Official Website

Platform: PSP

Genre: Stealth Action

Number of Players: 1, 1 -6 via Infrastructure

When Konami first announced that everyone’s favorite stealth game was coming to the PlayStation Portable, there was a great deal of excitement, but the resulting Metal Gear Acid was a trading card game and was met with some praising the title while others just wanted their beloved Snake back in the usual action they were used to. Metal Gear Solid Portable Ops provided the solution and brought the series back to the glory that we all know and love (though I do like Acid as well) and put Snake in a new story line to further expand the MGS mythos.

Metal Gear Solid Portable Ops Plus is the follow-up, though this isn’t so much a sequel as it is an expansion. I was actually in Japan back when the game first hit shelves there and Tokyo showed no amount of dislike for Snake since he was everywhere, not to mention a little pre-hype for the forthcoming MGS4 and some extremely hot women at the Konami booth at the Tokyo Game Show; it was a true paradise for any Metal Gear fan. The expansion itself can be played either as a stand alone or along with the original game, and Japan actually had a deluxe edition released that included both games, but that type of thing rarely happens on these shores.

If you do in fact own the original Portable Ops, at the start of the game you’ll have the chance to import any previous save data that you might have on your memory card, but you’ll need to do this at the start of the game as it can’t be done later. The one thing that I think might disappoint some is that there really isn’t really a storyline to speak of but instead is geared towards the Infinity Mission mode or online, multiplayer functionality. If you’re one who has always been captivated by the lengthy and complexity that is a part of MGS, you aren’t going to find much of that here.

The Infinity Mode is much like the mission modes seen in the other Portable Ops title, and it begins to get more and more difficult as you progress through the stages. As far as the gameplay itself, it remains more or less unchanged from the original release, though there are a few additions here and there. Your primary goal is still to capturing soldiers and convince them to join your cause, and that all falls onto Campbell’s shoulders. Any enemies who have teamed up with you have their own skill sets, so you may have some that excel in medical skills, others sneaking and so on, and the skills and abilities that each solider has can be increased. You can still create units and manage them just as in the pervious game, and if you never played the first title, shame on you. And, simply take a look at our review for the first Metal Gear Solid Portable Ops for more information on the more intimate mechanics of the game.

If you’ve never played Portal Ops before, the good thing is that there is a training mode that will familiarize you with how the game plays, how to use and manage your new recruits, and you’ll also get tutorials on the use of weapons that you find in the game. Going through the Infinite Missions portion is going to be a great experience for fans of the series, though for anyone new to Metal Gear, and I’ve read the same sentiment across the web, if you never played any games in the series, this expansion might prove to be something of a disappointment as it really does seem to be aimed more towards the loyalists. The online play is really the key to Portable Ops Plus, and with some new soldiers, maps, and such, that’s going to be what the fans truly crave.

Granted, there isn’t much to offer outside of the online play, but keep in mind that this is really what this is all about, and that’s part of the reason behind the low price. Konami could have easily charged full retail for it, but instead dropping it down to under $20 is the best thing for the fans of the series. There wasn’t any real effort to improve the graphics, and I don’t feel that they need to be in this case. It would be like playing Final Fantasy XI for months and then suddenly being tossed an expansion with new areas that look vastly superior to anything else in the game.

Metal Gear Solid Portable Ops Plus is an essential part of any Metal Gear fans games, and it’s just the thing to keep them preoccupied until MGS4 finally is released. I know, we’re all upset about it being delayed, but Konami and Kojima do have some very good reasons for that, and I think we’ll all be far beyond amazed. So grab the expansion, build your personal army, train hard, and keep that Portable Ops going either solo or with a friend . . . or an even closer enemy.
 

-mike-