Fieldnotes is a weekly column where I drop into a new (or old) game and report back with raw notes, sharp takes, unfiltered, and sometimes unhinged thoughts. This week, I continue my journey in Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain.
The last time we left off, I had just finished all of Ground Zeroes as well as the hospital tutorial segment in Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain. If you’ll recall, I said that the tutorial was unbearably slow and painful but I figured the worst was behind me once I got that out of the way. And I was right. Stepping back into the Afghan open-world of MGS V was a breath of fresh air. It was a shot of espresso. It was like being bathed in sunlight.
The story has progressed very slowly since then, but Mother Base grows. This is what I signed up for. I want to build the biggest army without borders the world has ever since, and if that means kidnapping every last soldier, bear, and sheep in my sight, then so be it.
Big Boss Reunites With Kaz
I never took the time to listen to the cassette tapes in Ground Zeroes but Paz makes a funny comment in one of them. She’s recording her intel reports based on what she’s observed of MSF so far and when she gets to Kaz, she references his obvious obsession with Big Boss. And let me tell you, the gay energy between them has never been stronger than it has here.
My first mission was to rescue Kaz. I got that sorted easily enough. Early on in the game, enemies are completely vulnerable to whatever strategies you choose to employ, which meant that I could just tranq headshot everyone in my sight and be completely fine. After you get Kaz on the chopper back home, he starts his iconic “Why are we still here? Just to suffer?” monologue.
To be clear, it’s a fantastic performance from voice actor Robert Atkin Downes. I’ve always been of the opinion that MGS V was more Kaz’s game than Big Boss’s, and this cements it. Because Kiefer Sutherland’s version of Snake is so much more subdued compared to Hayter’s, this gives characters like Kaz and Ocelot more time to shine. Kaz, in particular, is much more vocal about the loss of Mother Base in Ground Zeroes than Snake ever was. When he tells you that he can still feel the limbs and the comrades he’s lost, you believe him. No one has ever embodied the “man in great pain and suffering” trope better than Kazuhira Miller.
And what does a man who’s suffering do? He turns to his boyfriend for comfort of course.
This was a huge meme-able moment when MGS V first released. No one could stop talking about how comically close Kaz would get to Snake’s face whenever he needed to say something important. Fellas, you telling me it’s normal for bros to get all up in each other’s grills when you’re in conversation? Nah, Kaz loves Snake, and nothing you can say will convince me otherwise.
Everyone Loves Big Boss
In fact, Kaz isn’t the only one in The Phantom Pain who loves getting all up close and personal with Snake. I’m jumping ahead a little here, but one of the game’s early missions features a short scene with Skull Face, the main antagonist for this first act.
Snake gets caught by Sahelanthropus (this game’s bipedal Metal Gear) and is suspended upside-down while Skull Face walks over to taunt him. I think maybe Kojima was trying to go for intimidation here, but all this scene did was give Spider-Man/MJ kiss vibes from Sam Raimi’s first Spider-Man movie. Tell me I’m wrong.
I don’t blame the boys. Punished “Venom” Snake looks good in this game. This is the best Big Boss has ever looked (ending twist be damned). The shrapnel horn protruding from his forehead is the cherry on top, and all the badass scars on his face are just flourishes for the masterpiece. Snake couldn’t look any more badass if he wanted to. Even the little ponytail is growing on me.
DD, The Star of the Show
As I continued taking on Side Ops, I quickly re-familiarized myself with the Fulton Recovery System, which might be the best mechanic we’ve ever seen in an MGS game. How it works is that you knock out an enemy, attach a giant balloon to his body, and he gets whisked off to Mother Base.
You can also do this with animals, which is exactly what I did to the very first sheep I saw in MGS V.
Then, I did it to the cutest little pup that showed up at the start of one of the early missions. This is, of course, Diamond Dog, or DD for short.
Every video game is automatically made better with dogs or pets in them, and DD proves that. It definitely helps that DD is one of the cutest video game dogs ever, and being able to watch him grow up as you continue playing the game is nice too.
Personally, I love DD more as a little pupper and I adore the fact that he comes to greet you every time you step off the chopper at Mother Base. Pro tip: use the binoculars to mark DD so you’ll always be able to find him when you get back to Mother Base. I kinda wish you could make DD do tricks as a pupper, but I’ll take what I can get.
So far, I’m thoroughly enjoying my time back in MGS V. Things are slow going as I take my time doing Side Ops, gathering resources, and kidnapping troops to help with expanding Mother Base, but that’s the best part of the game. Story-wise, MGS V is the weakest of the bunch, but when it comes to gameplay, I find myself wishing every third-person shooter game felt exactly like this.
