Metal Gear Solid: Ranking The Series From Worst To Best

2. Metal Gear Solid

Sometimes a band's debut album is one of their best. They're eager to get out there and show the world what they can do, they've got all sorts of quirky, unique ideas to set them apart from the crowd, and when everyone sits up and takes notice, they're quite rightly blown away.

1998's Metal Gear Solid was such a phenomenon in game form, remaining one of the finest action/stealth titles you'll ever play. Story-wise it has some of the best revelations in the series, delivered by perfectly-realised villains that walk the line between being alluring and evil, and features Solid Snake walking himself into gaming's history books with every stride.

That's not to mention the game mechanics themselves, which feature downright genius designs as having a telepathic character read your memory card, hinge someone else's life on how much 'torture' you can withstand by hammering away at a button, or giving you just enough of an excuse to experiment with the items and weapons at hand, whilst guiding you through an otherwise linear narrative.

Kojima's first 3D Metal Gear changed gaming forever, and providing the biggest plot-reveals aren't already common knowledge going in, will still knock anyone for six no matter when they experience it.