Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots

Playstation Official Magazine UK

Guns of the Patriots is almost intimidating in the consistent quality of its ideas, invention, and execution...Even by the series' stratospheric standards, MGS4 is a remarkable high point. [June 2008]

GamePro

The Playstation 3 finally gets its "savior", Kojima gets his masterpiece, and gamers get one of the best games of all time. [July 2008, p.72]

Playstation: The Official Magazine (US)

If you come to the game with no prior MGS knowledge, you'll still uncover one of the most absorbing stories ever told. [July 2008, p.38]

Game Informer

As the crowning achievement of the series' 20-year history, Hideo Kojima's final Metal Gear Solid title may not be what you expect, but it is everything you could hope for in a video game.

IGN

Is it possible to give a game an 11? If so, this would be the game that would merit that score. Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots is a title that exceeds all of the hype that was attached to the title.

Gameplayer

But at the end of the day, even the most vehement of MGS detractors will put their hand up and admit – Metal Gear Solid 4 is, by far, the most polished combination of presentation and gameplay this generation. It sets a new benchmark in terms of production values, and will blow your tiny little mind to smithereens on more than one occasion.

GameSpot

For anyone who appreciates games that rise above the simple act of pushing a few buttons and pulling a few triggers, Metal Gear Solid 4 is a stimulating ride that you won't soon forget.

Console Monster

There's just moments of absolute genius that make this game probably the best video game I've ever played - and I've played quite a few!

PSX Extreme

There is no doubt about it, but this is easily the best experience you'll have on the PlayStation 3 to date, simply nothing comes close to MGS4's presentation, story-telling, gameplay, visuals, and sound. The amount of classic homages paid to the previous games, with one in particular, will leave you breathless and, perhaps, emotional.

AceGamez

A one of a kind masterpiece. I doubt that any game series will ever build up to such a culmination as this one has, with so much thought, effort, and passion put into it. Hideo Kojima set out to move and excite people, to truly make a work of art, and not just a fun videogame. Metal Gear Solid 4 is an accomplishment like no other.

G4 TV

While debate will no doubt rage over the story and its outcomes, there really isn't a single wrong move in the gameplay sections.

Kombo

Metal Gear Solid 4 is a game that pushes. It pushes the PS3 into beginning to realize its potential.

MEGamers

A true masterpiece that will be revered for years to come like its predecessors, but one that will stand through the tests of time and will still be referred to as perhaps the pinnacle of storytelling in videogames.

Giant Bomb

None of the game’s minor blemishes are enough to detract from its massive overall impact. It’s the surprising entertainment value of the action, the mind-blowing visuals, and the completeness of the story’s conclusion that make this last installment so satisfying. Metal Gear Solid 4’s positive qualities make it one of the most significant game releases of this generation, and anyone with an appreciation for the evolving form of the medium would do well to play it from start to finish.

Thunderbolt

Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots will surely set the bar for this generations in terms of quality, and should be the benchmark for a truly great game.

Gaming Age

Kojima wrapped everything up in a nice little bow and gave it to us as a parting gift. Your questions get answered, your heartstrings get pulled, your mind gets blown, and you finally get the closure you've spent the last two decades earning.

TheSixthAxis

To review such a game as Metal Gear Solid 4 is like commissioning a blind man to share his opinion on a beautiful oil painting painted by a true artist, it just wouldn’t work. The nature of Metal Gear Solid 4 lifts it above such conventional ways of judgement.

GameShark

To be certain, this is the penultimate hardcore game. While it introduces a number of innovations, its core remains in tune with classic console gaming.

ZTGameDomain

When all is said and done Metal Gear Solid 4 is exactly what the fans wanted for Snake's final mission.

GamerNode

The unconventional approach to delivering a triple-A game by centering the single-player game around more non-interactive elements than interactive is sure to ruffle a few feathers; the viability of different play styles might lead people to believe it's a second-rate third-person shooter; and the emphasis on nanomachines and PMCs, without being preachy, might be too topical for some. Regardless, right now it's one of the best-looking, engaging, and emotionally driven experiences, with the gameplay to match, on the PS3 or any console.

