Metal Gear Solid (revisited)

“Solid”, arguably a soft remake of “Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake”, once again represents a massive leap in visuals and gameplay, but while the corresponding gameplay sections it steals from “Solid Snake” are almost always improved (the elevator fight is worse), the injection of politics and soul here not only makes it the best game in the franchise up to this point, it marks the point when these games started to feel like oxymoronic blockbuster personal projects. Boasting top five visuals on the PS1 and bookended by the franchise’s best song, this is close to the definition of a must-play.

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