METAL GEAR SURVIVE

The Metal Gear franchise has a certain goofiness to it, but it’s supported by a solid foundation of stealth and espionage. At Gamescom, Konami announced Metal Gear Survive, a stark departure from the series that no one expected and many are finding difficult to grasp.

Metal Gear Survive takes place after the events of Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes but before The Phantom Pain. Mother Base was destroyed and the stranded MSF soldiers were left to die — or so we thought. According to Metal Gear Survive, an unexplained wormhole opened up, transporting these soldiers to an alternate universe.

This new world has a desert-like terrain, and is where four players team up online to fight hordes of mindless zombies that Konami calls “living biological threats.” Several pieces of debris and damaged structures that used to hold Mother Base together fell into this wormhole. These pieces of concrete and metal act as makeshift shelters to aid you in your struggle for survival.

“The environment itself is treacherous, everything seems dangerous and trying to kill you,” says Konami brand manager Richard Jones. “Half-formed structures and components of Mother Base have been falling through these portals and are stuck here in the sand, and these places will act as shelter for you.”

While the trailer is action-packed, Konami reassured us that stealth continues to play a large role in Metal Gear Survive. “You need to work together in co-op, as well as utilizing stealth mechanics, which pertain to the series, in order to survive,” Jones says. “You work together, sneaking around enemies, making distractions.”

Jones says players also must master new weaponry, though he stopped short of confirming what these weapons will be. While the cinematic trailer released at Gamescom doesn’t demonstrate any actual gameplay, it showed a few of the weapons the team may have at their disposal — an explosive, spinning bow and arrow, a spear, and a shotgun.

Unfortunately, Konami refused to divulge any more details about the game at its Gamescom presentation, even as we pressed them further.

METAL GEAR SURVIVE is a survival simulator that continues the tradition of the famous action-shooter. METAL GEAR SURVIVE retains all the familiar and favorite mechanics of Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, but the action takes place in a different universe. Take your mind off the main events and head into a universe where survival is the main task of every warrior. Survive, strengthen your bases and fight off hordes of enemies and learn the history of this world. Create your own warrior and survive in another time branch of the familiar game.

Pros of the game:

• Defend your bases and fend off enemy attacks
• Customize your own character