Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker

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Sut
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Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker

Postby Sut » August 18th, 2016, 2:38 pm

Finally got around to playing this on the PS3 HD collection.

After hearing many good things about this game and a lot of people saying it is as good as the numbered games in the series and, of course being a big fan of the Metal Gear series I was really looking forward to this.

I am underwhelmed.

Not sure if it's the PSP roots but I seem to be fighting with the camera. The time spent in Motherbase sorting your staff and developing weapons gets tiresome after a while (I didn't mind it in Phatom Pain). The levels are understandably sort due to the original platform, but at the same time this prevents you from being sucked into it's world like the other Metal Gear games. It all feels rather disjointed and having to do the side ops to upgrade Motherbase again and again, breaks the flow of the story and it feels more like a grind fest RPG than a story driven stealth game. Oh and the online sucks as well but I very rarely enjoy online components in games.

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Retro STrife
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Re: Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker

Postby Retro STrife » August 21st, 2016, 1:55 am

This is next up (or close to it) on my "to-play list" (..if I ever finish Xenogears). MGS is probably my favorite series at this point. I've played through MGS 1-4 and Portable Ops; so now I need to do this one, followed by Ground Zeroes and Phantom Pain. Have you tried Portable Ops? That game is also divided into bite-sized missions, for portable gaming. It did annoy me--it didn't feel like a real MGS game--but it eventually grew on me, especially as the story began developing more later in the game. Based on reviews, Peace Walker is supposed to be notably better than Portable Ops, so maybe it'll grow on you too if you stick with it.

Sut
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Re: Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker

Postby Sut » August 21st, 2016, 11:32 am

Hope so maybe if Inconcentrated on the story missions it might flow better. But you need to do the side ops to get better equipment which unlike the other Metal Gear games breaks the immersion.

Phantom Pain is brilliant, just when it starts to get dull they introduce something or twist it to keep it fresh. I've not been into a game so much since the original Bioshock. I was almost remorseful after I completed it, 100% and got Platinum I still wanted more. Ground Zeroes is also fun on a lot smaller scope, but it does give you a grasp of the mechanics.

Love to hear your thoughts when you get to play it.

How would you rank your favourite MGS games ?

Personally mine is:

MGS 5
MGS 2
MGS 1
MGS 3
MGS 4

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ptdebate
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Re: Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker

Postby ptdebate » August 21st, 2016, 9:20 pm

How are you liking Xenogears so far, RetroStrife?

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Retro STrife
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Re: Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker

Postby Retro STrife » August 25th, 2016, 3:24 pm

Sut wrote:Hope so maybe if Inconcentrated on the story missions it might flow better. But you need to do the side ops to get better equipment which unlike the other Metal Gear games breaks the immersion.

Phantom Pain is brilliant, just when it starts to get dull they introduce something or twist it to keep it fresh. I've not been into a game so much since the original Bioshock. I was almost remorseful after I completed it, 100% and got Platinum I still wanted more. Ground Zeroes is also fun on a lot smaller scope, but it does give you a grasp of the mechanics.

Love to hear your thoughts when you get to play it.

How would you rank your favourite MGS games ?

Personally mine is:

MGS 5
MGS 2
MGS 1
MGS 3
MGS 4



My order (for 1 to 4) is:

MGS 3
MGS 1
MGS 4
MGS 2

I started MGS 3 like three times and kept giving up in the first area because it seemed so unnecessarily complicated (i.e., the camo system and the lack of radar). I'm glad I eventually forced myself to stick it out because it just might be the best video game story ever. I also replayed MGS1 a few years back, and it is amazing how well it holds up by today's standards. It could easily be a brand new downloadable release and it would still be an instant classic. I don't think any 32/64 bit game holds up better today.

As for Phantom Pain, I'm looking forward to it because of the great reviews. I think I recall hearing that there is a community element to it... so my question for you is, will I be missing out on a great part of the game if I put off playing it for a few years? (i.e., after the community playing it has quit). But that's good to hear about it drawing you in like Bioshock, because that's also the last modern game for me that drew me in like that.

