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Best Metal Gear games

Our love bloomed on the battlefield

Words: on February 19, 2013
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80 comments

  • BladedFalcon - September 6, 2012 3:57 p.m.

    Hell yeah! And glad to see Ghost babel on the list! although really, I'd put it higher, that game was really fantastic. Also, I do agree that MGS3 is the best gameplay-wise, though I still prefer the first one, personally. The story in taht one is still by far the best, and even the gameplay on the PSX is outstanding to this day. Although, contrary to a lot of people here, I did like the twin snakes remake. The soul of the game is the same, and I'm pretty sure the voice acting isn't as terrible as they are whining it to be, specially if you go and compare it to the original. Also, complaining about over the top cutscenes in a MGS game is like complaining that there is platforming in a Mario game.

  • gilgamesh310 - September 6, 2012 5 p.m.

    MGS 4 is the best gameplay wise. I think the story in the first is the best as well though. The voice actors phoned in their performances in Twin Snakes. As well as that Greg Eagles was replaced with a different voice actor for Gray Fox. The replacement was terrible. He had none of the emotion in his voice that Greg Eagles had. The music was also taken out of certain key scenes, like Sniper Wolf's death. This took away from them a lot. No other MGS game has Snake doing ridiculous stuff like surfing on a fucking missile while he aims at a hind midlfight with his own missile launcher. It's completely ridiculous and out of place. He's made out to be too superhuman. Some stuff like Ocelot twirling his guns was overexagerrated as well. I cringed through almost all the cutscenes.

  • BladedFalcon - September 6, 2012 5:15 p.m.

    Hyperboles, yay! And well, different strokes and all, but while I love MGS4, I still think the game-play was better in 3, if nothing else because of the level design and boss battles, the beauty and the beast unit has nothing on the Cobra Unit, if you ask me. That, and I just love some of the mechanics in the game, such as hunting animals and eat them to restore health as well as managing different kinds of wounds. Also, you could argue the shop in MGS4 can potentially make things a tad too easy. Anyway, since I really don't remember the voice acting in both the PSX or the twin snakes version, I am not really in a position to argue if they truly are all that different. I just remember that I didn't mind it at all back when I played the twin snakes. And alright, so maybe some of the cutscenes went even more over the top than in the original... And yet in the original you still have a cyborg ninja leapfrogging around a gigantic nuclear-ready mech. So again, why do you take issue when there's over the top scenes in other places? specially if they are just action sequences like the one described with the Hind-D taht ultimately have no effect over the plot?

  • gilgamesh310 - September 6, 2012 7:28 p.m.

    The core gameplay mechanics in MGS 4 were the best. The camera was finally manouevrable, there was a crouch button and the octocamo worked better than in MGS 3. I do agree that the BandB unit weren't a patch on the cobra unit though and the game was too easy. That's the point. He's a cyborg ninja. He's supposed to be able to do all that stuff. Snake is only human. He isn't. The first game portrayed him as a very capable soldier but someone who was ultimately human and could be broken. In The Twin Snakes he was virtually invincible. They are very cheesy sequences as well. They just don't seem to have any place in the MGS universe.

  • BladedFalcon - September 6, 2012 8:42 p.m.

    Well, again, depends on preferences. The camera thing, for example, I actually didn't mind at all that it was fixed in previous MGS games, including 3, which did a good job in always showing you the angles you needed to see well, and if anything, I prefer rather than having to bother re-directing the camera every 4 seconds or so. And even then, the camera WAS actually maneuverable in MGS3: Subsistence, so you can't really call MGS4 having an advantage there. Also, the octocamo worked "better" in the sense that it was now automatic, less of a hassle, yes, but really not all that revolutionary, and yes, it makes the game easier. And finally... Well, considering all the shit snake went trough in MGS4, all the beatings, shots, burns, falls and all, despite having the body of a 60+ year old man... Yeah, I'd say he's a wee bit more than only human...

  • gilgamesh310 - September 7, 2012 7:38 a.m.

