Mikedot
03-21-2006, 11:57 AM
"MGS3 is finally perfect with MGS3:S"
The bar for re-releases has just been raised with the release of "Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence". MGS3:S is a remix version of the original "Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater" released in 2004. The new features in this game are so jammed packed, you'd think that your buying a whole new game.
What you will find in MGS3:S is a bunch of features that were only available in the european version of Snake Eater and a whole bunch of other stuff.
I must point out that this review will cover the normal and limited editions of the game...
Disc 1: The "Subsistence" disc is primarily the orignal Snake Eater game, but the new twist is that it now includes a new "3rd person camera" view that lets you pan, tilt, and rotate the camera anyway you like. This new camera makes MGS3:S feel like a whole new game. Plus if you don't like the new camera system and perfer the old one, you can switch between them on the fly by pressing in on the right analog stick (R3).
The game also has 2 new difficulties levels from the european version ("Super Easy Mode" and "European Extreme Mode").
The graphics for the game haven't changed a bit, which is good, because the game's graphic overall were fantastic, and the new 3rd person camera makes every texture look even better.
The sound design on this game hasn't been changed too, for it was already pitch perfect quality. Ever bit of dialogue, gunfire, and sound of nature (oh and footsteps! Can't forget footsteps!) was great. Plus this game supports Dolby Pro Logic II, so if you have a theater like sound system, crank it up to full, and dim the light...
The presentation of the game is still one of the best in any video game, ever. Each cutscene in the game can rival anything that any blockbuster hollywood movie has done. And speaking of movies, this game contains a "Demo Theater" that lets you watch any cutscene in the MGS3 game or watch the whole thing from start to finish. It also contains an MGS3 movie done by Hideo Kojima himself (which is only available in the limited edition. More on that later...)
This game also has a bunch of additional camos and still supports camouflage downloads. The downside to the camouflage downloads is that each camouflage is about 800k each, so you might want to clear up some space on your memory cards or buy a new one altogether is you want to download them all (20 camos available online)
Disc 2: The "Persistence" disc is what makes this re-release of MGS3 a must buy. The disc includes 2 new "Snake vs. Monkey " missions, "Duel Mode", "Metal Gear" and "Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake", the "Secret Theater", and of course: "Online Mode".
The "Snake vs. Monkey" mini-game is still the same as the original, except it has been moved from the first disc onto the second disc, and the 2 new missions are already in the european version of Snake Eater.
The "Duel Mode" lets you battle against every major boss from the MGS3 story. This mini-game was also available in the european version of Snake Eater. The duel mode is fun because you can relive those awesome MGS3 moments and compete for the fastest times, so you can challenge your friends to see if they can beat your high score!
This disc also includes "Metal Gear" and "Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake". Metal Gear is a port of the orignal version of the game that started the series way back on the MSX, and from what I know, everything is the game has been un-touched, so if you played the original version of this game (not counting the NES version), you wont see any changes.
Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake is also a port of the orignal game on the MSX, but the thing is that this is the first time that MG2:SS has ever been translated into english for North America. So this is a must try for MGS fans.
I haven't had a chance to play MG or MG2:SS, but I will soon enough...
The "Secret Theater" is a bunch of parody movies created by the "MGS3 Real Time Demo Unit" and was released on the japanese MGS3 website for free. And now all of those movies are available on this disc, and it also has a new set of movies not available on the website (Including the much talked about "Metal Gear Raiden" in japan).
The "Online Mode" (or Metal Gear Online/MGO) is where the replay value for Snake Eater increases by 200%! The online mode lets you play against 7 of your friends, enemies, or total strangers, in 5 different game modes and on 12 different maps. Those game modes include deathmatch, team deathmatch, capture mission, resuce mission, and sneaking mission. The online maps you can play on are similar to the areas in the single player mode and the maps range from small to large areas.
