Have your thoughts on the series changed over the years?

[Dirty Duck]

I'm one of the people who never hated any of them honestly. Every single entry I enjoyed when I played it, and I may have gripes but I never felt like any of them were 'shit.' As I've gotten older my appreciation for how unabashedly 'pretentious' Kojima could be only grew to be honest. I appreciate games like MGS4 and Peace Walker for leaning so heavily into the consoles they were made for. Peace Walker pushed the PSP to its limits but was at its core a PSP game. It wasn't like the slew of Vita launch titles that were PS3 games running on a handheld. Peace Walker was a handheld game with a handheld design philosophy souped to the nines. You could play Peace Walker on a 20 minute bus journey and complete a mission. It's a design philosophy that has fallen to the wayside since there're no true handhelds anymore; only hybrids.

My admiration of MGS2 has probably grown the most. I never had any issues with it but to appreciate that Kojima made that game when he did and the narrative and themes he put into it is just incredibly. I used that final Snake quote to end my dissertation when I finished university.

This series is many things, and what it is has changed over time but it has never been predictable. Does Kojima sometimes prioritise themes and meaning over sheer fun? Sure. But despite that they are still fun! And I respect the decision to consistently refuse to give the fans exactly what they want. MGS4EVER!!!1