Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain

 PC
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

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  1. Thunder5555
    Oct 16, 2015
    9
    Best version available of this game. Controls are still bit weird for most PC users, but as gameplay and performance goes, this is very well made.
    Story is bit .. Kojima like. So weirdness is expected and one story arch seems to be completely forgotten in the end, leaving loose ends for the players who were looking conclusion for the series.
    Still, very enjoyable. Oh, and there's a    Best version available of this game. Controls are still bit weird for most PC users, but as gameplay and performance goes, this is very well made.
    Story is bit .. Kojima like. So weirdness is expected and one story arch seems to be completely forgotten in the end, leaving loose ends for the players who were looking conclusion for the series.
    Still, very enjoyable.
    Oh, and there's a forced multiplayer element in game which is just pointless. Sometimes I have no idea what japanese devs are thinking when they add random stuff like that.
    Almost the best game there is, but no. Worth checking out though    … Expand
  2. saulot
    Sep 15, 2015
    9
    A great PC port. Still has some small issues like showing controller when you go to control info screen or mouse support in menus. The game may get the tiniest bit repetitive but will changes often enough to dispel this. However small issues aside this was a EXTREMELY polished game day one(almost a novelty this day to most game producers). A triumph of voice acting and story telling asA great PC port. Still has some small issues like showing controller when you go to control info screen or mouse support in menus. The game may get the tiniest bit repetitive but will changes often enough to dispel this. However small issues aside this was a EXTREMELY polished game day one(almost a novelty this day to most game producers). A triumph of voice acting and story telling as well. Just an overall pleasure to play.… Expand
  3. Messerschmitt
    Sep 9, 2015
    9
    The best Metal Gear Solid in terms of gameplay. So far Ive played almost for 30 hours and must say that I love the freedom - there are a lot of things that you can do in many ways. Also the game respects player intelligence and doesn't hold your hand - and that's something I haven't seen for a while in aaa title (except for the souls series). What's most important sneaking mechanics areThe best Metal Gear Solid in terms of gameplay. So far Ive played almost for 30 hours and must say that I love the freedom - there are a lot of things that you can do in many ways. Also the game respects player intelligence and doesn't hold your hand - and that's something I haven't seen for a while in aaa title (except for the souls series). What's most important sneaking mechanics are very good and satisfying.

    To be honest I've never been a huge fun of Kojima overly dramatic and convoluted storytelling. I have played all games in the series besides psp titles and really liked mgs from 1998 (loved the game and the story) and mgs 3. At the same time I really disliked mgs 2 and mgs 4 (a huge letdown) for nonsensical plots. The Phantom Pain story however feels great for me. Kojima has found the right balance between gameplay and storytelling and made a fantastic sneaking game. Best Metal Gear Solid for the newcomers.

