A year on from MGS4. Wow. How do I feel about it now?
It is amazing and I have never experienced anything like it in my gaming life. It is so idiosyncratic, strange and distinctly Kojima. It's the ultimate expression of one of gaming's few true auteurs. It plays by its own rules and defies conventions but at the same time it embraces videogame cliches lovingly. It's daft, melancholy, exhilarating, convoluted, melodramatic and involving.
Bravo, Kojima Productions.
That said, there are faults with the title. I think that Acts 3 and 5 are weaker in quality than 1, 2 and 4. I find 5 especially disappointing due to the lack of gameplay, and I think it is extremely sad that the final moment of Solid Snake 'gameplay' we will perhaps ever have is a weak version of Punch Out. Whereas MGS3's final boss was a summation of the gameplay mechanics (stealth, combat, camouflage, healing), MGS4's climax goes for tired nostalgia instead, which is a bit of a shame.
I don't want to end these recollections on a sour note, though, so let me reiterate that this is one of my favourite games of all time and I love it very much.
