Metal Gear Online Beta Invites Going Out To PlayStation GAP Members

PlayStation Gamer Advisory Panel members ought to check (and re-check) their spam filters, as they may be on the receiving end of an unsolicited Metal Gear Online beta invite. Our helpful tipsters—who moonlight as lucky bastards—have already been notified that they'll be able to participate without having to pre-order Metal Gear Solid 4. Good thing Sony and Konami waited until (most of) the bugs were shaken out before distributing to GAPers. Oh, that's a horrid name for it...

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New Metal Gear Solid 4 Trailer

As the title says. It's a (mostly) new Metal Gear Solid 4 trailer. Lots of new footage of Metal Gears and lady-robots with tentacles, lots of footage of men being whacked over the noggin with guns, only some footage of monkeys wearing pants. I must say, while the graveyard scenes were brief, it's awful nice seeing green grass and flowers in a MGS4 trailer. That desert town was getting boring.

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BBFC Says MGS4 Has "Implied Child Rape" [Updated]

Metal Gear Solid 4 violent? Let's hear what the British Board of Film Classification says:

METAL GEAR SOLID 4 is a third person tactical/stealth game. The player takes on the role of an aging soldier, Snake who can be armed with knives, guns and grenades. The game has been classified '15' for strong violence.
During battles enemy soldiers die with small puffs of blood. The weaponry includes petrol bombs, however there is no detailed portrayal of injuries. During cut scenes slightly more detailed violence is portrayed, such as enemy creatures spearing friendly soldiers and one protracted fist fight

More BBFC-on-MGS4-violence after the jump! Some *might* consider this spoilers. Most will considered it effed up.

The violence is generally undetailed. At 15 BBFC Guidelines state that 'Violence may be strong but may not dwell on the infliction of pain or injury'. It is possible for the player to progress stealthily through the game, avoiding violent confrontations where possible.
The game also features one use of strong language and references to suicide and an implied child rape.

"References to suicide and implied child rape"?! Bwah?

Eds Note: We contacted Kojima Productions' Ryan Payton, who offered this insight: "There is no mention of rape in the game. There is mention of child trauma, which is probably why they added 'implied.'"

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Metal Gear Solid 4 Rated By ESRB

Let's cut to the chase:

Title: Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots
Rating: M
Content: Blood, Crude Humor, Strong Language, Suggestive Themes, Violence
Platforms: PlayStation 3

Any surprises here? Nope! Though, we're not sure if punching enemies in the nuts is "Crude Humor" or "Violence" or "Suggestive Themes."

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Konami ID Dojo: "System Is Very Busy Now"

Didn't much like the Smash Bros Dojo. Thought it was kinda stupid. Drip-fed, inane PR at its very worst, even. Nothing wrong with the format itself, though, which is much better suited towards cataloguing a clusterfuck, like the one Konami have orchestrated for their Metal Gear Online beta. Latest news from the front: the site itself isn't even working properly, let alone the beta signup process. We've had emails from users reporting that their application's keep pinging out, while my own application hasn't gotten any further than the message you can see above. Not very encouraging, this. If they can't handle some simple password sign-ups, what are they going to do when June 12 comes around?

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Amazon Delivering MGS4 One Week Late In UK?

Generally speaking, Amazon is pretty good about book and game pre-orders, but according to a post over on PlayStation Legion, Amazon UK is going to deliver Metal Gear Solid 4 a week late. Apparently an email was sent out to customers stating that Amazon would not be receiving MGS4 until June 19th (while the global release is planned for June 12th) so shipments would not be completed until then.

It should be noted that Amazon UK and US are still listing their pre-orders as shipping on June 12th and no other MGS4 delays have been reported, so don't hyperventilate just yet. But has anyone in the audience pre-ordered the game through Amazon's UK who can confirm this?

Souce kotaku.com

20 Years of Metal Gear Anniversary Trailer

When you get down to it, Metal Gear is getting up their in age. I mean, it's twenty years old? Next year, it can legally drink in America! This clip is from the "Metal Gear Saga Vol. 2" DVD.

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You Got Assassin's Creed In My MGS4!

When worlds collide, they go BOOM! What do you get when you insert Assassin's Creed's Altair into Metal Gear Solid 4? Well you get this video clip, which shows the smoking assassin watching patiently while countless soldiers get slaughtered before leaping into action and finally revealing what he's been hiding beneath that robe...Solid Snake! Feel free to insert your own "Is that a Solid Snake under your robe?" jokes in the comments section, while we try to.

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Metal Gear Solid 4 Pre-order Discs Sneak Out, Beta Hits April 21

Konami's Metal Gear Solid 4 pre-order program will be kicking off proper very soon, as the bonus disc and beta invites have begun to ship to stores. An IGN board member posted pics yesterday of the Metal Gear Saga 2.0 DVD, the one gamers get when they pre-order the game, which contains a six chapter catch up on all things Metal Gear Solid. According to the poster's recount of the beta details, downloads for the Metal Gear Online trial period begin April 17, with the beta program running April 21 to May 5.

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Metal Gear Solid 4 "Steel" PS3 Selling Like The Japanese Equivalant Of Hotcakes

Konami has to like its chances on the success of Metal Gear Solid 4, if the quick sell out of the "steel" edition PlayStation 3 are any indication. The Konamistyle web site, which handles all manner of Konami brand stuff, is already sold out of the limited edition 40GB console. It's going for 51,800 yen ($517 US) and should be available at other retailers soon, but the allotment given to Konami's own store has been quickly depleted. Don't worry though, collectors. You'll still be able to get Hori's useless and garish DualShock 3 charging station in "steel" at your leisure.

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More Metal Gear Solid 4 Limited Edition Details

North American gamers may not be getting a boss "steel" colored PlayStation 3 and DualShock 3 like the Japanese, but they are getting a solid limited edition release for Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots. The premium package for Konami's tactical espionage action freak out contains the following stuff. Sorry, no Old Snake fake mustache accessory included.

Collectible metal box
Bonus Blu-ray disc with two "making of" documentaries, four chapters of the graphic novel and Metal Gear import soundtrack
$85 price tag
And if you pre-order it now, GameStop promises you an "exclusive Metal Gear Solid 4 art book" at the time of purchase. Not bad, I suppose, but not something I see myself sprinting to my nearest franchise location with an eighty-five dollar bill in hand. They still make those, right?

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A Better Look At MGS4's "Steel" PS3

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