I was ready to hate this game, but Platinum did all the right things with it. The tone is a perfect match for the game, and within that tone the story still manages to take the piss out of American Exceptionalism and various other absurdities and platitudes. This is a less philosophical game than general entries in the Metal Gear Solid series, and takes the philosophy of the series less seriously, joking with it in many cases. This is appropriate, as Metal Gear Solid generally overreaches when it tries to do real philosophy anyway. In place of this, we get to explore the motivations and character of Raiden in a game that greatly expands his personal story arc.

As for the gameplay, I found it very good. Much is based on memorization though. The camera can sabotage you at times, which is obnoxious. Also, play it with a 360 controller. Seriously, find a USB 360 controller online and get one, playing this with keyboard and mouse is a dumb idea. Replayability appeal is limited to the appeal of the hack and slash gameplay and to any perfectionist tendencies a player might have, either towards this gameplay or toward the achievements in the game. I expect to put about 40-50 hours into it and probably never touch it after that.

A well executed story in an interactive format. Somewhat sparse on gameplay, but that's alright. The few gameplay elements are like little haikus. Go into it for the story, and don't expect it to be what it's not.