On MGS4 and Story

I originally posted this over on the Squadron of Shame board, but wanted to share it here as well.

I’d like to go on a side rant about the story in MGS4. You know what killed it for me more than anything? Just about every major cutscene was shown as “trailers” before the games release. I’m going to get into spoiler territory (though I guess Konami doesn’t consider these spoilers), so be warned.

One of the very first trailers for the game showed Snake vs. Liquid inside of REX and RAY. I mean, wtf?! That should have been an amazing moment in the game. First getting to pilot REX, then the showdown with Liquid. But as soon as I went to Shadow Moses, I knew exactly what was coming up. There was literally no excitement going into what should have been a huge payoff for the entire series.

Speaking of Shadow Moses, that suprise was ruined in a later trailer. Again, how awesome would it have been to just hear, “We’re going back to Shadow Moses.” But no, we get once again a “trailer” that not only gives it away, but even gives away the MGS1 part.

I keep putting trailer in quotes because these weren’t really trailers. They were just the cutscenes. No changes made or anything. I remember watching the Vamp vs. Raiden fight like 2 years ago. When it came up in the game, I was bored. It’s cool, but it’s really long. And of course I didn’t want to skip it, because I was holding out hope that they had added something (which they didn’t). Same with all the soldiers going crazy, the intro of the Beauty and the Beast unit, and even Meryl’s introduction.

I don’t know. For a game that unashamably relies on its story, why did they give away so much? There very little to be surprised about in the game when I finally played it. I mean, imagine if the second trailer released for Empire Strikes Back was just the “I am your father” scene played in its entirety with a release date slapped on the end. I still enjoyed in, but I feel it could have been elevated to a much higher level in my mind without all these spoilers.