Metal Gear Solid 4 plays favorites with dig at Xbox 360

We've already seen some of the product placement to be found in the soon-to-be-released Metal Gear Solid 4, and it looks like PlayStation 3 users are in store for a bit of reinforcement about their console buying decision as well. As you can see for yourself in the video after the break, at one point during the game, Metal Gear Solid's Otacon takes a not-so-subtle dig at the Xbox 360's non-HD disc format by asking you to swap disc 1 for disc 2, only to suddenly realize that you're using a Blu-ray disc, and a dual-layer one at that, which then prompts him to go on about "what an age we live in." At least there's no HD DVD reference to further rub it in, though we wouldn't doubt that there's one of those lurking somewhere in the game as well.

[Via Xbox 360 Fanboy]

[Tomheivers @ Jun 10th 2008 12:50PM]

DAMN IT OTACON GET A GRIP!

Ingenious jab at HD-DVD

[WTangoFoxtrot @ Jun 10th 2008 1:03PM]

u realize the jab was at the PS2 which supported single layer dvds only and as a result MGS3 and 2 i think were multiple disks. with the ps3 they dont need any of that now.

[TrentD @ Jun 10th 2008 1:18PM]

It's got nothing to do with HD DVD - they're taking a jab at the Xbox360 and earlier game systems that needed multiple discs sometimes.

[bohsocks @ Jun 10th 2008 1:19PM]

But that exercise the fatties get changing discs will have to be supplanted by a couple games of Wii Bowling..... because posting on the Interweb to defend its shit 3rd part games only exercises the fingers.....

.....and atrophies the mind.

[Mark.Nine @ Jun 10th 2008 1:22PM]

@ WTangoFoxtrot

MGS2 and MGS3 did not use 2 discs.
MGS was the only game to utilize 2 discs, and those were back in the CD-ROM days.

[oGMo @ Jun 10th 2008 1:23PM]

Er, the PS2 supported multilayer discs. There were "bugs" specifically related to this, such as slight pauses when switching disc layers during playback.

Also had you played MGS2-3 you'd remember they were, in fact, one disc.

The only game I can think of off the top of my head that required 2 DVDs was Star Ocean 3, and that's because it was huge, had full voice acting for tons of characters, and lots of FMV.

[rlynd3 @ Jun 10th 2008 2:40PM]

Donald - put some F-ing thought into your post before trying to start a flame war!

[Edward @ Jun 10th 2008 3:05PM]

Makes no sense:
1. Can someone name a single xbox 360 game that used 2 discs?
2. What about the original xbox?
3. This is and always was and will be a sony exclusive, why would they compare it to the xbox?

[Kilton @ Jun 10th 2008 3:29PM]

@ Edward

blue dragon has 3 discs
lost odyssey, 4

[Brad @ Jun 10th 2008 3:41PM]

XBOX 360 game with multiple discs? Lost Odyssey has four.

Not that I'm complaining, I think its just a sign of lazy programmers to not be able to fit content into 9gb or whatever.

Take Morrowind for example. The whole game was only 900megs.

For more on why the "size" issue is just FUD spread by Sony (with crap like this in their games), see:
http://www.gamesfirst.com/?id=1132

[maty @ Jun 10th 2008 4:53PM]

I'm a games developer Brad, your comment is, to be blunt, ignorant.

Try developing a game before criticising the developers.

[LegendZ28 @ Jun 10th 2008 6:37PM]

"1. Can someone name a single xbox 360 game that used 2 discs?
2. What about the original xbox?
3. This is and always was and will be a sony exclusive, why would they compare it to the xbox?"

Exactly. It's not a jab at anyone, they are simply pointing out the benefits of having a HD format game, especially considering they busted their butts to get all that content on there.

No need to imagine up some sort of slander when there is none to be had.

[Brad @ Jun 10th 2008 6:44PM]

@maty Well, I used to work in 3d animation before moving to application development, and I know all about bloated code, developer debt, and lazy, out-sourced programming. Notice the biggest game on the XBOX was EA's NBA Live. Think about that.

