Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain Review | The Last Metal Gear Solid is a Must-Play Stealth Masterpiece

I love this game. I’m sad to see the Metal Gear franchise brutally murdered because it is one of my favorites. Among all of the games in the series, this final game, Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain (MGSV), stands out in its unique way.

It PLAYS incredibly well. The controls are super crisp and as the player you always feel in control. The enemy AI is so intelligent, and the stealth mechanics are pristine. You can complete virtually every mission in any way that you see fit, using whatever loadout you’d like, in what is perhaps the greatest stealth sandbox to ever exist. It is a stealth masterpiece. The possibilities are nearly endless, and it allows for a jaw-dropping amount of uniquely creative solutions to any mission.

While a great game, it’s not the strongest Metal Gear game, and what I mean by that is, that the themes, characters, and story elements are lacking as compared to previous entries. Kojima seemed to place extra emphasis on the gameplay and open-world sandbox and it shows. Luckily for Kojima and his team, that’s what makes the game fun. Players shouldn’t expect too much from the story (and in fact, expect an ending that you’re going to have to search on YouTube for missing chapter 51).