Metal Gear Solid 2: Substance (XBox) Information

MGS2 Substance (Xbox)This is the port of Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty, originally for the Playstation 2, that was released for the Xbox. It includes several extras that are well worth the wait, and that will also be available in the Substance version for PS2. Many people have complained about the contents of this game, but it all depends on expectations and the hype that the media created around the game. The features this game has are:

I will proceed to describe each one of them, as objective as possible. The Sons of Liberty version of the game included is a direct port of the original (no changes to the story line, neither different playable characters), with subtle differences. I will start with the complaints, but don't get discouraged, this is a great port. As a matter of fact, I compared the two side by side, and was amazed to see they are as identical as they can be. Not an easy thing to do when porting a game. The most controversial difference is the slowdown. I won't lie, it is indeed there, but it is completely bearable, you will find it only in about a 5% of the game, mainly when it is raining (the worst is at the intro, when Snake is walking on the bridge). I have played all the game here and in PS2 several times. I must admit that at first I felt a deep sorrow to see the game with such a defect but honestly, it has had no further effect. The only other complaint I may have, is that textures (specially the floors) look grainy or pixilated, because of the superior Hardware (similar to MGS in the Dreamcast through Bleem!). The last "bad point" would be the control, I prefer using the default since it is the one the developers intended. Indeed, controls are great in all aspects but two. First, you have to press the analog thumbstick for first person view, and press it again to go back to normal, the only situation you will find this awkward, is if you try to change weapons while in this view (since you can't), or when collecting dogtags if you are used to the PS2 pad. I also found firing a bit more difficult, since the analogue response of the buttons is quite different. As you can see, all these control points present due to previous experience and not to the Xbox pad, which I find quite comfortable.

Now, the other differences. Posters have been changed in most locations, but not all. So you will get to see new girls in about 60% of the places. And the main change, you get full 5.1 Dolby Digital Surround sound during the full game. I must say that it is a great mix, and is well worth it. During the battle with Fatman you will be able to tell where is he skating to, and his position just by the sound. All the music has some effects, and the environment is brought to life thanks to the work put into the sound in this version. I must add that the sound quality is maintained in all the other extras, not only in the main game. The only place you won't get 5.1 surround, is during the intro video. You will also get the sunglasses for the main characters once you complete the game a couple of times. Finally all dogtag names have been changed, resulting in some different patterns and more guards that resist to give them away (the ones with staff names).

The VR Missions would be worth the disc by themselves if you enjoy the game play and challenges. You get the chance to play them as Snake and Raiden, each adding their own percentage. They are divided in categories, as usual. You will get to use all the weapons and do some stealth against time constraints with some interesting missions. The look is very nice, since guidelines are shown to give more of a VR sight. You also unlock several skins or costumes for both characters.

About the Alternative Missions, I can say they are a great bonus. Mainly, you are placed in a scenario from the game, where you have to carry out a specific mission such as defusing bombs, eliminating all the enemies, or taking pictures of specific objects. Some of them were creatively designed, and are fun to play.

The Snake Tales are great. Again, there might be things to complain about if you expected more from this release, like voice acting and cinemas for the story sections in these. What I believe though, is that they work perfectly fine as they are, in simple text form. They are missions that take place in game Scenarios (mainly the Big Shell), but are placed in an alternate reality since none of the events are related to the main story. Bosses and characters from the game are taken to create this challenging and nice short stories, and they are all about the game play and getting more from the game. These are more challenging since you have no radar all, and usually unarmed or without the M9 and silencer for the USP (you could search for some of them though, they are well worth the time). You will be able to save your progress during the plot events, and there is no codec available.

Finally, the Boss Battle, Casting Theatre and European Extreme. These will be unlocked once you finished the game, as in the European and Japanese release of the original game. The Casting Theatre is very funny to watch, and also useful if you want to play one of the eight scenes just to show to someone or enjoy them yourself. It would have been great to have more scenes, but some more programming would probably have been needed. Some of the models you will have at your disposition in most scenes are Snake and Ocelot from MGS, a Middle aged lady, Office workers (Male and Female), Snake, Raiden, Rose, Solidus, Fortune and Vamp. The Boss Battle is a mode in which you get to play as Raiden or Snake against all bosses in a row, with a timer running. Finally, the European Extreme mode is for those that can't get enough from the hard and extreme difficulty settings (too much for me, I must confess).

Concluding, I must say I really have enjoyed this port. I recommend it to anyone with an Xbox, and specially to those that have not played it or the ones that want all the extras before the PS2 version comes out. Most people expected a lot more from this game, I didn't and have enjoyed it a lot. I also respect and admire the decision that Kojima made by not altering the main story of the game by making Snake playable during the plant chapter. He was true to his ideas and ideals, and he did good by not altering the main point of the game: that of seeing Snake through someone else's eyes (a reference to Big trouble in little China, probably?) and the loop with the player.

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