20 Beloved Video Games No One Admits They Hated

6. Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty

Hideo Kojima's Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty was lightyears ahead of its time when it released in 2001 for the PS2. Dealing with complex themes and introducing cutting-edge visuals and gameplay mechanics, the game was a worthy follow-up to Metal Gear Solid. The leap in quality between the first game and this one was huge, to the point where even 25 years later, MGS2's visuals still hold up pretty well. You get to play as both the returning hero Solid Snake and newcomer Raiden as they work to uncover a terrorist threat that puts plenty of innocent lives at risk.

The stealth gameplay was groundbreaking at the time, with players able to hide guards in lockers and interact with the environment to disrupt comms. You could even aim in first person while standing still, adding a whole new level of accuracy. The soundtrack from Harry Gregson-Williams gave the whole thing an almost movie-like quality. Yet, despite all this, some players secretly hated Metal Gear Solid 2 for one main reason.

This was undoubtedly Raiden's inclusion. All of the game's marketing had focused on Solid Snake, and with him being so popular, most fans were fully anticipating getting to play as him for another action packed campaign. So when the rug got pulled out from under their feet during the game's prologue, and fans quickly realized you will be playing as this new character, Raiden, for the majority of the game, many were furious.

Then of course, in true Kojima style, there's the narrative. What starts out as a simple terrorist plot evolves into something far more complex, with themes like AI and cloning getting woven into the game's already pretty full-looking tapestry. At the time, this left many gamers scratching their heads. These themes were so far ahead of their time, they are probably even more relevant today than they were then. Gamers looking back now will declare this is another vindication of Kojima's genius, as MGS2 is hailed as a masterpiece, with or without Raiden taking centre stage.