I also know that it's significantly EASIER to pre-render your cut scenes, pre-render your textures and include them, or pre-draw all your bump maps. I also know that it IS, as I put it, LAZY.

Yes, getting a realistic looking world built through procedural textures (marketed by Microsoft with their "Procedural Synthesis" libraries) but wonderfully showcased in the 64kb game "theproduct" is more difficult. But a little bit more time and effort yield a better gaming experience and significantly smaller data footprint.
http://www.theproduct.de/

If you can fit Elder Scrolls Oblivion, Mass Effect, and the various Battlefield instances all onto a single disc each that'll run on a machine with NO HARD DRIVE, you explain to me how requiring 51gb of storage on a game is anything but LAZY, unless you're including tons of pre-rendered FMV, in which case as a GAME DEVELOPER you have little to do with that, since it's just handed over by your art department.

But I'm sure you've got great reasons backed up by your University of Phoenix Online degree in "Game Programming" and all the crapware you spit out is made as lean and efficient as possible. You've NEVER taken a little shortcut to save yourself a few hours if it meant a marginal increase in the disc size of a game.

Sorry, do I still sound ignorant? Because you still sound lazy.

[neofolklore @ Jun 11th 2008 8:46AM]

@Mark.nine and others

both Metal Gear Solid 2 - Substance and Metal Gear Solid 3 - Subsistence

were multiple discs.

[GRECS @ Dec 31st 2008 3:50PM]

wtangofoxtrot!!!!!!!!!!! stupid ass comment ps2 supported dual layer..mgs2 and mgs3 were on a single disc

[ijyt @ Jun 10th 2008 12:50PM]

Mehehe.

[Ninjakamster (PS360 FTW!) @ Jun 10th 2008 12:50PM]

The silly 360 fanboys are trying to find an insult to their system when there isn't one.

Like some others have said, this is a jab at the first game which had two discs, their referencing the first game and PS1, not taking a jab at the 360.

Jeez.

[Jon @ Jun 10th 2008 1:05PM]

Good point!
I didn't think of that at first, but I do remember having to switch discs in MGS 1.

People always complain about having to switch discs but I remember thinking it was awesome at the time of MGS 1!! I was just a little kid, but I felt almost like I was getting two games for the price of one!! lol
That and the game was so damn good, I was just glad it wasn't over yet!

[kal326 @ Jun 10th 2008 1:54PM]

I wonder if the Final Fantasy users feel they get gypped in a new one comes out on 1 BR disc? How many cds did FF7 come on, 3 or 4?

[purplegreendave @ Jun 10th 2008 2:20PM]

3, sometimes with a bonus disk, but 3 for the game itsself

[Ghen @ Jun 10th 2008 2:30PM]

Back on the PS1 I felt robbed if a game came on less than 2 discs.

[Tony Rayo @ Jun 10th 2008 4:45PM]

Thank you for bringing the logic back. Kojima Production is way more interested at making fun of themselves than the competition (Snake has an iPod to access tracks from in the game, and not an iPod knockoff or look-alike, but an honest to goodness iPod with the TM and everything), so when I first saw this I also thought of MGS1.

It's already been stated they would have liked to have even MORE room to play with, but some people just find the wrong reasons to get mad. Also, FF7 came on 3CDs for the PS1 and 4CDs for the PC release.

[rafa @ Jun 10th 2008 7:51PM]

Here's how you take a real (funny) jab:

MGS4 XBOX 360 Box art: http://img259.imageshack.us/img259/9026/mgs4xbox360oj1.png

[NHAnimator @ Jun 10th 2008 12:51PM]

Corny, but I'll take it.

[Eric M. @ Jun 10th 2008 12:52PM]

This is funny, but I think that its a joke that is referring back to the PS1 & 2 because in those games you had to switch discs, but now you don't have too. It just happens that the 360 still uses the same disc that the PS2 used.

[LongshotX @ Jun 10th 2008 12:52PM]

That was pretty lame. This fuss over swapping discs is extremely exaggerated. If they ever make a 360 version (which I am sure they most likely won't) maybe Otacon should take a jab at PS3 load times from the slow loading Blu-Ray.

