encounters Drebin 893, a "gun launderer" and weapon retailer. Snake agrees to be injected with suppressor nanomachines in order to start business transactions with Drebin and resumes his mission. Upon arriving at the Palace, he finds out that the UN informants are a unit called Rat Patrol 01, lead by Meryl Silverburgh, his ally in MGS. Liquid's personal army, the FROGs, storm the Palace and Snake teams up with Rat Patrol. They avoid peril and split up towards Liquid's camp. Further on, Snake witnesses four powerful soldiers in manned exoskeletons slaughtering a group of armed Militia men. He finally arrives at Liquid's camp, where Liquid activates the test phase of his SOP destabilizing system, causing the PMC soldiers, Rat Patrol members and Snake to collapse or behave erratically. Liquid proclaims to a faltering Snake his desire to surpass his origin; Snake catches a glimpse of Naomi, the woman who injected him with FOXDIE in MGS, before she and Liquid escape. Snake is transferred to safety by the curiously unaffected Rat Patrol member Johnny.

Act 2 — Solid Sun

Otacon receives an encoded message by Naomi, explaining she is being forced to do research for Liquid in South America and asks for Snake's help. Snake enters the South American locale, and witnesses one of the cyborgs he saw in the Middle East and Vamp turning the local Rebels against him. He traverses the terrain and yet again meets Drebin, who reveals the true identity of the soldiers in exoskeletons he'd seen before: the Beauty and the Beast Corps, four female soldiers suffering from post traumatic stress disorder and recruited to kill Snake, each given a distinctive exoskeleton, the four known as Laughing Octopus, Raging Raven, Crying Wolf and Screaming Mantis. He also explains that the Patriots are a network of Artificial Intelligence cores.

Further on, Snake reaches Naomi who explains that Liquid is going to use Big Boss's biometric data to access the Patriot's core AI and take control of SOP. Her tests indicate Snake's rapid aging is genetic, and that the FOXDIE virus will cost him his life within 6 months. Before that, however, Snake will start spreading a deadly mutated version of FOXDIE, effectively becoming a biological weapon.

Naomi is kidnapped by FROGs, leaving Snake to battle Laughing Octopus. Snake later tracks Naomi down and they make their escape with the help of Drebin. When they end up surrounded by Gekkos, Raiden, now a heavily modified cyborg, appears to defeat them and, at great personal cost, stall Vamp so they can all escape.

Safely back on the Nomad, the team decides to head to Eastern Europe, where they can investigate Raiden's previous engagement in the territory and Naomi can see to him getting medical treatment. Naomi builds a friendship with Sunny and shares intimate moments with Otacon.

Act 3 — Third Sun

Naomi explains that the remains of Big Boss, kept barely alive, are in the possession of an Eastern European resistance group called Paradise Lost. Snake trails a resistance member to their leader, Big Mama, who is in fact Eva and the surrogate mother of both Liquid Snake and Solid Snake. She explains the Patriots were founded by Major Zero, and that Liquid will try to steal Big Boss's remains. True to her prediction, the Raven Sword PMC attacks the vehicles transporting the remains. Snake and Big Mama's attempt to escort them on a motorcyle ends in a crash, forcing Snake to battle Raging Raven. After besting the Beauty, Snake helps Big Mama escape down a sewer to the riverside, where Liquid is waiting. Unfazed by a large military force sent to force him to surrender, Liquid destabilizes the SOP system. He throws Big Boss's body onto a burning boat; Eva follows to try to save it. Snake's fruitless attempts to save Big Mama leave him with extensive burn injuries. Liquid escapes with Naomi, but not before the Mk.II makes it onto their gunboat.

Act 4 — Twin Suns

Before Mk.II is discovered and destroyed, it manages to sent out a transmission uncovering Liquid's plan. Liquid intends to use Metal Gear Rex's railgun to launch a nuclear warhead and destroy the Patriots' core AI, which is camouflaged as space debris in orbit. By then substituting the AI with his own core, he'll have complete control. To this end, he needs a non ID-tagged warhead from the cache left in the Shadow Moses facility after Solid Snake subverted his revolution.

