7 Ways Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes Is Better Than Phantom Pain

6. You're Never Far From Danger With Enemies Everywhere

Given that you€™re on a self-contained island, there€™s no real chance of a quick escape. With Ground Zeroes it€™s not just a case of getting off one particular screen and crossing through a loading zone to escape anymore. You are likely to die in firefights if you aren€™t extremely careful about where you€™re going, who€™s patrolling there and whether or not you€™re bothering to hide the bodies you€™ve been tranquillising or stacking up post-headshot. This strange oxymoronic feeling of open claustrophobia means that when your thinking is clouded with adrenaline, you know there€™s no definite escape, no definite place to hide. At some point you€™ll have to confront your pursuers and risk death in the process. Yes, the tranquilliser gun makes it easier to sneak around and enjoy the silence, and yes, the time-slowing focus/reaction attack Boss has allows for an easy get-out, but when the poop hits the fan, soldiers surround you and take you down rapidly €“ especially on harder difficulty settings. Where The Phantom Pain didn€™t do so well here was in having open levels with bases punctuating the landscape. The wide valleys and plains allowed you simply to run off into a convenient sandstorm or dart up a mountainside on horseback to hide behind a rather large outcropping of rocks and wait it out.
Contributor

Bryan Langley’s first console was the Super Nintendo and he hasn’t stopped using his opposable thumbs since. He is based in Bristol, UK and is still searchin' for them glory days he never had.