July 31, 2006 - Some well respected, very important men wear funny looking pajamas to bed. I can accept this. It’s odd, but no more than some Hollywood pairings we’ve seen. On a separate note, certain gaming franchises take chances. It’s not a common occurrence, but Konami proved that it could be highly successful with its first Metal Gear Acid game on Sony’s PSP. What I cannot understand, or accept however, is why a man like Solid Snake, a bad-ass by all given standards, would be portrayed as a flamboyantly dressed boy-scout in the next iteration of the MGA franchise. Yes, the game is still amazing, fixing all but the camera angles of the first. Yes, the game adds a bunch of new gameplay mechanics which create even more depth. Yes, it’s faster paced, contains tons of fan service and a good story. And yes, I am nitpicking but still can’t get over how truly trippy Metal Gear Acid 2 looks from time to time.

While knowledge of the first game is not needed to play or enjoy MGA2, anyone interested in this title should definitely give the first one a rental since it will not only make this version feel like a cakewalk, but also because the original is an amazing game in its own right. This time around, the story kicks off as Snake and a team of operatives return to the country only to be arrested. Snake, with a bad case of amnesia (what else is new?), is then made to infiltrate a complex while his team is detained. Things, of course, get more confusing from there as more characters enter the story, a new Metal Gear is revealed, loyalties are questioned and the body count starts to rise. Needless to say, things move at a brisk pace in the usual Metal Gear fashion and fans of the series will not be disappointed by this “alternate universe” storyline. And as with the first game, while it may seem slightly off-putting at first to use a card to take a guard out instead of pulling out the Socom and plugging away, the depth and strategy of the gameplay more than make up for it. Remember, this is a strategy game and not a stealth-based action game. Yes, there’s still a life gauge, stealth action, cameras to take out, grenades to lob around, but all in a very ordered and organized context.

As with the first game, you start out with a deck of cards of which 6 will be picked and used as your playing cards. Each card is immediately recognizable to Metal Gear fans as lore from a previous game. Each card, depending on its action, also has a cost attached to it. A simple movement card has a relatively low cost in comparison to most weapon cards or those that allow you to generally wreak havoc on a level. The game is a turned-based affair where order of play is based on the addition of cost. During your turn, you will generally (as Snake) play 2 cards. The cost of these are added and compared to the other characters populating the level. As time passes, cost goes down and eventually, you will have the lowest cost again and be able to play. The game feels a little like a chess match where you not only have to manage (and account) for your actions, but the time interval until you’ll be able to play again (and what can happen to you during that time).

For those who have played the first game, you’ll immediately note how flowing MGA2 is compared to the first. It’s also a little more lenient and allows you a lot more options per turn. During a turn, you’ll be able to easily crouch and stand back up, knock on walls and continue moving, changing orientation and more which could only be possible at the end of your turn in MGA1. The buttons, interface and such still remain mostly the same, so it’s not a hard process to learn the new differences (mostly since they are all to your advantage). Also, if you have a save file from the first game, you’ll be allowed to transfer one card over into MGA2 and bump up your points total to buy more cards.