How much of the enjoyment of MGS4 is based on being a fan of the previous games and knowing the stories? Ive played maybe an hour of MGS but I didnt like the stealth gameplay and all of MGS2 with infinite ammo cheats on (seemed like a fun to shoot people with rockets since it was so cheap) and thats about it. But MGS4 seems to be hailed as one of, or the, best game on PS3 and its supposed to have less strict combat so fun for non-stealth fans.

So what do MGS4 fans think, do you need to be a fan of, and know the story, to really enjoy this game? And is the non-stealth gameplay good enough to hold the entire game up?

A good understanding of the previous games would help your enjoyment, but the game does a pretty good job of making the story clear, however some of the more emotional and interesting moments may be lost on you if you have no prior experience in the series, but even so, Its a kick ass game! ;)

You can download the Metal Gear Encyclopedia free from the PSN Store. That has all the info regarding the Metal Gear franchise... ever.

" You can download the Metal Gear Encyclopedia free from the PSN Store. That has all the info regarding the Metal Gear franchise... ever. "

If you're expecting to understand a single thing past Act 1 then good luck... because pretty much everything in this game revolves around stuff that's happened in the past, all you need to do is play Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater... you should be sorted. If you're just gonna skip the cutscenes you'll be playing for a maximum of 9 hours unfortunately, so it's better to get acquainted with it's roots so you enjoy it more.

i was in the same boat as you when i went through it. here's what you need to know.

• big boss was an awesome soldier (mgs3)
  
• big boss was cloned 3 times
• those clones were solid snake, liquid snake, solidus snake.
• big boss went rouge
• solid snake took big boss out
• shadow mosses incident liquid dies (mgs 1)
  
• solidus becomes the president
• mgs2 happens (raiden a wimp)
• liquids arm gets grafted onto revolver ocelots body
  
• solidus gets killed
• liquid takes over ocelot and this creates liquid ocelot.

Whatever, MGS4 was the first Metal Gear game I played to completion, and I loved it. There was no nostalgia for me.

"all you need to do is play Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater... you should be sorted.

" If you're expecting to understand a single thing past Act 1 then good luck... because pretty much everything in this game revolves around stuff that's happened in the past, all you need to do is play Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater... you should be sorted. If you're just gonna skip the cutscenes you'll be playing for a maximum of 9 hours unfortunately, so it's better to get acquainted with it's roots so you enjoy it more. "

"@AzureSupernova said:

"all you need to do is play Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater... you should be sorted.

I doubt thats going to happen, I tried to play it but I couldent get into the stealth gameplay. I did decide to give the stealth aspect another chance because I saw MGS:Portable Ops preowned for a few pounds and Im sort of getting into the stealth a bit more but I always have an AK as back up which I sometimes end up relying on lol the story im sort of getting into though, its makes enough sense to allow for stupid funky garbage to hang off of it lol "

"@AzureSupernova said:

" If you're expecting to understand a single thing past Act 1 then good luck... because pretty much everything in this game revolves around stuff that's happened in the past, all you need to do is play Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater... you should be sorted. If you're just gonna skip the cutscenes you'll be playing for a maximum of 9 hours unfortunately, so it's better to get acquainted with it's roots so you enjoy it more. "

Quick corretion 5-6 hours is the playtime if you skip every cutscene and don't count install times."

" @Pazy said:

"@AzureSupernova said:

"all you need to do is play Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater... you should be sorted.

I doubt thats going to happen, I tried to play it but I couldent get into the stealth gameplay. I did decide to give the stealth aspect another chance because I saw MGS:Portable Ops preowned for a few pounds and Im sort of getting into the stealth a bit more but I always have an AK as back up which I sometimes end up relying on lol the story im sort of getting into though, its makes enough sense to allow for stupid funky garbage to hang off of it lol "

Well then i'd  suggest getting the Digital Graphic Novel to catch up on MGS1, it's available on PSP. There are alot of references that anyone who follows the Metal Gear series will spot. Other than that I'd just suggest watching the cut scenes form MGS2 and MGS3 on youtube or somehting. "

Well if you liked the scenes from Portable Ops then I'd recommend it. It's just the events of Metal Gear Solid, retold in that animated comic style. I bought it purely for the collection, but if you can't be bothered to deal with MGS on PS1 or can't find Twin Snakes, it'll key you in on all the events. It'll only be a few quid if you can find it at a local GAME or GameStation or online somewhere, I wouldn't say it would be more than £8