Guess what suckers? I'm already playing Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots. I'm only a few hours in, so I only have some very basic impressions to relate. The game is drop-dead gorgeous. It seems every 8 months or so, I play the best looking game I've ever seen. MGS4 is the new contender. Sure it's got all the tech, but like previous entries in the series, the little details are what make it.
The cut scenes are back with some sort of vengeance. I haven't any doubts that Konami made the subject of their length taboo to talk about. Fortunately, the acting and direction are top notch (with the exception of a few over the top moments). Watching the opening cinema, it could easily have been mistaken for modern war drama. The music and cinematography could only be described as haunting (the new acoustic guitar theme is phenomenal). Especially awesome during the cut scenes are the short bursts of interactivity. At certain points during cut scenes, typically when previous events are mentioned, you will be prompted to hit X. Quick glimpses of Snake's past missions will appear. It's a nice touch, particularly since Kojima intends to tie everything up.
The gameplay has seen some vast improvements. It is definitely more in line with its 3rd person action-adventure contemporaries. The camera, which first made the switch from overhead to 3rd person in MGS3: Subsistence, has seen further refinements, while the controls are no longer the abstract, convoluted mess that they've been in the past. Hold L1 to aim, R1 shoots, and triangle toggles between 3rd and 1st person views. No longer will you find yourself scratching your head over button combos while an enemy shoots you full of holes.
Two aspects of MGS4 have stood out to me so far: gun customization and urban warfare.
The weapon aspect is the one thing that held my attention in Army of Two. Thankfully, it plays a much larger role than simply blinging out your gun in this game. After meeting gun launderer and Sisqo look-alike Drebin, you have the option to customize your guns with laser sights, suppressors, grenade launchers, etc. The attention they pay to detail really gives you an idea of how much of a gun fetishist Kojima really is.
Urban warfare comes into play during the first act, as you must find your way through a battle between a PMC and a woefully out gunned local militia. You can choose to sneak through without interfering, but why? Letting loose, without worrying about stealth, was the most fun I've ever had in a Metal Gear game. With the new camera and controls, I was picking off PMC troops left, right and center. The mortars also provided a great distraction. I will definitely be playing that part multiple times once I beat the game.
So like I said, I'm only a few hours in, but I've enjoyed the hell out those hours. Metal Gear Solid 4 is well worth your hard-earned space bucks.
Oh, and you can pause during cut scenes.



And I think that's it for the week. I wanna get back to Metal Gear reeeal bad, and I can't think of anything but that.

*UPDATE*
You wanna know what Konami didn't want to tell anyone about the install?
There's an install at the beginning of every act.