(This review is written to avoid any sort of spoiler reveals)
Metal Gear Solid 4 presents an inner dilemma for me. Part of me wants to tell each and every person in the world who has a modicum of interest in video games that they need to go out and buy it immediately. The other, more reasonable part of me says to be more reserved in my recommendation.
I’ll do both.
Let me start by saying that MGS4 is without a doubt one of the best experiences I have had with a single player video game. If I had to rank it, it would probably be in my top 5 single player games of all time. Like many other people, I bought a $599 USD Playstation 3 for this game (and Final Fantasy XIII). If this was all the PS3 was good for, I’d say it was worth it. You heard me, MGS4 was worth $685 to me.
The problem is that it’s not going to have as a great of an impact on you if you’re new to the series. An analogous comparison might be that of Lost. The season 4 finale of lost was amazing and even if you don’t follow the show, you could see why. But you won’t get some of the references, and you won’t fully appreciate the events that take place simply because you don’t have the historical reference points that you would have if you followed the show from the beginning.
If you’ve played through any of the previous games in the series and enjoyed them, what are you waiting for? Go finish off the previous 3 games in the series and buy this one – you’ll have an unforgettable experience.