Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain (PS4) – saving the best till last

Years of development, and controversy, are over and the new Metal Gear Solid is finally out. But how can it possibly live up to the hype?

Considering how good a game it is a lot of the build-up to The Phantom Pain’s release has been thoroughly off-putting. The controversy over whether series creator Hideo Kojima’s name is on the box or not seems especially absurd because the game falls over itself to mention him at every opportunity. But perhaps that’s also because this is a considerably different kind of experience to previous entries in the series. It will probably end up being the last Metal Gear that Kojima is involved with, but if it is then he’s certainly going out on a high…



Even without all the corporate shenanigans the Metal Gear series comes with an awful lot of baggage, that is probably quite discouraging for ordinary people. The important point to make here is that you don’t need to have played any previous entry to enjoy this one (not even prologue Ground Zeroes) and any concerns you might have about hour long cut scenes and impenetrable storylines are largely unwarranted.

The basic plot is pleasingly straightforward: Snake is out for revenge on those that destroyed his previous mercenary group, but becomes drawn into a conspiracy about the development of a new Metal Gear system (the robotic nuclear weapon launchers that the series is named after). If you are a series fan then there’s an ocean of extra detail beneath the surface, starting with which Snake this is and where the game fits into the franchise’s timeline, but you genuinely don’t have to worry about that if you don’t want to.


The Phantom Pain takes place primarily in Afghanistan during the Soviet invasion of the ’80s, and also in Africa during the Angolan Civil War. You’re actively encouraged to explore the gigantic open world environment at your own pace, and take on missions in whatever order you wish. As such there’s far less linear storytelling than you’d expect, especially in the first half of the game.

Snake in particular has peculiarly little to say for himself a lot of the time, and we do wonder if this is because of the switch to using Keifer Sutherland for his voice. He still doesn’t seem to suit the role, but if his unavailability (or wage packet) has forced the cut scenes to be shorter then perhaps that’s all for the best.

At the beginning of the game, Snake is simply taking on mercenary missions to help fund his expansion plans and discourage the invading forces. These take in a range of fairly standard concepts, such as assassinations, kidnappings, and rescues. It’s here that the game earns its stripes as a solid (cough) third person action game, something that previous entries never really did to this degree.

The uncomplicated, responsive controls are clearly influenced more by Western action games, and the third person shooting is now almost unrecognisable from the earlier Metal Gear titles. That’s a good thing though, and together with the iconic stealth elements it allows you complete freedom to tackle situations however you want – from trying to sneak past undetected to going in all guns blazing, and everything in between.



As you progress you get access to an increasingly over-the-top range of support options, including vehicles and air strikes, but your most useful bit of kit is simply your binoculars – which allow you to scout out a camp beforehand and tag enemies so that you’re always aware of where they are through the HUD (which means no vision cones or overheard radar). It also lets you check out enemies for special abilities, which range from anything from unusual weapons proficiencies to language translation skills.

As in Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker you’re able to ‘recruit’ enemy soldiers by tying a giant balloon to their back and flying them back to your HQ (called Mother Base) using the Fulton system, like that bit in The Dark Knight. It’s not forced on you but as a result stealth is usually the most advantageous way to get what you want, from the increased rewards for not being seen to the second or two of slow motion you’re given to react to when spotted.

Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain (PS4) – it’s hard to keep silent about Quiet

Managing Mother Base is actually fairly involved, as you direct your growing army of mercenaries to take on their own missions. These can often directly help you by diverting enemy soldiers from particular areas or intercepting their supplies. You also command a research and development group creating new weapons and equipment, which includes a vast array of realistic and sci-fi gadgets – many of which involve upgrading your bionic arm.

But the greatest reward for all your press gang activities is recruiting ‘buddies’ to take with you on a mission. Some of these are used simply for transportation, such as a horse and a robot walker, but there’s also a dog and Quiet the lingerie model. DD the dog is especially handy for stealth as he’ll automatically sniff out threats and warn you of enemies. As an expert sniper Quiet is also extremely useful to have around, but she looks absolutely absurd. The way the cut scene cameras ogle her and the other female characters is frankly embarrassing, and often downright creepy.


How big a controversy that may or may not become we’re not sure but the other outstanding issue is the question of having to pay to play the game’s initial multiplayer mode. Metal Gear Solid Online won’t be live until October but you can already set-up a FOB (Forward Operating Base) that works like a mini-Mother Base.

Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain (PS4) – saving the best till last

You can establish one FOB for free but any additional ones after that have to be paid for with microtransactions. FOBs enable a one-on-one multiplayer where you can invade someone else’s base, or they your’s, but they also increase the rate at which you earn money in the single-player and how many missions you can send your soldiers on at a time. It’s not a significant part of the game but that only makes it more peculiar that Konami would risk courting a backlash over the feature.

It’s an unfortunate distraction in a game that makes very few other mistakes. Although if we had to nitpick we’d say the pacing towards the end is a little off, as you’re forced to replay earlier missions on higher difficulty settings. It’s almost as if the game, and Kojima himself, can’t quite bring themselves to admit it’s all over.

The script still isn’t great either, but somehow it’s all the more impressive that despite Kojima’s weird sense of humour and juvenile attitude to women the game manages to make some important points about the military industrial complex, and the use of torture and child soldiers.


The game is much darker in tone than any of the previous titles and has a great capacity to shock and surprise, with the threat of nuclear proliferation giving way to other more relatable horrors. The Phantom Pain manages to boldly reinvent the entire series, while simultaneously bringing the original Metal Gear Solid saga to a satisfying end. Where Kojima goes from here is anyone’s guess but Metal Gear itself has never been better.

Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain In Short: The best Metal Gear Solid game ever made, as it bravely reinvents both its gameplay and its storytelling to far greater effect than ever before. Pros: Excellent stealth and action, and non-linear progression. Mother Base works great, and the range of different missions, soldiers, and weapons is staggering. Superb graphics. Cons: The script still isn’t great, even if it’s a lot more economical than usual. Some pacing issues towards the end and the FOB element leaves a bad taste in the mouth. Score: 9/10

Formats: PlayStation 4 (reviewed), Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Xbox One, and PC

Price: £59.99

Publisher: Kojima Productions

Developer: Konami

Release Date: 1st September 2015

Age Rating: 18

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