The Metal Gear Franchise (And How to Get In)

[Soviet Heavy]

I have never played a Metal Gear game, and yet I find myself kind of obsessing over it. I absolutely love the music, and despite the convoluted plots that go nowhere until suddenly being drawn from the back drawer for MGS 4, I find the setting extremely compelling for how much stuff gets crammed into such contained stories.

If I were to start with the Series, where would be better for me: Metal Gear Solid 3, or Metal Gear?

 

[Smertnik]

Well, if you intend to play all the games anyway it would make more sense to follow the release order, otherwise you'll notice the shortcomings of older titles much easier. And even though MGS3 is a prequel it still kinda expects you to know what happens in other games. I doubt the Metal Gear games are worth playing, though, considering the rudimentary gameplay and graphics.
Alternatively you could always just watch an LP of the whole series like I did.

 

[DustyDrB]

I hear more people saying you should play them in order of their release. I'm inclined to agree, despite the fact that Metal Gear Solid 3 and Peace Walker are chronologically before the others in terms of the in-universe storyline.

 

[Soviet Heavy]

I have never played a Metal Gear game, and yet I find myself kind of obsessing over it. I absolutely love the music, and despite the convoluted plots that go nowhere until suddenly being drawn from the back drawer for MGS 4, I find the setting extremely compelling for how much stuff gets crammed into such contained stories.

If I were to start with the Series, where would be better for me: Metal Gear Solid 3, or Metal Gear?

Do what I did recently:

Pick up Metal Gear Solid: HD Collection for the PS3/Xbox 360.

Play Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater;
Play Metal Gear Solid: Peacewalker;
Play Metal Gear
Play Metal Gear 2
Play Metal Gear Solid (PSN/Gamecube)
Play Metal Gear Solid 2
Play Metal Gear Solid 4


I still haven't beaten 4 so I am not too sure on what happens.

As I said, I have a very basic understanding of the lore, so please correct me if anything doesn't add up.

- Snake eater involves Big Boss/Naked Snake going into Soviet territory to stop a nuke, but then the Soviets nuke themselves and try to blame the states. The Boss turns out to be running as a double agent, and Ocelot is a young guy responsible for Big Boss losing an eye.

- Peacewalker regards Big Boss's creation of Outer Heaven and the origins of his mercenary army

- Metal Gear is about Solid Snake infiltrating Outer Heaven to rescue another Foxconn operative and stop the superweapon Metal Gear, only to discover that his commander, Big Boss is evil and wants to use Metal Gear to take over the world. Snake beats Big boss and blows up the place. Snake finds out he is a clone of Big Boss

- Metal Gear 2 is pretty much the same deal, but with a different Metal Gear and some other stuff I don't know too much about.

- Metal Gear Solid, Snake infiltrates Shadow Moses to rescue Merril and a scientist who have been working on Metal Gear Rex. While there, Snake meets Otacon, and fights a bunch of crazy mercs like Sniper Wolf and Psycho Mantis. Liquid Snake is your brother/clone and you fight him and he dies. Ocelot grabs his arm and runs off

- Sons of Liberty involves Raiden stealing the spotlight from Snake, getting in trouble with colonel for shooting birds, and running around naked looking for the lalalalalaliloulaylow, yeah I'm confused

- Snake is dying of rapid aging, Ocelot has grafted Liquid's arm onto himself and gone nuts. Shit happens and I can't make heads or tails out of it.

How's that?

 

[rbstewart7263]

I have never played a Metal Gear game, and yet I find myself kind of obsessing over it. I absolutely love the music, and despite the convoluted plots that go nowhere until suddenly being drawn from the back drawer for MGS 4, I find the setting extremely compelling for how much stuff gets crammed into such contained stories.

If I were to start with the Series, where would be better for me: Metal Gear Solid 3, or Metal Gear?

Do what I did recently:

Pick up Metal Gear Solid: HD Collection for the PS3/Xbox 360.