Level7.nu

As the supposed last entry in the Metal Gear-franchise, this is one major release. Most of the flaws found in previous entries have been removed and the variety in gameplay and weapons is simply immense. The story is told in great part by cinematic video sequences and ingame narrative sequences, and while these are fantastic in many ways they can also become a bit tedious. These flaws are minor though, Metal Gear Solid 4 is a fantastic title in every way and a worthy finale to the franchise.

Game Revolution

Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots is the best in the series, the best in its genre, and the best game on the PS3.

PTGamers

Metal Gear Solid 4 is a game that needs to be experienced, not necessarily something that can be expressed by words.

Hardcore Gamer Magazine

Metal Gear Solid 4 is by far one of the best games released so far this year.

Kikizo

It's stupid, it's nonsensical, it's over the top, it's full of awful dialogue, it demands long sittings and it hasn't changed much from the first game ten years ago. But then, it's Metal Gear Solid, so who cares? It's undeniably brilliant, captivating, exciting and downright fantastic, definitely worthy of at least a few furrowed brows throughout the experience.

BigPond GameArena

A hardcore gamer’s game, and it makes absolutely no concessions otherwise.

Playstation Universe

One of the most rewarding videogame experiences of the decade. Absolutely essentially, regardless whether you are a fan or not.

Variety

Dabblers and newbies will find the convoluted, metaphor-driven storyline as baffling as ever, but the tight controls and unparalleled production values should draw enough of them to make this Playstation 3 exclusive not just a big hit, but a system seller.

Game Chronicles

Every aspect of the game – from the comprehensible storyline to the updated controls, from the white-knuckle character battles to the lengthy cutscenes – it all exudes a certain air of quality.

Cynamite

The comfortable gameplay and brilliant cut scenes make Metal Gear Solid 4 a great stealth shooter. There are only two disadvantages: the story is confusing and the boss fights are not as tactical as before.

Eurogamer Portugal

There are errors and flaws that can be pointed. Thing is, no other game manages to awaken such a diverse stream of feelings in its length. It generates hate, pity and even manages to makes us reconsider what we recognise as the current world, in its unbarred race to armament and technology. This is, at the moment, the interactive digital entertainment high point, setting the bar for originality and overall quality.

WonderwallWeb

There are so many ways to play this game, full on action or slow paced stealth so everyone is happy. With so many cool little touches, this game will take forever to get through and experience it all.

GameFocus

The game is so well done; I was totally amazed and blown away by it. The story, the characters, the humour, the action, the tension…everything all together makes this MGS game a masterpiece.

IGN UK

If you've ever loved any one of the Metal Gear games, or any moments from the series, there will come a moment when MGS 4 will send your spirits soaring. If you've loved them all, well then there'll be many, many more. It’s a masterpiece.

Gamer 2.0

When it comes down to it, Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots provides what may easily be the most memorable experience of this generation so far.

Games Master UK

Despite its flaws it's a largely successful of marriage and plot and play, a towering achievement and one of the finest action games ever made. [July 2008, p.60]

Cheat Code Central

People have been saying it for years, Hideo Kojima is a visionary comparable to a movie producer. He is capable of capturing depth and emotion in his characters like few others have been able to master. This time around, he's had the help of amazing graphics to tell his story. The environments, character models, and even the little intricacies of each weapon Snake holds bring a sense of realism to the title.

AtomicGamer

Kojima claims MGS4 is Snake’s final chapter. And while I'm saddened to see one of gaming's greatest protagonists retire, I'm thrilled he got such an outstanding swan song.

Extreme Gamer

Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots is a fitting final chapter in Solid Snake’s run in the series.

TotalPlayStation

It should go without saying that this is a game anyone who owns a PS3 should buy, and it's probably no real stretch to say that people should buy a PS3 for this game alone. It's that good.

DailyGame

We were skeptical that a Metal Gear title would be a killer app, but we were happily proven wrong.

