Metal Gear Online Beta (PS3 Preview)

Overview: The Metal Gear franchise has been one of the best ever made in history. But does it succeed in the next-gen online multiplayer experience?

Plot: As usual, there’s really no plot in a online only game. This particular online game takes place in the Metal Gear Solid 4 universe, where PMCs (Private Military Companies) battle each other across the world for money and profit.

Gameplay: It’s fantastic. The gameplay is heavily based on teamplay and/or stealth. Before a match starts, you can choose a set of up to 4 ’skills’, which will allow you to specialize in many tasks. In some scenarios, you may be allowed to purchase extra attachments to your weapons, and personally I think MGO’s version of that feature is much more better than Call of Duty 4’s attachment feature since you can add more than one attachment to a gun. There is a catch though, you have to acquire “Drebin Points”, points that are required for you to buy the weapons/attachments which is an excellent balancing system. The SOP System is also a great feature of MGO, it really helps to enhance teamplay with it’s notifications of your teammate’s current statuses. When you’re currently in a match, you can also perform certain co-op moves with nearby teammates to gain an edge over the enemy, such as boosting one up to an otherwise inaccessible area so he/she can snipe away at enemies. If you’re the lonewolf who would rather sneak around, no problem. The game will provide you with skills/items that will help you with your sneaking gameplay, including the Play Dead (Saved my skin in several occasions) and the Cardboard Box (You’ll be surprised at how people constantly miss players who are hiding in the box). Some players would probably be turned off at the controls (a bit clunky, but once you get used to it, it’s great) and the slow pacing of the game.

Graphics: The game looks good, but not amazing. If you’re thinking that MGS4 would look like the same, don’t worry. The MGS4 team made a statement that the graphics in MGO have been downgraded for multiplayer reasons, and that MGS4 has been untouched.

Sound: The sound effects in MGO are extremely good. The gun sounds pack a lot of punch, the explosions make a satisfying “Boom”, and the character voices don’t sound terrible like other Japanese games that have laughable English Voices (Resident Evil). Players with 7.1 Surround Sound setups, though, will definitely love it since you’ll get to hear everything in true HD sound.

Reviewer’s Final Opinion: Metal Gear Online has provided me with one of the best Online gaming experiences. It’s an awesome tactical game that values teamplay and stealth over mindless stupid strategies. Throw in the legendary MGS charm, and you got yourself a winner. Thanks for the beta key CodeFire!