MGS2 isn't a game so much as a clever social experiment and/or troll-tastic meta-joke on video gamers at large, depending on whose side you're on. Well, at least the story elements. I'll get to that later. I always tend to discuss the gameplay first for rather obvious reasons so let's get to it.
The gameplay still holds up pretty damn well, improving every facet of the original MGS while adding a plethora of gameplay staples, most notably the ability to go through the entire game without killing anybody (only slightly hampered by the fact that some enemies die anyway, but that's pretty much what you have to do to make the story move along). You feel very much like a right clever bastard when you decide to scale a railing and hang around until the guard passes you by, or when you stuff a Sleeping Beauty (not to be confused with the Beauty and the Beast unit) in a locker. Offers some of the greatest replay value of any game out there, what with the dog tags and Virtual Missions, the latter of which will cause even the most seasoned gamer to pull out some manner of body hair in frustration at certain points. Nothing to complain about here, aside from the realizations of how subsequent series installments improved upon something, but that's not really fair to complain about.
The story... well, I'll leave the analyses and whatever to other more... interested... parties, but for my own part I'm split on it. I get what Kojima is trying to do with trope subversion and deconstruction and stuff, but it really doesn't make for much of an enjoyable story in the end. The subplot of "Jack and Rose" actually takes a pretty refreshing viewpoint on "Hollywood romance," but the narmdifferous writing, chemistry, and characterization ensures that it provides even less enjoyment than a Helen Keller/Tommy love story. It's a credit to Kojima that he actually managed to salvage this scuttled ship in later installments. The plot makes more sense after reading some well-written analyses, but that's only a sort of post-finale meta-enjoyment that doesn't vindicate the frustrating lethargy it brings me whenever I replay it.
To summarize, gameplay-wise it's a classic. The story... well, it's a love it or hate it situation apparently. I suspect I'll forever be a part of the "hate" demographic, but I can at least respect what it was trying to achieve.
The greatest trick Kojima ever pulled was... well, not this.
MGS2 isn't a game so much as a clever social experiment and/or troll-tastic meta-joke on video gamers at large, depending on whose side you're on. Well, at least the story elements. I'll get to that later. I always tend to discuss the gameplay first for rather obvious reasons so let's get to it.
The gameplay still holds up pretty damn well, improving every facet of the original MGS while adding a plethora of gameplay staples, most notably the ability to go through the entire game without killing anybody (only slightly hampered by the fact that some enemies die anyway, but that's pretty much what you have to do to make the story move along). You feel very much like a right clever bastard when you decide to scale a railing and hang around until the guard passes you by, or when you stuff a Sleeping Beauty (not to be confused with the Beauty and the Beast unit) in a locker. Offers some of the greatest replay value of any game out there, what with the dog tags and Virtual Missions, the latter of which will cause even the most seasoned gamer to pull out some manner of body hair in frustration at certain points. Nothing to complain about here, aside from the realizations of how subsequent series installments improved upon something, but that's not really fair to complain about.
The story... well, I'll leave the analyses and whatever to other more... interested... parties, but for my own part I'm split on it. I get what Kojima is trying to do with trope subversion and deconstruction and stuff, but it really doesn't make for much of an enjoyable story in the end. The subplot of "Jack and Rose" actually takes a pretty refreshing viewpoint on "Hollywood romance," but the narmdifferous writing, chemistry, and characterization ensures that it provides even less enjoyment than a Helen Keller/Tommy love story. It's a credit to Kojima that he actually managed to salvage this scuttled ship in later installments. The plot makes more sense after reading some well-written analyses, but that's only a sort of post-finale meta-enjoyment that doesn't vindicate the frustrating lethargy it brings me whenever I replay it.
To summarize, gameplay-wise it's a classic. The story... well, it's a love it or hate it situation apparently. I suspect I'll forever be a part of the "hate" demographic, but I can at least respect what it was trying to achieve.