Da Gameboyz

Whether it be shooting from the back of motor bike, escaping from some mecht-like creatures, or protecting a friend; Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots features some of the best gameplay and cinematic scenes on the PS3 to date.

PALGN

A gaming masterpiece that provides an experience unlike any other.

Destructoid

The most satisfying entry in the entire series. Its scope and emotion are heretofore unmatched in the medium of videogaming (my sister and I were literally screaming at the screen during the climax in a high-temperature corridor), it wraps up two decades of series mythology, and what gameplay there is, is damned satisfying in how it complements the story.

Gameplanet

Metal Gear Solid 4 isn't just a game, it's a work of art. By far and away the best PlayStation-exclusive title this year.

GameZone

Game of the Year? Who knows. Experience of the Year? Almost certainly.

Maxi Consolas (Portugal)

Metal Gear Solid 4 is a work of passion by Hideo Kojima. Often touching the line between genius and madness, he manages to build a truly epic ending to one of the most essential series in videogames history. Improving most of the elements from the previous titles, MGS 4 is a unique piece by its conception and nature, which rightly deserves the love of fans and the respect of all players. [June 2008]

PSM3 Magazine UK

MGS4 is a masterpiece, arguably the best in the series and - though many will fiercely disagree - ever so slightly disappointing.

IGN AU

But where MGS4 really succeeds is in delivering an experience unlikely to ever be surpassed by Kojima ever again, providing fans everything they want to see, twists you won’t expect and more raw, lavish creativity than the video gaming medium probably deserves.

Electronic Gaming Monthly

But most importantly, it feels like an overhaul without losing the fun details and epic feel that have always made the series work. [Aug 2008, p.74]

GamingTrend

Coupled with a download via the Playstation Store that’ll explain the series to you so far, this game is playable even if you haven’t been following the series for years.

GameTrailers

A unique, multi-layered experience that, when all is said and done, is a worthy conclusion to an important series. In addition to coming through as a sequel, the game stands as a ringing endorsement for the technical capabilities of the PlayStation 3. Some elements of the game aren’t as progressive as its technology, but taken as whole it’s still one of the most remarkable games of this generation.

Play UK

Despite its intrusive storyline, Metal Gear Solid 4 is a varied, engaging and entertaining epic. It may diminish slightly towards the end of the game, but there could be no greater reward for the fans' patience than this. [Issue#167, p.78]

1UP

The MGS4 conundrum is this: The further you play into the game, the less you actually play. Surrendering so much control to make way for movie sequences is galling, especially when the dialogue makes such a big deal about freedom and free will...Despite this gradual decay, though, MGS4 is absolutely a great game. The second half may lack sorely in comparison to the innovative, immersive brilliance of the first, but only because those early portions reach such inspiring heights.

The Onion (A.V. Club)

Hours of concentrated narrative abuse can't obscure or dilute the detailed game within.

Gaming Nexus

It's definitely one of the premier titles right now on the PlayStation 3.

Gamestyle

For all that, though, Guns Of The Patriots is a magnificently entertaining game.

Gamervision

It feels like Kojima couldn’t figure out how he wanted to end the game, and decided instead to fulfill every possible outcome that fans could want. It seems sloppy, amateur, and almost satirical.

Gaming Target

Yet, despite my or anyone else's qualms about the game it still is a great game that can be enjoyed by anyone willing to give it a shot.

Game Positive

Metal Gear Solid 4 is dramatic, moving, challenging and fun, and if you own a PS3, most certainly worth checking out.

DarkStation

Metal Gear Solid 4 is essentially the best game out there on the PS3, and can easily compete with any other game on any system.

GameSpy

What's perhaps most impressive is the way you'll feel about Snake by the end of the game (be sure to watch through the credits!). His character is fleshed out here more than any of the other games combined, and seeing him during his quiet moments with Otacon and Sunny gives him a lot more depth than we previously thought possible.

VideoGamer

Metal Gear Solid 4 had a lot to live up to and it's done so brilliantly.