Snake returns to Shadow Moses, forgotten after the events of MGS. He defeats Crying Wolf and her FROG outfit, and arrives at the hangar containing Rex, only to find Rex's railgun has already been removed and Vamp waiting for him with Naomi at his side. Snake suppresses Vamp's nanomachines and holds off suicide Gekkos while Raiden fights and kills Vamp. Naomi, revealing herself to be riddled with cancer and tormented by her mistakes, disables the namomachines in her body, ending her life. Snake and Raiden use Rex to head out of the hangar, but Raiden ends up pinned under the hangar's rubble. Snake is left to duel with Metal Gear Ray, piloted by Liquid. When both Metal Gears are rendered inoperative, Liquid reveals "Outer Haven," a submersible warship now ready to fulfill his launch plan. Liquid tries to kill Snake by ramming him with the giant warship, but is stalled by Raiden, who cut off his arm to free himself. Eventually, cannon fire from the USS Missouri, under the command of Mei Ling, forces Outer Haven to retreat.

Act 5 — Old Sun

Aboard the Missouri, Mei Ling calculates Outer Haven's most likely course and orders to intercept it. Snake, Meryl and Johnny agree to catapult onto Outer Heaven and try to stop Liquid's plans. The catapult landing finds Snake alone, and he sneaks into the control room, where he confronts and defeats Screaming Mantis, who had Meryl under her control. FROGS storm in, and Meryl is tasked with holding them back while Snake infects Liquid's own AI core with a virus Sunny has prepared. Johnny arrives a little while later, confides that he isn't equipped with nanomachines and while the battle heats up, so does Meryl and Johnny's romance, culminating in Meryl asking Johnny to marry her. On his way to the core, Snake is also aided by Raiden. The last part of the way, filled with lethal microwave emitters, Snake has to traverse on his own. Half dead, he finally arrives at the core and Mk.III finishes uploading the virus right before all hope is lost. The virus uses the core as a conduit to destroy all the Patriot AI cores, completely disabling the SOP system and grinding the war economy to a halt. Naomi and Sunny had programmed the virus together, to counteract the Patriots' upcoming civilian control scheme. The FOXALIVE virus is the conceptual counterpart to FOXDIE and preserves the energy and resource networks modern society requires to function properly.

Snake, having passed out in the Core, awakes atop Outer Haven's sail, finding himself looking up at Liquid. Liquid Ocelot explains that he allowed the mind of Liquid Snake to be implanted into him, to promote both of their agendas and perpetuate rivalry between the sons of Big Boss. The nuclear launch against the Patriots' main AI was only a distraction, to help FOXALIVE be uploaded without notice. Snake and Liquid have a final showdown, from which Old Snake emerges triumphant.

Epilogue — Naked Sin

Meryl and Johnny's wedding is underway, after Meryl accepts Colonel Campbell as her father. The wedding ceremony concludes with a kiss and the celebration begins. Raiden, hospitalized after restorative surgery, receives a visit from Rose, who introduces him to his son. The three realize they are a family. Snake stands before the grave of Big Boss, ready to take his own life to avert becoming a biological weapon.

Debriefing — Naked Son

Yet a very much alive Big Boss prevents Snake from committing suicide. He explains that the body burned in Eastern Europe was of his perfect clone, Solidus Snake and reveals that the Patriots were originally an interpretation of The Boss' will, founded by Big Boss, Major Zero, Eva, Ocelot, Sigint and Paramedic. With increasing power, two rival factions arose within the Patriots' ranks, Zero's who stood for complete control, and Big Boss', who dreamed of a soldiers' world. Eva and Ocelot joined Big Boss in his cause. Over the years, Zero let the newly established AI network assume more and more control, eventually leading to the war economy, a vision far from The Boss' original will. The Patriots' core AI newest plan was to fully control even civilian populations through economy, information and character manipulations. Big Boss puts an end to the last remnant of this false vision by shutting down Zero's life support unit.

Big Boss informs Snake that Drebin's injection included a new strain of FOXDIE, programmed by the Patriot AIs. It is set to kill the rival Patriot faction, now consisting only of Big Boss, and eradicate the old versions of FOXDIE. In doing this, Snake has no risk of becoming a biological weapon. Big Boss succumbs to FOXDIE, sharing a final moment making amends with Snake.

When all is settled, Snake agrees to spend more time with Otacon and Sunny, and vows to see this new age off.

Development

The game was publicly announced first at Tokyo Game Show 2005, under the slogan of "No Place to Hide".

