Stealthy Snake Gets It in 'Gear'

By AARON CURTISS

Dec. 27, 2001 12 AM PT

TIMES STAFF WRITER

Solid Snake is about as cool a customer as they come. He’s an action hero who stays out of the action, relying on stealth and trickery instead of firepower and brawn.

In “Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty” for Sony PlayStation, super soldier Snake delights players with a sneaky espionage adventure that is by far the tastiest of the “Metal Gear” series.

In addition to being a sweet, sweet game, “Sons of Liberty” highlights how far set-top consoles--and the programmers who design for them--have come in just 15 years. The original “Metal Gear” debuted in 1987 on the 8-bit Nintendo Entertainment System. Today that game, which won a loyal following almost instantly, looks primitive with its blocky characters and simplistic environments.

The essence of “Metal Gear” remains unchanged in “Sons of Liberty,” although everything else about the game is different. As with every game in the series, the object of “Sons of Liberty” is to move undetected through enemy turf. Kill or disable opposing forces only when absolutely necessary.

As “Sons of Liberty” opens, Snake has joined Philanthropy, a group opposed to the development of Metal Gear, a walking tank capable of delivering nuclear payloads. But soon after he infiltrates a tanker carrying a prototype of the weapon, the ship is overtaken by an armed squad and Snake’s covert operation takes a new direction.

Snake begins the game unarmed. His skill is the ability to move unseen and unheard through enemy positions. Sure, he can karate chop a guard, but if that guard happens to get a random shot off it can alert others in the area. Even if the shot misses Snake, someone in the swarm that responds is likely to have better aim.

This fundamental element of the game has defined every chapter in the series. But the processing power of PlayStation 2 allowed developers to incorporate new twists. For instance, as Snake steps from a damp exterior deck, he leaves wet footprints. These dry over time, but enemy patrols can see them and pick up Snake’s trail.

PS2’s analog controller provides the kind of refined movement critical to “Sons of Liberty” and the rig’s ability to handle complex graphics give the game a truly cinematic feel.

If you’re a PlayStation 2 owner who didn’t get “Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty” for Christmas, be disappointed--be very disappointed.

“Super Smash Bros. Melee”

Say what you will about a game in which Mario pummels Princess Peach and Zelda hammers Link, but “Super Smash Bros. Melee” is a strangely compelling title.

Like some sort of digital soma, “Super Smash Bros. Melee” for Nintendo GameCube deadens the mind and somehow makes it seem plausible that, yeah, Bowser and Pikachu might gang up for a little tag team action against Yoshi and Donkey Kong.

The “Super Smash Bros.” franchise has always been something of a stretch. Popular characters from the Nintendo stable duke it out in colorful environments, trying to knock each other out of the ring. Nintendo stakes its reputation on cutesy, kid-friendly characters. So seeing these saccharine stars slug it out is mildly disconcerting.

Isn’t Peach Mario’s true love? Why would he want to toast her with fireballs, twirl her senseless in the Mario Tornado or kick her upside the head with the Super Jump Punch? Answer: Because it’s actually more fun than constantly rescuing her from Bowser’s clutches.

As with many Nintendo games, “Super Smash Bros. Melee” delivers considerably more than it promises. Sure, the game is a simple punch-and-kick fighter, but it allows up to four players to compete in an all-out brawl. There are also mini-games in which players complete skill challenges such as busting up hard-to-reach targets and knocking a sandbag out of a ballpark.

The variations offer plenty of diversions should the main game get dull.

That will take awhile. Although “Super Smash Bros. Melee” could in no way be described as a sophisticated fighter, its various characters all have their own set of unique moves--from Samus’ Screw Attack to Pikachu’s Skull Bash. It takes time to master them all, even in single-player mode.

But this is a game to be played with friends--the more the better. As its name implies, “Super Smash Bros. Melee” is at its core a free-for-all in which players wale on each other in a frenetic, rainbow-colored prize fight. Once players accept that none of it makes any sense, it’s great fun.

(Begin Text of Infobox)

The Skinny

“Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty”

Genre: Tactical espionage

Platform: Sony PlayStation 2

Price: $50

Publisher: Konami

ESRB* rating: Mature

The good: Complex, challenging missions

The bad: Very little

Bottom line: Finest in the series

“Super Smash Bros. Melee”