Metal Gear Solid 4 Progress Report

May 15, 2008

It's been quite a busy week for Hideo Kojima. Earlier this week, he revealed a number of surprises tied to Metal Gear Solid 4 at a completion event in Japan, such as the cross-promotional items included in the game and the inclusion of the Assassin's Solid April Fools joke in the game. However, there was much more to reveal for the final chapter of the franchise, and at Konami's Gamer's Night in San Francisco, Kojima took to the stage to present his thoughts on the series.

The first thing that Kojima reiterated was that the title was finally complete, and that he and his team had worked on the project for four years. It was his biggest team ever, and that he was relieved for the moment to be finished with the title that was a finale to more than 20 years of the Metal Gear universe. It has been ten years since Metal Gear Solid debuted on the PlayStation, and Kojima focused on this fact, stating that he hoped the decade was "precious to Metal Gear Solid fans." What's more, he made a conscious effort to say that he didn't want to bring up the console wars between the PS3 and other systems, or even casual gamers versus hardcore gamers when it came to MGS4; instead, he wanted people to know that the game was made for fans of the series, and he believed that they would enjoy it.

From there, he sat down and began to play through Act 1 of MGS4. This was the actual opening, and not the "Assassin's Solid" intro shown last month. While he made sure to skip cutscenes to make sure that he wouldn't spoil plot points, he highlighted a number of little secrets and touches that some players might not have been aware of, and we thought we'd share a few of them. For example, he highlighted the shaking of the DualShock controller reveal aspects of cutscenes you wouldn't be aware of, as well as removing your Octocamo. In addition, he pointed out that if a player sees a particular camouflage pattern that they like, they can automatically save that design for use at a later time. However, not all of the camo appears to be as safe as it seems. Kojima showed off the scene where Snake grabs the groin of the statue to blend into the stonework as a patrol passed by. Unfortunately, when he grabbed it a second time, his grip crumbled to pieces in his hand, leaving Snake in a precarious position.

Another thing that Kojima pointed out was some of the cross-promotional items that are included in the title. We had been apprised of Regain and Triumph cycles from the event earlier this week, but Kojima pointed out the use of a 30 gig iPod that Snake can use during battle to listen to music tracks that he finds scattered around levels. For example, one of the songs he found during his mission unlocked the original Metal Gear theme, which Snake could load and play during the game. Any loaded tracks will replace ambient sound or music during the game, and Kojima pointed out that they will have a download feature to let you add new music as well. Kojima also showed off the latest promotional item, which can definitely distract guards. MGS fans are accustomed to using magazines to divert patrols; in MGS4, Snake will be able to use Playboy magazines to stop PMC soldiers dead in their tracks. Snake can also flip through the pages of the magazine to reduce his own personal stress.

In fact, Kojima pointed out a number of facts related to the stress gauge which hadn't been fully released before, such as the fact that Snake's stress meter goes up much more when he's near smelly items like garbage cans. It also spikes when he's in direct sunlight – he is used to sneaking missions – so that can seriously worry him as he moves through the environments, which can affect his performance. Fortunately, along with his Octocamo and other items, he can avoid detection. To highlight this, Kojima switched from camo to a staple of the series, the cardboard box. From there, he switched to the drum can, which he pointed out could be used to roll over enemies as well as reflect incoming bullets. Snake could also use the barrel to cover the battlefield quickly, but the hazard of that would be that continual rolling would make him vomit.

Of course, while Kojima made a concerted effort to sneak around and avoid battle, he had to show off combat. Not only did he show how you acquire weapons on the battlefield and the Drebin system, but he used environmental weapons as well, such as mortars that are placed in specific locations to shell PMC troops. Doing so helped Snake befriend the militia soldiers around him, and Kojima pointed out that Snake can increase his standing in their eyes by fighting alongside them as well as giving them items like rations. Occasionally, they'll give Snake new items in return, so there's an advantage to making sure you pick a side and work with them. At times you'll need all the help you can get, particularly when the PMCs take up sniper positions or start firing rockets at your position.

Kojima took these opportunities to customize his weapons, highlighting how adjustable the weapon system is by manipulating the M4 custom with a grenade launcher, laser scope and a flashlight. In fact, he made sure to point out that the flashlight is particularly effective in dazing soldiers by flashing the light in their eyes, stunning them for a few seconds so Snake can take them out. For brute force, however, you can always fire the grenade launcher attachment and blast them through the air. There was a downside to that attachment in that it wasn't particularly precise. To that end, Kojima showed off the XM25 grenade launcher, which is the most precise launcher in the world right now. It calculates the distance to a target, so a player can aim a bit high and allow the trajectory of the grenade to hit its target every time. For instance, he aimed at a soldier that was taking cover behind a balcony. The XM25 calculated the distance to the balcony, Kojima aimed a little higher, and the grenade took out the soldier comfortably.

However, sometimes you need a little extra firepower in battle. While we have all become accustomed to the RPGs or Stingers from previous titles, Kojima showed of a special weapon that is sold within the Drebin Store: the Tanegashima. The weapon looks unassuming – it's a flintlock lead ball rifle, so many players might dismiss it at first glance. However, its price tag is somewhat astounding, since it costs one million Drebin Points to purchase. Kojima pointed out that players would need to play through the game at least three or four times to gather the number of points needed for the gun, but once this was done, you had a legendary weapon at your disposal. He then proceeded to show off just why. While you can fire the lead ball bullet at an enemy and kill them, the trade off comes in the reload time – it takes more than fifteen seconds to reload the shot. The true power of the weapon comes with its alt-fire, which unleashes a Kamikaze cyclone across the playing field, scooping all enemies and loose items in its wake. When it blows out, the items carried by the killed soldiers are dropped to the ground, allowing players to collect the spoils of war. Clearly, even though it's been played at multiple events by now, there's tons of secrets to be uncovered with the final title, which will be on store shelves on June 12th.

To wrap up the demonstration, Konami pointed out that the Limited Edition MGS4 PS3 bundle will be available only through Konami.com. Pre-orders for the bundle will be available on May 19th, and will feature a 40 gig PS3 and DualShock 3 in the Gunmetal color, as well as the Limited Edition version of MGS4.