DISCLAIMERS:
- the reviewer has not finished the game with 100% completion
- the game was played on the Xbox One S using the version of the game intended for United States audiences
6 years after the release of Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots, Konami finally brought back the numbered Metal Gear Solid series with what is essentially a glorified demo. Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes serves as a prologue for the full game that would release one year later, Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain. This review will judge Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes on its own merits.
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The gameplay of Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes does not disappoint. All of Snakes’ moves have a use and control incredibly well. The map is rather large, and allows for a variety of approaches because of this and because of its wide variety of equipment present for use by Snake. The enemies are not too hard to sneak up on but the player still has to make a conscious effort to avoid attracting attention. The game is not particularly difficult, even on hard mode, due to the Reflex Mode, which greatly slows down time for a generous period of time when Snake is spotted by an enemy, allowing Snake to react by neutralizing that enemy. However Reflex Mode can be turned off if the player chooses. Likely because this is essentially a demo of an incomplete game, Snake can not hide bodies in containers or make a noise without throwing or shooting something while behind cover despite those two mechanics seeming like obvious fits, especially with the abundance of containers present on the map. Besides that, the only improvement the reviewer could suggest is making the helicopter arrive faster when there is no danger of it being caught and Snake is just waiting.
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The controls are essentially perfect and the reviewer did not have any issues with them.
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Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes is the first game to use the Fox Engine on the Xbox One and PlayStation 4, and it is amazing. Despite some somewhat low quality textures and geometry, likely related to the game also releasing on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, the game still looks great. The variety of visual effects and overall visual detail impress greatly. Even better, it runs at a near flawless 60 FPS on both the Xbox One and PlayStation 4, though the PlayStation 4 version runs at a superior 1080p compared to the 720p Xbox One, Xbox 360, and Playstation 3 versions. The Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions run at a 30 FPS cap with many drops instead. The production value is obviously extremely high and the game is a pleasure to look at and play.
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The musical selection is also surprisingly great for such a small game. The original music is all high quality and there is a sizable amount of quality music from other sources. Voice acting is a highlight, as is the case with every entry in the Metal Gear Solid series, with multiple great performances, especially for a video game. The sound effects are also quality work and give the game a greater sense of realism.
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There is not much to say about the plot of Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes given how short it is, but what is there is rather captivating. It is also completely skippable if you are not interested, though the reviewer would not recommend doing that. The world and characters of Metal Gear Solid are as interesting and confusing as ever in Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes.
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The value of Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes is easily its most controversial element. The entire game takes place on one admittedly well designed map, with one main mission that will likely take no longer than 2 hours even for the least experienced players. Beyond that main mission, there are around half a dozen additional missions that take place in a version of the map used in that original mission, but with remixed elements and new objectives. PlayStation players had an exclusive mission where they recreated scenes from the original 1998 Metal Gear Solid and Xbox players had an exclusive mission where they played as Raiden and investigated a strange occurrence, both on the same map as the original mission, but eventually both missions became available on all platforms. All missions also have a harder mode, collectables, and rank you based on your time and behavior during the mission. Although the total amount and variety of content in Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes absolutely is lacking compared to many other games, the quality of what is there outshines the majority of other games. Players who only plan to play the first mission and quit the game after that are better off just watching the game get played online rather than purchasing it, but players who plan to tackle every challenge the game has available will find that though it is on the shorter side, it provides a fantastic experience.
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Overall the reviewer would give the game a 7.5 out of 10, but absolutely recommends anyone play the game if they already have access to it.
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If you decide to purchase this game through one of the links below this blog will receive a commission.
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