My Peace Walker Review - Non Spoiler

[A.G.]

Well, I'm done with the game. Honestly, I don't know which ending I got. I know there is still a ton of stuff I have to unlock, but I think I'll wait for the English version now to know what to do. Anyway, here we go.

Overall I would say that game does not deserve the status as a Main game. It is still a sidestory, just like MPO. It's just not there. It also proves what many suspected after MGS4, Kojima is completely out of gas when it comes to the Metal Gear series. At least conceptually.

Graphics and Presentation
In terms of technical ability, Kojima can't be touched. The game looks amazing on the PSP, probably the best looking PSP game to date. The cutscenes are a higher quality (comic ones) than MPO, and you can even interact in them (shooting/dodging missiles and even fighting). The music and sound is very good. In this respect, the game is much like other Kojima games, 10/10!

Gameplay
Everything besides the boss fights is amazing. The sneaking is fun. The level variety is good. A lot of side missions and extra stuff you do at the Mother Base. In this respect the game is very well done as well. The boss fights are simply annoying. But, I would say that only because I played alone. If you Co-Op with a buddy, you would probably have a much easier time with them. The fact that you have Single and Co-Op in this game does make it amazing. So, I will give it at 9/10 here. Just because the Boss fights are just lame, especially the Peace Walker fight at the end.

Story
What most of you probably care about the most. Overall, it's a letdown. Everyone now tells him he needs to stop, but he keeps going on and on. Let's face it, he played a big role in MPO story layout. This game is no different. It starts out well enough, but the core plot twist is just lame. Instead of working on really showing the evolution of Big Boss, this thing really spend more time on an unrealistic situation. And it also showed closure to his guild of The Boss. Which makes no sense since he still is broken up about it in MGS4! LOL So, if you are waiting for the plot... you won't be happy. 5/10.

Overall
What can I say overall... On pure numbers this works out to an 8/10. Not bad. And the game is just that, "not bad". The graphics are good and the gameplay is mostly fun. I don't think it's on par with the other games, not even close. I think the plot is useless and doesn't add anything but trash to the main Saga. I will say though that it deserves at least one playthrough. It is likely the best PSP game you'll play. But the story is a letdown and a very scary sign of things to come... "Rising". Kojima made the Metal Gear series... but now he is very rapidly unmaking it. What was once a deep and interesting drama has now turned into a Sci-fi freakshow. The future looks dim...

[solidelman]

For some reason I think you haven't got the real ending. I'm not sure of what you have to do to achieve it. But let's face it: we can't see how a game is like completely if it's not in English.

Who knows, maybe when you get the English version you'll be like "WTF how could I miss that" or something.

[A.G.]

There is no real on unreal ending. There are two endings. There is the main story ending and then there is a second ending. After the ending credits Miller basically tells you you have a bunch of missions to complete (Special Ops). They include getting the missing parts for what you've been building for throughout the game. The final ending has actually been shown in one of the preview trailers. It really doesn't add that much to the plot, but it is a nice bonus.

Here it is. The beginning and end of the trailer show that ending:



Basically the final highlight of the Outer Heaven formation.

[solidelman]

LOL well at least the ending is shown fully rendered in 3D.

And lets not forget you're missing the briefing files. Apparently you'll learn more about the story and background of the characters listening to them.

[A.G.]

Well, I never said I got everything, and I won't until the English version comes out. But I got the core story. Sadly, it's really not that great. Is it better than MPO? Yes... but that's not saying much.