Cinematics Over Gameplay and Snake's Limited Mobility

Much fuss was made early on about the "lengthy" cinematics and install times for MGS4 because Konami specifically asked some reviewers not to mention them. I thought it was strange at the time but after experiencing the game in its entirety I find it even more puzzling. Why draw attention to something that isn't a problem? As a PC gamer I don't consider an eight minute, unattended install anywhere close to lengthy and the installs that precede each new act give you a nice break to head to the bathroom and grab a drink. Try installing a multi-disc MMO after it's been out for six months and let me know how long it takes you to actually start playing the game. I never considered install times as a factor for a game review even for PC games, but I guess the console folks don't like to wait very long once that disc spins up.

As for the lengthy cinematics, they're fantastic. But they do tend to overshadow the actual play sections of the game. There are instances when you're treated to a long cinematic followed by a section of gameplay involving nothing more than running Snake 40 yards down a path before getting hit by two more long cinematics back-to-back. Most of the memorable moments come out of the movies themselves rather than creative sections of gameplay. I don't see the merit in replaying MGS4 if you're going to skip the cut-scenes because they are so much of the experience.

New weapons, disguises and gear offer some replayability and there are lots of little secrets scattered throughout the game. However, if the best parts of a game are the ones where you aren't playing, what does that say? It feels like the focus was on creating some beautiful game cinemas and making sense of the story rather than designing exciting sections of gameplay for every level. It may sound like MGS4 is nothing more than a glorified DVD that requires you to manually play every scene but that isn't the case at all. There are definitely some quality gameplay moments to be had.

Snake disarms a guard using close-quarters combat.

Controlling Snake has been streamlined from previous games but I still found his lack of mobility frustrating. In a game that focuses on stealth there will be times when you're going to be discovered and I would expect a discovered super-stealth operative to move faster than one who remains hidden. Snake has walk and run speeds but when everyone on the map knows where you are including a circling helicopter gunship peppering the ground around you with large caliber ordinance I'd like "sprint!" to become an option.

Even when Snake is sneaking around his inability to traverse trivial obstacles will pull you out of the tension of the game. He can't jump to reach a ledge, he can climb onto some obstacles but not others, he can only climb out of water at certain places and even stepping from a road to a knee-high embankment proved impossible. Many of the levels are outdoor environments, however you'll still feel like you're stalking through the corridors and air ducts of previous games. The designers offer a few predetermined paths rather than allowing the player to approach the enemy from anywhere.

Snake's previous missions usually tasked him with infiltrating a guarded enemy compound, but in MGS4 he finds himself moving through active battlefields where either side could be friend or foe. Allying with one side or the other by pitching in during fights will cause those soldiers to no longer view Snake as an enemy making it much easier to get through areas of the map that they control. Snake's mission is his own however, and success does not depend on either side winning the battle. It's up to the player to decide whether or not to get involved in the battle or stay out of sight all together.

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