Rediscovering the Joy of Play: What We’ve Been Enjoying Lately

15th February

Hello and welcome to our regular feature where we discuss a few of the games that have caught our attention this week. Ed has decided to revisit the entire Metal Gear Solid series in anticipation of the upcoming Snake Eater remake; Tom is genuinely frightened while playing the Dead Space Remake, which seems to be becoming a recurring theme; and Bertie – that’s me – praises the power of narrative escapism.

What have you been playing recently?

Catch up with past editions of this column in our What We Have Been Playing archive.

Metal Gear Solid, PS1

Perhaps it’s the upcoming release of the Snake Eater remake that compelled me to dive back into Metal Gear Solid last weekend. In fact, I want to revisit the entire series, although the first three games are most easily accessed in the Master Collection. When I say replays, I first encountered Solid 1 in the GameCube’s Twin Snakes remake, so now it was an opportunity to experience the original properly. It’s not chronologically the first installment, yet it truly serves as an excellent starting point, doesn’t it?

What struck me is that Metal Gear Solid feels a bit outdated, particularly in terms of gameplay. The game’s concept of stealth seems to revolve around dodging colored cones, sneaking past enemies, and shooting them in disguise. The narrative is primarily relayed through lengthy text-based Codec conversations. The environment consists of only a limited number of screens. Additionally, there’s quite a bit of obtrusive backtracking to stretch things out further – do I genuinely need a sniper rifle to save Meryl? Do I absolutely require some temperature modifications?

And yet! Despite all this, I still adore this game, I really do. It’s just so legendary. It’s a testament to Kojima’s vision – perhaps the series’ best storytelling, with its plot twists and betrayals – that it rises above such simplistic gameplay. It’s a game established on memorable highlights that linger on even after decades: from breaking the fourth wall with “packages,” to mind-bending bosses, to escaping torture using ketchup, and so many more surprises. Kojima’s talent for cinematography and his skill in building tension toward dramatic moments enhances everything – the long take as crows chatter, hinting at the imminent boss fight, or Otacon warning of missing stealth suits… Where could they possibly be?! I’m glad the remainder of the series significantly upped the gameplay stakes, yet the tight focus of this initial game still presents the greatest narrative stakes for me. A true classic. Onward to the next!

Side note: does anyone else find Metal Gear Solid slightly disturbing? Perhaps it’s the faded color scheme, the building tension of its stealth mechanics, or the way the (!) alert sound gives me a jolt? No, it’s undoubtedly the Codec calls with those drawn character portraits. It’s as if they are gazing directly at me.

-Ed

Dead Space Remake, PS5 Pro

Is the Dead Space remake too terrifying for me? I’m currently making my way through, but I notice that my gaming sessions tend to wrap up a little sooner than my available time allows, simply because I can’t handle the tension any longer.

The game employs a mechanic whereby you must disable power in the room you’re in to activate something in other locations, leading to the lights flickering out where you stand. Each time I anticipate a horrifying sound that signals a monster’s approach, potentially more than one, and yet I’m still startled by what happens, often ending up firing aimlessly into the air after having forgotten how to use the controller.

I’ve lost track (I admit, I never started counting, but that’s not something someone typically says) of how many times I’ve sensed a creature behind me, turned to take a look, then turned back to flee, only to have another grotesque being leap out at me from a vent right in front. The repertoire of scares isn’t extensive, yet it’s employed so effectively that it doesn’t seem to matter. Tune in next week to see if I can continue or venture into something less intense.

-Tom O

Avowed

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