Hideo Kojima wished to implement a new style of gameplay which was set in a full scale warzone. Kojima wanted to also keep the stealth elements in the game, which made the team abandon the "No Place to Hide" concept. The only announced warzone before release was the Middle East. Using several locations emphasized Kojima's original intention to portray the world in full scale conflict.

During development, the game's exclusivity was continuously questioned, even after Kojima officially confirmed the exclusivity several times. The exclusivity of this game is still in doubt from non-PS3 owners, months after the initial release.

Hideo Kojima announced that he would be retiring as director of the Metal Gear series after Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater, and would leave his position open to another person for Metal Gear Solid 4. As a joke, the new director was announced as "Alan Smithee", but in R, a 400-page book bundled with Metal Gear Solid 3's Japanese "Premium Package", the director was revealed to be Shuyo Murata, co-writer of MGS3 and director of Zone of the Enders: The 2nd Runner. He also contributed Easter eggs to Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty and Metal Gear: Ghost Babel. However, it was announced that Kojima would be co-directing the game with Murata after substantial negative fan reaction, including death threats.

The title was described as "essentially finished" by January 2008, and went through extensive beta testing. At Destination PlayStation on February 26, 2008, Sony announced that MGS4 would be released worldwide on June 12, 2008, along with the special MGS4 PlayStation 3 bundle.

Guns of the Patriots is the first PS3 game that uses a full 50GB dual layer Blu-ray Disc, even after extensive efforts in data compression.

Originally, one of Kojima's endings for the game would have had Snake and Otacon turn themselves in for breaking the law, and subsequently they would be convicted and executed, but this idea was vetoed by his team.

Soundtrack

The score to Metal Gear Solid 4 was led by Harry Gregson-Williams, his third Metal Gear Solid soundtrack, and Nobuko Toda, who provided music for Metal Gear Acid and Metal Gear Acid 2. Other contributors are Konami employees Shuichi Kobori, Kazuma Jinnouchi, Akihiro Honda, and Sota Fujimori. Directed by Norihiko Hibino, GEM Impact employees Yoshitaka Suzuki and Takahiro Izutani also made compositions late in the game's production. It was revealed in an interview with Norihiko Hibino that the team in fact wrote 90 minutes of music for the game's cutscenes, only 15 minutes of which made its way onto the official soundtrack.

There are two vocal themes for the game. The opening theme, "Love Theme", is sung by Jackie Presti and composed by Nobuko Toda. The ending theme, "Here's To You", is sung by Lisbeth Scott. Before the release of the game, "MGS4 - Theme of Love - Smash Bros. Brawl Version" was provided for Super Smash Bros. Brawl in the Shadow Moses Island level. The Metal Gear Solid Main Theme, composed by Tappi "TAPPY" Iwase, was notably omitted from the soundtrack, and the soundtrack of Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops. In an interview with Electronic Gaming Monthly, Norihiko Hibino stated that the company had difficulties with "Russian composers who said we stole their music", referring to an occasion when a group of Russian games journalists presented Hideo Kojima with a composition by Georgy Sviridov and claimed this had been plagiarised to create the theme. Hibino states that "they didn't actually", however the company was "too sensitive about the situation" and elected to drop the theme.

The official soundtrack was released on May 28, 2008 by Konami Digital Entertainment under the catalog number GFCA-98/9. It consists of two discs of music and 47 tracks. A soundtrack album was also packaged with Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots Limited Edition.

Marketing

At a press conference on May 13, 2008, Hideo Kojima announced a marketing campaign and agreements with several companies to promote the game. Apple computers and monitors feature in the game and an Apple iPod is an in-game item that Snake can use to change the background music, listen to in-game podcasts and collect hidden songs scattered throughout the game. ReGain Energy Drinks are used in the game as a Psyche gauge booster, and Sony Ericsson mobile phones are used, specifically by Naomi and Vamp.

Konami and Ubisoft put an unlockable costume in the game for Snake, Altaïr from the Ubisoft stealth game Assassin's Creed. Initially revealed on April Fool's Day 2008, Kojima later announced that it would actually be in the game, unlockable by doing "something special". To obtain the attire, the player must acquire the "Assassin Emblem", a nod to the game's title (or input a password in the Extras section).

Konami had originally planned to organize grand launch events in Tokyo, but some of them were canceled with the "safety of participants in mind" in light of the Akihabara massacre on June 8, 2008.

