Metal Gear Solid. YES! PSP game. No… These were my thoughts when I first heard about Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker at E3 last year. I was excited for another installment in the Metal Gear Solid franchise, but apart of me wanted to see Big Boss’s adventure back on the PS3 with all the bells and whistles we saw in MGS4. MGS3 is still one of my all-time favorite games, so apart of me wanted Big Boss to get all the attention that I felt was deserved.

That was then, and this is now. Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker is now of the few reasons I’m very happy to have invested in a PSP. The game may not have the high production value of a console Metal Gear, but that has not stopped Hideo Kojima’s genius from making this PSP game look like a potential GOTY candidate. I don’t mean GOTY candidate versus only portable games, but I mean versus anything and everything that comes out this year.

The game takes place after Metal Gear Solid 3 and before the first Metal Gear. It explains the story of how Big Boss takes control of Outer Haven, and how he goes from hero in MGS3 to the man, and the mystery, we see in later games. The game revolves around Boss’s “soliders without borders” taking back Costa Rica in the mid 1970’s after a mysterious force takes control of an area of the country. You get a better connection to Boss and his story. He is still mourning the fact that he killed his mentor, and what the world has come to. The game will fill in blanks about the main storyline, but also give us a insight into the character Big Boss even more.

Presentation wise, the game is fan-freaking-tastic for a PSP game. This game looks amazing. It looks like something between a PS1 and PS2 game. Actually, this game could probably pass off graphically as a first gen PS2 game. Really a testament to Kojima’s team and the work they put into making great visuals. The game is also filled with some cool looking cut scenes, but not the ones we are used to from the Metal Gear Solid franchise. From what I can pull together most of the cut scenes in the game are almost in a comic book type style (look above), but I really dig it. It’s different, has a great feel to it, and I always felt the MGS artwork was mighty impressive. It’s a great way to tell a story in a portable game. (You guys may be used to this type of cut-scene style if you played Portable-Ops.)

This Metal Gear Solid will be the first one to ever feature co-op. Kojima stated that this is one of the many reasons he wanted to make this game on the PSP. With Japan being a portable gaming hotbed and co-op being huge both in Japan and the West it only makes sense that Kojima would want to tap into that market. The cool thing about co-op in this game is that you are all not Big Boss and you are all not just some random soldiers. In your game, you will always see yourself as Big Boss and you will see your friends as soldiers fighting along side. Your friends will see themselves as Big Boss on their screen. The story moves along smoothly for everyone, and they all get to absorb the story as Big Boss. The narrative of the game is the most important part of this game, and Kojima doesn’t let co-op get in the way of that.

Other parts of gameplay I want to touch on include the camera. I played the Japanese demo of this game, and the game for the most part plays like your typical Metal Gear Solid. Some problems include using the face buttons as your “2nd analog stick” so they control your camera. Not that big of a deal, but maybe in tougher missions it will be interesting to see how well the camera works when you need to be very stealthy. In co-op, you can create chained groups of players which is nice. So characters can cover each others back, and watch out for enemies from every angle. Features like the camo index and stealth ring return from previous games. Each mission will be able to be played either by yourself, in co-op, and will be scored on how well you do each time. My only major gripe is the lack of being able to crawl. It’s a stealth game! I need to be able to crawl!

Right now the game is looking at a late May release in the West. If that changes due to the delay in Japan is yet to be seen. The game features fan favorite David Hayter back as the voice of Big Boss. This game is everything we want from a Metal Gear in a small package. From what we’ve seen of the game it looks great, and the demo is very fun so I suggest you check it out. People always ask where the major titles for the PSP are. Well here is a big one, so when it drops go support the PSP!