PS3 Fanboy

At Sony's conference, a lot of games were spotlighted. We mean a lot. While we'd love to go over the 15 first party exclusives, you all know them already, we're sure. So, we're going to move along and debunk the most annoying rumor we've had to put up with for the past year. Metal Gear Solid 4 was announced as a PlayStation 3 exclusive during the conference, met with a loving nod by our favorite Hideo Kojima (we know about twenty, but this one is our favorite). Hopefully this dispels rumors completely. Set for an early 2008 simultaneous worldwide release, MGS4 has come along nicely and has a new trailer up on the PS Store, as you may know. Well, get ready to hear all the "timed exclusive" rumors now, which we're a little more ready to agree to. But not happy about.

Who knows, perhaps all this time, Konami was waiting for an excuse to make Metal Gear Solid 4 a multiplatform title. They think the price cut won't significantly increase sales of the PS3, which we feel differently about. This isn't coming from Kojima, who ultimately has control over the fate of Metal Gear Solid 4, but from Konami's North America and Europe boss, Kazumi Kitaue. He said "I don't expect a substantial impact... With USD 500, you can buy a personal computer." Oh, really? What would that computer be able to do? Word process and search the internet. S'about it.

This is the big quote people are jumping all over: "Since Metal Gear was born on the PlayStation, we would like to keep it a PlayStation game. But we might have to take some steps." What this means to us is exactly what we've predicted. Metal Gear Solid 4 is a timed exclusive if the game does not sell systems. We think it will, but we don't think it will be enough for Konami, so they'll release MGS4 on the 360 about a year later. Sucks for loyal Sony fans, but it's the most likely situation.

This post serves as a sort of double-whammy. A really cool new trailer of Metal Gear Solid 4, rumored to be voiced in English, will appear at E3. This trailer will appear at the "Sony and Konami Conference" portion of the Electronic Entertainment Expo. This will probably be the only place MGS4 will pop up, so, sorry 360 owners, but we don't think you'll get that MGS4 on 360 announcement just yet.

The trailer is, as we've said, supposedly voiced in English, but also will detail an entirely new environment. We'd been wondering when Snake and the gang would get out of the dismal, cow-robot overrun city. Chances are, though, it won't be horribly different from what we've already seen. It's rare that Kojima and crew show off later parts of a game before the release, but we might get a glimpse of what to expect. Perhaps something a little more futuristic than a middle-eastern city? Like ... a space station! That'd be a change.

[Thanks, TheGuy!]
[via NeoGAF]

You've seen the new video, so no doubt your excitement for Metal Gear Solid 4 has once again reached the dizzy heights it did after last year's E3. Now CVG is reporting that Hideo Kojima is currently contemplating releasing a Limited Edition. Sounds like a fun idea to us. Make it so, Hideo!

While nothing more has really been said since it was mentioned in his latest "HIDECHAN Radio!" show, two weeks ago, that doesn't stop us from pondering on what such a tin could contain. Game? Check. Soundtrack? Would be nice. Artbook? Always fun to have. Replica bandana and dogtags? Why not!

What would you like to see in there, if it ever materialises?

This one literally just came in -- Konami has released a new trailer for Metal Gear Solid 4 and PlayFrance has the scoop. The trailer is similar to the E3 one released last year, but has a ton of additional content and has been remastered using the newest version of the MGS 4 engine, leading to a ton of little visual improvements. Animations, particle effects and over-all graphic fidelity have all definitely increased with this newest trailer - the scene where Old Snake puts the gun to his mouth, in particular, showcases some incredible lighting effects. It's great to see Konami hasn't been resting on their laurels, this new trailer shows a clear and marked improvement to a game that already looked amazing. The trailer ends with confirmation that the game will be coming out in 2007 - naysayers be damned.

The new trailer clocks in at over 13 minutes in length and what a blissful 13 minutes they are. The final scene with Raiden is incredible and worth the time investment by itself. What are you doing? Check it out NOW -- it demands your attention.

*Updated with embedded video - no more waiting for 20 minutes of buffering to watch some hot Snake action*
Thanks for the headsup Humpty!

[Via N4G]

We've danced the dance of Solid Snake "defecting" to the Xbox 360 for ages now. Every week Kojima has to fend off more unsubstantiated rumors about Metal Gear Solid 4 deciding to take a multiplatform route, stating time and again that the title was built for the PS3 from the ground up. Anyway, this latest rumor comes from the, oddly enough, Xbox forums, referring to a Swedish magazine called "Super Play" that supposedly confirmed the multiplatformizationism of the hotly anticipated game.

From the translation given on the Xbox forums: " ... sole owners of Wii and Xbox 360 would have to do without [Metal Gear Solid 4]. Fortunately, Konami isn´t completely blind to the fact that more gamers deserve to play this epic title, and it is now confirmed that Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots for the Xbox 360 will launch a year later in November 2008. It will come with new content additions including VR missions and other bonus gameplay like Snake Tales, which lets you go on more objective-based missions -- some quite lengthy. So, there's no question that Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots for the Xbox 360 comes packed with more content than the original PS3-version."

