November 1, 1999 Web posted at: 9:04 a.m. EST (1404 GMT) by Dpad Destroyer, GamePro

From...

(IDG) -- About this time last year, the gaming world was on fire for Metal Gear Solid, an ambitious and successful game of espionage and intrigue.

This year, Konami brings you the VR Missions, a sort of stripped-down Metal Gear Solid that concentrates more on tactics and problem solving than on saving the world.

VR troopers

To ease gamers weaned on Quake into a world where shooting even once might mean your death, Konami used one of the most complete and challenging training modes known to man. Metal Gear Solid's VR Training mode placed you into a number of tight little battle games, where your object was to complete the singular objective, using the objects and obstacles you were given, by any means necessary.

MORE COMPUTING INTELLIGENCE
	IDG.net home page
Games.net home page
More Playstation news and reviews from GameProWorld
Cheat codes! Never die! Gain secret powers!
More games reviews at Games.net
Reviews & in-depth info at IDG.net
		IDG.net's desktop PC page
		IDG.net's portable PC page
IDG.net's Windows software page
IDG.net's personal news page
Year 2000 World
Questions about computers? Let IDG.net's editors help you
Subscribe to IDG.net's free daily newsletter for computer geniuses (& newbies too)
Search IDG.net in 12 languages
News Radio
	Fusion audio primers
	Computerworld Minute

VR Missions is a game made completely of that training mode. You advance by completing certain objectives, from simply sneaking from A to B in early missions to much more complex simulations later in the game.

The idea behind VR Missions is that you are using your tactical skills to solve puzzles, not to infiltrate a terrorist stronghold and save the world. It's your human brain versus the computer's superior technology and weapons. But as hard as it looks, there's always a way to win.

Grid runner

All the VR Missions take place on a Star Trek Holodeck-style grid, with walls, tunnels, stairs and other obstacles built in. Solid Snake appears to be trying to infiltrate the set of American Gladiators, instead of a terrorist base. Other than the variation of the level layouts themselves, there's little to no graphic diversity anywhere.

VR Missions carries on Metal Gear Solid's unique brand of sonic presentation. You'll listen for sound cues like footsteps or yawning guards to figure out what to do next. Guards will exclaim in confusion when they hear another guard fall to the ground dead or when they spot your footprints in the snow.

When you get caught by a surveillance camera, there's a loud shriek of music and a voice announcing your presence over the loudspeaker. More often than not, you'll hear your own heart pounding through the silences as you anticipate that single musical strike of alarm.

VR Missions will make you use every skill and move you learned in Metal Gear Solid and then some. There are a lot of things to learn, but once you get a handle on the basic controls, you'll find that you're concentrating a lot more on whether that guard is sleeping on duty than whether or not you press the Square button to shoot. After a few hours with this game, you'll find that your Metal Gear Solid skills have increased sharply as well.

Solid as a snake

Metal Gear Solid VR Missions isn't more of the Metal Gear you know and love. It's a tactical trainer, not an interactive movie. It's a puzzle game for the Special Forces. Play it to enjoy its challenges, and you'll hardly miss the storyline and the witty banter with Headquarters. Just be careful - you might learn something.

Pro tips