    + great sneaking mechanics
    + freedom
    + great audio
    + good and well optimized graphics
    + story - of course it's Kojima game so not everyone will like it
    + a lot of content
    + some great gameplay ideas
    - the world may seem empty    … Expand
  4. plotlesviolence
    Sep 26, 2015
    9
    The best stealth game ever. It's Far Cry 4, inverted: open-world stealth with action elements. Find (by interrogating grabbed/held-up enemies) and kill/extract the target as you see fit. In the field, you steal resources, which feeds into mother base development, which in turn feeds into your upgrades. It's a perfect loop that kept me invested, whereas in most games I loathe upgrade treesThe best stealth game ever. It's Far Cry 4, inverted: open-world stealth with action elements. Find (by interrogating grabbed/held-up enemies) and kill/extract the target as you see fit. In the field, you steal resources, which feeds into mother base development, which in turn feeds into your upgrades. It's a perfect loop that kept me invested, whereas in most games I loathe upgrade trees and prefer a curated experience. Extracting soldiers encourages nonlethal approaches at greater risk of discovery. After each mission you can afford new toys (helper buddies, aerial bombardments, new loadouts, etc.), keeping the game fresh. The shifting night/day cycle and weather (dust storms/rain) yield additional sneaking options. The game is gorgeous, reminding me of GTA V, and ran like a 50 FPS dream on my approximately PS4-level PC to the point where I never messed with the default settings (a first for me). Cleverly, much of the story is on tapes which you can be listened to while playing. So why not rate it a 10? Previous Metal Gears had awkward gameplay but excellent (if bloated and overlong) storylines, but this is the opposite.
    1) The story is unfinished. The "words that kill" theme is interesting and handled beautifully (see Quiet’s ending), but the child soldiers arc is never concluded (see the deleted Ep51 on Youtube). A shame, given the scene where children beg for their lives holding out diamonds, the impact of child soldiers on the series, and the paralleled central question "are we making things better by participating in war/nuclear armament/child rearing?"
    2) Mission organization is bizarre. Some "side ops" are marked "critical" (to access later main missions). After the first ending (Ep 31), "Chapter 2" makes you replay half the missions on hard mode (more enemies, harder enemies, no-items or no-alerts). Fun, but FORCING them on me left a sour taste. If EVER a game didn't need padding...I think Kojima was too stubborn to reorganize his original design after Konami cut off funding.
    3) “Alert” mode lasts forever, so it’s sadly easier to take out the whole base or restart the checkpoint. The way it SHOULD have been handled was, you get inside a cardboard box or dumpster hiding space and smoke the phantom cigar (speeds up gametime) until enemies give up if you hid well. I kept trying to get to a fast-travel point, alerting someone, and rendering that approach useless (can’t smoke or fast-travel when on alert).
    4) Kojima thinks hiding things is fun thanks to some Pokemon game he once played, so A LOT of the coolest stuff is hidden. Do the Legendary Gunsmith side-ops (which require other side ops), or you can’t customize weapons: a silencer on a lethal weapon lets you shoot out lights and cameras (tranq guns can’t), changing my nighttime approaches. I totally missed getting the D-Dog buddy. Half the cutscenes are triggered by unknown criteria, like returning to base at a certain hour/weather/buddy. It’s hard to feel like you get the full experience.
    5) Mother base has 8 platforms but only enough interactivity/content for one. The one mission where it might matter, the invasion, is only played on ONE of the 8 platforms, so why build a huge empty world?
    6) Quiet is explicitly a sex object by design in name/dress/movements. It's juvenile, detracting from the character. Imagine watching "Age of Ultron" and halfway through fighting robots, the film paused for some hardcore pornography, would you take it seriously afterwards? Compare MGS3’s Eva: sure, she was sexy, but it was intentional as part of a honey trap for Snake; when the camera zoomed in on Eva, it was actually Snake's PoV, thematically showing her tactics were working. When Quiet moves like a stripper in front of the entire mother base, it’s a 3rd-person camera that zooms in on her boobs. There's no justification: Quiet isn't trying to seduce anyone, and spare me "breathes through her skin.”
    7) There's less story here, but it STILL suffers trademark Kojima bloat. The first (of 2) tutorial missions was "push forward to slow-walk," worse than a (skippable) cutscene, and you had to play it TWICE to beat the game.
    8) There are only 4 boss battles: sniper duel, the Man on Fire, the skulls, and metal gear. Disappointing, compared to MGS1 and MGS3.
    9) You lose one of the buddies at the end. This is modable on PC only.
    10) You can't replay side ops, just the main missions.
    11) As Kojima's swan song, I expected the plot to be more of a finale that tied the series in a neat bow and left nothing else to show. We’ve already seen Big Boss turn against the CIA, raise the Outer Heaven army, and create Foxhound in MGS:Portable Ops. This should have been him running Foxhound. Instead, it's largely an unnecessary side-story. The interesting stuff happens offscreen. And the twist at the end detracts from rather than adds to the impact on the larger story.
    Is it worth the $60? Definitely. But it is simultaneously overstuffed and unfinished, impressive and disappointing.    … Expand
  5. albertc
    Apr 15, 2016
    9
    As a long standing Metal Gear fan I was as excited as teen is with their first car for this game. Kojima usually never fails to please when it comes to games for me. I have grown up with these games for most of my life and I sometimes feel like I know the characters more then they know themselves. And while Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater has the honor of being my favorite game of all timeAs a long standing Metal Gear fan I was as excited as teen is with their first car for this game. Kojima usually never fails to please when it comes to games for me. I have grown up with these games for most of my life and I sometimes feel like I know the characters more then they know themselves. And while Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater has the honor of being my favorite game of all time Metal Gear Solid 5 does have a place in my heart forever as well. I feel however it could have been so much more had they let Kojima make the game he wanted to make and actually would have let him finish the ending he had wanted to finish. The game is amazingly fun gameplay wise. It mixes elements of sandbox, rpg, and stealth perfectly. The game also plays alot like mgs3 in certain aspects. The main downfall this game has is in two aspects. The first one is snakes voice actor. Now David Hayter may not be a good voice actor but he is corny and over the top. He is also most importantly perfect for the voice of snake. I never thought anyone else could voice snake and be good at it. And I was right. There's a reason Kiefer Sutherland doesn't talk much in the game and that's because he's a terrible voice actor. Snake stays silent for most of the game and that's because the voice actor portraying him is mediocre. Now I'm fine with bad voice acting in a game as long as its the first game in a series. But when it's your fifth game if you're going to start making adjustments please make sure you get good voice actors. Big Boss was never not talkative in MGS3 or Peacewalker. Did he talk less then solid snake? Sure but was he practically silent the whole game having no emotion at all? No and that's where this Metal gear falls short. The rest of the voice acting crew all sound really good and then Kiefer comes in with his terrible voice acting. The second part it falls short in is the story. The story is pretty good up until the end. Now i'm not going to spoil it for you but think mass effect threes ending in the sense it kind of makes the whole game null but not as bad. This stuff isn't enough to make the game an absolute failure though. The game is absolutely one of the best of 2015 and one of the best Metal Gears of all time.… Expand
  6. CapnAwesome
    Oct 12, 2015
    9
    All in all this game is a ton of fun that will take 40+ hours to fully finish, but there are definitely some huge drawbacks for Metal Gear fans. The open world environment was a new addition to Metal Gear and I feel like it makes the game less fun and strategic. The open world is too barren with not much happening except near guard outposts and bases.

