PSP Fanboy hands-on: Metal Gear Solid Portable Ops

A few steps away from Sega's booth at DigitalLife was Konami's. I got a chance to talk to Matt Knoles, product manager for Konami, and play a few rounds of multiplayer from the upcoming Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops. Although Matt couldn't reveal anything new to you guys, the ability to go hands-on with the game was exciting. Four PSPs engaged in the battle, and I got into the control scheme very quickly. It was relatively simple to move around, lock on and start firing away. It was a great deal of fun, but I worry that the multiplayer may be a bit too shallow. The gameplay was fun, easy to pick up, and graphically very impressive, but at the same time, it felt unrefined. It wasn't hard to find yourself fighting with the camera, and entering first-person view seemed to give you a distinct disadvantage in the game.

I previously questioned whether or not controlling the game using the PSP's analog nub would be effective. The answer is: yes. But, I think it will work much better in Portable Ops' crucial single player story mode, where the pace should be slower, and the game should be... well, stealthier. A slower pace will certainly make the controls much more forgiving. However, the production values of the multiplayer game are so amazing, that I believe that the game should be quite amazing when it comes out in December.

The PSP met the Blue Screen of Death for this unfortunate player.