Not content with allowing only one player to be stealthy at a time, Konami has an update for Metal Gear Online that makes two significant additions. The first is a new mode, “Team Sneaking,” which is simply a team variant of the already existing “Sneaking” mode, where one team is invisible and has to infiltrate the enemy’s base and destroy something. But, if the team is spotted, they will become visible until a timer runs down, similar to the way the single-player MGS games work.
The other noteworthy new feature is an option for hosts to enable: headshots only. It’s self-explanatory enough, with the one exception of the game penalizing you for any kills you make that don’t come as a result of headshots. That should make for an interesting twist if precision aiming is your thing.
This new update is now available for free. If you happen to try it out, come back and let us know what you think.
A new patch for Metal Gear Online hit PS3s yesterday that added a few interesting new features to the game. Most noticeable is a new mode called “Team Sneaking,” which is a variation of the previous “Sneaking” mode. Rather than have just one person have Snake’s abilities, a whole team can use stealth tactics, while the other tries to eliminate them. There’s also an option available now for hosts called “Headshots Only.” With this option, damage and points will only register if you land a headshot. In fact, if you hit an opponents body, you’ll actually lose points as a result. This should add some extra variety to the online matches. Really though, I’d like to see some more maps and a better party system.
The File-N-Forget Podcast returns this week as we ramp up for our upcoming E3 coverage. With Metal Gear Solid 4 now established in the market and fans going gaga over it, Ron and Shawn give their quick impressions of it along with Battlefield: Bad Company and Alone in the Dark.
Bigger questions loom however as we discuss the state of E3 and what we think might happen in years to come.
There are also Rants & Raves to make the fanboys happy.
This weeks show is available by direct download here.
I’ve been saying it for over a year now: “The day Metal Gear Solid 4 comes out is the day I buy a PS3.” So on Thursday, June 12th, that’s exactly what I did. I even drove an hour to a Wal-Mart in a small town at 6 AM to make sure I could secure the special system bundle. Being a huge fan of the series, I wanted to savor the experience, so I waited until the weekend to start playing, when I could really devote my time to the game. In the meantime, I perused reviews praising the game for its brilliant gameplay and for fixing problems that had plagued the series from the beginning. Naturally, I was even more excited to begin playing. So imagine my dissapointment when I actually popped in the disc and found it to be more movie than game.
Thank you, Yahtzee Croshaw. I knew I could count on you to be the guy who finally played Metal Gear Solid 4, stood up, and said “What the hell?” Reviewers everywhere have been slathering praise all over the game’s redundant story and brushing aside its ridiculously long cut scenes, but not Croshaw. This has to be the most spot-on review of MGS4 I’ve seen. It is a great game to be sure — when you’re actually allowed to play it — but yes, Kojima really needs an editor.
In the days leading up to Metal Gear Solid 4’s release, the bundle featuring an 80GB PS3 along with the game was in ridiculously high demand. Websites offering pre-orders for the bundle were sold out within minutes (and in some cases, shut down entirely) and some stores held impromptu lotteries on launch day to decide who would be walking away with one of their very own. Luckily, Sony has noticed the demand and plans to ship more bundles out in early July.
“While we can’t provide specifics on inventory levels, the Metal Gear Solid 4 PlayStation 3 bundle is a limited-edition offering that’s experiencing high demand from Metal Gear and PlayStation enthusiasts,” the SCEA statement read. “We’re pleased with the strong consumer interest in the bundle and are working to ensure that additional shipments are provided to retailers.”
At this time, the 80GB bundle still seems to be one of the best deals for anyone interested in getting a PS3. Hopefully the people that missed out the first time will get a second chance at the bundle in the coming weeks.
Gamers everywhere know David Hayter as the gravelly voice behind Solid Snake. But it looks like Hayter is looking to expand his role in the Metal Gear universe. Recently, he responded to fans on the IMDB message boards with this:
As for me writing the MGS movie, tell everyone on-line to write to Matt Tolmach at Sony Pictures studios in Culver City. If enough people do this, we may be back on board.
And just like that, the fans have now delivered with an online petition. To his credit, Hayter does have experience as a screenwriter, having penned the scripts for the upcoming Watchmen film and the first two X-Men movies (or as I refer to them “the good ones”). If he can keep phrase “love can bloom on the battlefield” out of it, he’s got my vote.
