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    Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots

    Game » consists of 21 releases. Released Jun 12, 2008

    In 2014, war has become so routine that it is at the core of the global economy. A rapidly aging Solid Snake picks up his gun and embarks upon his final mission in this epic tale of tactical espionage action -- the conclusion to the Solid Snake saga.

    If I never played a MGS game before can I still enjoy 4?

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    crusader8463

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    #1  Edited By crusader8463

    I just got me a ps3 today and while hunting online for games to buy I spotted mgs 4 for $20 and am thinking about getting it as it is one of the systems major exclusives. However, I have never really played a mgs before and wanted to know if I would be able to enjoy the game as a stand a lone, or if I really should play the other ones first.
     
    I know some things about the series from hearing people talk about it over the years, but I never payed much attention to it. Would I just be lost having no clue what's going on, or can the story stand on its own?

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    Rayfield

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    #2  Edited By Rayfield

    For about 90% of the game, you will have zero idea what the hell is going on if you haven't played the first three.
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    MooseyMcMan

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    #3  Edited By MooseyMcMan

    You can certainly enjoy the gameplay, but you will be completely lost story wise. Trust me, at least read plot synopsises of the games, or watch the cutscenes on YouTube. Trust me. 

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    deactivated-5fb7c57ae2335

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    I did this, loved it, wished to god I had played the first 3, later did.

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    crusader8463

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    #5  Edited By crusader8463

    Hmmm....

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    Afroman269

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    #6  Edited By Afroman269

    I never played any MGS game before playing MGS4. I enjoyed MGS4 quite a lot. 

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    FancySoapsMan

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    #7  Edited By FancySoapsMan

    I recommend you play through 1-3 first. They're great games, and they'll help you appreciate 4 much more.

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    ThePickle

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    #8  Edited By ThePickle

    Sure. Watch the MGS retrospective on GT to catch up on the story. Playing 1-3 beforehand enrich the experience 

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    nintendoeats

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    #9  Edited By nintendoeats

    I only played through the first till completion until I played 4. I was able to sort out what was going on, though it took me a while at parts. Some very different things have very similar names...

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    Karkarov

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    #10  Edited By Karkarov

    I would advise against playing it first, it would be confusing as hell.  Personally if you have never played a MGS and REALLY want to play one without being totally lost story wise.... I say go for MGS3.  It is one of the best in the series (my personal favorite) and chronologically it is actually the first one so there is no need to be concerned about not getting the story as it is all laid out in game.  Info on the others helps you "appreciate it" but it is not needed to understand it.  MGS4 not so much....

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    lego_my_eggo

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    #11  Edited By lego_my_eggo

    I would recommend playing the other three first. You can play MGS4 and still enjoy it, but there is a lot of things in that game that is just fan service and callbacks that would be a hell of a lot better if you know what they are referencing. Not to mention knowing the plot of the other games.

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    FLStyle

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    #12  Edited By FLStyle
    @crusader8463 said:
    " I just got me a ps3 today and while hunting online for games to buy I spotted mgs 4 for $20 and am thinking about getting it as it is one of the systems major exclusives. However, I have never really played a mgs before and wanted to know if I would be able to enjoy the game as a stand a lone, or if I really should play the other ones first.  I know some things about the series from hearing people talk about it over the years, but I never payed much attention to it. Would I just be lost having no clue what's going on, or can the story stand on its own? "
    If the Giant Bomb crew didn't know anything about or hadn't played a MGS game beforehand they probably would've given MGS4 either a 3/5 or a 4/5 instead of the 5 that they and I give it. Your call.
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    FlyingRat

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    #13  Edited By FlyingRat

    Metal Gear Solid 4 is so full of fanservice and nods to previous games that i think it would really be a waste if you didn't play the other ones first.

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    crusader8463

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    #14  Edited By crusader8463

    Ya I think I'm going to put off on it for now. I did just spent a crap ton of money on buying half a dozen or so games from various places to go with my system, so I will be busy for awhile. 
     
    Thanks for the help. I think I will hold off on this game, try to find the other games in the series first and play it down the road.

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    HitmanAgent47

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    #15  Edited By HitmanAgent47

    Absolutely not.

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    lego_my_eggo

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    #16  Edited By lego_my_eggo
    @crusader8463: You may be able to find a better deal then this but i would recommend this box set, and amazon is also having a black friday sale on MGS4.
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    Bloodgraiv3

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    #17  Edited By Bloodgraiv3

    Yes you can. 
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    HandsomeDead

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    #18  Edited By HandsomeDead

    Play 1, play 2, watch a let's play of 3, then get into it.

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    Skytylz

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    #19  Edited By Skytylz

    I don't see the point in playing it if you haven't played the first three.

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    luce

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    #20  Edited By luce

    Just play MGS 3 and skip the rest. Even 4

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    crusader8463

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    #21  Edited By crusader8463
    @Lego_My_Eggo said:
    " @crusader8463: You may be able to find a better deal then this but i would recommend this box set, and amazon is also having a black friday sale on MGS4. "
    I would love to buy those, but Canada amazon sucks cock and never has stuff like that in stock.
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    CharlesAlanRatliff

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    My brother's Game of the Year for 2008 was Metal Gear Solid 4 even though he had never played any of the previous games. He is now playing through the entire series.

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    keyhunter

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    #23  Edited By keyhunter

    Probably not.

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    excido

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    #24  Edited By excido

    it's hard to say, i've played and still own them going back to the first one on NES and i know they have all greatly added to my enjoyment since they reference each other. I think on it's own MGS4 is a great game but without the history it's hard to say what someone else's experience will be. regardless just because it's such a well done game I definitely think it's worth it if you can get it cheap. 