    Clearly this Metal Gear's story    All in all this game is a ton of fun that will take 40+ hours to fully finish, but there are definitely some huge drawbacks for Metal Gear fans. The open world environment was a new addition to Metal Gear and I feel like it makes the game less fun and strategic. The open world is too barren with not much happening except near guard outposts and bases.

    Clearly this Metal Gear's story was not as well done as previous titles like Snake Eater. There are not enough cutscenes to shed more light on the story and you really have to listen to the audio logs to get a better feel for it, which most players probably won't do.

    The gameplay itself is fun and the graphics are very good. Once again though, if this game was not open world and set in specific environments, the missions could be more intricate and less repetitive. I would have loved indoor missions with more security cameras and obstacles to negotiate, which I think is where the Metal Gear series shines. There is a huge variety of weapon choices that don't really add much to the strategy of the game.

    As a Metal Gear game I think Phantom Pain is a bit of a let down, but I still think it's worth a shot and I have spent 50+ hours enjoying the game. I believe if they emphasized more on the story quality and made this game non open world then this game would have been truly exceptional.    … Expand
  7. aidan0
    Sep 8, 2015
    9
    I really like this game. Great combat, game play, missions aren’t boring. Although I keep trying to go back and completing secondary objective, which aren’t too obvious. Which is a good thing. The mission aren’t like most game, go to this way point, do this. No, it go to this area and figure out your objective. It can be hard and time consuming sometimes.

    This game really has some humor    I really like this game. Great combat, game play, missions aren’t boring. Although I keep trying to go back and completing secondary objective, which aren’t too obvious. Which is a good thing. The mission aren’t like most game, go to this way point, do this. No, it go to this area and figure out your objective. It can be hard and time consuming sometimes.

    This game really has some humor too it. It should be called phantom kidnapper. Can’t wait to literally steal every piece of equipment in an enemy base. That’s a nice AAA turret you have, don’t mind it I airlift it back to my base. Oh, that’s some skilled personnel that you have, don’t mind it I take them too. Nice truck, you don’t need it right?

    I like putting people to sleep, but when you have to go loud it is equally as fun. There are a lot of ways to defeat group of enemy. Go in all sneaky, go in guns a blazing, kill them all predator style. Snipe them and have them rain mortars at you, unless you re position yourself. Misdirect them with C4.

    Mother base is awesome, the best part is leaving for a mission and seeing that great piece of steel construction out in the middle of the sea.

    I'm still on mission 7 and I'm already 18 hours in..

    Cons.
    I had to struggle past the prologue, to really get into the game.
    PC Controls could be better, so this is a 9 out of 10    … Expand
  8. Rem
    Mar 2, 2017
    9
    Metal Gear Solid V is the best stealth action game ever made. The myriad of options it gives you is mind boggling. How you approach your mission, how to get there, how much you wanna do, what you wanna use; each of these disparate elements are often toted by other games as selling points, but none give you as much freedom as The Phantom Pain does. Kojima's sendoff for the Metal GearMetal Gear Solid V is the best stealth action game ever made. The myriad of options it gives you is mind boggling. How you approach your mission, how to get there, how much you wanna do, what you wanna use; each of these disparate elements are often toted by other games as selling points, but none give you as much freedom as The Phantom Pain does. Kojima's sendoff for the Metal Gear franchise is rife with controversy, and infuriates a number of fans over lack of content and story decisions, but no other game in so many years gave me so much fun and accessibility as this one.

    While I am not an avid follower of the Metal Gear franchise, I can say I have a basic understanding of the game's chronology. Taking place before Metal Gear, The Phantom Pain pits you in the shoes of Big Boss, the legendary hero who is now engaged in a proxy war against a shadow ops organization named Cipher in order to quell yet another threat to world peace. Where the story continues from here is a culmination of all the past Metal Gears in terms of theme and tone (although this entry has the most disturbing content), ending in a plot twist that divides fans and newcomers alike. I somewhat saw it coming, but I can't say I'm upset over the reveal. It puts the whole game in a very different context and even cheapens your actions a little by the end, but it's still a genuine head turner. The other plot points the game goes through is actually quite sparse given that most mission story content is contained in mission briefings and debriefings. Much of the actual story and context is hidden in the endless amount of tapes that is essential to understand just what the hell is going on. This results in the lack of cutscenes that have way more impact, and the narrativve ultimately suffers because of it. There also comes the controversy of the lack of story content, which is true given the the second chapter of the story is often devoid of story and instead peppered with repeat missions and a plot takes place out of order. It's not bad, but it's painfully devoid of anything.