While Metal Gear Solid 4 is definitively the final chapter of Solid Snake’s story, that doesn’t necessarily mean that it has to be the end for Metal Gear Solid – say hello to prequels. (Again.)
In an interview with 1UP, MGS4 assistant producer Ryan Payton said there is “still a lot of room for filling in the gaps as far as Big Boss is concerned.” He added, “There are some misunderstandings that this is the final Metal Gear game. But it’s really the final chapter of the Solid Snake story. That’s all.”
That could certainly mean we see another game dive into the story of Big Boss as a prequel, just like Metal Gear Solid 3. Payton said he was glad that MGS4 wrapped up Solid Snake’s story, because had it kept going, it would have become less and less realistic — a comment I find quite amusing given the absurd events that have taken place in the MGS games.
“I’m happy we could wrap up Snake’s story in MGS4 because it gets to the point where if we continue on with Metal Gear Solid 5 with more Solid Snake adventures, we’ll get to the point where the game has absolutely no basis in reality. I do like the idea that this character has had four or five big missions and then that’s when it ended, rather than have 20 missions where there’s no chance in hell a secret agent could ever survive. He’s had four or five really big missions, and that seems a little more realistic to me.”
It’s Friday, and the 1UP Show is back. This week, the gang gets together to discuss Legendary: The Box, along with the game’s producer, John Garcia-Shelton. It’s essentially an FPS that has you fighting hordes of mythical creatures after they are unleashed from Pandora’s Box. Next up is Wheelman, based on the upcoming Vin Diesel movie, which is kind of similar to GTA, but with more emphasis on driving. They also take a look at the Metal Gear Solid 4 launch event and the Korg DS-10, which turns your Nintendo DS into a lean, mean, music-making machine. As always, you can download the show from Filefront by clicking the links below.
It’s another good week for the PlayStation Store this week — you’ve got a sizable game inFatal Inertia EX ($30), the Metal Gear Solid 4 Database, a new course for Hot Shots Golf: Out Of Bounds ($5), new music tracks for both Rock Band and Guitar Hero III, and plenty more. There are also four new demos — a trial of Fatal Inertia EX, so you can see if the game is worth $30, as well as demos of NCAA Football 09, Wolf of the Battlefield: Commando 3, and Hail to the Chimp.
And, of course, a random assessment of other things, including some trailers for various games and movies, a theme, and a downloadable music track — the PAIN theme song. Hit the jump to check out all of the new content.
I’m envious of everyone that’s gotten to play Metal Gear Solid 4; I’ve had the Limited Edition sitting on my desk since the game came out, but I haven’t gotten to play it yet because I refuse to jump in before I complete the first three games. I might have a way out, though, with today’s release of the Metal Gear Solid 4 Database — a free, downloadable knowledge base of all things Metal Gear that is now available on the PlayStation Store.
The MGS4 Database is a free, downloadable interactive application that contains the official knowledge base of everything that is Metal Gear, reaching all the way back to the very beginning of the franchise. Including complete storylines, character profiles, relationship diagrams, and much more! The MGS4 database is a great way to catch up for someone new to Metal Gear, as well as a useful resource for any veteran of the series, with complete official details on every aspect of the intricate Metal Gear lore.
There’s even a handy feature for people just like me who either haven’t played or haven’t completed MGS4, which will censor out any MGS4 spoilers. Could this be any more perfect?
For anyone who is playing the game, if you head into the Extras area of the main menu, you’ll find some free downloadable content, including a new camouflage and a new music track. There’s more in the works, too, so you’ll want to check in with that Extras menu often.
The first level of a game can tell you so much about what you’re in for. In classic Metroid style, it even gives you a glimpse of your ultimate powers that you’ll play through the game to actually achieve, since they’re (in)conveniently taken away from you just as you’re done getting a taste.
With the spirit of the first level in mind, 61 Frames Per Second came up with a list entitled “The Ten Greatest Opening Levels in Gaming History.” (found via MTV Multiplayer) The Tanker chapter from Metal Gear Solid 2 is on there, which is very difficult to argue with, as it’s just a phenomenal example of what Metal Gear is all about.