    Top down cameras have absolutely no place whatsoever in stealth game. It's the one genre that you need to be fully aware of your surroundings at all times. It only causes frustrations as you need to constantly go into first person to try and see where the enemies are. Having a camera to rotate yourself makes a world of difference and makes the experience much more enjoyable. It was manouevrable in Subsistance, but that game was so rare that I wasn't able to play it until the HD collection game out, which was after MGS 4. It made a world of difference though. The shit Snake went through in MGS 4 was far fetched but it did make you relate to him more. The part where he was crawling through the oven may not have been realistic but it was still a great moment. It made you feel at one with Snake. Watching him do stuff like surf on missiles and somersault backwards some 20 meters and land on his feet is ridiculous. It just makes me cringe. The gameplay was also pretty uninspired in that. The first person aiming made it too easy and there wasn't really any improvments in the gameplay over the original game.

  • BladedFalcon - September 7, 2012 8:18 a.m.

    Er... if anything, a top down camera allows you to be BETTER aware of ALL your surroundings in a stealth game. At least when it's well done, like in the first 3 MGS games. Because that way, you have a good view of what's nearby, even BEHIND you. Having a TPS camera that's always looking behind you makes it harder for you to properly be aware of your back, so your argument is actually contradictory. And dude, if i was able to find the subsistence editin in MEXICO back when it came out originally, I'm pretty sure you could have found it if you only bothered to look for it back when it came out. Besides, availability doesn't mean anything to the fact that MGS3 did something that you are assigning as a virtue of MGS4 only.

  • gilgamesh310 - September 7, 2012 11:24 a.m.

    Not in the Metal Gear Solid games. It covers too small of an area. In the original Metal Gear games on the otherhand it worked fine. It banned out far and covered a very wide area. Having a camera that you can control yourself allows you to see what you want when you want. That way it's your own fault when you're spotted. I didn't contradict myself at all. That's true but we are talking about MGS 3, not MGS Subsistance anyway. It's still a separate game. They should have put Subsistance in the no.1 spot. I would agree that that's the best MGS game.

  • BladedFalcon - September 7, 2012 11:53 a.m.

    ...It doesn't cover a small area, it covers more than enough so that you can see anything that could spot you, AND being top down ensures you always are aware of what's in front, to the sides, and behind you at all times. Unlike the maneuverer camera of later games. Mind, i think the camera in MGS4 worked pretty well, however, I couldn't stand it in Portable Ops. Maybe it was because the PSP lacked that very important second thumbstick, but having to adjust the fucking camera every 3 seconds in that game was so unintuitive, and became so annoying that I stopped playing after the first few missions.

  • gilgamesh310 - September 7, 2012 12:26 p.m.

    I disagree about MGS 3, but there's no point in arguing any further. I haven't played Portable Ops but I have played Peacewalker and thought it worked fine in that.

  • BladedFalcon - September 7, 2012 1:12 p.m.

    Yeah, agree to disagree seems to be the best course of action here. Also, funnily enough, I didn't get to play peace walker because I had long sold my PSP by then. So I can't confirm if the camera got better there, and though I'll play it on the PS3, pretty sure that there they would make use of the analog stick, so I wouldn't know either.

  • archnite - September 6, 2012 3:36 p.m.

    I absolutely love MGS4, I just beat it to 100% again for trophies even though I did the same years ago with no prize. The controls are just brilliantly deep and fluid, grafting the series controls in a shooter type play style made what I think is the best in the series. Plus all the pay=off. Otacon getting with Naomi, Raiden becoming a badass who can hold off a submarine, the final battle with Liquid/Ocelot, DRIVING REX AGAINST RAY.

  • azureguy - September 6, 2012 4:27 p.m.

    I've been getting the Platinum trophy fopr MGS4 as well in a two week hardcore session. Surprisingly enough, it wasn't all that bad, and the cutscenes aren't that bad as everyone says - MGS2's conversations are more exhausting by comparison. It may not beat Snake Eater's boss fights, but a great game none the less ;)

  • RonnyLive19881 - September 6, 2012 3:35 p.m.

    THANK YOU, every time I talk MGS with friends they put their fanboy hats on and hate on Twin Snakes and MGS3D... The Nintendo titles are the better versions. Twin Snakes has better gameplay and presentation and MGS3DS has over all better graphics(remade) and the awesome MGS4 control scheme. The are both the definitive versions and the best titles of the series Lol MGS4 and Ground Zero just need to make it to the WiiU!

