will i understand metal gear solid 4

[arsenicCatnip]

Start from the beginning of the series. There's so much info, that, it can be a bit overwhelming.

Yeah, MGS as a series kind of has a spiderweb of a plot. It's worth playing the others first to get all the info before you get into 4.

 

[Flour]

I played the other MGS games and I was still lost in MGS4, so there's no reason not to start with MGS4. Just download the MGS database if you want to understand what is going on, and you can't access MGS4 related entries until you've unlocked them in-game so there's no risk of spoilers.

 

[Zing]

I understood it just fine, didn't make the storyline seem less convoluted and ridiculous, nor did it make the cut scenes any fucking shorter.