Likewise, Mega Man X’s Awakening Road (that would be the video above) shows off some classic Mega Man action before the franchise was literally milked to dehydration. That pesky boss brings back some bad memories though, as I have vivid memories of failing to kill it. About 300 memories vivid memories, to be more exact.
This is not your father’s Mega Man, says the opening stage of Mega Man X. Or it would, if it had a voice — but instead, it’s got a brutal snare roll leading into a heavy rock instrumental. It’s got a crumbling highway, complete with fleeing commuters (the latter of which ground the action in a more inhabited world than the NES Mega Man games ever featured.) And it ends with X almost getting scrapped by a mech-riding Boba Fett ripoff. Whatever our love for the classic Mega Man series, it never had this kind of drama
The new Battlefield: Bad Companytrailers are pretty funny, especially the one you see above poking fun at a certain tactic employed by Solid Snake. Hopefully the game itself turns out to be as funny as the ads; otherwise, that’d be mighty disappointing to see a game’s humor get outclassed by some videos.
In addition to the ‘Eye Patch’ trailer, you can find the new ‘Run Wild’ trailer right here. It’s not quite as topical and doesn’t include any special military barrels, but it’s still got me very excited to get my hands on the actual game next Wednesday.
“Why would he do that? That’s as stupid as hidin’ in a cardboard box.”
Konami has canceled launch events for its new Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots game in the wake of an attack by a knife-wielding man that went on a stabbing rampage leaving seven dead. The company cited concern for public safety as the reason for the cancellation of the Japanese launch events, one of which was to take place in Tokyo’s Akihabara district, the site of the attack.
Players control a soldier armed with a knife and various other weapons who fights his way through a multitude of enemies by killing and disabling them in a variety of missions.
In the Akihabara knife incident, a 25 year-old man allegedly drove a two-ton truck into a crowd of pedestrians and then ran through the area stabbing and slashing bystanders before being arrested.
Sales of MGS4 in Japan will go on as planned and launch events elsewhere are still on.
It’s Friday, and that of course means a new episode of The 1UP Show. This week, some conflict enters the office when some Dungeons and Dragons players try to recruit fellow nerds for some analog gaming. Then the team talks about the new Flash Map Pack for Portal which features the same maps as found in the flash version of the game. Next up is a preview of Project Origin, the sequel to the hit FPS, F.E.A.R. The game already looks creepy, and the AI can be pretty smart, it seems. Finally, there is of course a discussion about the pros and cons of the latest Metal Gear Solid game (which I’m not watching until I actually finish the game myself).
As always though, you can download the new episode using the links below.
By now, many Metal Gear fans will have already sunk a good amount of time into Metal Gear Solid 4. The game was scored by Harry Gregson-Williams, who also scored Metal Gear Solid 2 and 3, as well as movies like Shrek, Man on Fire, and Team America: World Police. (That last one gets him an instant thumbs-up from me.) Gregson-Williams spoke with 1UP recently about his work on the Metal Gear games, how the method for working on the series has evolved over time, and his interest in working on a potential Metal Gear film. (Here’s a hint: “I said I’d be right pissed if [Hideo Kojima] didn’t consider me.”)
How does writing a score for a game differ from a movie? I may be mistaken, but usually with a movie, you see a first cut before you start writing, correct?
Yeah. For instance, I’ve just started working on…I think it’s my eighth movie with [director] Tony Scott, and yeah, Tony hasn’t even finished shooting, and I’ve got what we call a “first assembly.” Lots of scenes are missing, and even the scenes that are there are probably a bit long and clunky, but the earlier you start in this process, the better chance you’ve got of getting it right.
The music for the Metal Gear games has always taken quite a long time, though. Not necessarily because the music was taking a long time to write, but because it’s spread out over a year. For this one, I would do a little bit of work, then it would go quiet from Japan for a few months, then they’d get back to me — they’d kind of be playing catch-up, since they’d be on to the next thing. Then they’d send me a little bit of footage, more descriptions, and I’d start chiseling away. Then, in the middle of that, there would be E3, and Hideo would bring a trailer to show people, and we’d get to meet. That’d be halfway through the “trip,” as it were, so it’d be on-off-on-off. I guess it’s just because it’s taken such a massive amount of time to make this game.
