Eight years ago, I made a youtube review channel back when I was still kind of in my forum mindset of "attack everything." I made reviews of every MGS game, almost none of which I stand by anymore, which is why I'm remaking all of them to give each game their fair due, especially since my thoughts have changed so dramatically since. For example, I really like MGS1 now, despite its many, many, many flaws. I like MGS4 and PW a lot more than I did back when I made those reviews too. Currently, the only review that accurately reflects how I feel is my newest Portable Ops review from 2025.
My MGSV review, however, is the one that got the most traction because it was the one I had the most to say. It was kind of a culmination of all my conflicting thoughts about what I loved and hated about MGSV wrapped into one 2 hour video. Apart from a few things, it's also the one I still stand by:
The main things I no longer stand by:
1. While I maintain that Phantom Pain's writing is solid, especially its plotline and how it's all interwoven into a larger tapestry, I don't think the game has the best writing of any MGS game at all. To be honest, I don't even personally know which game has the best writing because each game feels like a mix of unforgettable moments and characters but a whole that never quite matches the highs of what Kojima is going for. For me, DS2 is Kojima's best work as a writer by far, so it kind of put in perspective how little that title matters for me in MGS.
2. My negative thoughts on other MGS games that I listed are all dead wrong and don't reflect how I feel anymore. Something about hitting 40 and realizing how little most games hold my attention anymore made me really appreciate every MGS game so much more than I did in 2020.
3. I still love all of the boss fights but while I mention the lack of variety, I don't mention how almost every boss has methods that make them way too easy and that to enjoy each fight, I pretty much have to ignore those methods. Like how you can completely destroy all of the Skulls instantly by luring them near a turret gun. The multiple one-hit kill methods for Fire Guy.
4. I don't believe that wish-fulfillment in reviews is productive. We live in an age where that kind of critique can always be met with, "Then you just make that kinda game yourself then," and with all the available free tools to do so, there's little excuse not to. Though, I do maintain that the order of missions should've been changed, just from a screenwriting perspective. And that Eli never should've been in the game at all, especially when Demon Chico was on the table at some point in development and would've made way more sense to include after GZ, and his role in helping to bring the ship down.
There's probably some other things but that doesn't matter.
I think these days, I'd sum up my thoughts on MGSV as thus:
It's got problems galore and not every experiment Kojima toyed with paid off. Despite its endless amount of issues, it's the only game I've played in a decade that makes me feel like a kid when I play it, because once I start, I struggle to stop. Most critiques are either value or I outright agree with wholeheartedly, and I probably have some that most people don't consider, but from 2015 til now, MGSV was the only game that I kept coming back to years after the fact, just replaying missions and experimenting with them for fun. There are some things it does better than other MGS games, some things it does worse, but none of that takes away from my enjoyment. And I hope that a future title might implement more of Phantom Pain's design philosophy, while also addressing its glaring flaws to finally find that happy middle ground between old MGS and new MGS.
Anyway, if you can tolerate young 35 year old Keiv mumbling for two hours, here's something to play in the background while you file your taxes or need to be put to sleep.
My MGSV review, however, is the one that got the most traction because it was the one I had the most to say. It was kind of a culmination of all my conflicting thoughts about what I loved and hated about MGSV wrapped into one 2 hour video. Apart from a few things, it's also the one I still stand by:
The main things I no longer stand by:
1. While I maintain that Phantom Pain's writing is solid, especially its plotline and how it's all interwoven into a larger tapestry, I don't think the game has the best writing of any MGS game at all. To be honest, I don't even personally know which game has the best writing because each game feels like a mix of unforgettable moments and characters but a whole that never quite matches the highs of what Kojima is going for. For me, DS2 is Kojima's best work as a writer by far, so it kind of put in perspective how little that title matters for me in MGS.
2. My negative thoughts on other MGS games that I listed are all dead wrong and don't reflect how I feel anymore. Something about hitting 40 and realizing how little most games hold my attention anymore made me really appreciate every MGS game so much more than I did in 2020.
3. I still love all of the boss fights but while I mention the lack of variety, I don't mention how almost every boss has methods that make them way too easy and that to enjoy each fight, I pretty much have to ignore those methods. Like how you can completely destroy all of the Skulls instantly by luring them near a turret gun. The multiple one-hit kill methods for Fire Guy.
4. I don't believe that wish-fulfillment in reviews is productive. We live in an age where that kind of critique can always be met with, "Then you just make that kinda game yourself then," and with all the available free tools to do so, there's little excuse not to. Though, I do maintain that the order of missions should've been changed, just from a screenwriting perspective. And that Eli never should've been in the game at all, especially when Demon Chico was on the table at some point in development and would've made way more sense to include after GZ, and his role in helping to bring the ship down.
There's probably some other things but that doesn't matter.
I think these days, I'd sum up my thoughts on MGSV as thus:
It's got problems galore and not every experiment Kojima toyed with paid off. Despite its endless amount of issues, it's the only game I've played in a decade that makes me feel like a kid when I play it, because once I start, I struggle to stop. Most critiques are either value or I outright agree with wholeheartedly, and I probably have some that most people don't consider, but from 2015 til now, MGSV was the only game that I kept coming back to years after the fact, just replaying missions and experimenting with them for fun. There are some things it does better than other MGS games, some things it does worse, but none of that takes away from my enjoyment. And I hope that a future title might implement more of Phantom Pain's design philosophy, while also addressing its glaring flaws to finally find that happy middle ground between old MGS and new MGS.
Anyway, if you can tolerate young 35 year old Keiv mumbling for two hours, here's something to play in the background while you file your taxes or need to be put to sleep.
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