"Real news from the virtual world:

_BEST OF 2008 (SO FAR): E3, the video-game industry's big trade show, is next week, and you'll be hearing a lot about all the new software coming between now and Christmas. But there's a bit of a lull until Aug. 12, when "Madden NFL 09" unofficially marks the beginning of the fall game season. July is a good time to catch up on some of the games you may have missed. Here are the best of the year so far:

1. "Grand Theft Auto IV" (Rockstar, for the Xbox 3..."

"Is it just me or has Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots not recieved much hype after its release? No, no, before you accuse me of insanity let me explain. MGS4 has recieved superb reviews and will arguably be the game of the year. But that's it. Gaming sites have reviewed it and now gone strangely quiet. There are no blogs on silly Metal Gear related topics, there are no bouts of hysteria from overzealous site editors and there are no top 10 MGS4 lists on Gamesradar. Am I the only one f..."

"After a few days I called him up to check in, make sure he hadn't gone down the rabbit hole of virtual unreality. I asked him what he thought of the game.

"I think," he said slowly, "that they need to decide if they want to make a game or make a movie."

Had he given up, I asked. No, he hadn't done that, instead he had buckled down and muscled forward, enjoying a lot of what he had experienced.

I told him I had suggested the game because I thought he would like the themes of military ..."

"Liquid Snake
A clone of legendary hero Big Boss and thus Snake's genetic twin, Liquid is the man behind the whole Shadow Moses operation or, at least, the man who thinks he is. Cold-hearted and manipulative, Liquid's evil is born of jealousy and anger towards Snake. Believing his body to be the recipient of Big Boss' recessive genes (necessary to give Snake all the good ones before birth), Liquid hopes to take control of Metal Gear REX and offer it to the highest bidder. After failing to des..."

"I love high quality making-of game movies, and wanted to get my hands on the Metal Gear Solid 4 Blu-ray, but I sure as hell didn't want to pay double the price for a special edition. So I pre-ordered MGS4 from GAME (UK chain)."

"

1. The review should be written by a fan, not a journalist
2. The review should be written by a journalist, not a fan
3. Reviews should be objective (ie concerned with facts), not subjective (ie personal opinion).
4. Ditto. But vice-versa.
5. More at the source

"

"As the sale of Metal Gear Solid 4 coming up, are you interested in the game?

Already own the PS3 and plan on purchasing MGS4: 28 percent (186 votes)
Plan on purchasing it and a PS3: 14 percent (88 votes)
Own a PS3, but don't intend on purchasing: 14 percent (91 votes)
Interested, but don't plan on purchasing it or a PS3: 46 percent (300 votes)"

"Did Sony make a mistake by not stocking store shelves with 80GB consoles during this crucial period in the console life cycle? They’re on the upswing after a poor launch, but could they have garnered even more sales during the first half of 2008? With the enormous launch of Grand Theft Auto IV in April, how many gamers chose the Xbox 360 version of the game because they couldn’t get backwards compatibility in a PS3 and didn’t want to wait? How many of those customers bought an Xbox 360 instea..."

"With Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots due out next week, the PlayStation 3’s install base and lack of TV marketing for the game may hinder sales, according to Newsweek’s N’Gai Croal.

According to Croal, Metal Gear Solid 4’s mechanics makes it a better game than Assassin’s Creed, but pointed out that MGS4 may fall behind in marketing.

“Assassin’s Creed was marketed phenomenally well,” Croal said. “It had great TV spots. So they’re not doing TV spots for this game, that’s somethi..."

"If you haven't played all of the games in the series, there's every chance that some of it will leave you feeling slightly adrift and a bit confused. Heck, even if you've been following every labyrinthine twist and Byzantine turn of the story so far, there's every chance it will leave you pretty confused. That's because with each new game in the series, the story so far has got more elaborate, more complex, and more convoluted, to the extent that trying to make sense of it all is a bit like h..."

"Metal Gear Solid (or MGS for short), is one of those rare games that blurs the line between movie and game; thanks to the solid “no pun intended” dynamic gameplay in which you can play however you wish, be it all guns blazing or stealth. Although the game reminds you that stealth is sometimes the best approach, as MG is actually the father of stealth action games. With that out of the way, the rest of the games feels like AAA Hollywood film with fantastic, mind wrapping script backed up by gr..."

"Metal Gear Solid 4 is a huge game, but most previews have only scratched the surface. GamePro senior editor Sid Shuman has played the game: here are 25 gameplay features that surprised and delighted him...


MGS4 voices real social concerns:

A socially relevant storyline: Private military companies (or "PMCs") are a key threat in Metal Gear Solid 4 because they've escalated combat into a never-ending war economy. But in a case of truth being stranger than fiction, PMCs are a serious con..."

"This includes reading up about the series, viewing the franchise’s gorgeous artwork, pulling apart previously released trailers etc. During this time I was also in search for some Metal Gear propaganda and as I was searching around I stumbled upon this cool little Otacon clock widget for your desktop:

[Image]

The sprites are taken from MGS2 (end of the Tanker chapter). As you move your cursor around Otacon follows it with his eyes, he also blinks as well. Very cute."

"Video games have a long tradition of creating tough-as-nails protagonists that fight hordes of oncoming enemies. Still, few have been able to elevate themselves to true “badass” status. Sam Fisher and Solid Snake are two characters that have been known for years for their ability to strike fear into enemy NPO’s and let gamers unleash their inner Special Ops soldier. However, there is only room at the top for one badass to rule them all. Myarcadeplanet is putting that power in your hands. It’s..."