" Yet Metal Gear Solid 4 is more than just an intricate plot and a series of intense, scripted scenes. It is also an exciting action game that, more than any MGS game in the past, lets you play in your own style. If you wish to sneak past your enemies, you might hide under a barrel and slowly eke your way past, though you should be careful, lest an alert guard come to investigate. Or perhaps you would rather go in guns a-blazing, firing one of many terrific Metal Gear Solid 4 weapons, which you can tailor to your specifications with interchangeable sights, grips, and silencers. Or simply combine the two by shooting a soldier's neck with a tranquilizer dart and slipping past, or taking out your now-unconscious adversary with a headshot to make his silence permanent.
Each solution is equally viable, for though the series' stealth-focused gameplay is as strong as ever, both the sneaking and the shooting are equally rewarding, and neither mechanic suffers in light of the other. Capping the action are the insane boss fights versus the four members of the Beauty and the Beast Corps. Whether you're facing Crying Wolf during a blinding snowstorm or lobbing rockets at Raging Raven, the boss battles are long and intense, and they perfectly crown the levels that they conclude. Yet don't take that to mean that the standard enemies are run-of-the-mill. The acrobatic FROGS leap from wall to wall, forcing you to stay constantly focused as they flit about, and the monstrous Gekkos tower above, though they aren't impervious to that powerful railgun in your inventory.
All of this extraordinary gameplay and storytelling is wrapped in an exceptional technical shell, delivering an immersive experience brimming with heartfelt emotion. If there is one game you will remember in 2008, when the lights are dimmed and the curtains close, it will be Metal Gear Solid 4. Even in one of the greatest years ever for video games, its compelling action, moving story, and stunning visuals bring the series to a haunting close and will rightfully join the ranks of one of the greatest games ever made. "
