The Naked Prey

Snake enters the Cold War era in Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater. But is Snake solid in the jungle or a fish out of water?

Metal Gear maestro Hideo Kojima revealed the latest trailer from the upcoming series entry, Snake Eater, at the Electronic Entertainment Expo with a playable demo available at the show. GamePro had some quality time with the trial version away from the sound and fury of the show floor, and it?s mighty impressive.
"August 24, 1964, 5:00 A.M."

Just because Snake Eater is set in 1964 doesn't mean it lacks hi-tech weapons. Here, Snake's confronted by flying sentry drones.
First, some background. Snake Eater is set during the Cold War in 1964, when tensions between the U.S. and Russia are high, especially with mutual suspicion of secret nuclear arms development. When the U.S. gets word of a nuclear scientist working on a deadly weapon who wishes to defect, they send in special forces--specifically, Snake. Snake's mission seems simple enough: parachute into Russian-occupied territory, find a man named Sokolov, and take him to an extraction point in under four hours. With a hush-hush mission (a violation of international conventions of warfare, we-don't-know-you-if-you-are-captured type of thing), Snake must erase all evidence of his presence in the jungle. Snake's HALO (high altitude low opening) parachute drop sets off the action, and once he hits the ground, the mission begins.

Welcome to the Jungle
Snake's armed with an MK-22 Hush Puppy tranquilizer gun equipped with a silencer that slowly deteriorates each time it's fired and eventually falls off. Snake compensates for his initial limited arsenal with a host of new attacks and evasive techniques--particularly close-quarters combat (see sidebar). As the name implies, CQC is a method of hand-to-hand fighting, and it is a key technique in the game. Snake can execute several different moves when he has a gun and knife (or just a knife) equipped, and he can soundlessly stalk enemies in order to take them by surprise.


Virtuous Mission: Snake must find the nuclear scientist Sokolov, who's being held prisoner in an abandoned factory in Russian-occupied territory.
Maintaining Snake's stamina is another important play facet. Snake has a life and stamina bar. The life bar displays how much damage he can take before he dies; the stamina bar shows how much energy Snake has in reserve to perform certain moves--dangling from ledges or steadying his aim, for instance. If Snake goes too long without sustenance, his grumbling stomach provides an unwanted audio cue that alerts any enemies he may be trying to sneak up on. Stamina is replenished by consuming food from a variety of sources: hanging fruit, mushrooms, wildlife, and even hornet nests. Some wildlife won't go quietly as bigger prey like alligators can bite and smack Snake around as he moves in for the kill. (Snake can, however, extract payback by feeding the reptile a grenade.) Each time Snake shoots potential food, it changes into a collectible container. Dead things do have a tendency to rot, but Snake can tranquilize and cage up to three small live animals so they remain fresh for feasting. You can also make Snake dizzy enough to vomit if you feed him, pause the game, spin him around in the camouflage menu, and then resume the game.

Naked Snake
New weapons and items also abound. While Snake lacks radar to see his enemies' locations and fields of vision, he does have a variety of sensors, including sonar and motion detection. These items, however, must be used sparingly due to their limited power supplies. In the arsenal department, procured weapons include a scope rifle, shotgun, M16A1 machine gun, and various grenades. Some of the natural surroundings can be used to Snake's advantage as well; hornet nests, for example, can be dropped onto enemies who must then deal with the ensuing angry swarm. Speaking of enemies, adversaries have ramped-up A.I., and they constantly check in with each other via radio; if the chain is broken, an investigation is launched (Snake players with steady aim, however, can disable their radios by shooting them). Enemies are also fairly tough: They limp and try to hide when badly injured as their wounds slowly color their uniforms red.

Snake in the Grass


Snake can use animal carcasses for camouflage, such as an alligator head as shown here.
Many players will be struck by how different Snake Eater is from other Metal Gear games. The controls are similar to those of Sons of Liberty but with added and modified features. Snake can use some weapons while dangling from trees, and there's a stalk ability that allows him to move slowly and silently behind an enemy. Getting accustomed to the surroundings is the biggest shock. The great outdoors is loaded with activity, and the tall grass can conceal everything from enemy soldiers to slithering snakes (which is of little help because anything that moves appears on a sensor), while blowing wind, rustling grass, and chirping birds can mask the footsteps of approaching enemies on the audio track. The uneven terrain is also hazardous, and it's easy for Snake to lose his footing on narrow ledges or rickety bridges and be sent to an instant death.

Other neat features include Snake's ability to push barrels down inclines to flatten enemies and cause explosions, and the interactive cinematic cut-sequences (that you can watch from different points of view) that add a clever, subtle touch. The dialogue's tight and expansive as always, and series trademark quips about the evils of nuclear war and mass-destruction weapons are never in short supply.

Rumble in the Jungle
Flowing through Snake Eater is a constant James Bond 1960s vibe--from order-taking to gadgets to the opening title credits that are accompanied by the game's titular theme song (think "Snake Eater" in place of "Goldfinger").

The demo raised some cliff-hanger questions, and it climaxed with Snake bursting into Sokolov's prison cell only to find...a surprise that won't be ruined here. Knowing Kojima's past Metal Gear titles, Snake Eater is sure to be filled with twists: The lead character, Snake, for example, is rumored to be Big Boss (or even a Snake clone), and Kojima has hinted of a major plot twist to occur within the first 10 minutes of the game. What's in store? Find out the real story when Snake Eater slithers into stores this November.

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