A few lucky Famitsu editors were recently given the opportunity to play Metal Gear Solid Peace Walker in advance. And not just sample it, which a good number of people were able to do when the game went playable at the Tokyo Game Show last year. Konami invited three editors out to the Kojima Productions offices to play through the game in its entirety. They delivered their impressions in a massive (massive!) feature in this week's Famitsu.
Here's a summary of what each editor said.
Fujinocchi
Editor Fujinocchi, who deals with Kojima Productions for Famitsu, visited took six days to clear the game. While admitting that, because of work, he was able to play straight from morning to night only two days out of that time, he wrote "the volume is without question the highest level for the series."
Things keep on appearing as you play, said Fujinocchi. Once you clear a main mission, you'll find that something else has become unlocked. Clearing this will open up something else -- and so on. He also notes that this isn't a case where the things that you're required to do are increasing. Rather, things that you want to do are increasing.
He used the Mother Base part of the game as an example. You can allot enemy troops that you capture in the field to work in research and development labs in this base. With more people, the labs rise in level, giving you access to additional weapon and item types. You don't have to play around with this part of the game in order to clear the story. However, it's something that's convenient to do as you work through the story, and you can also visually see Mother Base growing, which apparently serves as a driving force to keep exploring.
Outside of the "Main Ops" main mission area of the game, the game also offers an "Extra Ops" side mission component. There are a lot of these extra missions. You won't be able to develop certain weapons and items unless you've cleared some of these.
Despite six days of play, Fujinocchi says that he still doesn't get the feeling that he's seen all there is to see. Each time he watches videos or talks to people who played the game, he finds additional things to do.
مع لعب لمدة 6 أيام كل ما يسولف مع واحد لاعب اللعبة يكتشف انه في اشياء ما سواها حتى.
His ultimate impression appears to be that this is a true new entry in the Metal Gear series. He feels that Hideo Kojima has put his all into the game as a game designer.
In closing, he warns against thinking you've finished the game after you've cleared it. "Actually, if you don't continue playing after clearing, you'll loose out." He mentions a secret feature of some form that's capable of "shaking the entire industry." He suggests that you explore the game until you find this. This secret is not something that's needed for the game to be fulfilling, he says, but it's big enough that calling it an "omake" (bonus) would be a waste.
Now for some speculation apart from Fujinocchi's comments. In the past, Kojima and the Peace Walker staff have mentioned a big surprise feature for Peace Walker. Kojima mentioned such a feature in October of last year. PR manager Jiro Oishi brought up the surprise feature as recently as February, referring to it as another "ultimate charm" for the game outside of the co-op play.
Perhaps the secret Fujinocchi is talking about is the same one mentioned by Kojima and Oishi? If this is the case, it looks like we won't find out about it until after Peace Walker hits in late April.
Biora Makishima
Editor Biora Makishima, who played the game for 50 hours, shared a similar view to Fujinocchi -- this is a true Metal Gear Solid series sequel.
He says this even while admitting that he'd initially been disappointed after hearing that the latest MGS game was coming to PSP. He wasn't even excited after hearing that Kojima was heading up the project. That changed when he actually played the game. Even though the gameplay systems have changed, the heavy story and the feeling of tension when invading enemy territory remain in tact.
Biora had little difficulty with the game's controls. He mentioned only two complaints. First, it's a bit difficult to be precise when aiming. Thankfully, you can turn on a setting to have the game support your aim. He also said that the controls can be a bit complex, as some controls are activated by holding down on the buttons for different periods of time. Once you've gotten used to the controls, though, you'll be able to perform a variety of actions.
The big change from past entries in the series, said Biora, is that the game is mission-based. Missions are at most 40 minutes in length, making them perfect for a quick play when you're outside.
As detailed in Fujinocchi's impressions, missions are split into Main Ops and Extra Ops. If you want to work exclusively through the story, you can just play the Main Ops mission.
There's a whole lot of content in the way of Extra Ops for those who want to play more. After 50 hours play time, Biora unlocked 100 missions (I'm not sure if includes the Main Ops missions as well). There's apparently far greater number than this.
Gyaruson Yajou
Editor Gyaruson Yajou, who played for 31 hours, was impressed by the amount of voice in the game -- it's not a half job, he said. Similar to part 4, there are briefings prior to a mission. You can hear all the dialogue during these sequences. And they apparently talk a lot -- nine hours for just this part alone, it seems.
Peace Walker is just a single UMD game. So how did they fit all that voice? Gyaruson says that the developers came up with a variety of ideas. For example, most of the in-game dialogue is done through com, which presumably means they can keep the quality low.
Regarding the game itself, Gyaruson notes that after the mid point, the game can get pretty tough. However, most of the missions can be played in multiplayer. You can even play with someone who's advanced beyond you and has access to superior weapons.
Gyaruson believes that the the game's multiplayer aspects, while new to the Metal Gear series, will be familiar territory for Monster Hunter fans.
He also says that beginner Metal Gear Solid players will be fine with the game. Apparently, there are some elements in place that make it playable for all. He encourages even newcomers to give it a try.
Gyaruson's comments about the game being familiar territory for Monster Hunter fans could be a huge key to success in Japan. It seems that Monster Hunter-style multiplayer games are pretty much all that sells on the PSP here. The completely original God Eater is the latest example, having crossed the half million mark. Prior to that, Koei saw great success with the first Dynasty Warriors Strike Force game and Sega saw great succes