Versions and releases

Limited Edition

The Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots Limited Edition was released simultaneously with the game's standard edition, as an enhanced counterpart. The limited edition contains Guns of the Patriots, a box with artwork by Yoji Shinkawa, a Blu-ray containing two "making of" documentaries, and the game soundtrack. The Limited Edition was available exclusively at GameStop in the United States and EB Games in Canada, while a similar bundle with an additional 6-inch 'Olive Drab' Old Snake Figurine was made available at Play.com in the United Kingdom.

Console bundles

In North America, a bundle containing an 80GB PlayStation 3, a DualShock 3 wireless controller, a downloadable game coupon from PSN (Pain) and a copy of Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots was released for US$499 on June 12, 2008 to coincide with the release of the standalone edition. Japan saw the release of the Guns of the Patriots Welcome Box that contains the game itself, a DualShock 3 controller, and a 40GB PS3 in either black, white or silver.

Sony also announced a limited edition pre-order bundle containing Guns of the Patriots Limited Edition and a matte grey (officially titled Gunmetal Grey) 40GB PlayStation 3. First announced in Japan on March 18, 2008 at a cost of ¥51,800, the bundle sold out by March 25, 2008. An identical bundle was available in North America for pre-order on May 19, 2008 in "very limited" supply for US$600 at Konami's official website. David Reeves has announced a similar bundle for Europe which includes a 40GB PlayStation 3, the game itself and a Sixaxis controller.

Related products

Metal Gear Online

Metal Gear Online is the online component of Metal Gear Solid 4. The game features 16-player online stealth battles, encouraging players to engage heavily in teamwork. MGO is distributed with MGS4 in the form of a starter pack, and will eventually see a stand-alone release. The game will also be expanded through downloadable content via the PlayStation Network, potentially for up to 10 years.

The game was in beta testing in Japan from August 20, 2007 to September 3, 2007; around 3,000 people were selected to join the test sessions. A further beta test was then announced for release in April 2008. US and Canadian customers who pre-ordered Metal Gear Solid 4 in April received an "invite code" along with their documentary DVD, whilst European PlayStation 3 owners were able to download the beta from the PlayStation Store. However, due to many technical difficulties - including busy registration and login servers - it was postponed to April 25, 2008 and continued until May 11, 2008, promptly shutting down at midnight PST. It then returned on June 12, 2008 for the worldwide release of MGS4.

Metal Gear Online is region locked and players can only play others in their own region.

Metal Gear Solid Touch

Metal Gear Solid Touch for iPhone and iPod Touch will be a portable adventure game based on Old Snake and MGS4.

Database

On June 19, 2008, Konami released the Metal Gear Solid 4 Database onto the PlayStation Store in North America and Japan, and one week later on the European store. The Database is a downloadable application for PlayStation 3 that catalogues every piece of Metal Gear lore from all seven canonical entries in the series, in the form of an encyclopedia (browsable by alphabet and category), a timeline, and character relationship diagrams. Highlighted words in each article link to related articles, and it keeps track of which ones the user has already read. The Database automatically locks any items related to MGS4, in order to prevent the leaking of spoilers to those who have not beaten the game. In order to reveal these articles, the user must have a completed MGS4 game save that was created on the same console. The encyclopedia uses the same interface as the one featured in the supplemental discs for the 3DO and PlayStation versions of Policenauts, as well as in the Saturn version of the full game.

LittleBigPlanet

Developers of the game LittleBigPlanet, Media Molecule, released an expansion pack based on Metal Gear Solid 4 on December 23, 2008. It includes character skins for Old Snake, Raiden, Meryl, and Screaming Mantis, as well as a Metal Gear-themed set of levels.

Reception

Commercial

According to Enterbrain, MGS4 sold 476,334 copies in its first four days on sale in Japan, which includes copies bundled with the PlayStation 3, and caused a boost in PlayStation 3 sales. The PS3, which usually sells nearly 10,000 units in a given week, went on to sell 77,208 units in MGS4's debut week. As of July 9, 2008, the game has sold 576,437 copies in Japan. It is the 11th best-selling game of Japan in 2008, selling 686,254 copies. According to Chart-Track, the game is the second fastest-selling PlayStation 3 title in the United Kingdom after Grand Theft Auto IV and was below Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty's opening weekend figure by 14,000 copies recorded in 2002; the sales of the PlayStation 3 increased by a "minimal" seven percent over MGS4's opening weekend. Konami has reported that MGS4 sold over one million copies across Europe in its first week, with 25,000 limited-edition copies "snapped up almost immediately". In the United States, MGS4 was the best-selling game in June 2008 selling 774,600 copies (nearly one million if the number of copies bundled with the PS3 were included), causing PS3 sales to double over the previous month, according to the NPD Group. As of June 30, 2008, the game had shipped over 3 million copies worldwide. Many stores had game players lined up around the block at midnight and the excitement was covered by a variety of news outlets. Metal Gear Solid 4 has sold over 4.5 million copies worldwide, as of the end of 2008.

