"I love it!!"

Ask any gamer for an influential person in video gaming, and Hideo Kojima's name will surely surface. A constant creator and innovator, Kojima has graced the gaming world with some of the most memorable games in history. Snatcher, Policenauts, Zone of the Enders, and perhaps the most legendary of them all, Metal Gear. From that first guard gently dozing off in the original Metal Gear to the grand finale in Snake Eater, Kojima has always given gamers a truly immersive experience. Then, he lost it. The man who had given us possessed arms in Sons of Liberty had finally fallen off the deep end. The next Metal Gear game was to be a card based game. Metal Gear Ac!d.

The game starts with a bang. Literally. A sharp gunshot echoes throughout the psp speakers. Graphically similar to both Metal Gear Solid 1 and 2, The action begins folliwing a female agent escaping from a building complex. Her fate decided, we now begin With our beloved Snake. Seemingly following the events of Metal Gear Solid, players begin outside of a security outpost. Snake and his environments are nicely detailed. Not quite up to par with his Playstation 2 incarnations, but miles ahead of his PSOne personas. Snake is breifed on mis mission. A plane has been hijacked and the hijackers want "Pythagoras". Some are clueless as what it is, so they send Snake, crawling like the snake he is, to Find out. Everything sounds nice and normal. But this is Kojime we are dealing with. The hijackers are dolls. Cute little painted mannequins of death.

Snake has never been much for words. This time around, he is virtually silent. As are the rest of the enemies. Deciding not to include voice acting, Metal Gear Ac!d is a mute affair. A notable exception is when someone dies. The unlucky victim caught on the receiving end of that FAMAS seems to unload that lifetime of silence the best way they know how; One last scream. All is not silent on the Ac!d trip however, as Kojima saw fit to include a wonderful score of music into the game. Nothing is out of place. Sneaking through office buildings yield calm, yet driving music as you avoid cameras, sentry bots and armed guards to get that antiquated, unencrypted, unprotected floppy disc. Running from a 7 foot tall maniac with an anti-tank rifle produces a very fitting fast paced beat.

So far we have the all the makings of a great Metal Gear game. Risk seems to be the order of the day here. In a bold move, Kojima has completely reworked every single familiar element of a Metal Gear game and crafted a system what will both fascinate and frustrate all at the same time. Real-time play has been ditched for turn based strategy. Equipment has been modified into a grid, and actions are now governed by the flow of the cards. The player has 2 turns to manipulate Snake and do their duty before the enemies make their moves. Every move you do requires a card. Equip that M9P, or burn it to move those precious few steps closer to your prey? Decisions such as these will be at every corner, every turn. The risk factor plays a huge part over the course of your missions. Make small, calculated strikes, or do you go all out, trying to take as much out as possible in one turn?

Cost is your friend and foe. Each action has a cost. Every move has its consequence. Get too cocky and the cost adds up, leaving you stranded in the middle of a horde of pissed off soldiers. Planning is key. 30 slots, or 30 cards can be taken into your mission. Your style and preferences dictate what type of game you will play. Like to go in guns blazing? Take a deck full of guns. Want to be more stealthy? Take in a pack of chaff and stun grenades. There are approximately 200 cards to earn and unlock, each having wildly varying effects. Choose carefully.

Kojima has once again redefined the Metal Gear series. The definition, though definitely has left some fans scratching their heads, others shaking their fists in fury. For the last group, the ones who warmed up to this new facet of Metal Gear, found a deep, strategic, enjoyable game that has has loads of replay value.

9/10

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 11/03/05