Review By:  Jared Black
Developer:	Konami
Publisher:	Konami
# of Players:	1
Genre:	Adventure/Stealth
ESRB:	Mature
Online:	No
Accessories:	Memory Card
Date Posted:	12-06-01

Going back to the environments, they’re really one of the main things that make MGS2 as great as it is. Never before has a player been able to interact with the environment with this degree of realism, and mastering it will ultimately decide how successful you’ll be in the game. Much like the first game, enemy line of sights will be represented on your radar. Sneaking past the numerous enemies in the game will require you to use the environment to your advantage by hiding behind boxes, disposing of incapacitated enemies so they aren’t discovered, and more. You don’t just have to stay out of their sight however; you also have to make sure there isn’t any evidence left behind that you were there. You’ll leave footprints if your feet are wet, a trail of blood if you’ve been injured, and even sneeze if you’ve breathed in too much flour (or have the sniffles). You can literally go throughout the entire game using the environment to make your way through without killing a single enemy (with a few exceptions when you have to kill them to move the story forward), or you can blast your way through and take each and every guard out one by one. Almost everything you do is up to you, and it’s this level of freedom that really makes MGS2 the ultimate adventure/stealth game. Konami has really created one big playground here, in which every problem has multiple ways of being solved, all of which are natural and intuitive solutions and make good use of the surroundings.

The graphics are easily the best the PS2 has seen yet, both in terms of technical merits and presentation. Every environment is huge and intricately detailed, with numerous items and objects crammed everywhere. The best part however is that it’s all ultra-realistic, completely immersing the gamer in the MGS2 world. It’s the type of world that would make Tom Clancy proud, and yet despite all the realism it still manages to have it’s own distinct look and feel. Additionally, the texture work is some of the best ever. Every object and character is mapped with stunning detail, right down to the tiny lettering on the side of some Semtex and the words "US Army" on a character’s coat. Instead of me babbling about it and failing to put into words just how great the graphics are, I’ll just stop talking about it and direct you to the screenshots included with this review.

Really the only complaint that could even be leveled at the graphics is that they display a real "PS2-ness" in a lot of places (primarily jaggies), and as a result don’t fair comparably to some early GameCube and Xbox titles. In fact, it’s also technically inferior to some recent PS2 games, although just barely. This is no doubt due to the extremely long development time (graphics techniques have come a long way in two years), and the fact that so much stuff is crammed in here. Any technical shortcomings the game may have ultimately do not matter however, as the staggering amount of detail and amazing graphics design throughout the game easily makes up for them. When it’s all said and done, MGS2 is the best-looking game on any platform.

Aurally, MGS2 is about the best thing your ears will ever be treated to. Harry Gregson-Williams, who worked on movies like Enemy of the State and Armageddon, composed the music score. As a result, it’s a very Hollywood-esque score that perfectly conveys the feeling of sneaking around. For the most part, the music is very low and calm, yet with an underlying sense of tension that perfectly accompanies the tenseness of lying on your stomach with guards all around you. Whenever the action heats up however, the music will similarly ramp up to a truly epic score that matches the chaos taking place.

The sound effects all sound very realistic, right down to the proper sounds for footsteps on each surface. Sound plays a very integral role in the overall game as well, as much of the gameplay relies on the proper usage of sound. If you make too much sound, you’ll give yourself away and have a horde of guards on you in an instant. Similarly, you can intentionally make a lot of noise in one area to clear another area out that you want to go in. Not only that, but by listening to the words spoken by the guards in each area you can often figure out how to make it past a particular situation. For example, in several areas the guards will call in on a routine basis to report their status. If you time your attack on one of these guards just after they’ve done that, you can maximize the amount of time they’ll be out cold before someone will notice. Sound plays an important role such as this throughout the game, and adds immensely to the overall tension and depth of the gameplay.

Likewise, the voice acting is the best I’ve heard in any video game. All of the character’s voices fit them perfectly, and almost every single line is delivered with a quality of emotion and delivery that you’ll only find in professional voice actors. Snake’s voice is very tough and gruff, Otacon’s voice has a stern but wimpy quality to it, and Olga (a female Russian soldier) has a very tough yet gentle delivery. Really the only time the voice acting falters is whenever the dialogue itself falters, as occasionally some of the dialogue will seem forced and out of place.

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