Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain

 PC
Metascore
91

Universal acclaim - based on 13 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 13 out of 13
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 13
  3. Negative: 0 out of 13
  1. Gamer.no
    Sep 17, 2015
    100
    Metal Gear Solid V is the best playing game in the series by a long shot. You choose where and how to do missions, and if sneaking isn't your thing that's fine too. The base-building is a good addition, and ties into the story and world superbly. The story is a slow burn, but goes out with a bang.
  2. DarkZero
    Sep 12, 2015
    100
    Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain is the best playing entry in the series, and while it’s not going to wrap up the entire story in a neat little bow, it’s a technical marvel that works beautifully as a playground for espionage.
  3. Brash Games
    Sep 8, 2015
    100
    I can’t believe the amount of content squeezed into this beautiful created masterpiece.
  5. Hooked Gamers
    Sep 8, 2015
    99
    Kojima and his team saved the best for last, bringing the long running story of Big Boss to a close with a bang in gameplay, though a slightly stumbling run in the story. Despite that, the Phantom Pain a must play.
  6. Merlin'in Kazanı (Turkey)
    Sep 9, 2015
    97
    Bigg Boss's latest adventure is also one last goodbye to the Hideo Kojima and his impressive team. Last "big" MGS game bears the "big" title with honor. If you are a real gamer, you should play this unforgettable experience.
  7. PC Gamer
    Oct 6, 2015
    93
    A generous stealth sandbox masterpiece that will delight both new and existing fans of the long-running series. [Dec 2015, p.50]
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  8. GameStar
    Sep 3, 2015
    92
    MGS5 is an enormous open-world adventure, a monster of a game that can entertain for months.
  9. PC PowerPlay
    Sep 30, 2015
    90
    It might not be the best Metal Gear Solid game ever released, but it's certainly the bravest and most interesting. [Oct 2015, p.53]
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  10. PC Invasion
    Sep 16, 2015
    90
    Flawed in many, many ways, but none of those ways impact a glorious, emergent, open-world experience.
  11. Softpedia
    Sep 3, 2015
    90
    Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain makes good on its word and delivers a great experience that's more than worthy of the saga's heritage. However, it's not exactly perfect, as the story requires a lot of pre-established knowledge, not to mention cassette-listening to make sense.
  12. Game World Navigator Magazine
    Sep 25, 2015
    86
    There was no need for this lifeless open world; Phantom Pain would work much better as a series of “sandboxy” missions that include only the to-be-infiltrated complex and some space around it, like in Hitman: Blood Money. Still, the most important thing of all – stealth gameplay – is top-notch. [Issue#201, p.46]
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  13. Ragequit.gr
    Sep 18, 2015
    85
    Kojima's latest epic is equally magnificent and frustrating, exhilarating in its gameplay and confusing in its storytelling. Even so, it is a truly great game that every gamer needs to experience first-hand. One thing is for sure, we will be talking about The Phantom Pain for many years to come.
  14. Riot Pixels
    Oct 8, 2015
    77
    Metal Gear Solid V is amazing at times, and I enjoyed playing it, but there are so many embarrassing blunders and contradictions. Rich tactical gameplay vs an almost dead world. Fun HQ management and interesting characters vs an unfinished narrative and boring side quests. In some regards, this is a huge step back from previous Metal Gear games.
This publication does not provide a score for their reviews.
This publication has not posted a final review score yet.
These unscored reviews do not factor into the Metascore calculation.

In Progress & Unscored

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  1. Rock, Paper, Shotgun
    Dec 7, 2015
    Such player-driven drama, comedy, and action eclipses anything in the disappointing scripted narrative. The Phantom Pain is one of the worst Metal Gear stories ever told. It functions neither as a standalone narrative nor as worthwhile insight into the series overall. And yet, The Phantom Pain is the best stealth-action game ever made, one where playing flawlessly is just as thrilling as outright failure. And boy – what a thrill.

Awards & Rankings

4
#4 Best PC Game of 2015
14
#14 Most Discussed PC Game of 2015
24
#24 Most Shared PC Game of 2015

User Reviews

All reviews »
User Score
7.9

Generally favorable reviews- based on 2905 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 2,071 out of 2905
  2. Mixed: 461 out of 2905
  3. Negative: 373 out of 2905
  1. carnivorCactae
    Sep 6, 2015
    4
    I really really really want to like this game, and trying all I can to enjoy the extremly easy fights, but its getting old really fast.