After you get further in Peace Walker, you should let me know if I should play Peace Walker first, or if I can skip it and go to Phantom Pain and then go back to it.

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Retro STrife
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Re: Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker

Postby Retro STrife » August 25th, 2016, 3:32 pm

ptdebate wrote:How are you liking Xenogears so far, RetroStrife?


Good and bad. I just don't have time for RPGs anymore! It's so tough to get to. This has been my main game for like a year now and I'm only 25 hours in! And then I looked at the Table of Contents on a Gamefaqs walkthrough and realized that my current place in the game is only like 30% through!!

But I'm a big fan of the JRPGs by Squaresoft from the PS1 era (especially Final Fantasy, as I've mentioned before)...so Xenogears has been high on my "to-play list" for about 15 years now. Especially because of its reputation for having a great story. So I'm glad to be finallyyy getting to it. So far it's just alright. Not a huge fan of the battle system...it's just Attack, Attack, Attack, defeat enemy. But, then again, most RPGs from that era are like that. The story hasn't really picked up yet, and it's hard to keep up with (especially when you play as infrequently as me), but I like it enough so far. And I like the characters. I will stick it out to the end, I always do, but it will just take me forever to get there.

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ptdebate
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Re: Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker

Postby ptdebate » August 25th, 2016, 10:31 pm

Agreed on MGS3's story being just about the best thing ever. I had similar difficulties with the first bit but was glad to stick with it until the end.

On Xenogears--I found that I liked the latter 2/3 of the game a lot more than the first 1/3, so definitely stick with it. There are some sections that definitely wear out their welcome but the more than ample jaw-dropping, WTF moments make them worth it. The music is just marvelous throughout. Fei, Elly, and Billy are super interesting characters. The villain is a cerebral head-scratcher and the ending sequence is probably the most beautiful I've ever seen in an RPG. Stick with it!

Also, there's more depth to the combat than meets the eye. I recommend taking a few minutes to check out the FAQ on gamefaqs.

Sut
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Re: Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker

Postby Sut » September 1st, 2016, 5:14 pm

I think a good analogy for Peace Walker is to liken it to a TV adaption of a film franchise. The basic elements are there but on a smaller scale and less 'epic'.

The story is much more straightforward than the numbered entries but it does introduce characters that are used in Ground Zeroes and Phantom Pain.

So yes it's worth playing through just don't expect the scope and scale of the numbered entries.

Sut
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Joined: April 8th, 2015, 4:23 pm

Re: Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker

Postby Sut » September 3rd, 2016, 5:08 pm

Oh another thing the boss battles in Peace Walker are relatively poor in comparison to the numbered titles as well. [SPOILER] They are against various 'mechs' which have nowhere the personality or awe of the bosses in the MGS series [END SPOILER].

I'm starting to enjoy the Mother Base management more, it's not as slick as in Phantom Pain but that's to be expected.

Sut
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Joined: April 8th, 2015, 4:23 pm

Re: Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker

Postby Sut » October 9th, 2016, 3:02 am

I've sunk quite a few hours into Peace Walker now and I cannot understand the high scores it gets.
The games a grind and it's the most un-Metal Gear game I've played. The series is built around stealth and I seem to be doing very little of it. I seem to be constantly engaged in battle with Tanks, Choppers or other mechs.

As I'm working through and unlocking the extra ops, soon as another 'mech battle' mission pops up, I just groan"'what not again ?". And these aren't short either taking 15-30 minutes each time. Plus they are nearly always played in the same locales.

Then there are the defend the base style missions and the somewhat ludicrous Zadornov has escaped for the zillioneth time missions. Problem is you have to plough through these to get the games true ending.

A quick google shows numerous threads with the same complaint so again I'm wondering why Peace Walker attracted so much love from the 'professional' reviewers.
Definitely the weakest Metal Gear game I've played.
More of an action game than a stealth espionage game.

Current score: C


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