MGS3: Snake Eater Trial Version Impressions
by Chris Zimbaldi, 05.10.2004

The feeling I had when I pulled into Gamestop on September 30th to see a truck unloading boxes of magazines is indescribable. I ran into the store and tore into one already-open box, without even asking the manager. When I found the November '04 OPM, I screamed "YES!" outloud; I can't imagine what mental problem the clerk thought I had after seeing me react in that way to just a magazine. But of course, this was not just any magazine, but perhaps the greatest magazine ever released--one that includes a playable demo of the final installment in the Metal Gear Solid trilogy, MGS3: Snake Eater.

After returning home and loading the disc, my first reaction (after watching the extremely badass intro cutscene and finally delving into the gameplay) was, "what is this?" Yes, Snake rolls like he did in SOL, FPV is still activated with R1, good ol' punch-punch-kick with three taps of the O button is intact; but make no mistake, this is a totally different game. By just moving Snake around, you can easily tell, just as Kojima promised, that this is not a modified SOL engine, but a completely new one built from the ground up. The game feels noticably different, and the the new engine was definitely made with the new environment in mind. It feels familiar and new at the same time.

The environments in Snake Eater are, in a word, amazing. While the game is still very linear (i.e. Room A leads to Room B leads to Room C, etc.) there are multiple paths in a few 'rooms,' which make for an interesting tactical experience. There are plenty of places to hide, such as hollowed out tree trunks, wooden logs, grass, trees, rooftops, and more. The terrain is varied, and the level of detail is outstanding.

MGS games have always allowed your style to command the gameplay. If you prefer running around and raising hell with your FAMAS, you can. If you would rather throw an empty magazine to distract a guard while you slip past him, that's certainly possible too. Snake Eater is no different. If stealth is your thing, equip a suitable camouflage, lean up against a tree or hide in the grass, wait for your enemy to pass by, then proceed to your objective. Or, if you're someone who has a very itchy trigger finger, pull out your M16 and send the guards to hell. It's up to you, and both styles work in this game, contrary to what Major Tom wants you to think.

CQC, while not revolutionary, is a welcome addition to the game. The most interesting manuever is probably the enhanced grab (hold O behind the enemy) in addition with the ability to interrogate guards (press L3 while grabbing). This can provide hints, details, and perhaps an interesting story tidbit or two. Other manuevers, such as the ability to shoot while grabbing another enemy (and effectively using him as a shield) comes in very handy.

The AI is substantially upgraded in Snake Eater. First off, enemies can see you from far away; very far away. No more BS 10 foot cone vision, depending on how well hidden you are and what camo you're wearing, guards can see you up to 3 to 4 times the distance they'd see you in SOL. This makes the game a lot harder, and in my opinion, rightfully so. Also, guards know when they're beat. If you are severly outgunning a guard, he will actually run away from you, and take cover until reinforcements arrive. The guards also have a new-found love of encircling you instead of coming at you from one direction. Once, I was hiding in the grass with my leaf camo on. I was in evasion mode, and three guards were walking single file scoping out the scene. A guard finally saw me, and the other two guards moved around me, creating a perfect triangle and covering every escape route I could take. Interesting, huh? It's incredibly fun, too.

The new stamina mechanics are pretty cool, although not as central to the core gameplay experience as camo and CQC are. Hunting for food is somewhat interesting, which includes slicing up mushrooms with your knife, throwing grenades into a croc's mouth, sniping birds, and tranquilizing snakes. You may be too occupied with the action in the game to pay attention to your stamina meter throughout the demo, which is why some visual cues have been placed in the game to let you know you're low on stamina. Snake will slouch in the Survival Menu instead of standing upright, your hand will shake when you raise your weapon in FPV, etc.

Now, for a few gripes. One of the first things you might notice from a technical standpoint is that the game runs at a lower framerate than SOL did. Whether this is exclusive to the demo (which is only a 40% build), only time will tell. But there is a noticable difference, not to mention considerable slowdown if you start to take on legions of guards. Also, Snake Eater is missing auto targeting, which was activated with L1 in SOL. This seems to have been scrapped, and while it is more fun to some extent to actually target enemies on your own, it makes using FPV to shoot an absolute must. It doesn't bother me, as I rarely ever used it, but I'm sure there are quite a few people who would've liked to see this feature return.

All in all, this demo is extremely satisfying. The demo proves that the new gameplay does not come off as an afterthought; the enhancements and modifications are central to the experience. If the amount of fun I've had with just the demo is any indication of what the final MGS3 product will be like, then we could be only a month and a half away from the best installment of the Metal Gear series yet. If the wait for Snake Eater has left you salivating, head over to your local gamestore/newsstand, and sink your teeth into the Metal Gear Solid 3 demo, found in the November '04 Official Playstation magazine.

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