Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain Review

The gaming community considers it blasphemy to talk poorly about Metal Gear Solid creator Hideo Kojima. Kojima is one of gaming’s true auteurs, and his games are some of the most unique in the business. That said, Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain is only fun when the game doesn’t bog players down with Kojima’s trademark storytelling and overlong cinematics.

This isn’t the case of some strange bias. I respect Kojima as a creator. Frankly, his Zone of the Enders series is one of my all-time favorites. But the Metal Gear Solid series has always been a divisive topic for me. On one hand, the games are polished stealth-action experiences — they’re classics in the genre for good reason. On the other hand, they’re filled with bizarre, convoluted storylines, awkward dialogue, and an overreliance on lengthy cinematics. Thankfully, there is a whole lot to like about The Phantom Pain before we get to its weak points.

Gameplay

Instead of linear level design, The Phantom Pain utilizes an open-world structure that really shakes up the gameplay. With dynamic weather, a day and night cycle, and an emphasis on reconnaissance, the key to the game is patience.

Plenty of stealth games make patience optional. Series competitor Splinter Cell has offered more aggressive features in recent games, making open combat a gameplay choice. In The Phantom Pain, combat is not a choice. It’s a last resort. The game punishes reckless players. It makes the gameplay less accessible to newcomers while making successful stealth feel very rewarding.