Metal Gear Acid 2

"Not so fast Snake! I activate my trap card!"

If you're reading this, then maybe you're thinking about buying this game... maaaybe. If you're a fan of the Metal Gear games, or a fan of card games, or turn based strategy games in the vein of Tactics Ogre or Final Fantasy Tactics (Or hopefully you're all three) then you will enjoy this game most likely. If you are not a fan of any of those things, or you do not like slow paced games you will most likely not like this game. That is the truth.

Gameplay [8/10]: This is the meat of the game, of course, and Metal Gear AC!D delivers plenty of card based, turn based strategy goodness to your PSP. To break things down, every action that you take revolves around cards, but the actual arenas that the combat takes place in are different from most card games out there. You move your two characters around on a grid, moving them around or up or down. To attack your enemies you must get close to them and then use your weapon cards to blow their brains out. There are also many support cards you can use, many of which you will recognize from the Metal Gear universe. These cards have magical effects, like throwing boomerangs or turning invisible or summoning Metal Gear RAY to blast your enemies with lasers. Doing all these crazy things will add to your COST. COST is what determines when you can take your turn, the more COST you have when you end your turn, the longer it will take until you can take another turn. Does it sound interesting? No, probably not. It is like Final Fantasy Tactics with cards, to put it simply, but if you have not played that game or heard of card battle games then I'm sorry for referencing things that you don't know about. The action itself is slow, so if you need manic violence and guns shooting everywhere while you jump around all crazy-like then this game is not for you. The deck building element of this game, however, adds an additional strategic depth to it. Rather than leveling your characters up and learning abilities you will acquire stronger cards and use them in your deck, and the amount of cards and customizable options is large which adds re-playability to the game. What I'm trying to say is that in my twisted mind I find pleasure in killing random guards with a deck of cards that I created myself, and that is that. One other thing is that you can walk up to a guard and shoot him and his buddies from across the level won't mystically know you are there and freak out (unless you used a missile or some other explosive thing) which means you can just run through each level guns blazing, which is good because I don't like sneaking around. There is also a boss battle arena which gives you a chance to beat up on bosses from previous Metal Gear games, and each level has bonus missions that can be done after you beat it which adds even more re-playability.

Control [8/10]: The interface is smooth and the game provides a simple tutorial to introduce you making the learning curve gentle. One problem I found is that it is a pain in the arse to scroll through the cards in the deck building screen. Yes, I know they are organized into categories but it still takes some searching to find the card you want sometimes. Perhaps a search function could have been implemented, but whatever. The game uses a grid and is turn based, so the crappy analog nub on the PSP can't give you headaches here (or rather hand... aches).

Sound [7/10]: The music is bland techno garbage. If you like bland techno garbage then I feel sorry for you. The sound effects are well done, but then again I don't really know what I'm talking about. Some person who has a degree in video game sound effects might say completely otherwise, then I would look like a fool but whatever. Oh yeah, there is no spoken dialogue either, so if you're playing so you can hear David Hayter's voice then forget about it.

Story [7/10]: The story is delivered through in-game real-time cutscenes and also through comicbook-like stills with text boxes flashing across the bottom of the screen. Not exactly thrilling. The plot kept me going for the first level or so, but I soon found myself more interested in building a powerful deck and making strategies than in the actual story itself. Still, the story is there, and it has it's twists and turns, but it loses some points in my book for using such a cliched plot device: Amnesia. Why did Snake have to have amnesia? I thought that was sort of lame, buuuut it works well enough considering the story.

Graphics [9/10]: The graphics really shine in this game. The slick looking cel shading adds a real unique feel to the game. I won't talk about that Solid Eye thing that came with the game... or those videos with the Japanese models... creepy. Anyway, special effects and explosion look cool which is good. The environments also look very spiffy although sometimes they might seem a little repetitive. Overall the graphics and presentation are done very well, so they could very well be the thing to catch your eye.

Overall: My grading system which I made up just now is:
60% Gameplay
20% Control
10% Graphics
5% Sound
5% Story

So if I add it all correctly then... it would be exactly 8/10, which would mean fans of the genres will definitely enjoy it but people who normally wouldn't play this sort of game might find it enjoyable too.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 08/18/06