Icarus's blog: "Somantics"

I really hate when things change, but this new format does look like it'd be easier to archive.

Maybe I should get off my ass with that.

I've got something like... 80% completion on Metal Gear Peacewalker. In case you were wondering where I was.
It's... 8 hours work. 8 hours Peacewalker.

If you didn't hear me say it before, I will gain

Best Metal Gear
ever.

God I hope there's more.
Possibly on my PS3.

... the more I play this game though, the less excited I am about Metal Gear Rising.
I wanna keep raising my army, and making kickass guns >>

I mean... sure
being a cyborg ninja is AWESOME.

... so is being a guerilla-mercenary legend.

Hopefully this was a launchpoint and not a CONCLUSION to Big Boss' storyline.

There's definitely room for

remakes
in-betweeners (ten year gap between MGS3 and MGPW)
and... they made Master Miller a real character.
But what's STILL missing
in a hugegantor way
[Spoiler alert]


the gap between Zero and Big Boss.
Big Boss and Foxhound.
MSF/Outerheaven/Solid Snake/Revolver Ocelot/The Patriots/Grey Fox

Basically, MGPO left off where MGS4 deus ex machinaed EVERYTHING
but there's still decades of unaccounted militarism and ass kicking. Chapter five of MGPW HINTS
HINTS
at Cipher and Zero's activities, but there's at least a full game and a full story line missing.
They basically acknowledge it at the fucking credits.

Especially with Kaz, Solid Snake being trained, and Big Boss' rebellion. Also, everyone
everyone
is asking for a remake of MG 1 and MG 2.
I wouldn't mind it, and I wouldn't mind some sidestories about Fox and Snake.

The credits end with a timeline
1964: Naked Snake secretly saves the world. Earns the title Big Boss.
1965: Big Boss leaves America, is later abducted and shanghaied in San Hereinmo peninsula to rock the shit out of Fox/Foxhound. And stop a joint splinter cell Russian/US nuclear threat. (MGPO)
1974: Big Boss and Kazuhiko Miller begin MSF with the remnants of the KGB/Gru/CIA/Fox operatives from the San Hereinmo operation.
1975: MSF acquires various south american guerilla faction allies, more KGB and CIA operatives MSF begins construction of the offshore fortress christened Outer Heaven after destroying the (another) joint US/USSR nuclear armed walking battle tank "peace-walker" and begins construction of their own AI nuclear armed walking tank christened "Metal Gear Zeke" (MGPW)
blahblahblah Salt 3 Start 3 real stuff.
1995:
Big Boss initializes the Outer Heaven Rebellion. (MG1/2). Solid Snake defeats Big Boss with a bottle of hairspray and a lighter, and fells the prototype walking nuclear armed battle tank Metal Gear.

2005: Kazuhiko Miller is found dead in his home murdered by an unknown assailant (Liquid Snake). (MGS)

2007: Revolver Ocelot generall fucks over all plots of Cipher in the name of the patriots, who... at this point are an indistinguishable flesh and blood faceless entity from the AI Core of CIPHER. Steals Metal Gear Ray, cooperates with Dr. Naomi Hunter. Dr. Naomi Hunter almost releases a retro-virus that promises to wipe out mankind (MGS4) because Snake is an order following douche that murdered Grey Fox, and burned Big Boss and she's a bitter whore. (1995)  crashes Arsenal Gear on the coast of Washington DC. Raiden fights Solidus to the death all rocket-boosted Samurai style. (MGS2). Raiden dissapears to elude CIPHER and augment his now nano-dependent body.

2015: Solid Snake is old. We're still not 100% sure why. We all play through a highly anticipated sequel that turns out to be more of a decent shooter, not so much a sneaker, we hate every character but Raiden (and EVERYONE now claims to be a Raiden fanboy once he's seen taking down a Metal Gear with his muscles and twirling ninja awesomeness now that he's basically a gray fox clone) because they're all grumbly/winey twats (Snake included- argh my back) or non-entities that talk WAAAAAAY too much. We wrap EVERYTHING as neatly as possible in a "I'm done with this arc" bow. It doesn't make sense, its obviously rushed, and there's more loading than gameplay. Big Boss shows up... he has to be at least 90. ZOMG Cryosleep- and hyperbolic restorative chambarZ!
... right.
Still older than piss. That retro virus that was supposed to wipe out mankind just kills every main character from MGS3 and MGPO.

