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Previous Threads
#1: Legend of Zelda (NES)
#2: Super Mario (And Wario) Land (GB)
#3: Castlevania II: Simon’s Quest (NES)
#4: Trip World (GB)
#5: Mega Man May (NES/GB)

Curious about what this is? Here’s the explainer!

What’s the game this month?



By the vote of the Freaks, June is for Metal Gear on the NES. Originally created for the MSX2 and released on the NES back in the late 80s, Hideo Kojima's first fully developed game. The harbinger of stealth action gaming, YOU are Solid Snake (who bears a strong resemblance to one Snake Plissken...) infiltrating Outer Heaven. It'll be hard, but you can do it. Good luck, soldier.

La Li Lu Le Lo

I'm gonna fucking metal this gear

Started this today! This is another game I think I'm unlikely to finish. It is very difficult on top of my own personal life getting really busy, so this might be as far as I get in Metal Gear.

Spent the first half hour basically playing in pacifist mode - made the mistake of not reading the manual first (again). I got to a dead end after dodging all the guards in the first section and THEN read the manual when I couldn't figure out how to progress.

So, like, pro-tip: you can go in the trucks from the back of them, and also if you catch a guard by surprise or from behind you can usually punch them to death before someone else notices you, if you time it right. Sneaking is fine for many of the screens but taking out a guy usually helps you navigate easier.

The second screen teaches you a very important mechanic


And a note about trucks - they can also move you to a new screen! I ended up going in a loop of truck rides for a little bit - so yes, they do loop! You aren't stuck if you went away from an area you needed to be in.


The game is pretty fun but definitely difficult! It absolutely can hit that sweet spot of "I feel so good or clever for figuring out this game" but it also has moments of "This is absolutely bullshit". No idea how kids without save states did this. Having nothing better to do, I guess. While sneaking around works most of the time, there are occasions where I have no idea HOW I got spotted or there is literally no way to enter the next screen WITHOUT alerting one of the guys.

ALSO an annoying thing about this game is the equipment switching. The worst example I have is that there was one screen I encountered where you needed a card to open a door and the door beyond is filled with gas that damages you. You cannot open the door and then equip the gas mask to go through the door on the same screen. The door closes if you equip the gas mask. This forces you to take damage on the next screen, which can result in you getting stuck until you can find a way to heal if you're low on health. So, the game isn't entirely fair, but given this game's reputation, I kind of expected that.

Another annoyance? Big Boss "forgetting".


I took that screenshot on the third or fourth time Big Boss called me, telling me he had forgotten to tell me something. I think this dude is trying to get me killed for real.

I didn't have a ton of time to dig into this game, I spent about 2 hours, maybe less playing. I had two cards and had gotten to the roof, where I needed an item I did not have to progress. I don't know how far in that is, but given the amount of equipment slots I had left to fill, and the lack of weapons I had found, I'm pretty sure I'm not very far at all.

Also I never contacted "Grey Fox". Big Boss said I should get in contact but I don't know where the guy is. Very possible I missed him.

...

Snake, remember what John Donne said: "No man is an island entire of itself; every man
is a piece of the continent, a part of the main."


any man's death diminishes me,
because I am involved in mankind.
And therefore never send to know for whom
the bell tolls; it tolls whoisbigbosswhoisbigbosswhoisbigbosswhoisbigbosswhoisbigbosswhoisbigbosswhoisbigbosswhoisbigbosswhoisbigbosswhoisbigbosswhoisbigboss ... i was sitting alone in my house, the hours of dusk en-veiled on me like a winter's snow. a bright light shined on my front porch window. i went to look closer, but i immediately blacked out. when i came to, my house was in the middle of a vast and brilliant jungle, with all sorts of snakes, toucans, monkeys, and all other sorts of jungle denizens all around me. in the distance, i swear i could hear the faint din of warfare. i blacked out again, and everything was back where it was during my day. i have no idea what happened to me. do you have any ideas?

SVANY FPBER:
4.5
Npprcgnoyr obhaqnevrf. Zvffvba pbzcyrgr.

this one's hard

this is a fascinating game that i would probably not play without savestates. there are ways to manage and it's not quite as brutal as it appears on booting up (note below of some things that make it not as bad + 1 early game spoiler) it's something where i feel like i could see playing without savestates but tbh i wouldn't want to lol, plus this is a game where there are just traps that kill you, though the manual seems to imply there are items to detect some of them? it's like almost tolerable without savestates but nah. this is an aside, but this is absolutely a 'read the manual' game.

the transceiver concept is awesome so far, although i've only got 2 frequencies and one of them i haven't gotten to respond yet. i just really like messing with the frequencies as a concept though.

the menuing is annoying for sure though, especially with keycards, although it's at least relatively quick menus. last few things under spoiler.

overall coool game, the exploration is fun if a little tedious sometimes, and saving the prisoners as a sorta score thing is also enjoyable as side goals. idk, i was dreading it a little but i think i like it quite a bit.

coin-cache wrote: ↑Sat Jun 24, 2023 2:13 am this is a fascinating game that i would probably not play without savestates. there are ways to manage and it's not quite as brutal as it appears on booting up (note below of some things that make it not as bad + 1 early game spoiler)

Spoiler!

all items are kept on death, you can also grind consumables by revisiting the screens with them, so you can stock up on rations and ammunition and stuff. getting the handgun also makes movement around enemies much less tedious, it's sorta cool the power spike you get. have not used the other weapons yet.

it's something where i feel like i could see playing without savestates but tbh i wouldn't want to lol, plus this is a game where there are just traps that kill you, though the manual seems to imply there are items to detect some of them? it's like almost tolerable without savestates but nah. this is an aside, but this is absolutely a 'read the manual' game.

the transceiver concept is awesome so far, although i've only got 2 frequencies and one of them i haven't gotten to respond yet. i just really like messing with the frequencies as a concept though.

the menuing is annoying for sure though, especially with keycards, although it's at least relatively quick menus. last few things under spoiler.

Spoiler!

the map is weird with all the truck traveling and the map looping (some areas are pretty much just dead ends i guess??). also spotting that tank for the first time is scary lol

overall coool game, the exploration is fun if a little tedious sometimes, and saving the prisoners as a sorta score thing is also enjoyable as side goals. idk, i was dreading it a little but i think i like it quite a bit.

I got my ass kicked for a long time but this post makes me wanna go back and try again...

mysteryROOSTER wrote: ↑Sat Jun 24, 2023 11:13 am I got my ass kicked for a long time but this post makes me wanna go back and try again...

Update: Although I'm still using savestates, I've gotten the hang of this & it really does get easier once you've found a few weapons. I recommend looking up walkthroughs and maps, it makes it easier to actually progress and, to me at least, isn't enough to spoil the fun of the game. Here's a site I found with annotated maps. The way the info is written, it sounds like a kid was having a lot of fun writing this :o]
http://www.videogamemaps.net/?maps/nes/metalgear
I'll update you all when I beat the game!