[Tomheivers @ Jun 10th 2008 12:54PM]

Nice try, but they could only make fun of the required install I guess

[Erasure25 @ Jun 10th 2008 1:32PM]

Swapping discs is annoying at best. Don't try to speak for me please.

[theapple @ Jun 10th 2008 12:54PM]

Its nothing to do with xbox360. so just NO get a grip

[iPriest @ Jun 10th 2008 5:33PM]

It is a jab at XBox360 or does the xbox come with a blu ray drive? What an age we live in!

[Am!r @ Jun 10th 2008 12:57PM]

still you could laugh about it or give it a thought and then come up with the idea that MGS 4 might be coming to the 360 after all and its going to be 2 DVDs and thats something he is like trying to convey through this video
doesn't it make sense ?

[beavertank @ Jun 10th 2008 2:19PM]

That's some pretty extreme wishful thinking there, not to mention it has been said that MGS4 "barely fits" on a dual layer BD-ROM (so it's got to be pushing 50 gigs).

That's 3 dual layer DVDs. I'm not saying it'll never happen, but I am saying it's going to be quite a while before it does, if ever.

[Alex @ Jun 10th 2008 3:52PM]

Beavertank,
No, MGS4 will only be pushing 25-27 GB because Konami requested from Sony to use the first dual-layer BD disc to up it from 25GB to 50GB. They said they were struggling to get it on only 25 GB, so it is likely that it will be about 26GB on a disc.
So there.

[Kris @ Jun 10th 2008 12:56PM]

It was already said that this was _NOT_ a dig at the XBox 360 but at their older games that included multiple discs.

Can we mark this article as inaccurate?

[o rly @ Jun 10th 2008 1:12PM]

This is not digg, sir.

[Motoken @ Jun 10th 2008 12:59PM]

yeah, nothing to do with the 360, just referring back to the ps2 and ps1 MSG games that required you to change disks, but it's still very funny!
lol they always put weird things in these MSG games.

[Engadgetluvsappl @ Jun 10th 2008 12:59PM]

"realize that _YOUR_ using a Blu-ray disc"

Oh come on.

[Phred @ Jun 10th 2008 1:31PM]

Why? What about my using a Blu-ray disc?

[David Vogt @ Jun 10th 2008 1:38PM]

Yep, it's definitely going downhill here.

[AJ @ Jun 10th 2008 1:43PM]

tch tch tch.. and it still goes over people's heads.

[Ender Wiggin @ Jun 10th 2008 3:07PM]

I don't know what your talking about....

< /sarcasm >

[hemmy @ Jun 10th 2008 3:21PM]

C'mon, _your_ being silly.

[Josh L @ Jun 10th 2008 1:00PM]

All the MGS games break the 4th wall like this at some point. Usually Otakon is the one doing it, too.

And like others have said, this is a jab at previous MGS games, not the 360. Get over yourselves.

[m4xn00b @ Jun 10th 2008 11:10PM]

You notice that Donald deliberately made it seem like it was a jab at the 360 in this story so that there would be a flame war right?

Its to get you guys riled up and post your fanboy rants on Engadget.

Clever indeed.

[Jon @ Jun 10th 2008 1:03PM]

? lets see .. i have NEVER had to swap a 360 game .. so im confused why that is funny (By the way i own all 3 so im no fanboy)

[kingofwale @ Jun 10th 2008 1:11PM]

well, clearly you need to play more games, now do you?

heck, if the gaming world can be defined as "games I've played", then it would be a rather lonely place, now would it?

[Jon @ Jun 10th 2008 1:13PM]

My gamer score is Just under 26,000 Look it up "Asiannationpimp" .. That is a couple games

[mrlogical @ Jun 10th 2008 1:31PM]

I take it you haven't played Lost Odyssey...

[Sean @ Jun 10th 2008 1:51PM]

There are only 2 games that I know of that require multiple discs. Lost Odyssey and Blue Dragon. Both are horrible JRPGs.

[kingofwale @ Jun 10th 2008 1:56PM]

apparently Asiannationpimp never played JRPG... which beg the question... What kind of "Asian" are you?