This MGS4 revamp overcomes the original game's biggest barrier – finally

Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 2 could be one of the most important remastered collections in recent years, as it finally brings Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots to modern platforms and makes the iconic stealth game playable outside of the PlayStation 3.

Originally released in 2008 for PlayStation 3, Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots is widely regarded as one of the greatest entries in Konami’s legendary action-adventure stealth series. Starring iconic protagonist Solid Snake, MGS4 earned an impressive 94 Metacritic score and remains one of the most celebrated games in the Metal Gear Solid franchise.

However, unlike most games in the Metal Gear Solid series following the original 1998 PS1 classic, Metal Gear Solid 4 has remained locked to PlayStation 3 for almost two decades. That has finally changed with Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 2. But why has it taken Konami so long to bring MGS4 to modern platforms?

There are several reasons why Metal Gear Solid 4 has remained a PS3 exclusive for so long. One of the biggest is that the game was built specifically around the PS3's unique architecture, making it notoriously difficult to port to other platforms.

At the time, porting games between consoles was also a far more complicated process than it is today. The Xbox 360 presented another major obstacle, as MGS4 was distributed on Blu-ray while Microsoft's console relied on DVDs, meaning the game's enormous file size would have created significant technical challenges.

Thankfully, porting older games to modern hardware is considerably more straightforward, even for a technically ambitious title like Metal Gear Solid 4. With Master Collection Vol. 2, Konami finally has the opportunity to bring one of the most requested Metal Gear Solid games to PC, PlayStation and Xbox. As Solid Snake famously said in MGS2: "Kept you waiting, huh?"

What improvements does MGS4 have on modern consoles?

Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of of the Patriots, Konami

This isn't simply a straight-up port of Metal Gear Solid 4 with the resolution bumped to 4K and the frame-rate increased to 60fps, although those upgrades alone are significant. Despite being 18 years old, MGS4 still looks surprisingly impressive today, and the improved resolution and performance should make the experience feel considerably smoother on modern hardware. For comparison, the original PS3 release targeted 1080p at 30fps and was prone to occasional frame-rate drops.

There are also welcome quality-of-life improvements beyond the visual upgrades. Players can choose control schemes inspired by previous Metal Gear Solid games, while the controls can also be fully remapped in-game. If you struggled with the original PS3 controls, or simply prefer the control schemes used in more recent entries, this additional customisation should make MGS4 much more accessible. The games included in Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 2 also run natively on modern hardware rather than relying on emulation.

Ultimately, Metal Gear Solid 4 is a fantastic addition to modern platforms. Not only does it still hold up remarkably well in terms of visuals, performance, and gameplay, but its cinematic storytelling remains some of the most ambitious and memorable in video game history. For longtime Metal Gear Solid fans, finally being able to play MGS4 on modern hardware is a long-awaited moment.

What about Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker?

Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker was originally released on PSP in 2010 before being included in the Metal Gear Solid HD Collection in 2011, alongside Metal Gear Solid 2 and Metal Gear Solid 3. The PSP classic earned a respectable 89 Metacritic score at launch, although its ambitious gameplay systems arguably deserved even more recognition.

Peace Walker was a game ahead of its time, pushing the PSP's hardware to its limits while delivering a surprisingly deep Metal Gear Solid experience. Its compelling story remains one of the game's biggest strengths, chronicling a pivotal chapter in Naked Snake's transformation into Big Boss. As you'd expect from a Hideo Kojima game, it also delves into the philosophy and consequences of tactical warfare.

One of its most impressive features was Mother Base management. Players could build and customise their offshore base of operations, recruit and train soldiers, and research and develop new weapons and gadgets to gain an advantage during campaign missions. The system was an early version of the more expansive Mother Base mechanics later seen in 2015's Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain. Peace Walker also stood apart from other entries in the series by offering online co-op for up to six players in select missions.

Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker, Konami

Visually, Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker holds up surprisingly well, particularly in its storytelling, animations and cutscenes. On modern hardware, the game looks crisp in 4K and runs at a smooth 60fps. However, there are some noticeable omissions from the original gameplay experience. Most notably, Snake still can't crawl along the ground, which feels particularly strange given how heavily Peace Walker relies on stealth. Adding a crawl option would have been a welcome quality-of-life improvement.

Some technical issues will hopefully be addressed in a future patch. During my time with Peace Walker, I encountered significant audio and cutscene lag, with the dialogue eventually becoming roughly a minute out of sync with what was happening on screen. It's unclear what caused the issue, but it's certainly something that could benefit from a fix.

Despite some of these shortcomings, Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker remains an important part of the franchise's history, even if it hasn't aged quite as gracefully as Metal Gear Solid 4. More importantly, Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 2 finally makes it possible to experience these hugely influential games on modern hardware.

And with Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots finally playable outside the PS3, the collection represents a significant moment for Metal Gear Solid fans. MGS4 alone makes Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 2 a major release for 2026, while Peace Walker serves as a valuable reminder of just how ambitious the series was, even on a handheld as technically limited as the PSP.

Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol.2 will be available on 27 August 2027 on PC, PlayStation (version reviewed), Xbox, and Nintendo Switch. A review code was provided by the publisher.