Schwere Viper: Now fairly dated and unforgiving, Metal Gear is still worth playing if only to see the core concepts of the Metal Gear series laid out in such a pure, unrefined state, along with elements that would resurface wholesale in almost every future installment. The game world is whole and consistent with no obvious “level” divisions (compared to the NES versions bizarre and disjointed layout), the toying with players' expectations (for example, a support character that outright lies to Snake near the game's climax) is present, along with the core “tactical espionage action” gameplay that only Metal Gear seems to get right. Major points: BIG BOSS, Snake's first encounter with a HIND D and a tank, the first and terribly unreliable iteration of the support team, and the most inactive Metal Gear in the series next to Arsenal Gear!
