After the success of the online portions of Metal Gear Solid 3 Subsistence on PS2, Konami is Gearing up to conquer the online gaming world with Metal Gear Online for PlayStation 3, which may be released as a part of the Metal Gear Online Starter Pack. While being set against the backdrop of the upcoming Guns of the Patriots, MGO is looking to rival online juggernauts such as Call of Duty4 and Team Fortress 2 for dedicated fans. There are features that MGO, if properly integrated, could prove to be quite a memorable experience. A few notables are:

• Tried and true arsenal, including the VZ.83, AK10Z and M4s
• New system called SOKKU, which quickly gathers info about your allies.
• 16 player death-match, capture the base, along with other sneak and attack combat which is still TBA
• Character creation and leveling up, rivaling Call of Duty 4

It is still too early to tell if MGO will be commanding a legion of fans or just lag out into nothing more but hype. Even without any characters from the leading cast (although some screens suggest Snake will make an appearance), Konami still feels that this game will be instantly recognizable to anyone who has previously played anything from the Metal Gear franchise. It is still unknown if MGO will be sold independently. Only time will tell.

[See also: Metal Gear Online]