Metal Gear Solid V: Phantom Pain - 10 Huge Problems Nobody Wants To Admit

3. The Story's Main Characters Are Woefully Underdeveloped

Looking forward to delving into Eli's backstory? Quiet, Huey or even Ocelot's motivations? Good luck with that, as aside from Skull Face and Kaz, nobody gets anything close to extended time discussing what they want in this world. SF's is resigned to cassettes for the majority (his full origin still in Ground Zeroes), Ocelot's penchant for torture (that was hinted at in Snake Eater and throughout the trailers for this) turns into a short talking point about certain "methods" he uses with no visual accompaniment, and although Quiet's story arc is my personal highpoint for the whole game, you can telegraph where that's going at around the halfway point. Boss too essentially turns into every open-world protagonist ever, an obedient 'yes man' agreeing to whatever whims his crew can concoct. It feels like rebuilding Mother Base is Kaz's revenge kick, with Boss just going along with it, and when things like Huey's increasingly-crazy high-tech weaponry start making an appearance, Boss' stance on the matter is nonexistent.
Gaming Editor
Gaming Editor

WhatCulture's Head of Gaming.