    6-8    I really really really want to like this game, and trying all I can to enjoy the extremly easy fights, but its getting old really fast.

    6-8 missions in the game you start seeing the pattern, they all look alike, and they are all on the same spots. So at the camp you just rescued a guy, you now have to find a new weapon schematic, or kill some officer. It gets really repetetive really fast.
    (ESCORT MISSIONS!!! NO ONE LIKES THEM!)
    The traveltime in this game is horrible, you spend 40% of the game running from a to b, and the time spend flying in your chopper just seems to badly made. You have to watch yourself fly at least 1 minute either from takeoff or landing, this gets old really fast.
    It takes about 3-4 minutes to ride from one small camp to another, and the desert/mountain scenario gets old REALLY fast.

    You cant get more than 1 thing in your supply drop, so you have to wait allmost 1 minute from you order something, till it hits the ground, then buy 1 more thing and wait another minute.

    The weapon customization options are pitiful when you finally do unlock them, and most changes to the guns don't ACTUALLY do ANYTHING. I've literally found around three parts that make changes to the base gun model. It's good for nothing more than painting your guns or adding flashlights though god only knows why the **** you'd bother with those.

    It's literally Far Cry 2 with even LESS areas to explore. You will find yourself mind numbingly stumbling through the game later on taking down hostiles and picking up resources just because you've gotten to a point where you're going through the motions, the areas are totally uninspired, even if they are gorgeous to look at.

    You do openly have the freedom to approach missions in almost anyway you want,
    that is, whenever snake isn't randomly sliding down inclines that I could easily crawl up myself.

    you cant even rebind the majority of the keys or save the game (even MGS1 let you save more or less freely!).
    bad console port.
    requested a refund.    … Full Review »
  2. sscott0829tw
    Sep 1, 2015
    10
    I can say without a doubt that MGSV is the GOTY,maybe fallout4 can beat it.
    They missions are fun and well designed.Open world gameplay fit    I can say without a doubt that MGSV is the GOTY,maybe fallout4 can beat it.
    They missions are fun and well designed.Open world gameplay fit well with MGS style.
    The cutscenes are epic as **** the characters are deep and interesting.Troy baker done a damn voice job again,Mother base let you keep your own crew to develop weapon or go on missions.The enemy AI is pretty smart.They know how to find you and eliminate you.There is so much fun messing around in the battlefield and mother base.The whole game is just addictive that will makes you don't want to leave you computer for weeks.
    Still exploring the game,but in my scale this game is already the best game I played this year,even better than Witcher3(I cannot believe).    … Full Review »
  3. Bane2087
    Sep 4, 2015
    7
    + Good graphics, well optimised
    + Gameplay is fun when not fighting the controls
    + Tons of content - Bad glitchy controls, movement and    + Good graphics, well optimised
    + Gameplay is fun when not fighting the controls
    + Tons of content
    - Bad glitchy controls, movement and cover system
    - Completely nonsensical plot and backstory
    - Dodgy PC port with no mouse support in menus

    Seems people will rate anything a 10 with Kojima written on it, because this game is by no means perfect. The worst offender here is the glitching controls that fight you at every turn whether it's something as simple as opening a door that takes 3 attempts or trying to take cover behind a wall the game developers forgot to mark as cover. In those times you aren't crawling backwards instead of turning around, or climbing on a ledge you are actually allowed to climb the game shines and makes you wish they'd spent more time polishing the terrain traversal instead of the cut scenes because it could have been much better than it is. Also Assassin's Creed (yes the first one in 2007) did a better job of implementing horse movement.

    Other than that the story is barely coherent, extremely disjointed and nonsensical, If you haven't played the previous games in the series be prepared for a rough time because very little is explained and the game expects you from the outset to care about characters who you've only just been introduced to. There's very little to explain wtf is going on really apart from a bunch of audio logs.

    Finally this game is a jarring blend of seriousness (like witnessing graphic cold blooded murder of innocents) and the completely ridiculous (such as stealing enemy troops by sending them into orbit via a balloon). It does not blend well at all.    … Full Review »
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