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Solid Snake here, and I’m back at it again. Funny, I thought retirement meant I didn’t have to do this stuff anymore. This time they got me chasing after my old teammates in FOXHOUND. It seems they have taken over a Nuclear Disposal Facility in Alaska and now have the chance to destroy the world with dozens of nuclear missiles pointed at our great country, and they will launch them if we don’t release the remains of Big Boss. We have 24 hours to stop them, or comply, before they destroy us. So what does the government do? They call me in to clean up the mess instigated by members of FOXHOUND. Seeing how I have done this before, why not call me in? Hell, I didn’t have anything better to do then get shipped to Alaska where my fingers will fall off due to exposure. I guess I should stop the complaining, this is what I was born for, and I live for this stuff. Now it’s time for me to save the world again, and them I’m off for vacation somewhere hot.

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Solid Snake returns to action in the third Metal Gear game from the good people at Konami. Microsoft and Konami’s cross publishing deal has turned one of the better PSOne games into one of the best PC games released in 2000. MGS follows the infiltration adventure of Solid Snake as he sneaks, hides, and blasts his way into a nuclear disposal facility in the hopes of preventing nuclear bombs being dropped on the United States. It seems that the former members of Snake’s unit, FOXHOUND, have gown awry and taken two hostages and a nuclear disposal facility over in the hopes of freeing the remains of Big Boss.

Microsoft has done a wonderful job in bringing MGS to the PC with upgraded textures, excellent sound and voice acting, as well as a friendly control scheme. No one can deny this games console roots, but the transition to the PC hasn’t done much to the gameplay. Unlike the recent shooters and third person action/adventures, Metal Gear Solid is about sneaking rather than killing. Sure you will break a few necks, and pack a guard full of lead, but the gameplay makes you must rely on your cunningness rather and sheer violence.

Your brain is the ultimate tool in this excellent game. Using ducts, boxes, and water you will hide from your enemies and try to subdue them in the quietest manner. Be spotted, and you are in for some trouble. Overlaid on the screen is your radar, which will tell you where the guards are and their fields of vision. If you are spotted your radar will go into sleep mode and a timer will appear. You must evade the guards for the time limit in order for them to forget about you and resume their normal patrol pattern, when this happens, your radar comes back.

Now, these Genome Soldiers are smarter than your average enemy. They react to the slightest sound, such as you stepping in a puddle. In some of the exterior levels they will notice your footprints in the snow and follow them to investigate. You need to avoid being caught at all costs.

The story, as I explained above, gives you healthy number of plot twists and turns as you progress through the game. A comparison can be made to such innovative games as Half-Life and Deus EX where story is key to the game. Unlike some games (Blair Witch Series being one) the story plays an important role in the game, and it is seamlessly tied to what happens in the game. Near the end of the game Snake will have experienced betrayal, love, and ultimate sadness as some of his family and friends both hurt and help him in his quest to take down the terrorists holding this country under their gun.

The sound effects are adequate, but they are nothing special (its not like sound effects ever are special). In the music department MGS excels above and beyond what is asked. The music is great. It sounds awesome and fits into the game perfectly. With the exception of Shenmue, Zelda, and maybe Crazy Taxi, I have never heard music so fitting for a game.

As an added bonus for being a PC gamer, we get the VR Mission Pack for free. The PSOne version was sold separately, but us PC gurus get the game for free! The VR Missions are about 300 missions, which have you training for espionage missions. You have to make your way through these missions to unlock new ones on the Playstation version, but here they too are offered to you right off the bat.

Metal Gear Solid is a great PC game, but it still suffers from console-itus. The textures are still coming from a system with a resolution 320x240. Microsoft tried to improve the game with high-resolution textures and graphics, but they look a little blurred out. The menus just scream D-Pad as you try to navigate them. The overall look of the game is just really console-ish. I know that is hard to explain, but you will understand once you actually play the game. Not to say it is a bad game, but some of these faults detour from the overall experience.

Metal Gear Solid was a excellent Playstation game, and is a great PC game as well., None of the faults I have listed should keep you from enjoying this entertaining game. When you combine the excellent music, with the innovative gameplay and then match that up with a storyline that is bleeding character you get a game that is, well for lack of a better term, Solid.