Plus
As I previously alluded to, the traditional MGS campaign has been scrapped and replaced by a new mode, Infinity Mission. Put those Ac!d flashbacks away, because, thankfully, the core gameplay generally remains the same. Gameplay is now in a mission based structure; you’re dropped in at the beginning of a level and charged with the task of finding the exit. As the difficulty ramps up you’re occasionally expected to complete other goals along the way, such as fighting the clock or undertaking a set number of kills, before the exit will appear. Over the course of Infinity Mode you’ll find four different Missions (Easy, Normal, Hard, and Extreme) with over fifty episodes spread between them.
The standard MGS control scheme from Portable Ops is reproduced/shoehorned in accurately in Plus. The camera is still a bitch to manipulate and the roll is mildly retarded, and, while it would have been nice for these issues to be given some attention, they don’t break the game in their L2 and R2 subtracted transition. I sort of hoped they would throw something (hell, anything) in from MGS4, but it looks like all Konami gave us was character models. The sliding briefing menu is back as well, which, while daunting for new players, is still effective toward the game’s purpose.
The rest of the mechanics work almost exactly as they did in the original Portable Ops. Aside from the standard level completion, your main goal is to subvert your adversaries by knocking them unconscious and bringing them back to your truck. Let them chill out for a while and then eventually recruit them over to your ranks. From there, they may enter the field as part of your squad or be dropped into a handful of “behind the scenes” squads (tech, spy, medical), which are used to boost stats, weapons, and information. Aside from some additional jobs within the ranks, there isn’t much new here. A new map or two would have been appreciated, but Plus get the job done on the original Portable Ops locations.
Some Extra Substance
To be fair, there is a small amount of new material injected into last year’s formula. New weapons and enemies from previous MGS games are suddenly available on the field. As any MGS fan with a pulse is well aware, Old Snake and Raiden from Guns of the Patriots help round out the cast of new soldiers, though don’t expect to unlock either one without difficulty. Lastly, the number of potential soldiers in your squad has been raised to 200 and blessed with the ability to exceed their S-rank cap from Portable Ops and as they hope to embrace S2 and S3 ranks. If 200 seems like a lot, stop having a heart attack, because you’re given the option to import your complete squad from Portable Ops. Everything, including their experience, carries over, so right from the start you’re free to start pressing Naked Snake past his previously lofty S Rank.
At the end of the day, Infinity missions comes off as rather hollow. Completing it, while by no means a walk in the park, doesn’t exactly take that long. You’re expected to play through it again and again, refining and optimizing your squad to its highest potential. Even with randomly generated exits, it starts to taste pretty stale after your third or fourth time through. With no narrative to drive the quest onward, is there any reason to spend the time leveling your virtual army of elites? Well, that all depends on one question; do you like multiplayer?
I certainly hope so, because Infinity Mission’s main/only purpose is boosting your stats for online matches. All men are not created equal, as an S3 member of your sneaking squad will easily outlast the rookie you just pulled from your truck. Still, as any veteran of online multiplayer knows, no matter how much time you spend building your character, half the server always seems to have played twice as much. The potentially grand canyon sized gap between noobs and seasoned players, not to mention the general experience gained from just playing online matches, greatly reduces the accessibility of Plus. However, if you have the time (or perhaps copied game save) to invest in creating a competent squad, it’s all gravy.
Structurally, not much has changed in the multiplayer department. Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch, and Capture the Flag all return from Portable Ops and are complimented by a new Shooting Range mode. Seven (by my count) new maps are available, I won’t give away the location of said maps, but let’s just say fans of the series will be pleased! A somewhat unexpected feature is the ability to play on the original Portable Ops servers. Plus fragmented the market and could have just played on its own servers, so props to Konami for throwing this in as well.
The audio and visual package is simultaneously amazing and disappointing. While that seems like a paradox, it’s still appropriate to say the original Portable Ops was one of the finest looking games ever released for the PSP. While that still holds true, nothing has changed this time around for Plus. You can still watch the exact same characters run around the exact same locations with the exact same nuances. Like the rest of Plus, this feeling of sameness isn’t a problem, it’s just, well, the same. Sadly, David Hayter’s rendition of Snake is nearly absent; the few times he does speak seems recycled from Portable Ops.
Enough For Subsistence?
By now it’s common place to receive another iteration of a Metal Gear Solid game shortly after the release of the original. Sons of Liberty and Snake Eater were both rereleased with loads of bonus content in addition to the main game – and at a budget price. Despite its low price and supplementary label, I can’t help but wish more was on this UMD. Yeah, it’s cool to play as Old Snake and Raiden but if they’re going with a non-canon flavor this time out then, hell, why not throw in Liquid? Or Ocelot? Or Fortune? Plus isn’t a bad game by any means, but it does seem like somewhat of a missed opportunity.