The gameplay for MGO can feel a bit simplistic being able to auto-aim at enemies that are in range, but this makes the game fast, furious, and fun for MGS pros and newbies alike. Plus the people that are good at aiming in first person mode can stand out from the newbie/average players, so it pretty balanced out.
MGO also lets you play as special characters from the MGS3 storyline (and 2 characters from the "Rumble Roses" series). Each of the special characters have their own special moves, salutes, and weapons.
Any person that doesn't have online access should still give this game a look, for it has tons of extras to keep you busy. But if you don't have online access, your still missing a big part of this re-release.
Disc 3: The "Existence" disc is for all those people that wished for MGS3 to be a full-length film. As I noted before, the Existence disc takes all the cutscenes and action sequences from MGS3 that mashes up into a 3 and a 1/2 hour movie. This disc is only available for those who purchased the "Limited Edition" version of MGS3:S (which comes packed in a red cardboard box).
There are some negatives about the Existence disc thou... Alot of people disliked the new narration not done by "David Hayter" (the voice of Naked Snake), but I really didn't see what the big deal is. I thought that the new narrations were just fine. Another problem with the Existence disc is that you cannot pause the movie at anytime. The only thing you can do is stop the movie completely and jump between chapters. Another problem with this disc is that it is a PS2 disc and not a DVD, so you can't play this in your DVD player...
And on top of all that, the "Demo Theater" has everything you need to watch MGS3 just like a movie. But still, its great to watch with your friends and family. Plus it has the entire "MGS4 Trailer" from TGS 2005, so that counts as a point somewhere...
Disc 4: The "Metal Gear Saga Vol.1" disc is an extra for anyone that pre-order any version of MGS3:S. The disc contains a 30 minute documentary and interview on Hideo Kojima and every Metal Gear game ever made. And as for extra features on the disc, It has a bunch of trailers from Metal Gear games that you probably already seen before. (MGS4 E3 and TGS, MGS3:S E3, TGS, and GC, and MGA2 E3 and TGS)
Overall, this game has enough features and bonuses to kept you busy you a long ass time, and anyone that wants to get into the series should pick this up ASAP.
Score = 10/10
The bar for re-releases has just been raised with the release of "Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence". MGS3:S is a remix version of the original "Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater" released in 2004. The new features in this game are so jammed packed, you'd think that your buying a whole new game.
What you will find in MGS3:S is a bunch of features that were only available in the european version of Snake Eater and a whole bunch of other stuff.
I must point out that this review will cover the normal and limited editions of the game...
Disc 1: The "Subsistence" disc is primarily the orignal Snake Eater game, but the new twist is that it now includes a new "3rd person camera" view that lets you pan, tilt, and rotate the camera anyway you like. This new camera makes MGS3:S feel like a whole new game. Plus if you don't like the new camera system and perfer the old one, you can switch between them on the fly by pressing in on the right analog stick (R3).
The game also has 2 new difficulties levels from the european version ("Super Easy Mode" and "European Extreme Mode").
The graphics for the game haven't changed a bit, which is good, because the game's graphic overall were fantastic, and the new 3rd person camera makes every texture look even better.
The sound design on this game hasn't been changed too, for it was already pitch perfect quality. Ever bit of dialogue, gunfire, and sound of nature (oh and footsteps! Can't forget footsteps!) was great. Plus this game supports Dolby Pro Logic II, so if you have a theater like sound system, crank it up to full, and dim the light...
The presentation of the game is still one of the best in any video game, ever. Each cutscene in the game can rival anything that any blockbuster hollywood movie has done. And speaking of movies, this game contains a "Demo Theater" that lets you watch any cutscene in the MGS3 game or watch the whole thing from start to finish. It also contains an MGS3 movie done by Hideo Kojima himself (which is only available in the limited edition. More on that later...)
This game also has a bunch of additional camos and still supports camouflage downloads. The downside to the camouflage downloads is that each camouflage is about 800k each, so you might want to clear up some space on your memory cards or buy a new one altogether is you want to download them all (20 camos available online)
Disc 2: The "Persistence" disc is what makes this re-release of MGS3 a must buy. The disc includes 2 new "Snake vs. Monkey " missions, "Duel Mode", "Metal Gear" and "Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake", the "Secret Theater", and of course: "Online Mode".