Play Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater;
Play Metal Gear Solid: Peacewalker;
Play Metal Gear
Play Metal Gear 2
Play Metal Gear Solid (PSN/Gamecube)
Play Metal Gear Solid 2
Play Metal Gear Solid 4


I still haven't beaten 4 so I am not too sure on what happens.

do you find 4 lacks compared to the others? I do

 

[Able Seacat]

Personally I would play them in the order they were released as that was how it was intended. But it doesn't really matter.

 

[Kiefer13]

Play them in release order, not chronological order. There are references and call-backs (call-forwards) to previous games in the series that you won't get if you play them chronologically. It wouldn't ruin anything major, but I think you'd get more out of it if you played them in release order.

 

[Doom972]

I played Metal Gear Solid 1 & 2 and I didn't have a problem understanding the plot. At least until the point late in MGS2 where the plot goes apeshit, that is.

 

[Sneezeburger]

Sweet jebus play them in order, you'll get much more of it.

Fission Mailed.

 

[oplinger]

you can skip MG and MG2, while they are hilarious when referenced in the solid games, they're not really all that worth it.

...oh and also don't play the PS version of MGS if you can help it, while first...Twin Snakes is probably the easiest of the games to handle.

The stories are also not as nonsensical as people say, they make sense in their own universe. Like..not...reality. >>

 

[Erana]

I was familiar with the series, but didn't get playing them myself until I got MGS3, and I felt like I got a lot more out of it having played them first, at least with the silly, silly story. I mean, the Big Boss and a lot of the other characters didn't really work for me before I had a chance to see them building their legacy from the ground up.

However, as far as the game experience goes, it'd behoove you to start chronologically. Refrences, game mechanic developments... Its the same reason why I'd suggest starting chronologically with most games. Nothing's quite as annoying as jumping multiple games in the series to go chronologically to find that the perception of the guards is actually quite developed and getting caught multiple times in the very first room of MGS 1... >.<

 

[Lovely Mixture]

Play the first three games in release order, see if you feel like trying the others.

If you want my opinion you could do without playing the fourth game. The gameplay is tolerable but it has the worst mess of a story ever conceived in videogame history. Indeed the controversy surrounding the fourth game is so polarizing that some people think Kojima himself meant for it to be hated.


Also consider this question when you play the games "What do you think of soldiers?"

...oh and also don't play the PS version of MGS if you can help it, while first...Twin Snakes is probably the easiest of the games to handle.

Why shouldn't he play the PS version? It might be harder but it'll spare him the excessive cut-scenes of the remake.

 

[Rufus Shinra]

As for the difference between the PS and the GC version, I'd suggest to try the PS version, and once you've done it and MGS 2, the GC version. The latter has the controls of MGS2 and, as said above, crazy over-the-top cutscenes that's make John Woo shake his head in disbelief.

 

[alphamalet]

People will suggest to play the games in the chronology of the MGS universe. DON'T LISTEN TO THEM! Metal Gear Solid 3 references the others a few times. You will be left confused on a few things.

 

[oplinger]

Play the first three games in release order, see if you feel like trying the others.

If you want my opinion you could do without playing the fourth game. The gameplay is tolerable but it has the worst mess of a story ever conceived in videogame history. Indeed the controversy surrounding the fourth game is so polarizing that some people think Kojima himself meant for it to be hated.


Also consider this question when you play the games "What do you think of soldiers?"

...oh and also don't play the PS version of MGS if you can help it, while first...Twin Snakes is probably the easiest of the games to handle.

Why shouldn't he play the PS version? It might be harder but it'll spare him the excessive cut-scenes of the remake.

Uh, those cut-scenes are amazing, thank you.

Also, not having to equip keycards is a plus. the first person aiming also helps. Not having to get a rope...even if it's kinda given to you. There are a lot of things to make it simpler. MGS was already easy.