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    deactivated-6022efe9ba3cf

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    one of my biggest regrets was playing 4 before the first 3

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    RobotHamster

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    #26  Edited By RobotHamster

    Yea you can but you'll probably not get whats going on so it's definitely worth it to play through the first 3 which are amazing games.  You might still not get what's going on but you'd have play through four of the best games ever made.

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    DaSmart1

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    #27  Edited By DaSmart1

    I'd say play the first 3 before you start 4 if you can. You'll understand the story better, but also if you start with 4 then play the others the gameplay will be hard to get used to.

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    onarum

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    #28  Edited By onarum

    Yeah, I played 4 without ever touching a MSG game before and still enjoyed the eff out of it, if you want you can download a MSG encyclopedia on PSN that will fill you in on the past events before starting 4, it's free too.

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    time allen

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    #29  Edited By time allen

    even if you play the first three you still won't enjoy the fourth.

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    clstirens

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    #30  Edited By clstirens
    @HandsomeDead said:
    " Play 1, play 2, watch a let's play of 3, then get into it. "
    Wait, what?  Why only watch 3?  That one was AWESOME!

    Unless it's because that one also had an extremely annoying camo system, which I agree got tiresome.
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    Otacon

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    #31  Edited By Otacon

    There is a lot you won't get but go for it, then go play the others because they are amazing : )

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    deactivated-5a46aa62043d1

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    My advice to you would be to wait for E3 and see if Sony announces some kind of HD collection of the first three. If they do, then wait for that. If not, go ahead and play 4. 

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    Chirag4

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    #33  Edited By Chirag4

    You'll have no clue what's going on.

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    phish09

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    #34  Edited By phish09

    Not really.  It would be like just reading the Return of the King or just watching the final season of LOST.  Maybe you'd enjoy it, but you just won't be able to appreciate it for what it is.

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    zidd

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    #35  Edited By zidd

    Its got some quirks but you should be fine. If you own a PS2 you should play MGS3 because its a FANTASTIC game.

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    SlasherMan

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    #36  Edited By SlasherMan

    Honestly, whether you have played any of the previous MGS games or not, you'll probably have no idea what the hell is going on either way. :)

    Still, the MGS games are always worth a play. You can't go wrong. (Also, if you can, play MGS3 just because it's probably the best one out of the bunch, IMHO.)

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    deactivated-57beb9d651361

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    @clstirens said:
    " @HandsomeDead said:
    " Play 1, play 2, watch a let's play of 3, then get into it. "
    Wait, what?  Why only watch 3?  That one was AWESOME! Unless it's because that one also had an extremely annoying camo system, which I agree got tiresome. "
    Snake Eater is one of the best games in the series, on the PS2 and, likely, ever.

    Play it.
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    dbz1995

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    #38  Edited By dbz1995

    Just play all of them if you can. They're all good games, and MGS3 is one of my favourite games ever.

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    Yummylee

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    #39  Edited By Yummylee

    It's been 5 months... I'm pretty sure Crusader has already decided on whether to play through it... he may of played through the entire series by now even.

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    NickLott

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    #40  Edited By NickLott

    There's so many call backs and fan service to earlier games, you'd really be missing out on a lot just playing 4. 

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    PrivateIronTFU

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    #41  Edited By PrivateIronTFU

    There's actually a Metal Gear Solid timeline thing you can download from the PSN. I used it to fill in some blanks, because I never played MGS 3. Nor did I play any of the portable ones. So that's a nice, quick alternative to playing all the games. 

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    Kyreo

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    #42  Edited By Kyreo

    It's pretty great.  It's a fun game, regardless of it's references, thought those references do make the game WAY better.

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    SlasherMan

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    #43  Edited By SlasherMan
    @PrivateIronTFU said:
    "I never played MGS 3."
    That is a terrible mistake. Really, it was such a good game!
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    PrivateIronTFU

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    #44  Edited By PrivateIronTFU
    @SlasherMan said:
    " @PrivateIronTFU said:
    "I never played MGS 3."
    That is a terrible mistake. Really, it was such a good game! "
    I know. And I did buy it at one point. But at the time I was neck deep in school work, my job, and pretty much everything else. I never got the chance to get into it. And it wasn't too much later that I sold my PS2. I'm thinking eventually it will be playable in some form or another, like on the 3DS. I'll get to it then.
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    Maluvin

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    #45  Edited By Maluvin

    There are some great "Let's play" videos on youtube if you can't actually play through 1-3 yourself.  MGS3 is absolutely amazing.

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    Marcsman

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    #46  Edited By Marcsman

    MGS4 was my first in the series. I enjoyed the hell out of it.
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    Sayishere

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    #47  Edited By Sayishere

    To be fair....i have played MGS 1-3 and i still have no idea what happened in MGS4


    it has been a long time since i played the original 3 and 4 is still worth playing if you havent played the first 3
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    clstirens

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    #48  Edited By clstirens
    @GetEveryone said:
    " @clstirens said:
    " @HandsomeDead said:
    " Play 1, play 2, watch a let's play of 3, then get into it. "
    Wait, what?  Why only watch 3?  That one was AWESOME! Unless it's because that one also had an extremely annoying camo system, which I agree got tiresome. "
    Snake Eater is one of the best games in the series, on the PS2 and, likely, ever.

    Play it.
    "
    Oh yeah, Ioved 3.

    I honestly think Snake Eater (rather, subsistence) is the best in the series.
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    altairre

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    #49  Edited By altairre

    I did play MGS4 and had never played another MGS game before. I read quite some pages to get the story and then I jumped into it. Played it, finished it, enjoyed it. So I´m gonna go with: Yes sir, you can!

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    Marz

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    #50  Edited By Marz

    Metal Gear is kind of a story based franchise in the long run.  It helps to know some background of all the main characters.   So jumping in fresh to MGS4 might be hard to digest.

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