When asked if he’d work on future MGS games, he explained that he likely would if Kojima were heading up the project. Of course, if we take Kojima at his word, he won’t be directly involved in whatever the next Metal Gear game might be, so it’ll be interesting to see whether the next Metal Gear might end up with a different director and composer.
You can read the full interview at 1UP and check out an exclusive track from MGS4, titled “Love Theme.”
Our Mission this week is to debrief you on the history of Konami’s Metal Gear series. Maniac Elephant (Ron) and Infamous Cockroach (Shawn) discuss their past experience with the Metal Gear missions and plan a tactical approach for the upcoming Metal Gear Solid 4: Twin Acid Sons of the Patriots Liberty Eater’s Revenge mission that is set to go into operation this coming Friday.
The two mission specialists also talk about a rogue military superweapon (The Incredible Hulk), a rogue government assassin (The Bourne Conspiracy) and a silly child’s game featuring a plastic college professor (LEGO Indiana Jones).
This weeks show is available by direct download here.
As always, you can get past episodes from our podcast page at http://podcast.filefront.com, and you can send your comments, questions, suggestions, or snarky comments to podcast@filefront.com.
File-N-Forget is also available on the iTunes Music Store.
With the release of Metal Gear Solid 4 on the horizon, it looks like rumors pertaining to the series are starting to fly. One of the latest of these purports that Konami may already be working on a new PSP title, called “Metal Gear 3: Revolver Ocelot.” Apparently, the game will take place between Portable Ops and Metal Gear 2 (note: that’s not Metal Gear Solid 2). The game will also play a lot like Portable Ops, but with Revolver Ocelot as the main character. Word is that Konami will be revealing this new game officially at E3 this year. I hope this rumor turn out to be true. I have a feeling I’ll be itching for more Metal Gear action once I finish up with MGS4.
While Konami is gearing up for the big release of Metal Gear Solid 4 — the sole reason I will be at Best Buy way, way too early on Thursday — they may also have another MGS project in the works. Ripten recently received a tip that the original PS1 game could be ported over to the Xbox Live Arcade. The classic stealth game may even have a subsequent release on the PSN. Of course, such a transition is not going to be without its share of problems.
Obviously, there are some logistical issues going along with this announcement, not least of which is the question of size limitations. Microsoft may soon be raising the XBLA file limit to 35oMB, but that still may not be enough for MGS1, considering it spanned more than one disc originally. On the other hand though, Microsoft did publish the PC version of the game; and Konami managed to keep all of Castlevania: Symphony of the Night down to 95MB. We’ll have to see. What I’d really like though would be Konami to take Twin Snakes, Substance, and Subsistence and cram them onto one big, fat Blu-Ray to keep me warm through the winter.
Personally, I love the Metal Gear Solid series. They’ve consistently had some great gameplay and enticing — though sometimes confusing — storylines. Everything about the games just seems huge, which unfortunately includes it’s “WTF” moments. Every one of those games had instances where you just sat back and asked yourself, “what the hell just happened?” And now, thanks to 1UP’s Scott Sharkey, we get to relive those moments all over again. Crotch grabbings, awkward relationship talk through codec, homoerotic sword fights: it’s all here. I think it was the revelation that Otacon slept with his mom that really weirded me out the most though (seriously, Kojima, what the hell?). I think I need to lie down now; it’s just too much terrible for one sitting.
With the release of Metal Gear Solid 4 on the horizon, it looks like rumors pertaining to the series are starting to fly. One of the latest of these purports that Konami may already be working on a new PSP title, called “Metal Gear 3: Revolver Ocelot.” Apparently, the game will take place between Portable Ops and Metal Gear 2 (note: that’s not Metal Gear Solid 2). The game will also play a lot like Portable Ops, but with Revolver Ocelot as the main character. Word is that Konami will be revealing this new game officially at E3 this year. I hope this rumor turn out to be true. I have a feeling I’ll be itching for more Metal Gear action once I finish up with MGS4.
While Konami is gearing up for the big release of Metal Gear Solid 4 — the sole reason I will be at Best Buy way, way too early on Thursday — they may also have another MGS project in the works. Ripten recently received a tip that the original PS1 game could be ported over to the Xbox Live Arcade. The classic stealth game may even have a subsequent release on the PSN. Of course, such a transition is not going to be without its share of problems.
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