To this we ask, "really?" and tilt our heads coyly. We've been told so many times how it's been tailored just for the PS3 and couldn't be done elsewhere. Yeah, that's PR spin, but we'd like to believe it. Timed exclusives aren't that bad, but giving Microsoft the extra content? Will we be able to download it for free? We're not saying this rumor is true or not, but we're guessing not. Here's why: Super Play is a small, independent magazine. There are no quotes from Konami publishers. This news isn't hitting the internet like a wildfire confirmation. So, to us, it's crap until Kojima nods or dissents. You?

Uh oh. Looks like gaming behemoth Gamestop/EB Games is sending a dreaded email to gamers who preordered Metal Gear Solid 4. According to an email sent earlier today, Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots been delayed from its tenative September 1st, 2007 date and is now expected March 1st, 2008. This isn't the first time a high-profile title hits a sudden postponement, but we were gearing up in anticipation for this title to hold us over through the holidays. Without the hugely anticipated title expected until 2008, it could cause Santa's little helpers to drop off something else under the tree. Lets all hope this one doesn't quite pan out as the email indicates.

David Hayter is holding onto his role as Solid Snake in the Metal Gear series, not surprisingly. For those of you who don't know, Hayter is not only an accomplished voice actor, but he also penned the screenplay for the first X-Men movie and co-wrote the screenplay for X2. Good stuff, that. If you check out any pictures of the guy, at least from Metal Gear Solid era, he'll even resemble Solid Snake a bit.

"Joining Hayter, voice actors Quinton Flynn, Paul Eiding and Christopher Randolph will also return as the voices of Raiden, Roy Campbell and Hal 'Otacon' Emmerich, respectively." So we can expect all the same voices for all the same people that matter. No mention of Meryl's voice actor, but whatever. Maybe she's silent. Now if only the Xenosaga games could have held this kind of consistency...

[Thanks, Jonah!]

It's sad, but series creator Hideo Kojima seems adamant about this being the last MGS title before he retires from the series (but that means there's another Metal Gear series, right?! No? Ah, well...). Here's a couple of things to expect from the game, aside from sheer awesomeness:

• The Octacamo -- Snake's new sneaking suit that allows him to blend into any surrounding so long as he remains motionless. You know, some people don't even need a camo suit to remain "unseen". Oh, sorry, was that too emo? Anyway, even pressing against a wall riddled with bullet holes, Snake will also appear to have such holes. Neato.
  
• Your enemies and allies will be determined by how you play the game, it has been noted. Liquid Ocelot is, of course, your ultimate villain, but normal soldiers are give or take. Factions within the soldiers' ranks may prove a useful tool to exploit...
• You can scare enemies (a la Batman in Batman Begins, maybe) to the point they actually submit to your will and, yes, pee their pants like they mean it.
• So many characters making an appearance! Will they all get enough screen time? Will their individual stories reach a satisfying conclusion? Let's hope so.

Essentially, this game is going to be fun. It just is. Even though this blogger's record with the Metal Gear franchise has been rough (oddly enough, after purchasing the game, they're barely touched until exactly one year later, when they're completed in a mad rush of "ohmigosh I gots to plays this games it's so cool"... yeah, it makes no sense, but it's practically tradition), it's still a very, uh, solid looking game and we can't wait to get our hands on it!

Respected Japanese gaming magazine Famitsu recently published the results of a poll to find the games most wanted by the public. Look at the top five. Aside from the #1 spot, Sony dominates. 9 Nintendo titles, 11 Sony titles and 1 Microsoft title. What's an XBox, Japanese gamers wonder. An interesting aside is that many of the Sony games are in fact for the PS2 and still generate as much if not more desire than the next-gen Wii and 360. Combined.

So what, you ask? So that. It's just a list of what's anticipated in Japan. Take it for what it's worth, but the fact of the matter is, in Japan at least, Sony is still jumping out of everyone's mouth. Final Fantasy XIII, Resident Evil 5, Metal Gear Solid 4, Dawn of Mana, Final Fantasy XIII Versus... sure, sequels, but anticipated ones. If they weren't desired, sequels wouldn't necessarily be made. Basically, hooray Sony! At least there are some hot PS2 titles on the way, along with the buzzworthy PS3 titles.

A recent panel interview was held at IGN between Metal Gear guru Hideo Kojima, MGS4 art director Yoji Shinkawa and Square-Enix's own Tetsuya Nomura (pictured right) regarding their take on the PS3. Having likened it to many things before, Kojima had a lot to say about Sony's new box o' tricks, saying "If you think about the future of the industry and game creators, I get the feeling that the winner had better be the movie theater -- or, the PS3. No one will say that the price is cheap." He adds later on that his optimal choice of gadgetry would have been "a PS3 with controls like the Wii."

How about Nomura's take? Final Fantasy games were a huge selling point on the PSX and the PS2, not to mention other fantastic Square-Enix RPG's, so his opinion will carry a lot of weight in the Japanese RPGamer crowd. He felt that "as a game machine, it's too expensive." But he softened this typical argument with "Thinking two to three years from now, the PS3 will be the most appropriate."

The three also joked about another Zone of Enders title. Maybe they weren't joking -- those were some pretty good games. Either way, it seems the big names at Konami and Square-Enix are voicing their support of the PS3. Whether it hits big right at launch or creeps its way to the summit of the mountain in a few years, they seem to feel the PS3 is going to be it.

[Edit: added a reference for the picture, clarifying that it is Tetsuya Nomura -- Should have made that more clear.]