First of all, I want to emphasize that this review is comprehensive for someone who may not know the game well or may be considering buying it.

I play the game on PS5 and it plays smoothly with better graphics than on PS4. This game has a great storyline and develops it very nicely with a good level of difficulty. It requires thinking and is a stealth game. Overall, I consider its price a bit high, but what can you expect for such a game? It is a game that lacks nothing and has everything - strategy, weapons, storyline - everything that I think someone is looking for. It is also a game that wants to deliver something good to you and not just let you kill everyone like new games tend to do. I haven't played multiplayer yet, but I think it will be good, although the game is not originally designed for multiplayer, so it's a plus.

Now I will answer the question that many will have. Is it good? Is it worth it?

It is truly perfect and I believe it will not disappoint anyone, although, to be honest, it has a slightly high price. For me, it is one of my favorite games.

Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain was released in 2015 and is the last "troubled" fruit, due to the tumultuous relationship between Hideo Kojima and the distribution company Konami. It is one of the most controversial games of the new generation of consoles, as it has divided both longtime fans of the series and newcomers. However, MGSV, at an affordable price, can satisfy an audience primarily interested in open-world games with rich lore. In detail:

- Story: MGSV: The Phantom Pain is the latest addition by the creator of the Metal Gear series, Hideo Kojima, and is chronologically set between MGSV: Ground Zeroes and the first Metal Gear, functioning as a prequel to the latter. The story revolves around Punished "Venom" Snake and takes place a few years after the events of MGSV: Ground Zeroes, with the protagonists trying to uncover who is responsible for the destruction of the operations base and the deaths of thousands of mercenaries who served under Snake's control and his allies. Throughout the story, the player will discover complex plots, experience several twists, and encounter familiar as well as new characters from the series. However, things are never as simple as they seem! All of this elevates MGSV: The Phantom Pain to an addictive espionage thriller that keeps the listener's interest constant, at least until a certain point, as after that, the absence of Hideo Kojima and his unfulfilled ideas become noticeable. Due to his stormy collaboration with Konami, as mentioned before, he was expelled from the game's development and was fired before he could complete his vision, which surely would have been better than what Konami delivered. The game's story tries, with great failure, to fill the huge void left by such a creative mind with meaningless missions that are literally repetitions of previous missions, but with greater difficulty, which Kojima had created for the earlier parts of the plot. Even the dialogues remain the same! As a result, the player goes through a vicious cycle of missions in order to reach the end and see how it connects to the rest of the franchise's plot. However, even that ending is unfinished and raises more questions than answers. To conclude with the story, it is well-structured and written up to a certain point, with captivating characters and twists, in contrast to the rest of the game, which is an empty shell of Kojima's half-finished idea.
-Gameplay: In this aspect, the game shines!! Initially, for the first time in the series' history, the game takes place in a fairly large map that covers two regions, the rocky Afghanistan and the open plains of Africa. These areas, although not teeming with life, offer endless opportunities for players to experiment with the game's mechanics, which reward both stealth tactics and more aggressive all-out combat. They are intelligent and offer a plethora of options to each player, resulting in two players not facing the same mission in the same way!! However, after several hours, the missions, especially the side ones, become repetitive and tiresome, as they are limited to the following pattern: "Departure from the base by helicopter/Arrival at point A/Capture or destruction of the target/Return to the base". This "loop" becomes boring, but fortunately, the player constantly finds new tools/materials and weapons to upgrade their character and their new base. Finally, it is worth mentioning that in each mission, the player can choose to bring along an NPC ally (buddy system) to help them in their missions. They provide even more options for approaching missions, while being entirely customizable. In conclusion, the gameplay is satisfactory and to some extent fills the gaps in the plot.

-Graphics & Sound: In these areas, things are debatable. On one hand, the sound is amazing and the music is fitting for every occasion. On the other hand, the graphics have their moments of being stunning, reminiscent of a next-generation console game. However, there are several times when the graphics downgrade to those of the previous generation, a result of the simultaneous development of the game for all consoles (PS3, XBOX360, PS4, XBOX ONE), leaving owners of modern consoles with a mediocre experience in this aspect.

-Conclusion: In my eyes, MGSV: The Phantom Pain is a mediocre game with some flashes that could have elevated it to something greater, as it deserved. It has a particularly interesting first part of the story and a solid gameplay, but it is not enough to cover the lazy and desperate efforts of a company trying to tidy up the mess, after the dismissal of the mind and soul of this game series. Ultimately, MGSV: The Phantom Pain remains a game with tremendous dynamics and mechanics that offer hours of entertainment if one is willing to delve deep into its core.

