Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater

Just started this game yesterday, and I've got some first impressions.

The storytelling aspects of this game are huge. The cutscenes, voice acting, and character development are so far very well done. The character code named "Snake" has the only noticeably cheesy voice but fans of previous games know this is more or less a staple of the series.

In this incarnation of the Metal Gear series, the focus is on outdoor jungle stealthing as opposed to primarily indoor scenarios. This new setting shifts focus of the game away from simply completing mission, to taking care of snake as a human being. This means finding food sources for health and energy.

I haven't dug in too deep yet, and I'll tell you why: the camera system.
The simplistic camera system hurts this game, for me, far beyond my ability to hunker down and "deal" with it. The truth is the camera system has essentially remained unchanged from the first two games, and it shows. While playing it, I felt like I was back on the first playstation. When you're constantly put in situations requring stealth and awareness, it seems like the first thing for an upgrade would be the camera system. Still, as we've seen over and over again, a lot of japanese developers tend to cling to game mechanics far past their prime. Instead of redeveloping a games camera system, the often attempt to cram mini-games, added features, and increasingly intricate stories into an old package and sometimes it shows.

Granted the system is not the death of the series, I began to get used to it and found little tricks for a better experience. Still, I don't think a stealth game like this truly simulates espionage. Rather, this game creates a puzzle game that is presented as espionage. A lot of you out there are saying "Duh." Maybe this is why I always loved Splinter Cell.

Other than that I can tell I'm going to have a blast playing the game. Its a gorgeous PS2 title, and as usual I'm playing primarily for the story. More details to come when I'm deeper in.
S\