Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots
Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots is a video game released worldwide on 12th June 2008. [1] Just as with previous installments in the Metal Gear series, it is a stealth shooter. The game, directed by Hideo Kojima, Shuyo Murata and Yoji Shinkawa, is developed exclusively for the PlayStation 3 console. In the game's fictional timeline, the game will take place after the events of Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty, and will be the last to include Solid Snake.
Development and theme
Hideo Kojima said that he was going to stop directing Metal Gear games after Metal Gear Solid 3. During the first Metal Gear Solid 4 trailer, the words "No Place for Hideo?" came up on screen. This was a play on the game's theme: "No Place to Hide" [2]. However, he decided to co-direct Metal Gear Solid 4, after the negative reaction he received when he announced that he was not going to direct it. Some fans even sent him death threats [3]. The director was announced as being Alan Smithee - a made up name used by film producers, when they want to disassociate themselves from a film.
Soundtrack
As the 2006 Tokyo Game Show, it was announced that, just as with previous installments in the series, the game's soundtrack is being written by Harry Gregson-Williams [4] One track from the soundtrack, named "Theme of Love", was included in Super Smash Bros. Brall, and can be listened to on the latter game's website. [5]
Storyline
The game follows Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty chronologically, since Metal Gear Solid 3 was a prequel to the other Metal Gear Solid games. It is set in the year 2014. This is five years after the "Plant" chapter of Metal Gear Solid 2.
The world is at war. Soldiers now roam freely across the land, and countries are hiring mercenaries to fight battles anonymously. The five largest PMCs (Private Military Companies) are all owned by Outer Haven, an organization run by Liquid Ocelot. In these battles, the power of nanomachines is increasing, and they are being used to remotely control soldiers.
Solid Snake (with the new codename "Old Snake") is once again sent in by Roy Campbell to avert the crisis. Snake as aged rapidly since the "Plant" chapter. This advanced aging is due to the fact that he is a clone of Big Boss. He is ill, and is seen to be having a coughing fit during one of the trailers.
Characters
FOXHOUND
FOXHOUND was disbanded after the Shadow Moses incident in the original Metal Gear Solid. However, a new FOXHOUND is started, consisting of Meryl Silverburgh, Ed and Jonathan (two characters from Hideo's Kojima's game Policenauts) and Johnny Sasaki (known as "Akiba"). Sasaki was a joke character who had appeared in previous Metal Gear Solid games suffering from diarrhea.
Beauty and the Beast
There will be a new group of enemies named the "Beauty and the Beast" unit. They are women who were destroyed mentally be war and become "war machines". Their inner person is the "Beauty" and their outer armor is the "Beast". There are five members of the unit: Crying Wolf, Raging Raven, Screaming Mantis and Laughing Octopus. Their first names are all the same as the emotions of the bosses in Metal Gear Solid 3 (Crying - The Sorrow; Raging - The Fury; Screaming - The Fear; Laughing - The Joy). Their second names refer to members of the FOXHOUND squad in the original Metal Gear Solid (Sniper Wolf, Raven, Psycho Manits and Decoy Octopus). All the units have a thick exoskeleton, but have different powers.
Voice and motion acting
On the Metal Gear Solid 4 website, by clicking the "Characters" button, characters' names, voice actors and motion actors are all listed.
Gameplay
The gameplay will be similar to that of her games in the Metal Gear series. The game involves using stealth to advance. However, there will be several improvements to the previous system.
The camouflage system introduced in Metal Gear Solid 3 is being replaced by an "Octocamo". After a few seconds, Snake's suit will match the color of the surface underneath him.
There will also be new camera views. The new view introduced in Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence will be available. There will also be a new "over-the-shoulder" camera view.
Snake wears a device on his eye called the "Solid Eye". This acts like the binoculars in previous Metal Gear Solid games.
There will also be a "Psyche Meter". The level of Snake's Psyche Meter can be affected by external factors. One example in the trailer was Snake looking at a book full of photos of women. This caused his Psyche level to increase.
Trailers
| Show | Official link | Youtube link | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Electronic Entertainment Expo 2005 | (Not posted on Metal Gear Solid 4 website) | [1] | This trailer was created using the Metal Gear Solid 3 engine for the PlayStation 2. It shows Snake being discovered by enemies. He runs away and into a series of chairs, on which the back of each chair names a staff member. The director is shown to be "Alan Smithee", but changes to Shuyo Murata. It then says that the game is "recorded, directed and produced" by Hideo Kojima. "Snake" removes his mask and is revealed to be Raiden. The trailer cuts to a scene of Raiden and Snake fighting for a chair labeled "Main Character". Snake wins and sits on the chair. The trailer ends with a message confirming that the Metal Gear Solid 3 engine is used. |
| Tokyo Game Show 2005 | [2] | [3] | Using Japanese voice acting, this was the first trailer to use the Metal Gear Solid 4 engine. The trailer begins with a soldier moving in first person view, with messages with the initials FPS appearing (such as "First Person Shooter?" and "Finally a Policy Shift?"). The soldier is disarmed by Snake, and it is confirmed that "This is no FPS! This is MGS!". This is the first time that "Old Snake" is shown, now with gray hair, wearing his "Solid Eye". Snake advances forward, spotting a group of soldiers with a tank. An explosion causes him to flee, and when he finds cover, he has a coughing fit. An injection calms him down. Small Metal Gear units are shown, but Snake remains hidden. Otacon's robot (named "Metal Gear Mk. II") follows him, providing Snake with some ammunition for his gun. Otacon uses it to communicate with Snake. |
| Electronic Entertainment Expo 2006 | [4] | [5] | This trailer was the only one to date to use Japanese voice acting. |
| Games Convention (Leipzig) 2006 | (Not posted on Metal Gear Solid 4 website) | [6] | |
| Tokyo Game Show 2006 | [7] | [8] | |
| E3 Media and Business Summit 2007 | [9] | [10] | |
| Games Convention (Leipzig) 2007 | [11] | [12] | |
| Metal Gear 20th Anniversary Party | [13] | [14] | |
| Tokyo Game Show 2007 | [15] | [16] |