Please note that this is a review originally published in 2008. Since I first wrote this review, my copy of the game has ceased to function.

Metal Gear Solid 2 is action-shooter game that is different than other Metal Gear games. Instead of being the legendary hero Solid Snake, you get to be both Snake and Raiden, a man with no past and future. The game has three actual modes to play in, Tanker, Plant, and Tanker-Plant. I chose to do Tanker-Plant because it is the complete game. Sure you can do each chapter separately, but I wanted the full game experience.

The first chapter, Tanker, you play as Solid Snake. His mission is to obtain photographic evidence of a U.S. military version of Metal Gear. Little does he know that things would not go smoothly. He finds out that Ocelot has gotten a new arm, thanks to Snake's "brother" Liquid. In the end, the tanker sinks and Snake is allegedly dead.

The Plant chapter is where you play as Raiden. His mission is to eliminate all of the terrorists that have kidnapped the President. Along the way, he finds out the truth about the Plant. It is actually a cover-upstory made by the Patriots, twelve men who control the country. The Plant is said to clean the water from the sunken Tanker, but really it holds Metal Gear RAY, and Arsenal Gear, which is a structure that filters out information from getting to the public.

Raiden's enemies include Dead Cell, elite fighters led by Solid Snake himself. Raiden discovers that the Dead Cell Solid Snake is actually Solidus Snake, who is the former President of the United States, George Sears. The real Solid Snake is acting as Lieutenant J.G. Pliskin, one of the Seal Team 10 members.

This game doesn't really involve as much killing as it's older brother Metal Gear Solid. Raiden's role is to sneak around mostly. He does kill two members of Dead Cell and Solidus Snake himself, but he doesn't actually destroy Arsenal Gear. I was very disappointed that the world couldn't be completely saved.

At first, I liked the game, but as it went on, I grew to hate it. Raiden's Codec contacts weren't even people, they were computer images used to manipulate Raiden into doing everything the Patriots wanted.

My favorite part of the whole game is the skateboarding missions. It's something completely different from the actual missions. I guess the game makers were worried that MGS2 wouldn't live up to previous standards set by MGS that they had to resort to little games like that to get an audience. It must've worked because I bought the game.

My least favorite part was when GW, the information control center, was getting the virus. It was quite scary when Colonel Campbell started losing his face to reveal a skeleton and started speaking from the past. Also, I didn't like that Emma had to die. She was my favorite character in th whole game.

Overall, I give the game 4 out of 10 points. I basically did not like it. I did not have any expectations for this game, because I did not want to be biased. This allows for a clear judgement of everything. The best thing about this game were the Bonus features. The VR missions, skateboarding, and the books written by Nastasha Romanenko (a character from MGS) are a good read.

I ended up getting a Panther rating. I guess because I save as often as I can. I recommend this game to those who want to play as someone other than Solid Snake. I also recommend it to anyone who wants to throw away money instead of buying a better game.

I apologize for any spelling mistakes that may be in this review. It is currently 57 degrees right now, and my desk is next to a window. My hands are a little stiff, and I tend to hit multiple keys at once.

If you know a game that you think I should play and review, I am always open to suggestions. Just VM/PM me. Chances are that I either have the game, or can get it.