Big Boss included.
Dead for the 4th time.
For really reals.

Fans are PISSED.

I cried.
Seriously.

2009:
Metal Gear Rising and Peacewalker are announced.
I come in my pants because I know exactly what to expect for both games.

Fans continue to anticipate re-releases of MG1 and MG2, and an independent title or two for Big Boss and Grey Fox (maybe Master Miller? He was kinda huge in PW). Because "s-OL-i-D Snake is old...
and done".

[End Spoiler/fanwank+ludology rant continue]

Now that might have been boring and nonsensical to you
but that just saved me the trouble of probably replaying all of those games to get a sense of the timeframe.

I've played through.... MGS2 at least 20 times.
There was a summer where I played through MGS3 almost every two days.
MGS1 about 10 times, and MGS Twin Snakes about 4 times
Portable ops about 3 times
Peacewalker... first playthrough but ... its kinda set up different where you can select missions and there's a lot of "extra ops" which are true to MG since we usually get a lot of "challenge levels" or "virtual ops" in the other episodes.
And typically... we get MORE on an expanded release 6 months later.

MGS1 had Virtual ops and the independent title of Virtual ops.
MGS2 had Virtual ops (timetrials/shooting ranges/side missions) MGS2 Substance had an ASSLOAD more including pseudostory missions for Snake
MGS3 had Subsistence which...
what the fuck was on Subsistence? ... *seriously doesn't remember, but does remember RUSHING out to buy it* I wanna say it had challenge missions and shit... I know it had a movie selector and some other stuff... and the online content (which I barely used) and I wanna say some slightly expanded equipment and in-game challenges. Basically... 30$ for a patch.
MGS4 had MGO which in all fairness was a pretty decent multiplayer game even though assault rifles were STUPID OP NERFNOWPLZ.
MGPO had MGPO+ which... mostly had MORE soldiers, more soldier skins, infinity mode, the capacity to level your soldiers beyond using them in story mode missions in MGO, and expanded the skills and special abilities

Everything's -there- for an expansion.
Keep the engine and interface, expand the soldiers, put in a few more skins/outfits, put in about ...3 guns every type, put in a couple knick-knacks, add missions to every major map-set, add 4 new map-sets/environments, add new mission types (and there's already like ... 20 mission types and 120+ extra missions), add a few ultra-rare main characters as playable.
you don't even need a story line or new voice acting
I was a little surprised, and dissapointed that I got NO perks for having an MGPO save on my memory card with MGPW.
They're usually pretty cool about that stuff.

oh yeah
and Metal Gear AC!D
still doesn't count.

But in PO I got like ... 4 extra characters just for having AC!D saves.

Also- you may LOOK crazy standing in the middle of a parking lot playing a PSP but... damned if it didn't get me about 30 BAD ASS recruits today.

...
still not tired.
Fucking pregnazone.

Let's shift to real life for a minute.

My granny had a mini-stroke a couple weeks ago.
Some assbag gave her my number
she is now calling me to NO fucking end, and ... I'm not picking up, and I'm not checking the voicemails.

She's convinced she's as good as dead. I told her my gramma is 5 years older than she is, has had collapsed lungs and a pace maker installed.

You're not dying, and I wouldn't be as involved as you want me to be even if you were.

You've known me 25 years.
Stop being surprised or disappointed.
You have nieces, nephews, and daughters that do LESS than me, and are about 1/3 as busy.

I couldn't be bothered then.
I still can't.


But let's talk about me, and why I'm STILL awake, and why I posted this entry at all.

I had my sixth asthma attack this week. Six in 2 months.
All of em were scary severe. ER type severe if I wasn't such a penny pincher.

I finally got into urgent care and got an enhaler and pregnazone. Since my lungs have been crackling for... ever.

Now I'm fucking TWEAKED.
I went to bed at 1 last night and was up til 3.
Woke up at 8 and was not tired.

The dose is gonna stage down in a couple days and I'll be off it in ... ... 10 days?
Still... hope this shit levels out a bit.
I'm bouncy... and longwinded (moreso than usual).