Critical

Metal Gear Solid 4 has received high critical acclaim, with a 94% aggregate rating at Metacritic and a 93% aggregate rating on MobyGames. The first review was a 10/10 from PlayStation Official Magazine (UK), commenting " shifts gears constantly, innovating again and again". The game has been awarded 10/10 from Game Informer and a 5/5 in all categories (graphics, control, sound, and fun factor) from GamePro. The game also received perfect scores from PlayStation: The Official Magazine (5/5), Japanese magazine Famitsu (40/40) and Empire. The game received a 9.9/10 from IGN UK, a 9.5/10 from IGN AU, and a 10/10 from IGN. IGN was quoted in a video review, saying MGS4 is "one of the best games ever made". Edge and Eurogamer both gave the game 8/10. GameSpot gave it a 10/10 saying "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots is the most technically stunning video game ever made."

Reviewers were unanimous in approval of the way the title continues and concludes the series. Eurogamer stated that "You could not ask for a funnier, cleverer, more ambitious or inspired or over-the-top conclusion", and IGN AU found that the result "refines the MGS formula and introduces just enough new (or respectfully influenced) ideas to ensure that it stands on its own as a game". Edge concluded that "it is faithful to its fans, its premise and its heart, delivering an experience that is, in so many ways, without equal", while IGN UK describe it simply as "the ultimate Metal Gear game" and "a dazzling, heart-lifting, voyage of discovery".

The new control scheme ("the ideal balance of intuitivness and range"), camouflage system and shift to more free-form, "replayable" gameplay (in particular the Drebin Points system and alternatives to "stealthy" play) were particularly highly praised with a few minor annoyances. The variety of set-piece events, details such as the "psyche" meter, and healthy provision of secrets were also remarked upon. Eurogamer tempered their overall praise with concern that one of the chapters may induce "ennui", but noted that the game quickly recovered, while Edge expressed mild disappointment that the "Beauty and the Beast" unit compare poorly to the previous title's main foes, the "Cobra Unit".

The game was also lauded for its technological and artistic achievements, with Edge describing the "Otacon" character as "the real star", and "a gaming revolution" while they found the game's score to be superior to that of many Hollywood offerings. The magazine felt that the few visual shortfalls (such as texture detail) did nothing to detract from the game's overall quality. IGN UK comment that the attention to detail in both visuals and audio represent "sublime brilliance", and remark upon innovations such as the use of split-screen.

Criticism of the game was largely leveled at the storyline, which reviewers found at times to be confusing or poorly executed and with IGN UK advising players to revisit the earlier titles for clarity. However the overall result was praised as emotionally engaging and topical, and characters such as Liquid Ocelot were singled out for the quality of their depiction. It was generally conceded that although the use of cut scenes is more intrusive than it needs to be (comprising "about half of the content of the game" by one estimate, and which "might make you crave action, or wonder why they couldn't have been turned into interactive sequences"), the style is somewhat appropriate given the rest of the series ("in many ways it's a vindication of Kojima's unique interpretation of the videogame medium") and unlikely to trouble fans. The addition of a pause function for these story sequences was universally welcomed.

Edge and Eurogamer alike concluded that although the game represents an apotheosis of the series style, it ultimately fails to revitalise it, and will not win over new fans. IGN UK were concerned that the game's hype and widespread praise may lead to disappointment, but feel that, objectively, the game is a "masterpiece".

Konami review limitations

Several publications have commented on limitations given to pre-release reviewers by Konami, including discussion on the length of cutscenes and size of the PS3 installation. These limitations have resulted in Electronic Gaming Monthly delaying its review. In lieu of a review, the magazine printed a roundtable discussion about the game, with a proper review expected to print in the magazine and post on 1UP.com after Konami's restrictions have been lifted. Kojima Productions spokesperson Ryan Payton has since explained more specifically what the NDA restricts, and has amended "some items are outdated and require more explanation." He also listed the length of install times, noting that the restrictions were intended to prevent spoilers regarding what occurs during the installations.

