Metal Gear Solid 5: Phantom Pain

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Opinions?

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Finished the artbook for MGS2, MGS4 and MGS5.  A lot of interesting, unused concept art.  It can be found online.

 

In honor of this beloved series:

 

 

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Story summary for MGS5, 

 

 

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SPOILER WARNING

 

I hope that the Metal Gear series could survive.  I would LOVE to see the rights sold to a AAA Western developer and see a top quality , Americanized reboot.

 

The flaws of the series- including the incomplete MGS5- could easily be modified by good writers, and the old games with amazing premises (Metal Gear 1 and Metal Gear 2) could get actual modern remakes instead remaining primitive 8-bit games.  Peace Walker should have been a PS3 game.  

 

In my thinking:

 

Metal Gear 1 (enter Big Boss):  Siberia, the events of MGS3: Snake Eater

 

Metal Gear 2 (rise of Big Boss):  Peace Walker

 

Metal Gear 3 (fall of Big Boss):  MGS5, Phantom Pain

 

Metal Gear 4 (enter Solid Snake):  the events of Metal Gear 1

 

Metal Gear 5 (death of Big Boss): the events of Metal Gear 2

 

Metal Gear 6 (Shadow Moses):  Metal Gear Solid

 

Metal Gear 7 (Big Shell): Metal Gear Solid 2

 

Metal Gear 8 (Finale): Metal Gear Solid 4

 

Venom Snake shouldn't have been a separate character, he just should have been Big Boss.

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essential viewing for the GZ/PP

 

 

 

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big boss look alike in Polar:

 

 

[Michael*]

On 8/23/2020 at 3:39 AM, Cult Icon said:

The flaws of the series- including the incomplete MGS5- could easily be modified by good writers, and the old games with amazing premises (Metal Gear 1 and Metal Gear 2) could get actual modern remakes instead remaining primitive 8-bit games.  Peace Walker should have been a PS3 game.

 

Earlier in the year, I spent a few quid on an old PS3 copy of Metal Gear Legacy Collection, specifically to sample the ports of Metal Gear 1 and 2. Man alive, do they ever feel clunky today.

 

Peace Walker on the other hand (after Kojima saying it was basically MGS4 in all but name) was a good inclusion, it had about the same visual fidelity as MGS2 and 3 and really didn't deserve to be stuck on a handheld platform forever.

 

With a ground-up reimagining of MGS1 believed to be bound for PS5 at some point, it might pave the way for perhaps the last true fan request (Metal Gear 1 and 2 remade with the MGS5 engine) to be fulfilled one day.

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5 hours ago, Michael* said:

 

Earlier in the year, I spent a few quid on an old PS3 copy of Metal Gear Legacy Collection, specifically to sample the ports of Metal Gear 1 and 2. Man alive, do they ever feel clunky today.

 

Peace Walker on the other hand (after Kojima saying it was basically MGS4 in all but name) was a good inclusion, it had about the same visual fidelity as MGS2 and 3 and really didn't deserve to be stuck on a handheld platform forever.

 

With a ground-up reimagining of MGS1 believed to be bound for PS5 at some point, it might pave the way for perhaps the last true fan request (Metal Gear 1 and 2 remade with the MGS5 engine) to be fulfilled one day.

 

what?  Is that the case?

 

From last I heard the Metal Gear Series has been hoarded by Konami and all they've done is to use it for a gambling machine.  The only hope for the series IMHO is if they sell the IP to another developer, I would like to see a Western company get it.

 

MG1 and MG2 are ridiculously archaic, it's quite weird that they never remade them although in the lore the events are important.  So Venom Snake is killed by Solid in MG1.  It would be really cool if they made a game where it was Solid vs. Venom, and then Solid vs Big Boss in MG2.

 

I recently looked at the concept art and I found that there was a good deal of cut content for MGS5.  There was supposed to be a "punished Chico" character and a major confrontation with the young liquid in an island battle with the Metal Gear he hijacked.

 

I watched a good deal of the Peace Walker/Portable ops videos, it's pretty vital to the MGS5 story to the trapped there as you say.  Also, instead of real cutscenes they have poor quality comics which should really be changed.  The ending of Peace Walker foreshadows MG: Ground Zeroes.  Also, Peace Walker identify who Paz and Chico are, and PW/PO show Big Boss' progression from post- MGS3 to the building of his mercenary company.  Portable Ops also has some character development for Big Boss, kind of showing where he was inspired to eventually build outer heaven.

 

Metal Gear Solid 1 and 2 still hold up today.

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What do you think of the music for MGS5?

 

Besides for the unused track I posted I don't like any of it.  I liked the music for 4, 3, 2, 1 very much.  5's music broke with the theme and seems incongruent with the game.

[Michael*]

17 hours ago, Cult Icon said:

what?  Is that the case?

 

From last I heard the Metal Gear Series has been hoarded by Konami and all they've done is to use it for a gambling machine.  The only hope for the series IMHO is if they sell the IP to another developer, I would like to see a Western company get it.

 

Yeah, if the current rumours are to be believed, as well as Metal Gear Solids (Metal Gears Solid?) 2, 3 and 4 eventually getting the Tony Hawk remastering treatment, MGS1 will arrive first as a complete next-gen remake, presumably with the FOX engine.

