This entry originally comes from a website I have recently set up, as it is only three weeks old, hits are still a little sparse so I'm posting it here as well.
 
As I said in a previous post, it seems odd that I have played the latest MGS game, mere months after it was announced, years I waited anxiously to get my hands on MGS4, so it’s a breath of fresh air that the latest Metal Gear Solid title on the PSP seems to be coming along swiftly.

The first thing I noticed about Peace Walker is its over all look and production quality, just from the TGS demo you can tell that the attention to graphical detail goes far beyond any title that I have ever seen on the PSP. In game graphics aren’t where the high production value stops either, menus and cutscenes come over very well too, and that’s even the more of a compliment to give as the TGS demo is obviously in Japanese and my knowledge of Japanese begins and ends with ‘Domo’.

Speaking of the cutscenes, they are done in a familiar format to the cutscenes in ‘MGS: Portable Ops’ taking the form of a moving comic. There are beautiful transitions when the 3D switches to the 2D cartoons, and overall, the cutscenes seem a little more colourful than the drawings in Portable Ops.  
  
On to the important part then, gameplay. Peace Walker seems to take most of its influence from MGS4 with a fully movable camera and and a third person aim mode for weaponry. Of course, the PSP doesn’t have a second analogue pad so camera movements are mapped to the face buttons. This obviously isn’t as comfortable or convenient as having the extra pad, but the game makes up for it with auto aim etc. Your main ‘action button’ seems to be the right shoulder button which controls your CQC abilities and fires when in aim mode (holding the left shoulder button). My main issue with the controls is that crouching and sticking to walls is mapped to the
D-pad which means you need to take your thumb off the analogue pad to press the button, this can be a little awkward as it means that you need to stop your movement in order to crouch or move up against a wall. Again this is only a little problem which you will probably get used to the more you play the game. Also, when you lay down n the ground you couldn’t then crawl, which is something I tend to do a lot in the series so I hope this is added in to the game.

The demo itself started with Big Boss and his recruited troops on a beach in the dark, a set up for your basic tutorial level with one troop shouting commands at you that you have to adhere to. After a cutscene you are on a beach with Miller, who players of the original MGS or MG2 may recognise, giving you commands by codec. you then make your way into the forest where you get a real sense of what the game is like sneaking up on enemies and practicing CQC and gunplay including a possibility to try out co-op in the part after the tutorial.