Anyone think MGS4 is better now after V?

[hanselthecaretaker]

After hearing so many people complain about how V dropped the ball story-wise and in some cases game design, did it cause anyone to reassess their criticisms of 4 towards appreciating it more now, or unchanged?

I ask because before V, it was 4 that was largely considered the low point of the series. In some cases of the story I agree, but I thought most of the gameplay was some of the best the series had at the time. I now feel pretty much the same about V.

 

[Mcgeezaks]

Nope, I could only play 4 for a couple of hours thanks to the unnecessarily long/dull cutscenes and conversations.

 

[Zhukov]

Fuck no.

I could see a good game somewhere in MGA5, screaming and struggling to swim up the waterfall of shit it was being drowned in.

MGS4 was just regular old lukewarm crispy fried shit right down to the marrow. Aged woefully too.

 

[stroopwafel]

I loved MGS5 but was really disappointed by MGS4 as I had such high hopes for it. MGS5 elevated the formula to such a high degree with it's intricate web of gameplay systems, innovative open world with reactionary AI, tight and responsive controls and exceptionally high degree of polish(atleast in the gameplay department). Gameplay of MGS4 felt very much like a Syphon Filter clone. I played it before and better. MGS5 on the other hand really raised the bar and put Kojima back on the map as one of the best game-designers instead of pretentious Hollywood wannabe.

MGS4 really feels like Kojima's attempt to kill the story off as swiftly and thoroughly as he could. MGS has always been convoluted sure but not to the degree of this cheaply sentimental bloated mess. MGS5's story while unfinished I still enjoyed a lot more.

MGS4 wasn't all bad though. I really enjoyed the first mission in the middle-east as well as the 'return to shadow moses' mission. Those were great.

 

[sageoftruth]

Nope. If anything, I now think it's worse, not necessarily because of MGS5, but rather because my tolerance for cutscene-heavy games and Hideo Kojima's writing have both gone down since then.

I played these games more for the gameplay between cutscenes, than for the story itself, so the quality of MGS5's story did not bother me that much. Meanwhile, in today's outlook on gaming, MGS4 has pretty much become a token example of video game storytelling done poorly, not merely because of the quality of the story, but rather because the story butts heads with the gameplay the whole way through. Good game storytelling tends to bleed into the gameplay a lot more and not make all story moments feel like rude interruptions. MGS4's only saving grace in that regard is that the gameplay makes sense in the context of the story.

 

[Casual Shinji]

Yes and no.

MGS4 is "better" in that it's a richer package filled with what fans generally like about the series, eventhough the product overall was a bloated, beached whale collapsing under its own weight.

MGS5 is action gameplay-wise leagues ahead of 4. Unfortunately that action gameplay doesn't get utilized at all beyond settlement infiltrations. And that's really all it had going for it, because the characters were none existed, the pacing was floating in a toilet somewhere, and the gameworld was hollow and lifeless (and not intentionally so). It also commited the ultimate gaming sin of dispensing its narrative almost completely through audio logs. Fuck any game that does this. And yes, I'm looking at you too Bioshock.

It says a lot that I traded Phantom Pain back in, but kept Ground Zeroes.

 

[Saelune]

MGSV is the worst game in the series, atleast that Ive played. (MGS1-5 and Peace Walker). I didn't have much issue with 4, other than a lack of memorableness. I did like that it tied up a lot of lose ends though.

Also I should add I played 4 as part of a marathon of the whole series which I hadn't played until the HD collection. Might have been more sour if I had waited since MGS3's release to play it.

 

[DEAD34345]

4 is far and away the worst Metal Gear Solid game in my opinion.

The gameplay was delivered in such short, sparsely distributed nibbles that I don't even really feel like I got to play it at all. I don't actually think I had time to form a real opinion of it, I had always already passed through to the next huge cut-scene before I even started figuring out the basic mechanics. From the tutorials I gathered there was some kind of weapon modification system, and disguises and all sorts of cool sounding things. I never got a chance to use them.

As for those cutscenes, I felt that the story was also the worst in the series, even including the obviously unfinished story of V. It was all just pointless fan service and explanations for things that were better off not being explained at all. Being a totally insane fanboy of the series I enjoyed it anyway, but even to me it stood out as the worst of the bunch.

The whole huge subplot with "Johnny", the previously nameless joke character with diarrhoea...

Just... No... I love you Kojima, but that joke wasn't even funny to begin with...

 

[shrekfan246]

I didn't really have an issue with MGS4 in the first place?

 

[josemlopes]

Yes and no.

MGS4 is "better" in that it's a richer package filled with what fans generally like about the series, eventhough the product overall was a bloated, beached whale collapsing under its own weight.

MGS5 is action-gameplay wise leagues ahead of 4. Unfortunately that action-gameplay doesn't get utilized at all beyond settlement infiltrations. And that's really all it had going for it, because the characters were none existed, the pacing was floating in a toilet somewhere, and the gameworld was hollow and lifeless (and not intentionally so). It also commited the ultimate gaming sin of dispensing its narrative almost completely through audio logs. Fuck any game that does this. And yes, I'm looking at you too Bioshock.

It says a lot that I traded Phantom Pain back in, but kept Ground Zeroes.

I never got what people liked about Ground Zeroes, the map is so shit, the close quarters is tiny with nothing to do and the open areas are really flat and repetitive. 5 at least has some cool areas here and there.

 

[DudeistBelieve]

I honestly really enjoyed 4, so I don't know wtf you guys are talking about.