    The story might not win fans over, but the gameplay is light-years ahead in quality. To begin, the controls are smooth as butter. It's easy to command Big Boss from an action hero to a stealthy op in a heartbeat. This carries over to the gameplay which for only better, give you complete reign in how you want to tackle a mission. While the objectives are often the "go here, extract/rescue/kill that" shtick, it's always fun because it's dynamic. Guard placements, reactions, and equipment are tailored to how you've been playing, which ends up giving me a challenge. Best of all, this is all tied in to the Mother Base, you're safe haven to develop your growing private army and equipment. It's this sort of minigame that takes place within your iDroid that will surprisingly take up an astounding chunk of your time. It feels like an RPG in the development sense, without the number crunching. Capturing enemy soldiers to fulton and make them work for you incentives stealth play, and adds a layer of depth to the gameplay. All these parts combined make Metal Gear Solid V such a fantastic experience to play, and even repeating missions, which is often a headcase in other games, is another opportunity to build your private army and Big Boss himself.

    Among smaller details, the music is quite bombastic and serves the game's setting well in addition to the game's time appropriate licensed soundtrack. Sound effects are crisp and pop, making firefights always engaging, but it's the visuals that stand out. Never before has there been as much cinematic flair contained in the visuals, and the Fox Engine supports that and more. There is a surprising amount of detail to everything and leans towards the more photorealistic side, with ultra detailed character models and environments. This is all wrapped in an insanely well optimized game that saw me close to maxed out settings and an always constant 60 fps.

    While the swan song of Kojima isn't perfect with long time fans, it's a more than capable game that can keep you entertained dozens of hours on end while still giving you control. For me, it's the best stealth action game ever made, and I've been waiting for something like this for a long time.    … Expand
  9. Styke
    Nov 29, 2015
    9
    Somehow Kojima managed to do open world and secret base building better than every single ubisoft game in the last fifteen years. He can't write his way out of a paper bag, that much is impossibly clear, but it is amazing how well he conveyed the sense of just badass power in everything the player does in the game. From sneaking behind snipers in the rain, to punching your way through anSomehow Kojima managed to do open world and secret base building better than every single ubisoft game in the last fifteen years. He can't write his way out of a paper bag, that much is impossibly clear, but it is amazing how well he conveyed the sense of just badass power in everything the player does in the game. From sneaking behind snipers in the rain, to punching your way through an army of child soldiers, this is the one game that actually tried to make the player feel cool and did it.

    Slamming the door of the helicopter or pulling the trigger on an enemy just feels real, every action has weight to it where games like the witcher 3 and especially fallout/skyrim literally show their game engine when you try to interact with an object or move the character in the air.

    The multiplayer is just plain innovative and after three hundred hours of raiding other people's bases I still can't put the controller down, and yes you should play with a controller as it is an Xbox port - but it will handle decently with m+k.

    The only complaints are konami's handling of, well, literally everything and Kojima's god-awful plot. The game itself is a miracle considering it was designed to run on 512mb of ram, and the only honest game I've been impressed with in two years    … Expand
  10. lastfox
    Apr 22, 2020
    9
    As someone who played most of the Metal Gear games (except MG4) I really only enjoyed MGS I, III & Peace Walker.
    I'm not a big fan of Hideo Kojima as a storyteller, but thankfully you can skip most of the story and still enjoy the game.
    The game is the first Metal Gear that goes all-in on the open-world experience. It's a huge improvement in terms of player- and camera controls compared    As someone who played most of the Metal Gear games (except MG4) I really only enjoyed MGS I, III & Peace Walker.
    I'm not a big fan of Hideo Kojima as a storyteller, but thankfully you can skip most of the story and still enjoy the game.

    The game is the first Metal Gear that goes all-in on the open-world experience. It's a huge improvement in terms of player- and camera controls compared to the uneven Ground Zeroes.

    Not only does the game provide a more intuitive approach to stealth, but the AI is also adapting to your usual tactics and weapon choices, so the difficulty gradually ramps up. Surprisingly the game runs even pretty smooth on an older machine, so props to the Fox Engine. It's a shame that Konami won't properly use it again except for a shameless cashgrab.

    If there’s a few things I would criticize, then that I would have wished to see at least a third country that we could explore. And the other thing is that the ending is pretty underwhelming and I mean in a "that was it?" sense. Overall it's one of the best open-world stealth game hands down. Even after finishing the game there is a lot of replay value just by the sheer volume of ways to experiment with the gadgets and the environment.    … Expand
  11. BoredZero
    Sep 19, 2015
    9
    Fans of the Metal Gear Solid series might find themselves a little put off by the pacing and the way the game plays - unless you've played Peacewalker. This game is, effectively a sequel to Peacewalker, putting the base building concepts from a PSP handheld title into the big leagues - and is also darker than MGS's 1-4.

    If you've never played Peacewalker, it'll take you some time to get    Fans of the Metal Gear Solid series might find themselves a little put off by the pacing and the way the game plays - unless you've played Peacewalker. This game is, effectively a sequel to Peacewalker, putting the base building concepts from a PSP handheld title into the big leagues - and is also darker than MGS's 1-4.