 

Konami, for it's part, doesn't seem to have a clue how to properly move the series forward in Kojima's absence. At this point, Sony buying their development division would make so much sense. Perhaps as part of the deal they could keep the rights to make their pachinko machines based on the franchises.

[Michael*]

18 hours ago, Cult Icon said:

What do you think of the music for MGS5?

 

Besides for the unused track I posted I don't like any of it.  I liked the music for 4, 3, 2, 1 very much.  5's music broke with the theme and seems incongruent with the game.

 

I often go back and forth on whether I think MGS1 or Snake Eater has the best soundtrack, even the menu music for 1 is fantastic, right down to the gunshot sound you hear when you select a new game. Also criminally underrated I thought was the music for the old VR Missions disc, it has some of the original Metal Gear 1 and 2 tunes remixed while still staying true to their synth aesthetics.

 

[Michael*]

To answer the question though, because I just realised that I completely skipped over it, I'm not sure the move towards a Hollywood-style soundtrack in MGS5 really suited the material all that much.

 

The end result felt more like an overview of war in the 1980s than a showcase of the characters and ideas in the game, which sort of seemed deliberate, but the drama and power of the previous soundtracks was a big miss.

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On 9/26/2020 at 3:58 PM, Michael* said:

 

Yeah, if the current rumours are to be believed, as well as Metal Gear Solids (Metal Gears Solid?) 2, 3 and 4 eventually getting the Tony Hawk remastering treatment, MGS1 will arrive first as a complete next-gen remake, presumably with the FOX engine.

 

 

 

I just saw the Mafia remake.  It is full of bugs, has the same outdated gameplay but the graphics are great.   There is also a Demon Souls remake that is the same game, but with terrific graphics.

 

That sounds pretty cool.  The gambling machine also has a picture of what modernized Snake Eater graphics could look like.  

 

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On 9/29/2020 at 3:05 PM, Michael* said:

To answer the question though, because I just realised that I completely skipped over it, I'm not sure the move towards a Hollywood-style soundtrack in MGS5 really suited the material all that much.

 

The end result felt more like an overview of war in the 1980s than a showcase of the characters and ideas in the game, which sort of seemed deliberate, but the drama and power of the previous soundtracks was a big miss.

 

It almost seemed like they randomly chose a bunch of 1980s style music but didn't manage to match it with the game.  

 

The music of MGS1-4 was strongly connected with the spiritual themes of the game- high technology, courage, tension, majesty, etc.

 

The Godfather III is be re-released in theaters.  That film reminds me of MGS5 in a way- a bunch of strange changes in character, plot , style/tone,  music, etc.  Al Pacino didn't play his role properly (acted more like "Al pacino" than Michael in Godfather I and II).  Ocelot in MGS5 is not the same person in MGS 1-4 - not only is his voice actor different but his personality is way too grounded.  They changed the voice actor for Big Boss/Snake and made Venom a very reticent "phantom" of the snakes.  MGS5 is basically an unfinished game.

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On 9/26/2020 at 4:12 PM, Michael* said:

 

I often go back and forth on whether I think MGS1 or Snake Eater has the best soundtrack, even the menu music for 1 is fantastic, right down to the gunshot sound you hear when you select a new game. Also criminally underrated I thought was the music for the old VR Missions disc, it has some of the original Metal Gear 1 and 2 tunes remixed while still staying true to their synth aesthetics.

 

 

Yea the menu music for MGS1 really stuck with me, and same for the really cool intro with snake being briefed.

 

I remember the VR missions, pretty old school.  Didn't know that they were based on the Old Metal Gear tunes.  

 

I would rate the music like this :  MGS3 > MGS4 > MGS2 > MGS1 > MGS5

 

With the MGS3, the main theme was the best IMHO and the best overall track was the "Debriefing" one.  I forgot that the "V comes to" track for MGS5 was pretty good too.  The Big boss returns track has the resemblance of a somber , bittersweet military march- it would be cool if it was used in the final scene with Venom as that's where it is appropriate.

 

 

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Solidus Snake is already in DC, getting closer to the takeover:

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dan_Crenshaw

 

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@Michael*  Have you heard of the recent gaming news/developing rumors about the Metal Gear IP?  David Hayter has said in an interview that there is going to be a Metal Gear reboot/remake by a Western company.  Nuts! 

 

Also Microsoft is interesting in buying the Metal Gear IP. 

 

Seems like Metal Gear is going to get westernized. 

[Michael*]

12 hours ago, Cult Icon said:

@Michael*  Have you heard of the recent gaming news/developing rumors about the Metal Gear IP?  David Hayter has said in an interview that there is going to be a Metal Gear reboot/remake by a Western company.  Nuts! 

 

Also Microsoft is interesting in buying the Metal Gear IP. 

 

Seems like Metal Gear is going to get westernized. 

 

Other than unceremoniously shutting down the proposed fan remake, which was probably never likely to amount to much more than a flashy trailer and a new thing to put an anti-Konami hashtag on, I don't recall them showing much inclination to try and move the property forward for some time, so this could be interesting.

 

Naturally I suppose the question for most fans will be whether or not they can get it right without Kojima, since a lot of his stuff in the original was so genuinely surprising and fourth wall breaking. Even taking into account that things have moved on since 1998, it's a truly great game and a legitimate all-time classic.