Metal Gear Solid - Which order should I play them in?

[GoaThief]

I've recently bought MGS HD Collection for the 360 and was wondering which order to play the games in. I'm completely new to the series so would like to do it justice, I can also purchase the missing game (MGS 1, I think?) for PC or PS3 to fill in the blank.

So Escapist, which order?

 

[Chimpzy_v1legacy]

MGS3 , 1 ,2 then 4.

That's chronological order and it good fun.

Go with this. Things will make a lot more sense. Not much, but it helps.

Oh, and MGS Peace Walker goes inbetween MGS3 and MGS1

 

[Soviet Heavy]

Metal Gear Solid 3 is the best of the series, and it is also a lot easier to understand because Hideo Kojima didn't jam as much random bullshit into the game as with MGS4. Start with Snake Eater and play its sequel Peace Walker.

 

[The Wykydtron]

MGS3 first. I think MGS2 was just a complete failure so I can't recommend you even play it... Go for it if you want but MGS3 is miles better.

I know the cutscene to gameplay ratio has always been a bit skewed in MGS games but MGS2 just takes the cake, makes a cutscene about the cake's life and then goes on about the cake shop's founding and subsequent closure.

Also fuck Vamp.

Never played Peacewalker myself, to busy trying to get my many other single player games finished.

MGS3 is still really really good by the way, Kojima must have been taken ill for some of the cutscene planning meetings...

 

[DustyDrB]

Logically: 4, 2, Peace Walker, 1, and then 3

Or you could play them in the order of release. That's probably a better idea.

 

[PrinceOfShapeir]

Also, MGS 2 will never make sense.

 

[Casual Shinji]

I would say play 1 and 3 and skip the rest, but otherwise play them in their numerical order.

Eventhough they may not be chronological that way, the stories will make more sense in that manner. If only for the jokes and easter eggs.

 

[Jitters Caffeine]

Best way is MGS3, then PeaceWalker, then go MGS1 and MGS2 and MGS4. That's how they go Chronologically.

Metal Gear Solid 4 REALLY suffered because of MGS2. The plot was just so schizophrenic it was hard to make any sense of it. So when they decided to canonize it for MGS4, it just seems like a crazy mess since MGS2 was a mes already. Not to mention David Hayter does a REALLY weird voice for Snake in the game. Like he sounds like he's garggling the whole time.

 

[Owyn_Merrilin]

I haven't played any since 2, so I may be way off base on this, but wouldn't playing 3 first give major spoilers about the La-Le-Lu-Li-Lo? I thought the whole point was 1 and 2 were confusing, and 3 made things more clear, kind of how watching the Star Wars saga in chronological order spoils The Empire Strikes Back, or how reading New Spring first spoils pretty much everything about the Aes Sedai in The Wheel of Time.

 

[Jekken6]

Release order is best.

 

[dimensional]

Just play MGS then skip the rest you will be doing yourself a favour if you must continue then MGS3 is ok.

 

[Sean Hollyman]

MGS3, Peace Walker, then MGS2.

Good luck understanding 2 though.

 

[Clive Howlitzer]

If it were up to me, I'd recommend playing Metal Gear Solid and then stopping completely.

 

[xPixelatedx]

Don't listen to them, 2 is a great game. People are just butthurt over having to play Raiden instead of snake, but there is a lot more to a video game then just that. It all depends what you are looking for, example: 3 has a better story and a better character to play as, while 2 has better level design and everything else actually connected to playing the game. They are all good and entertaining though, so don't you dare skip a single one!

 

[CBPodge]

+1 for release order. IMO you really need to play MGS1 at least before MGS3, otherwise the story won't really make any sense.

The only bad thing about MGS3 IMO was having to go to the menu to change your camo.

 

[Vivi22]

+1 for release order. IMO you really need to play MGS1 at least before MGS3, otherwise the story won't really make any sense.

The only bad thing about MGS3 IMO was having to go to the menu to change your camo.

This. I don't understand people saying play MGS3 first, because Big Boss' journey over the course of the game not only makes more sense after playing MGS1 and 2 since you can see where they're nodding to later games and how things tie in and after having spent a couple of titles with him being built up as this figure of almost mythic proportions, but it makes the emotional impact of the game much more poignant. His struggles have a great deal more meaning when you know what he's meant to become and what happens to him after the game.

 

[Josh151]

I really enjoyed 2 and it was what got me into the Metal Gear series. I would say to go in release order from MGS1. Also, don't forget that the original MSX Metal Gear games are in the menu for MGS3.

 

[Fat Hippo]

Release order is best.

This. The story is important, but so is the evolution of the gameplay. Playing 3, then 1, and then 2 will just feel really strange from a gameplay perspective. Besides, if you play them by release order, you are exposed to the story in the order that was intended, which is more important than the chronological order of events, in my opinion.