    If you've never played Peacewalker, it'll take you some time to get used to it since the story takes a while to gain traction.

    Oh, and that water pistol? Don't bother shooting the Man on Fire with it, it doesn't do anything.    … Expand
  12. Mahdiar
    Dec 12, 2015
    9
    Gameplay : 9
    Graphics : 8
    Story : 10
    Sound : 10
    ********************************************************************************
    Overall : 9
  13. Slevin310
    Sep 12, 2015
    9
    (The actual game 9/10 but the PC version is a 7.5/10 due to graphic downgrades and wonky controls)
    28 years of Metal Gear... 28 years of Hideo Kojima. All that has come to close as Kojima has left Konami. He leaves his us, his fans, with Metal Gear Solid 5 The Phantom Pain. Regardless of our thoughts on the game, we should at least respect the work this man has put into his games. He    (The actual game 9/10 but the PC version is a 7.5/10 due to graphic downgrades and wonky controls)
    28 years of Metal Gear... 28 years of Hideo Kojima. All that has come to close as Kojima has left Konami. He leaves his us, his fans, with Metal Gear Solid 5 The Phantom Pain. Regardless of our thoughts on the game, we should at least respect the work this man has put into his games. He treats Metal Gear as his pride and joy. The effort is seen in the extensive stories and innovation that comes with Metal Gear games. Even today when games seem to enjoy rehashing items, textures, designs and mechanics, Phantom Pain introduces new ideas not seen in games before.

    Lets start off with the bad things. The open world aspects and your main base (Mother Base) seem to lack consistency. There's not much to do at Mother Base and the open world doesn't have much other than enemy bases. Side Missions can become repetitive and the story is not quite on par with the previous Metal Gear games. Snake barely talks and there's not as many cutscenes. This may not bother other players but fans of the Metal Gear franchise will definitely notice those differences. I also notice the PC version has very wonky controls... it's not at all like PS4. Even using a gamepad doesn't fix it. The controls just feel slow and delayed. Or they'll do something you didn't mean to.

    The gameplay is flawlessly created to provide you with nonstop entertainment. The stealth and enemy placement can be difficult, but to me that's a good thing. The game is challenging and requires you to use some tactical plans in order to get to your objectives. If you enjoy running down corridors shooting mindlessly at enemies, this isn't your game. If you expect to just crouch down in a shadow and expect enemies not to see you in other stealth games... this is not the game for you. You must be very careful around enemies.

    Enemies have been programmed with sufficient AI. They're smart during combat, observant during stealth and they'll mix up their path every so often. Luckily you have a massive list of different items, weapons, tools and support options to handle them. You have to develop your base in order to create better gear. Collecting resources and recruiting team members is vital to your progress. You have the option of being a blood thirsty killer or an honorable soldier who only resorts to killing as a last ditch effort. There are multiple ways to take down enemies without killing. Unlike other games this would usually be done with stealthfully choking out enemies or tranq darts, which can be kind of boring when you have so many badass guns. In Phantom Pain you can upgrade a lot of your favorite weapons to shoot rubber bullets that will stun enemies and still provide you the fun shoot outs.

    The open world is set in the deserts of Afghanistan, you get around by horse or vehicles. It almost feels like a western but with futuristic qualities. You can go it alone or have a support unit help out with missions. Could either be a specialist soldier or D-Dog (Wolf). Online features base fighting, you can assault online player's bases to steal their resources and players can also assault your base. You'll need to upgrade your bases defense and make sure your army is well equipped. Assaulting player's bases is a lot of fun, easily my favorite thing about this game.

    Right off the bat this game throws you into an extremely intense intro. This is one game that does NOT have a slow start. Although the game does have a lot of features that will be locked off till you progress far enough into the game, this actually makes the experience better. You're constantly being given new things to try out so there's never a dull moment. The graphics and music are breath taking. The game's presentation is incredible, cinema worthy experience.

    I know the issues fans have pointed out and I understand, as a hardcore fan myself, but look at the current state of games. New games like Resident Evil 5 and 6, Silent Hill Homecoming and Downpour, Battlefield 4 and Hardline, Elder Scrolls Online, Sonic and Sim City they have all circum to the changes in the mainstream gaming industry. Features and gameplay dwindle as games slowly become less and less challenging. Entire gameplay mechanics are stripped to provide more mass appeal. In this era I can only hope games try to do their best and improve as times go on. Yet they're all taking big steps back and now all we can hope is that a game will be worth their prices. It would have been so easy to take this franchise and turn it into yet another Call of Duty clone. But Kojima cares about his games and fans. He genuinely tries to make a video game masterpiece, he wouldn't sacrifice quality for money. While it might not be MGS, Snake Eater or Peace Walker... Phantom Pan is amazing in its own way. Definitely worth buying!

