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As people who play video games, we normally want things that are bigger, smarter, or even more expansive. We want things to evolve rapidly and become better in every iteration over each generation. But sometimes being dumber is better. Having AI that is a little stupid or even levels that are smaller can be a good thing. This is the case for Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker.
It may be inaccurate to call the artificial intelligence of Peace Walker dumb but they are fairly dimwitted. The guards are surprisingly relaxed about the tranquilizer darts that just hit them in the back. They shrug off many things like this as their imagination playing tricks on them. They should probably get their eyes (and ears) checked as well, since they can’t see their buddy being subdued in the middle of a pathway. The levels that the guards do their exacting pace around are smaller and more tightly knit as well. There aren’t too many options in paths to take, though there are more if there is a cooperative buddy involved.
These seemingly bad elements work because of the limits in which they must be created, the limits of the Playstation Portable system. The AI being worse works because of the more limited control of the system. The available actions are more limited, so in turn, it makes sense for the intelligence of the enemies to be limited as well. As a result, Peace Walker has some of the most enjoyable stealth and non-lethal play because of how much easier it is to be successful. It may be easier but it is not just given away—it still feels like it is earned by smartly using the tools available.
The levels being smaller also works to it’s advantage because, in portable gaming, play sessions aren’t as long. There are more frequent stopping points in Peace Walker and entire missions can be beaten in twenty to forty minutes—side missions in less than ten minutes. The levels being smaller also contribute to the better stealth. Seeing nearly all of the level at a time makes planning out how to tackle it easier to figure out but, again, the way to do it isn’t just given away. If one segment triggers an alarm, just running to the next doesn’t reset it, there is a persistence to this that rewards one for being smart in how they play.
The hardware on which a game is being played on should be heavily considered when designing a game. Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker understands this and compensates appropriately. In this adjustment for the platform, it takes some, admittedly, regressive steps but the game is better for it, even if it seems incidental, even if it is only a happy accident.
Comments
14 years, 4 months ago
this is similar to how i see Resident evil 4. ya the enemies slow to a halt when they get close to you and take a while to attack but at the same time, if they didn't do that, you would be dying from many cheap deaths from enemies just out numbering you. it suits the world of the game.
do wonder if 3ds games will have this style of dumbing down as well compared to their hd console versions? long as it doesn't get in the way, then it should be alright.
14 years, 4 months ago
Yep. I have always disagreed with people who say that the enemies, especially in Metal Gear games, are dumb.
It's a game... It's supposed to fun and satisfying. If we had a Metal Gear game where enemies had realistic vision and hearing, it would be far too difficult. Want realistic stealth?! Go outside and sneak around for a while. ^^;
If you want fun stealth experience that makes you feel badass, then play Metal Gear.
14 years, 4 months ago
I agree completely, Ben. While playing Peace Walker, a lot of things felt kind of dumbed-down, but they didn't extract from the experience at all.
14 years, 4 months ago
I totaly agree. Though I have not played Peace Walker, this makes a lot of sence and i might pick this game up
14 years, 4 months ago
Couldn't have said it better myself. I enjoy playing Peace Walker in short or relatively long play sessions. I'm not sure why Brad dissed this game. It controls fine for a psp game. Hell it controls better than Portable Ops. While I do agree that they've could've allowed us to move on walls but with the addition of Crouch Walking there is no need to crawl on such small scaled maps.
14 years, 4 months ago
Think i just might go pick this game up sometime soon. Long live happy accidents!
14 years, 4 months ago
Ah, well too bad the controls are fucking terrible.
14 years, 4 months ago
of course there dumb how do you think they hire so many?
14 years, 4 months ago
nice point
14 years, 4 months ago
Ive always said Games like Metal gear simply cant be done on a handheld cos of the clusterf*ck that ends up showing not even midway through the game..
"As people who play video games, we normally want things that are bigger, smarter, or even more expansive. We want things to evolve rapidly and become better in every iteration over each generation. But sometimes being dumber is better. Having AI that is a little stupid or even levels that are smaller can be a good thing."
- are you speaking for the sake of a handheld gaming platform, or videogames in general?
14 years, 4 months ago
For a handheld MGS game peace walker is good, surprisingly good actually. I was going into it expecting it to be portable ops all over again, which I hated, but so far the main difference between the two is that things actually *work* in peace walker. The controls still aren't the best, and honestly, I don't think it's possible to have a truly great controlling MGS game on a handheld, but they're a damn huge improvement over portable ops that's for sure. It's not just the way you control the camera and menu (assuming you use the "shooter" setting that is... the others are terrible), but also things like using CQC and the hit detection have improved dramatically. In peace walker it's possible to headshot dudes with your tranq gun from all the way across the map it you line up the sight correctly, while in portable ops shots from point-blank range would often times miss for no bloody reason. There are still times where things feel clumbersome though, usually once the enemy sees you and things get heated it can cause you to fumble through the menus, but if you plan things ahead and use your equipment effectively you can deal with what the game throws you, including it's crazy-ass bosses. Overall the controls in peace walker are good enough if you are being stealthy, and somewhat punishing (but still usable) if you are being reckless, whereas in portable ops they're just plain bad in both instances.
14 years, 4 months ago
In the second chapter of the game, you unlock scanning wi-fi points to get soldiers. Unlike Portable Ops though, these soldiers are almost always way better than most of the guys you find in the missions.
The cool thing about playing this on public transportation: you're often going past wi-fi signals (unless it's a rural area). Rather than drowning out the boredom of your commute with a game, it makes the commute itself enthralling by making you go "Oh! Office building! SCAN, SCAN, SCAN!" then by the end of it you got a million S-ranked dudes with awesome skills.
Chalk that up as another point for well-done portable gaming.
14 years, 4 months ago
I'm in agreement. This game does control like crap, especially once you've played MGS4. Heck, even MGS1 feels better on the PSP.
But the worse enemy AI does make it a more enjoyable experience. Though, I actually think MGS: PW should have gone more traditional and stuck with the overhead view that MGS1 uses, and bring back "Soliton Radar" (where you can see how far and wide enemies can see).
Peace Walker is fun, but I wish more people had it and PSPs. I'd love to try the Co-op.