 

[hermes]

No. Both MGS 4 and 5 are serviceable... they have a lot of problems, but they are not the same. So the best we can say about MGS 5 is: they learned from their mistakes, only to come around and make an entirely different set of mistakes.

 

[Leg End]

Am I like, the only person who didn't hate MSG4? I think I a-

I didn't really have an issue with MGS4 in the first place?

I honestly really enjoyed 4, so I don't know wtf you guys are talking about.

 

[BlackBark]

MGS V is one of the biggest disappointments in gaming for me and is definitely the most forgettable in the series. I liked the quirkiness, humour and characters of 4, but I agree that the gameplay was lacking.

MGS V had great stealth/fighting mechanics (in a completely different league to 4), but it had no character at all, and the overall gameplay was extremely flawed as well, such as the pointless open world, the bases being used over and over for missions, the side quests all being pretty much exactly the same, etc.

MGS V is just...not a good game at all. I can't see how anyone managed to finish it. You see pretty much all there is to see of the gameplay in the first 10-20 hours and there is no reason to keep playing the game beyond that, as there is no story to drive it forward or keep you interested. That's how I felt, anyway.

I can see why people don't like 4...but I can't see how anyone could think that what was essentially a Far Cry clone was better...

 

[Zetatrain]

Eh...sort of kind of

In terms of story MGS4 is definitely better by comparison despite its many flaws since its actually there and at least provides closure to Solid Snake's story. While I kind of like MGSV's twist at the end it's not a good note to end on and does nothing to bring Big Bosses story full circle and leads to more questions than answers.

In terms of gameplay I think MGSV is better even though I think MGS4 has better gameplay mechanics and boss battles.

The problem is that MGS4 does make full use of its game mechanics. The game is actually very fun for the first 2 acts, but later the game becomes kinda dull outside of the boss battles. The first half of Act 3 forces you to tail the informant which I found tedious and annoying, and the 2nd half is just an on rails shooter. Act 4 is good the first time around for the nostalgia trip, but having just Gekkos and Dwarf Gekkos to fight against just isn't much fun. Act 5 is really just two boss battles once you exit the starting area.

While I wasn't pleased with some of MGSV's gameplay mechanics the gameplay is still fun, and there is a lot to do in the game. MGS4 by comparison just feels too restrictive outside of Acts 1 and 2.

In short, MGS4 and MGSV are two extremes on opposite sides of the spectrum. One has too much story/cut-scenes and not enough gameplay while the other has too much gameplay and not enough story.

 

[Saltyk]

I honestly haven't played MGSV. Not because I don't like MGS and Kojima, but because Konami. Konami is Konami and Konami is the worst. They managed to kill my interest in the game by being horrible and making me lose my stomach for them as a company. Hopefully, that distaste doesn't extend to older Konami games. I might be in trouble.

As for MGSIV, I enjoyed it. I got what I paid for. An insane story following Snake through even more insane events.

I didn't really have an issue with MGS4 in the first place?

I honestly really enjoyed 4, so I don't know wtf you guys are talking about.

Am I like, the only person who didn't hate MSG4? I think I a-

I didn't really have an issue with MGS4 in the first place?

I honestly really enjoyed 4, so I don't know wtf you guys are talking about.

Glad to know I am not alone.

 

[bluegate]

Ehh, I never had a problem with MGS4.

The levels may have been a little small, but they were unique and varied, and filled with story. I loved playing through MGS4 for the first time, to me it was a perfect love-letter to fans of the series, or at least, to me.

 

[DeliveryGodNoah_v1legacy]

Like several others here, I actually really like MGS4.

But then again, there's hardly a Metal Gear Solid game I didn't enjoy.

I actually was the most disappointed with MGS5. When I played the prologue mission what seems like forever ago now, I was absolutely stoked. "Wow, a stealth-action game that plays this smooth and looks this fantastic! And combine this with the story and how Kojima is going to fuck with my mind in the full game, this will easily be one of my favorite games of all time!"

Instead we got snippets of story. I mean...it's there. Kinda. Very little of it. In small, disappointing spurts. And the worst part is, I was continued to be egged on by The Phantom Pain's incredible opening segment. I LOVE MGS5'S OPENING SEGMENT. And then what? The game tosses you into a section of gameplay. Okay, neat! This isn't really that out of the ordinary.

And then the story never actually comes. One of the largest aspects MGS is known for, lengthy (sometimes drawn out) cutscenes that never fail to both entertain and confuse at the same time.

With MGS4 I was never disappointed. At the time, we had a great looking game, with refined mechanics from previous installments, and the lengthy cutscenes. So many ways to interact with the environment if you know where to look. So many secrets. A linear game that still opened up tons of possibilities.

 

[Rabish Bini]

From a narrative standpoint I consider MGSV to be the worst in the series for obvious reasons. But I struggle to say that 4 was better, primarily because it's a game that should never have existed. Kojima was pretty much forced into making a sequel to Sons of Liberty, and in the process 4 completely butchered the 2nd game.

Sons of Liberty was never supposed to have a sequel, plot points were never supposed to be resolved. 4 had to tie these points all up and what we got was an incoherent, disjointed, and downright unbelievable mess. And this had a detrimental effect on the second game.

I can understand fans frustration at not getting a closing chapter in Solid Snake's story, and as a piece of fan service 4 was remarkable, a sort of MGS-best-of, and it provided that closure. But I will forever feel that the franchise would have been far stronger if it ended with 3.