    Farewell Kojima, thanks for the awesome games!    … Expand
  14. Chidawg66
    Mar 16, 2016
    9
    Wow, did I have a lot of fun playing this game. Sadly it only gets a 9/10 since Act II was basically rushed and doesn't really even compare anywhere close to Act I. If this game had an Act II that was just as good as Act I, it would be a 10/10. The game itself is pretty amazing. Best sandbox shooter I've ever played.
  15. DustinOrion
    Sep 2, 2015
    9
    +Great gameplay
    +Great graphics and performance
    +Huge world and campaign, lots of fun. -Feels like an unfinished port from xbox. The controls screen shows an xbox controller. -Menus aren't user friendly and don't utilize the mouse. -Starting game goes like this: "This game has autosave" >OK "Agree to EULA..." >OK "Login Successful" OK "Online updates"> Next, Next, Next, Next, Next    +Great gameplay
    +Great graphics and performance
    +Huge world and campaign, lots of fun.
    -Feels like an unfinished port from xbox. The controls screen shows an xbox controller.
    -Menus aren't user friendly and don't utilize the mouse.
    -Starting game goes like this:
    "This game has autosave" >OK
    "Agree to EULA..." >OK
    "Login Successful" OK
    "Online updates"> Next, Next, Next, Next, Next
    Konami logo> Enter
    Kojima logo> Enter
    Fox Engine logo> Enter
    Nvidia logo > Enter
    Startup screen> Enter
    Continue?> Enter
    Just let me play the damn game

    -As far as gameplay, getting around takes time because there are a small amount of extraction points, the heli takes a while to land and take off. Just end the mission when I get to the extraction point    … Expand
  16. Ydun79
    Feb 11, 2019
    9
    Amazing gameplay, amazing music, great graphics. The only thing this game is lacking is a more cohesive story.
  17. ScotchRobbins
    Dec 3, 2015
    9
    It ain't perfect, but it runs like Forrest Gump, it has a lot of content, and being able to approach combat from a variety of ways is very satisfying. Buy it on sale.
  18. DarekBaird
    Oct 10, 2015
    9
    MGSV The Phantom Pain is absolutely one of the best MGS games from a gameplay perspective. The animation, graphics, combat, and just general gameplay is great and some of the best third person gameplay I've played in a long time. However from a story perspective it is not the best. It is good and does manage to pull you in and the twist at the end will feel good after connecting all theMGSV The Phantom Pain is absolutely one of the best MGS games from a gameplay perspective. The animation, graphics, combat, and just general gameplay is great and some of the best third person gameplay I've played in a long time. However from a story perspective it is not the best. It is good and does manage to pull you in and the twist at the end will feel good after connecting all the dots in the series all the way to MG1. Filler makes up most of the second half but is so dynamic its still fun and enjoyable so I would suggest this game. If you wish to see a full review my in-depth video review will be on my youtube channel DarekBaird. thank you for reading and enjoy the game. oh and the third chapter if you hadn't heard was cut and did add a possible fourth area to the game the three in it being Afganistan, Africa, and MotherBase.… Expand
  19. TJohnston
    Sep 26, 2015
    9
    This is only the second game I have reviewed on Steam, the first one being GTA 5. I tend to only review games that I am deeply passionate about, and being that I have put in 20 hours and am only 15 percent completed into the game, I feel confident in reviewing it. I will preface this the fact that I have not played every metal gear game, but I have played MGS3, MGS:Peace Walker, GroundThis is only the second game I have reviewed on Steam, the first one being GTA 5. I tend to only review games that I am deeply passionate about, and being that I have put in 20 hours and am only 15 percent completed into the game, I feel confident in reviewing it. I will preface this the fact that I have not played every metal gear game, but I have played MGS3, MGS:Peace Walker, Ground Zeros and I read the story of Portable Ops, so in the MGS Timeline I know everything Leading up to The Phantom Pain, but nothing afterwards.

    Gameplay-
    The gameplay in TPP is nothing short of a masterpeice, Kojima gives you so many tools to use throughout the missions, tools that allow the player to approach a mission virtually anyway you like. In previous games there was a huge focus on stealth, which is still part of the game, but it now allows for more varied gameplay and does not punish you if you want to go in guns blazing. Another deviation from the original MGS games is the introduction of an Open-World game, where as the other games were linear in nature. The Base building aspect of the game is also welcomed, as it gives you a reason to use stealth in order to abduct soldiers to your base. I am really looking forward to the true Online portion of the game when it launches early 2016.

    Graphics/optimization-
    There isn't much to say in this section because the results are the same across the board, this game is absolutely beautiful. Just look at the screenshots and the videos! With great texture work for a third person open-world game and amazing draw distance with little pop in, it is definetly a welcome change from some of the other PC games that have launched this year. I have been running this game on a GTX 970 4gig, AMD FX 6300, and on a SSD and with this hardware I have been running the game on Maximum settings with no noticeable drops below 60 FPS. (Note:The Game has a frame cap of 60 fps). It is clear that a lot of work has gone into optimization of the FOX game engine for all computer set-ups.