Console Gameworld

That about does it for Metal Gear Solid 4, it's an amazing achievement for the teams that worked on it and more than lives up to being a next-generation video game.

Gamer.nl

In case you didn't get it: Metal Gear Solid 4 is THE reason to buy a PlayStation 3!

NZGamer

The long, over-indulgent cinematic cut-scenes combined with the sometimes inappropriate odd-ball humour has had many gamers scratching their heads in confusion. Regardless of your view point though, very few could question the artistic genius behind this latest instalment.

Armchair Empire

For some reason I felt it was important to play this "final" chapter of the Metal Gear Solid series - mainly to see what all the fuss was about - and I have to admit that I did have fun with the game even without a background rooted in MGS lore.

Pelit (Finland)

Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots has over 8 hours of cutscenes. Sure, there's a good game in-between, but there are also limits to how much B-grade dialogue and contrived storyline exposition one can take in one sitting. Heavy edits to the cutscenes would've made the game so much better! [Aug 2008]

Gamers' Temple

Now, on the PS3, Metal Gear has regained some, not all, of its former glory. But weak, reused bosses, a broken online game and the gameplay to video ratio keep it from the lofty standards that Metal Gear Solid set up so many years ago.

Worth Playing

The flexible and creative gameplay elements are stronger than ever, backed by arguably the best engine to date for such a game. After the conclusion of Act 2, the game enters a downward spiral, becoming more of a non-interactive movie and using less of the great gameplay of which it is obviously capable.

netjak

The core of the problem is that MGS4 tries to be everything to everyone and ends up falling just ever so slightly short of succeeding-- still managing to be a very good game in its own right.

Wired

The team at Kojima Productions has at the very least set a new high-water mark for cinematic presentation that I wager any other videogame will be lucky to reach, let alone exceed, for the next few years.

NTSC-uk

Bold, ambitious and unlike anything else this generation, there lies an experience beyond several oddly disparate parts. A swansong to a breed of cinematic narrative which has finally reached its apex.

Play.tm

While Guns of the Patriots boasts lashings of in-game invention and creativity that's largely wrapped up in superb style and execution, it's all so unforgivably tainted by jaw-dropping gameplay brevity that it's truly difficult to raise the many, many good points above what is, for the most part, a succession of cut scenes that leave the player with an overwhelming sense of disconnection from one of gaming's most compelling characters and interactive franchises.

Jolt Online Gaming UK

When placed in the context of the Metal Gears before it, Snake’s latest and last adventure feels a touch diminutive and hollow.

GameDaily

Metal Gear Solid 4 is one of the best PlayStation 3 games. That said, its features, acceptable 10 years ago, seem foolish given the better playing games on the market. Snake's epic, final act just isn't the triple A extravaganza we expected, and it's clear that if Konami intends to continue this franchise or spin off into something new, it needs to study its competition and evolve, delivering shorter cut scenes and superior shooting.

games(TM)

Such intellectual depth is unusual for this medium, but to both its creator and its fans this is a deeply personal game. [July 2008, p.100]

Eurogamer

Guns of the Patriots is a frustrating, fractured game that turns Metal Gear Solid's world upside down several times over, but never changes it.

Edge Magazine

MGS4 is not the game it could have been; nor is it the game it would have been had the series grown with the benefit of hindsight; nor is it the game it should have been if you believed that early trailer. But it is faithful to its fans, its premise and its heart, delivering an experience that is, in so many ways, without equal.

Boomtown

Kojima’s cinematic direction is a massive asset to the project, but in many ways has overshadowed the core gameplay that makes it less fun to play than its predecessors for those that love the style; Play them first, they’re better games, and then you’ll forgive the weaker elements in MGS4 to see how it all plays out.

GameCritics

It is an undeniable achievement: Hideo Kojima’s achievement. No other producer could have made this title, for better or for worse

Total Video Games

If like me you've waited a long time for this, ignore the final score, sit back and enjoy every wonderful cut-scene that Guns of the Patriots has to offer. For MGS fans, Kojima-san has delivered a masterpiece, but it's certainly an acquired taste, now more so than ever before.