Big fan of the series since the PS1 era. I was eagerly waiting for Phantom Pain and unfortunately, everything started off on the wrong foot. The game crashed during the introduction (in the first few seconds when you're in bed) and wouldn't unfreeze. After hundreds of attempts, I decided to leave the console on and after 4 hours, it finally unfroze on its own. Now let's talk about the game. Classic Metal Gear in terms of its gameplay, which is at a very high level, with great stealth approach, nice graphics, and music. However, the story is very confusing and messy, and that's what disappointed me the most. After 7-8 hours, I was really fed up. Another downside is the mother base and the smaller bases you create. It's chaotic and you need to have a degree in nuclear physics to figure it out, and even the activities have no reason to exist in a Metal Gear game. The online aspect is indifferent. In short, it can't be compared in any way to the epic Snake Eater or Guns of the Patriots. Only buy it at a very low price.

First of all, in terms of pure gameplay, this is the best Metal Gear of the entire series. The best way I can describe it is "Peace Walker on steroids." If you haven't played Peace Walker, I would recommend playing the Metal Gear Solid HD Collection (or just Peace Walker on the PSP) before diving into 5, although the story is understandable on its own.

The problems with 5 start with the FOBs. What are they? They are offshore bases that you build to have better weapon production, more personnel, etc., and the idea is to go online and besiege other players' bases while protecting your own. A nice idea in theory. In practice, Konami makes you pay REAL MONEY beyond what you already paid for the game to build these bases (beyond the first one, which is free) with a digital currency called MB coins. Of course, you will always be at a disadvantage compared to players who pay. The alternative is to wait for the scraps of MB that Konami gives you occasionally, but they are so few that you would build a base faster if you went begging on the street.

The battles within other players' bases themselves are fantastic. However, the multiplayer left me completely indifferent, but then again, I'm not a big fan of multiplayer games, so this opinion is purely subjective.

The graphics are amazing, I would prefer a bit more populated areas in terms of enemies and usefulness. The two main maps are large in size. The story is relatively good, although you get lost at some points and especially the ending is a bit controversial. Overall, I believe that this once great franchise should stop the series somewhere here, especially after Hideo Kojima's departure, as it has nothing else to offer in terms of story. Not that Konami will do that, they will try to make as much money as possible from it. Especially after Peace Walker, Snake Eater, and Guns of the Patriots (where supposedly the end was), it should have stopped. The phantom pain maintains it at a relatively good level in terms of the story, but from there on I don't see anything else.
Some soundtracks simply don't exist, it has too many side missions but after a certain point, you will get bored of them, you build your base and fill it with personnel but it doesn't have a significant impact on the story apart from developments and some online elements. It has a lot of weapons and gadgets but you will only use a minimal amount compared to what you will develop. The multiplayer is a downgrade version of MGS4, which I consider to have had no online presence (with meaningful ranking, tournaments, obsession to become better, if there weren't any hackers then...).
Now that its price has dropped significantly, I recommend it if you want a stealth (subjective) game.

For those who have dealt with the stealth action element of video games, they can definitely understand why this game deserves 5 stars. The God Hideo Kojima wrote his swan song and left us with the final word to interpret his legacy. Unlike previous MGS games, the story is not as strong, which is the element that made the franchise beloved for 25 years. However, it is perfectly logical as we are talking about the prequel of the prequel, for those who catch my drift... However, the best gameplay and the best graphics ever in the series and in many games of 2015 compensate for this loss. Let's not forget the title and the theme... Phantom Pain... If we take it more philosophically, it wants us to feel the loss not only of the protagonist's limbs but also of our character as pieces that are lost slowly, one by one... After some time, the game and its story are even more appreciated, especially by big fans like myself... For those who have never played MGS, don't be afraid... It's an opportunity to experience the incredible world of Metal Gear, even if it's late... P.S. I didn't want to say anything about the story on purpose. My comment will be better understood if you play the game... For your own good, I beg you, as the saying goes... Don't deprive yourself of this game!

Mediocre to nice.
The game starts impressively in the first few hours, continues well for the next... and stays there. The same tactics of sneaking and strictly using tranquilizers, even though you can choose from 1000 weapons, because if you kill and don't capture the enemy with the fulton, you don't develop your base. Seriously, I have captured so many that Snake's army consists only of Russians. Am I the only one who notices this? The graphics are simple. There is nothing complicated, the map looks big but due to the countless mountains that you can't climb, you have to go around them. So, it's virtually an open world. In the second map of Africa, you realize that it is noticeably smaller.
Common characteristics: They are empty. You can't do anything. There is no fauna, no flora, no civilians, no kind of confrontation between Russians and enemies, they just stand there and wait, in the empty outposts consisting of 2 watchtowers, a tent, etc.
The story is non-existent. It's the title Metal Gear, guys, a series with rich cinematic and many elements. Here, there is nothing. A lukewarm cutscene every 5 main missions, which have no reason to exist since the objectives are the same throughout the game:
1) Extract prisoners
2) Blow something up

And you will see the game's final revelation at some point, which essentially makes the game a waste of time. You feel like you've been fooled. For example (this is not it): imagine playing a game for many hours and in the end, it tells you that it was all a dream.

So, 3 stars = mediocre
5 stars means excellent, which it is not