bit-tech Shopping: Konami Metal Gear Solid: The Essential Collection (PS2)

Rating: 10

Time with product: 3 Months

Strengths: Three fantastic games that are well-worth the $30 price tag; the best tactical/stealth games on PS1/PS2 in one package

Weaknesses: Bonus disc of MGS3: Subsistence is absent...

Summary: You know a system is near the end of its lifespan when bundled games are released - Hitman Trilogy, the Resident Evil compilation, a few others, and now Metal Gear Solid: The Essential Collecton. With Metal Gear Solid 4's release on the Playstation 3, it was an obvious choice to release the trilogy so that those unlucky to have missed out on the first three games could have the chance to better understand the story.Included in this release are: Metal Gear Solid, Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty/Substance, and Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater/Subsistence. These games have defined the stealth combat genre starting with Metal Gear Solid, originally released on the Playstation. Many of the characters present in the Metal Gear Solid story are introduced here and this title laid the groundwork for the three other games. MGS2 advances the story a few years in the future, playing as a character that might surprise players who were used to the gameplay from MGS1... MGS3 takes the story back to the roots of MGS, detailing the background of who's who in the world, completing a view of the key characters and events that culminate in MGS4.If you have beaten/plan to play MGS4, PICK THIS UP. It's the definitive collection and the only thing that would have made this title more complete would be the second disc released in the standalone edition of MGS3: Subsistence, a disc that contained bonus games Metal Gear 1 & 2 and a now-defunct online mode.I definitely recommend this title!

Rating: 10

Time with product:

Strengths: Three Metal Gear Solid games in one set.

Weaknesses: No second disc for Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence. If only the Metal Gear Solid 1 in the set is a port of GameCube's Twin Snakes version...

Summary: With the hype of Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots getting near of being released, Konami has another trick up their sleeves for Metal Gear Solid fans and would be players. They put the previous three Metal Gear Solid games into one set and selling it for a fairly good price, considering the Metal Gear Solid 2: Substance alone is fairly expensive. Metal Gear Solid 1 in the collection is the basically the Metal Gear Solid from Playstation 1, no known changes. Metal Gear Solid 2 in the collection is the Substance version that includes the VR missions, Snake missions, and the skateboard thing rather than just Sons of Liberty. Metal Gear Solid 3 in the collection is the Subsistence version that includes new camera view, theater mode, and downloading of camouflage. Though disc two from the original Subsistence version is not included. Second disc of the original Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence is not included in the collection. That might be a big deal for some, but it might not be for others. The second disc have the Metal Gear 1 and 2 from NES, Snake versus Monkey, and online mode, though the online service is closed for every region as of late 2007. Konami would have made the collection better if they port the GameCube's Twin Snakes and put it as Metal Gear Solid 1 in the collection instead of the Playstation 1 version. That way, players can enjoy the similar type of graphic and gameplay throughout all three games. Not sure the reason why they did not try to port it to Playstation 2. Metal Gear Solid: The Essential Collection is a great deal for three games in one set. Even though the first game is still the same as the Playstation 1 and do require Playstation 1 memory card to save it, it did not make the collection less valuable. Metal Gear Solid: The Essential Collection should be Konami's answer to the Metal Gear Solid: 20th Anniversary set for American fans/players.

Rating: 10

Time with product: 3

Strengths: A mighty collection for a great price.

Weaknesses: Missing some games.

Summary: Metal Gear Solid: The Essential Collection is a great collection of the popular Metal Gear Solid games in one affordable package. It includes Metal Gear Solid 1 for the Playstation, Metal Gear Solid 2 Substance for the PS2 and the disc 1 of Metal Gear Solid 3 Subsistence for the PS2. Unfortunately, disc 2 of MGS 3 Subsistence is not included in this collection. That means Metal Gear 1 and 2 are not available in this collection. Another point to note is that Metal Gear Solid 1 is a Playstation One game, which means you'll need a Playstation memory card in order to play it on a PS2. You don't need the memory card if you have a PS3 though.Despite the missing Metal Gear 1 and 2 games, the essential collection is still an excellent buy. At $30, you get all 3 highly rated games and hours and hours of gameplay. Highly recommended!

Rating: 10

Time with product: 3

Strengths: The first three Metal Gear Solid games for only $30, that's a great value.

Weaknesses: Disc 2 from MGS3 Subsistence is not included, which means Metal Gear 1 and 2 are not included. MGS1 is still a PSOne disc and needs a PSOne memory card if played on a PS2

Summary: As the proud owner of a PS3, I looked forward to playing Metal Gear Solid 4 even though I'd never played the first 3. The Essential Collection provided me an awesome opportunity to pick up all three together, new, for only $30. That sure beats trying to find used copies of them all, especially considering what that would cost and that the discs might be in bad shape. All three games are absolutely incredible and I can not recommend them enough. I strongly recommend that every PS2/PS3 owner go pick this up now before its long gone.

Rating: 10

Time with product: 15

Strengths: * Provides the first three Metal Gear Solids in a convenient and affordable package

Weaknesses: * The included version of MGS3: Subsistence lacks the second disk, meaning that you can't play the classic Metal Gear games or view any other of the bonus features* Nothing new is really added.

Summary: Metal Gear Solid: The Essential Collection is a fantastic compilation of the series pre-MGS4. Given that a copy of any of the games in the series will run you at least $20 these days on eBay, this is great way for someone new to the series to get their feet wet. These games are classics and honestly must be played by all Playstation owners. The biggest downside of this collection is that it doesn't really add anything to the package, so unless you're going to sell your old copies on eBay, players who already own all three titles will find little reason to buy this collection. In fact, because MGS3 no longer has the bonus disc, there's really no reason to buy the collection.