Following this statement, gaming site GameSpot published a blog entry in which it claims it will be unable to review the game either, claiming Konami have withheld review code because of non-compliance with the limitations. The article originally implied that the absence of a review was due to GameSpot's refusal to attend the "Boot Camp" event at Kojima Productions' offices. However, it has revised it to state that the Boot Camp was a mid-development feedback and PR exercise, and would not have led to a review in any case.

The day before Konami's restrictions were to be lifted, Electronic Gaming Monthly reviewer Jeremy Parish clarified the reasons for the self-imposed review embargo, dispelling rumors of a disagreement between Konami and EGM on the review conditions in a lengthy blog commentary. His review of the game appeared on the website shortly after.

The limitations were of particular interest due to a widely publicised claim by CVG that the game had "cut-scenes that approach the 90 minutes mark", misattributed to PlayStation World magazine. GamePro and Ryan Payton have described this as an exaggeration. A review by Edge describes scenes "perilously close" to 90 minutes in duration, but this has not been commented upon by the publisher.

Awards

Following the high critical acclaim it received upon its release, Metal Gear Solid 4 has received many awards from various critics and publications, including several Game of the Year awards/nominations with an overwhelming majority of sites awarding its graphics.

• AIAS Game Awards: Outstanding Achievement in Original Music
• IGN's Best of 2008 Awards: Best Graphics Technology (PS3 and Overall), Best Original Score (PS3 and Overall), Best Action Game (PS3), PS3 Game of the Year
• GamePro: The Best (and Worst) of '08: PS3 Game of the Year (tied with LittleBigPlanet)
• GameSpot's "Best of 2008" Editor's Choice Awards: Game of the Year, Best Graphics (technical), Best Boss Battles, Best Story, Best Voice Acting, Most Memorable Moment, Best Action Adventure Game, Best PS3 Game.
• GameSpy's Game of the Year 2008 Awards: PS3 Action Game of the Year
• Gamezine 2008 Awards: Game of the Year, PS3 Game of the Year
• Giant Bomb Year End Awards 2008: Best Graphics, Most Satisfying Sequel, Best PlayStation 3-Only Game
• Golden Joystick Awards 2008: PlayStation Game of the Year
• Joystiq's Top 10 of 2008: 1st Place (of 10, the Best)
• MTV Game Awards 2008: Best Boss Fight (Screaming Mantis Fight)
• PALGN Game of the Year Awards 2008: Game of the Year, Best Visuals, PS3 Game of the Year
• Spike Video Game Awards: Best Graphics, Best Original Score, Best Performance by a Female Human (Debi Mae West as Meryl Silverburgh)
• X-Play Best of 2008: Best Action/Adventure Game

Sequel

Before the release of MGS4, Kojima stated in an issue of Famitsu that he was already thinking about MGS5 but to have less involvement with future games in the series. In an interview with 1up.com, Kojima reveals he has three ideas for MGS5 but added that should Kojima Productions pursue them, Kojima would have to be more involved than he would prefer to be.

Ryan Payton, the Assistant Producer for Metal Gear Solid 4 mentioned a sequel when he announced that he would be leaving Kojima Productions on the August 26, 2008, saying, "It'll be hard not being involved in MGS5, but I've got the utmost confidence that Hideo Kojima, Ken Imaizumi, and our amazing team will put together another blockbuster game. I'll be cheering from the sidelines" Hideo Kojima has also hinted to a sequel several times in other interviews.

Following Konami's event in Tokyo, celebrating the completion of Metal Gear Solid 4, 1UP translated one final audio clip featuring Revolver Ocelot who has a conversation with an unknown character about a "sequel."

On December 5, 2008, Kojima Productions uploaded a teaser page that states "A Next Metal Gear is...". It was later revealed to be Metal Gear Solid Touch, a game built specifically for the iPod Touch and iPhone .

References

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Bibliography

The Complete Official Guide to Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots. Piggyback Interactive and Kojima Productions, July 2008. ISBN 0-50694-27817-9.

External links

• Metal Gear Solid 20th anniversary party
• Metal Gear Solid 4 global website
• Metal Gear Wiki, an external wiki

• 2008 video games
• Metal Gear games
• PlayStation 3 games
• PlayStation 3-only games