    Settings-
    Generally the settings options are good, Graphical options are pretty good giving you the option to customize pretty much anything you want. Sound options are where the game starts to fault. The only controls you have is for Master Volume and Audio Guidance. It would be ideal to have separate sliders for dialogue, music, and sound effects.

    Story (No Spoilers)-
    This section is a mixed bag, most die hard fans may find the deviation from standard MGS formula unwelcomed. But I actually dont mind how they presented the story in TPP. In other MGS games you would be subject to extraordinarily long cutscenes with gameplay sprinkled in between where as TPP takes the opposite approach. This is not saying that there is no story, as you can get a lot from the Cassette tapes that you acquire. This approach makes the game more accessible to non-metal gear players and opens the game up to more players. As to the ending even though I have not reached it yet, I do know how it ends, and I really don't mind how the story ends, I kinda like the idea. (I am being vague to avoid spoilers).

    Controls-
    When it comes to controls there are both pros and cons. Generally the controls feel excellent. I have tested both Keyboard and Mouse And Controller. Both work very well, but of course keyboard and mouse allows for much faster and more accurate aiming. Although I would suggest rebinding controls to suite what you are used to as some of the default controls are counter-intuitive. I rebound most controls to my mouse for a more enjoyable experience. One major con in terms of controls is that during the tutorial and throughout the game, tool tips will show the controls for a controller even if you are playing with a keyboard and mouse. This seems like it could be fixed via a patch fairly easily but as of this review this has not happened. The last major con in terms of controls is that mouse support in menus is not supported, forcing you to use the keyboard to navigate, which is just awful especially considering the layout of the menus. This is also something that seems like it could be fixed easily but has not been addressed as of yet.

    TLDR- Get the game! It is a masterpeice in my own opinion.    … Expand
  20. sukho204
    Oct 23, 2015
    9
    now this is what you call a great stealth game. To be honest. I really don't like stealth games. so at the begining of game, I just rushed in to the enemy base with guns blazing. but few hours in to the game, I found myself sneaking through enemy patrols and taking out enemies one at a time. the game naturally induced me to be stealthy. cuz you need to take the soldiers to your mother basenow this is what you call a great stealth game. To be honest. I really don't like stealth games. so at the begining of game, I just rushed in to the enemy base with guns blazing. but few hours in to the game, I found myself sneaking through enemy patrols and taking out enemies one at a time. the game naturally induced me to be stealthy. cuz you need to take the soldiers to your mother base which makes you careful not to use a lethal weapon that might kill the guy. and growing your mother base is fun too.

    but sometimes I think there are too much loading and waiting. for example when you're at the base and if you want to go on a mission first you need to call a chopper and wait for it, then get on it and wait again to leave your mother base and then see a loading screen and you get inside the chopper and then choose a mission and then choose your loadout and then wait for another loading and then see a deploying cutscene. I mean does it really necessary to put a cutscene there to waste my minute?

    but other than that, I have no complains    … Expand
  21. GRekos712
    Sep 1, 2015
    9
    Metal Gear Solid V: Geralt with an eye cover. And that's a compliment. Its like witcher 3 set in a futuristic world. Story telling? Breathtaking. Graphics? Breathtaking. Cinematics? Breathtaking. Excelent missions, super well optimized ( 4K anyone?! ) and deep characters. I will give it a 9 though because the walking annimation is kinda funny.
  22. ShadowU
    Dec 2, 2015
    9
    This game is a solid 10/10. However, the PC controls are just terrible, and Kojima really has no excuse for this - they had both the budget and the experience to either target PC first and then port to console (rather than the other way around) or at least design a new control scheme for the PC.

    Multiple actions are bound to the same button, since a controller only has a certain amount    This game is a solid 10/10. However, the PC controls are just terrible, and Kojima really has no excuse for this - they had both the budget and the experience to either target PC first and then port to console (rather than the other way around) or at least design a new control scheme for the PC.

    Multiple actions are bound to the same button, since a controller only has a certain amount of buttons. Well, turns out a keyboard has a lot more buttons so it feels silly when half your keys go unused just because the controls were ported straight from the consoles. Furthermore, menu navigation is painful with console controls, and don't even get me started on the binoculars controls... you have to hold the binoculars button down, then press on a button to zoom in/zoom out, and press a different button to mark a target. Yeah, good job on that one.

    My only gripe with the gameplay itself is that the whole "enemies adapt to your playstyle" thing is that it was wonderfully marketed but ended up being a stinking pile of excrement. You essentially get punished for playing in a way you enjoy, or for example if you're good at aiming, you get punished for playing well. After taking over a camp using stealth once or twice, the enemies will become heavy armor wearing juggernauts were the only viable choice is a melee takedown or shooting them to death. The game would just be better off without that feature.

