Last Update: 4/5/07
Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops
Released in the US on December 5, 2006 and in Japan on December 21, 2006, MPO is the third Metal Gear title for the PlayStation Portable and the first one to retain the series' action-based gameplay. It is also the first canonical outing of the series for a portable platform (that is not adapted from a previous game), being a direct sequel to Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater. It was originally planned as a new non-franchise title.[1]
Unlike Metal Gear Acid and its sequel, which were turn-based strategy games with stealth elements, MPO retains the action-based gameplay from the console iterations, drawing heavily from Snake Eater and utilizing the camera system from Subsistence.
The main addition to MPO is the "Comrade System". Instead of the solo-based missions that the series is known for, MPO goes for a squad-based approach, with Snake having to recruit his own allies and form his own team of trained specialists. At the beginning of each mission, the player must compose a four-man squad, which, at the player's option, includes Snake himself. The desired squad is then sent into the battlefield. Each member of Snake's squad has their own strengths and weaknesses. While some units are best utilized on the battlefield, others may specialize in producing items, healing allies, or providing intel for each of the game's maps.
During gameplay, the player controls only one squad member at a time. The squad members not in use hide themselves inside a cardboard box, and can be swapped into play when the player-controlled character finds a "hiding spot", where they can hide in their own cardboard box.
Characters who are killed in combat are eliminated from the player's squad permanently. The player can abort the mission if they feel one of their comrades is dying, or they may choose to restart the mission if a favorite character has died (similar to Fire Emblem games). However, this does not apply to major plot-based characters, who instead of being eliminated from the team, are sent into the infirmary to recover.
Unlike Metal Gear Acid and its sequel, which were turn-based strategy games with stealth elements, MPO retains the action-based gameplay from the console iterations, drawing heavily from Snake Eater and utilizing the camera system from Subsistence.
The main addition to MPO is the "Comrade System". Instead of the solo-based missions that the series is known for, MPO goes for a squad-based approach, with Snake having to recruit his own allies and form his own team of trained specialists. At the beginning of each mission, the player must compose a four-man squad, which, at the player's option, includes Snake himself. The desired squad is then sent into the battlefield. Each member of Snake's squad has their own strengths and weaknesses. While some units are best utilized on the battlefield, others may specialize in producing items, healing allies, or providing intel for each of the game's maps.
During gameplay, the player controls only one squad member at a time. The squad members not in use hide themselves inside a cardboard box, and can be swapped into play when the player-controlled character finds a "hiding spot", where they can hide in their own cardboard box.
Characters who are killed in combat are eliminated from the player's squad permanently. The player can abort the mission if they feel one of their comrades is dying, or they may choose to restart the mission if a favorite character has died (similar to Fire Emblem games). However, this does not apply to major plot-based characters, who instead of being eliminated from the team, are sent into the infirmary to recover.
Publisher: Commercial
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Bottom Line: Play it! This game is a must have for PSP owners. Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops utilizes almost every feature the PSP has to offer and then some. It has Ad-hoc and Infrastructure multiplayer, Game sharing, and GPS support.
The Single player story is superb, what you'd expect from Hideo Kojima. The story is displayed beautifully with the comic book like Cutscenes, like the MGS Digital Graphic Novel. The Story follows the events between Snake Eater and the first Metal Gear Solid. The Multiplayer is one of the best ive seen for the PSP so far. Game sharing allows you to let your friends who dont have the game to play with you. You can play others who have the game with ad-hoc multiplayer also. The Infrastructure mode was easy to get onto. You just create a login and join the lobby to pick a game to play. There was almost no lag at all during online play. The Recruitment system is unique. You can recruit more soldiers by using Wi-fi and/or GPS. I do not have a GPS peripheral so I could not try it. I have however gone through the neighbor looking for wifi spots. Recruiting a soldier is as simple as press square repeatedly to make the bar reach pass a red line. You recieve a random soldier and only one from each wifi spot. Overall this game is a Great Game and a must have for PSP and MGS fans. The Gameplay is easy to get used to, the Story is superb, the Music is awesome, and the multiplayer is extremely addictive. Learning Curve: Takes a while
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