I Don’t Know If Metal Gear Solid: Snake Eater 3D Is Half-Empty Or Half-Full

I don’t think there’s another game on the showroom floor of this year’s TGS (aside from maybe Monster Hunter) that so shows up the conflict between good and evil in the design of the Nintendo 3DS as Metal Gear Solid: Snake Eater 3D.

It looks great. Even with the 3D effects on, it looks great. Don’t let static screenshots fool you; in motion, on the small bright screen, this is one of (if not the) best-looking games on the 3DS.

It uses most of the 3DS’ features well. The touch screen is both map and command screen (inventory, weapon select, etc). It uses tilt in brief, appropriate sections like leaping off a rope bridge.

But good lord it’s hard to control. Because the 3DS in its native state lacks a second thumbstick, MGSSE3D retreats back to one of the many DS (and original PSP’s) attempts at camera control, namely leaving those duties to the face buttons (ABXY).

It didn’t work then and it doesn’t work now. It makes controlling the camera — so essential in sneaking around and checking your surroundings — stilted and slow, and if you alert guards and they start coming at you from more than one angle you can kiss your arse goodbye.

Which will be a problem if all you have is a 3DS. If you have a 3DS and one of the handheld’s new slide pad add-ons, though, everything would be sweet, turning this from a hit-and-miss mobile version of the classic PS2 game into, well, a mobile version of the classic PS2 game.

If you’re at all interested in this game, then, from what I played today I’d say hold out for the Western release details for the Slide Pad.


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