    All in all a great game, some weak points (like a very, very confusing story) but definitely worth playing. Would be a 10/10 if it hadn't been for the poor controls.    … Expand
  23. Srefly
    Dec 18, 2016
    9
    Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** upKonami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10 Konami **** up the 10… Expand
  24. ProphecyBacon
    Sep 1, 2015
    9
    Really fun to play. Good performance optimization. You can play at a pretty good frame rate (30-60) with a 2G Graphic Card. And the graphics still look good (1080p, everything set in high or more). Konami did good on that one.
  25. ViewtifulCaptur
    Sep 9, 2015
    9
    Started the series last November on console, caught up by June. If it aids the review, my favorite entry was MGS3, where I went full stealth/tranq. After playing Peace Walker I was exceedingly excited for this entry in the series, and it did not disappoint. The FOX engine produces some of the best graphics i've ever seen. The gameplay took many notes from more open world-centric games suchStarted the series last November on console, caught up by June. If it aids the review, my favorite entry was MGS3, where I went full stealth/tranq. After playing Peace Walker I was exceedingly excited for this entry in the series, and it did not disappoint. The FOX engine produces some of the best graphics i've ever seen. The gameplay took many notes from more open world-centric games such as the Arkham series and Far Cry, while at the same time not abandoning the roots MGS has as a true stealth game. In the 60 hours I spent playing, I was constantly engaged by the challenges this game provides.

    My only gripe is with some of the plot elements of the game. As the last entry by Kojima in this series it attempted to connect all story lines, and get rid of any plotholes produced by previous entries in the series. It accomplished this, but the solution does leave a bit to be desired. Also, Quiet's entire storyline is ****

    Definite contender for Game of the Generation.    … Expand
  26. Poringx
    Sep 11, 2015
    9
    Metal gear solid on the PC looks and feels spectacular! From the moment that I began in an action packed cinematic to doing missions the way I like. The graphics are just unbelievable (on max settings) and really does take you into its variety of different atmospheres. The gameplay is innovative and just right, the sound and music is perfect and the main story is captivating. This game isMetal gear solid on the PC looks and feels spectacular! From the moment that I began in an action packed cinematic to doing missions the way I like. The graphics are just unbelievable (on max settings) and really does take you into its variety of different atmospheres. The gameplay is innovative and just right, the sound and music is perfect and the main story is captivating. This game is a must buy for anyone that wants to experience a large and epic game!… Expand
  27. JDISME
    Oct 13, 2015
    9
    I play on the PC in Steam and it's been great. Normally in games I have the ability to bind controls in-game, and this game did not which I found inconvenient. I think the movie cuts to game play was excellent and missions with the adapt based on game play adds another level to the game.

    I think the rating of 9 is very fair; however, in all honesty, I think it is better than just a 9. I    I play on the PC in Steam and it's been great. Normally in games I have the ability to bind controls in-game, and this game did not which I found inconvenient. I think the movie cuts to game play was excellent and missions with the adapt based on game play adds another level to the game.

    I think the rating of 9 is very fair; however, in all honesty, I think it is better than just a 9. I have the breakdown below.

    Game Play: 9
    Graphics: 10
    Game Background: 10
    Controls: 9
    Fun Factor: 10
    Rating: 9.6    … Expand
  28. Hosty
    Nov 2, 2015
    9
    Generally it's a great game for the first half of it, I'll go as far as saying it's a 10/10 if it weren't for the ruined last half of the game that is clearly rushed.

    Recycled/Reused missions from the first chapter with only added difficulty, few actual new missions and the ending just appears out of nowhere, presenting a twist that really was random and out of place, there was no build    Generally it's a great game for the first half of it, I'll go as far as saying it's a 10/10 if it weren't for the ruined last half of the game that is clearly rushed.

    Recycled/Reused missions from the first chapter with only added difficulty, few actual new missions and the ending just appears out of nowhere, presenting a twist that really was random and out of place, there was no build up for it.
    Basically it was a great game but disappointing at the end.    … Expand
  29. ysiwnb
    Nov 11, 2015
    9
    Amazing game!! Realy good optimized, amazing graphics, story has been one of the best ive ever played, soundtrack? HA, it made me cry! Such a good game people! I realy do recommend this!
  30. Gniascheim
    Nov 12, 2015
    9
    Finally the shooter genre is going into the right direction.
    The game has a lot to offer and the open world setup helps a lot. The base building part is very addicting and fun. Graphics are very nice. The story is a bit strange but this is a MGS thing of course. It is better as it was in the past when there were tons of cut scenes of a strange story with no gameplay.
    On the downside the    Finally the shooter genre is going into the right direction.
    The game has a lot to offer and the open world setup helps a lot. The base building part is very addicting and fun. Graphics are very nice. The story is a bit strange but this is a MGS thing of course. It is better as it was in the past when there were tons of cut scenes of a strange story with no gameplay.
    On the downside the force to be online and get your base raped is annoying. Only the ressources you gained online can be stolen but it doesn´t feel right and should be allowed to disable.

    After the Fallout 4 debacle this is the best shooter for this year - by far    … Expand
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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

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
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. 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.
    Read full review
  2. 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]
  3. 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]
See all critic reviews »