  • ryanjohnson - September 6, 2012 2:51 p.m.

    I will get shunned, I know, but I just played through 3 since I just got a PS3 and can finally play 4. I felt so frustrated (and I have Subsistence even). Constant changing of clothes breaks the fourth wall like CRAZY in a bad way. One accidental viewing in a world with no radar, so you just kinda have to peek and pray sometimes, leads to an instant 5 minutes of hiding, and I got so busy learning how to hide I never really mastered CQC, only to find it necessary in the last boss battle, and spent months practicing CQC trying to defeat the Boss. Add feeding yourself so your tummy doesn't attract the enemy, no direct healing at all....I got frustrated fast. I hope 4 fixed some of that. Gonna find out soon.

  • MetroidPrimeRib - September 6, 2012 2:08 p.m.

    Ghost Babel is probably the greatest GBC game ever made.

  • BladedFalcon - September 6, 2012 5:26 p.m.

    I second that, really.

  • DarthPunk - September 6, 2012 1:38 p.m.

    I'd still say the original PSX version of MGS 1 is the best version of the game. The cutscenes in Twin Snakes are even by MGS tandards stupidly over the top and the addition of first person aiming arguably makes the gamme too easy

  • gilgamesh310 - September 6, 2012 2:16 p.m.

    Yeah, I don't know what the hell they included that at number 2 for. The cutscenes are completely ridiculous and the voice acting is inferior to that in the original game. They should have just included the firs game their instead.

  • ViolentLee - September 6, 2012 1:24 p.m.

    You guys were quick to mention what the definitive version was for each MGS iteration, yet you fail to mention MGS3 Subsistence? The refined/fixed camera control made all the difference!

  • miked00d - September 6, 2012 2:16 p.m.

    Exactly! The original MGS3, for me, was broken. I'm actually only playing through it now for the first time, in the HD collection, which is the subsistence version without the ridiculous price.

  • GaryTheGuidoHunter - September 6, 2012 1:16 p.m.

    3 will always the best for me because I always felt that the whole MGS story line got too complicated way too fast. I loved Snake Eater because of how simple the story was and PW was just as good. The whole Boss/Snake relationship was just amazing to witness

  • Knuckles987 - September 6, 2012 1:01 p.m.

    Metal Gear Solid 3, all the way. I've never played a game more times than MGS3, always trying to go for something different with every playthrough. The release of MGS3: Subsistence made playing it even better, with the inclusion of multiplayer and the Secret Theater (Metal Gear Sigint, anyone?). It tops my list of the greatest games of all time, and I'm pleased that it topped this list as well.

  • Turtman - September 6, 2012 12:53 p.m.

    Am I the only one who thinks 4 just didn't resonate quite right? Also the Portable Ops series I tried to love but just couldn't. Loved the hell outta 3 tho, good call GamesRadar!

  • dcobs123 - September 6, 2012 1:40 p.m.

    Yeah I thought the gameplay was great but went downhill after ch2. I also thought the story was inconsistent and the game didn't do as good of a job handling a main theme as the previous games.

  • dcobs123 - September 6, 2012 1:46 p.m.

    Anyone else love mgs2 vr stealth missions? The levels toward the end were pretty complex and it's pretty satisfying once you memorize all the enemy paths and nail a perfect ghost run.

  • Turtman - September 6, 2012 6:42 p.m.

    If you like memorizing enemy paths and stealthing around try the Hitman series. I do love me some VR missions

  • JMarsella09 - September 6, 2012 12:51 p.m.

    3 is the best from a gaming standpoint, but I think I loved Peace Walker the most.

  • MyCoolWhiteLies - September 6, 2012 12:50 p.m.

    I love MGS 3 and MGS 1 the most. In large part it's because they're the least convoluted, and tell the most cohesive stories. Both hold up well enough as standalone games that can be enjoyed on their own merits.

  • CitizenWolfie - September 6, 2012 12:41 p.m.

    Totally agree with your top three. Although I do prefer MGS4 over MGS only slightly due to the mission variety in each act (especially the old-school spy novel style Act 3) and the absolutely epic fist fight at the very end. But that's only just. But yeah, MGS3 is incredible and has one of my favourite boss fights of all time.

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