The "Snake vs. Monkey" mini-game is still the same as the original, except it has been moved from the first disc onto the second disc, and the 2 new missions are already in the european version of Snake Eater.
The "Duel Mode" lets you battle against every major boss from the MGS3 story. This mini-game was also available in the european version of Snake Eater. The duel mode is fun because you can relive those awesome MGS3 moments and compete for the fastest times, so you can challenge your friends to see if they can beat your high score!
This disc also includes "Metal Gear" and "Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake". Metal Gear is a port of the orignal version of the game that started the series way back on the MSX, and from what I know, everything is the game has been un-touched, so if you played the original version of this game (not counting the NES version), you wont see any changes.
Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake is also a port of the orignal game on the MSX, but the thing is that this is the first time that MG2:SS has ever been translated into english for North America. So this is a must try for MGS fans.
I haven't had a chance to play MG or MG2:SS, but I will soon enough...
The "Secret Theater" is a bunch of parody movies created by the "MGS3 Real Time Demo Unit" and was released on the japanese MGS3 website for free. And now all of those movies are available on this disc, and it also has a new set of movies not available on the website (Including the much talked about "Metal Gear Raiden" in japan).
The "Online Mode" (or Metal Gear Online/MGO) is where the replay value for Snake Eater increases by 200%! The online mode lets you play against 7 of your friends, enemies, or total strangers, in 5 different game modes and on 12 different maps. Those game modes include deathmatch, team deathmatch, capture mission, resuce mission, and sneaking mission. The online maps you can play on are similar to the areas in the single player mode and the maps range from small to large areas.
The gameplay for MGO can feel a bit simplistic being able to auto-aim at enemies that are in range, but this makes the game fast, furious, and fun for MGS pros and newbies alike. Plus the people that are good at aiming in first person mode can stand out from the newbie/average players, so it pretty balanced out.
MGO also lets you play as special characters from the MGS3 storyline (and 2 characters from the "Rumble Roses" series). Each of the special characters have their own special moves, salutes, and weapons.
Any person that doesn't have online access should still give this game a look, for it has tons of extras to keep you busy. But if you don't have online access, your still missing a big part of this re-release.
Disc 3: The "Existence" disc is for all those people that wished for MGS3 to be a full-length film. As I noted before, the Existence disc takes all the cutscenes and action sequences from MGS3 that mashes up into a 3 and a 1/2 hour movie. This disc is only available for those who purchased the "Limited Edition" version of MGS3:S (which comes packed in a red cardboard box).
There are some negatives about the Existence disc thou... Alot of people disliked the new narration not done by "David Hayter" (the voice of Naked Snake), but I really didn't see what the big deal is. I thought that the new narrations were just fine. Another problem with the Existence disc is that you cannot pause the movie at anytime. The only thing you can do is stop the movie completely and jump between chapters. Another problem with this disc is that it is a PS2 disc and not a DVD, so you can't play this in your DVD player...
And on top of all that, the "Demo Theater" has everything you need to watch MGS3 just like a movie. But still, its great to watch with your friends and family. Plus it has the entire "MGS4 Trailer" from TGS 2005, so that counts as a point somewhere...
Disc 4: The "Metal Gear Saga Vol.1" disc is an extra for anyone that pre-order any version of MGS3:S. The disc contains a 30 minute documentary and interview on Hideo Kojima and every Metal Gear game ever made. And as for extra features on the disc, It has a bunch of trailers from Metal Gear games that you probably already seen before. (MGS4 E3 and TGS, MGS3:S E3, TGS, and GC, and MGA2 E3 and TGS)
Overall, this game has enough features and bonuses to kept you busy you a long ass time, and anyone that wants to get into the series should pick this up ASAP.
Score = 10/10