Ugh. Can I skip 1? Or should I pick up that essentials pack? I was feeling pretty good about getting it for free. And then figuring I could pick up 3 on the cheap later.

I'd watch this first.

Reading the novel, graphic novel, watching the digital graphic novel, or watching a video of someone playing the GameCube remake would suffice as long as you get the entire story.

I've heard of a lot of people starting with MGS2 without playing MGS1. I don't think it's particularly essential to play the first one. If you're really worried about missing something, the graphic novel wouldn't be a bad idea. There's also a full recap of MGS1 somewhere in the MGS2 menus. I forget exactly what it's called, but it's a book written by one of the first game's characters that goes through the whole story of the first one. It was pretty comprehesive, albeit lengthy.

I wouldn't suggest playing the original MGS1 today. It's a little... clunky. I'd personally go with Twin Snakes or not at all.

FWIW the recent Gamtrailers summary of all things Metal Gear makes about as much sense out of the narrative as anyone will ever be able to make. Which is to say, not really a whole lot.

IMHO the weakness of the MGS1 and MSG2 games is that the actual gameplay and control schemes are so archaically hateful. MGS3 with the "real" third person camera just reaches a minimal standard of playability. MGS4 is a breath of fresh air in comparison.

The first couple of chapters of the gametrailers retrospective, as well as the included electronic novel recap on the MGS2 disk should bring you up to speed pretty well. But if you really want all the finer points of the MGS story there is no substitute for actually playing the full game. There's just too much there to briefly sum up.

Sell some plasma or something. Mow someone's lawn, anything, just get the money to play MGS1 first. The story and character's in 1 are still the best. Plus, you'll appreciate the actual good qualities in MGS2 *hrmph*gameplay*hrmph* that much more. The graphics and gameplay are dated on MGS1, but just treat it like a black and white movie. It may not be as good technologically, but, the story and the characters are top notch. There are moments in the first game that I don't want you to miss.

Now that I think about it, the way I played through the Metal Gear series worked really well. I got MGS3 Subsistence and played both Metal Gear and Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake off the bonus disk first. This meant that by the time I got to Metal Gear Solid I was used to the top down fixed camera perspective from the 8bit games and I had no expectations of 3D gameplay.

Then I went on to MGS2 and MGS3 in order till recently MGS4. Throughout the MGS series the controls evolved in a way that felt natural playing them in that order.

But if you don't got the moolah (or a copy of MGS3 subsistence) then that probably won't help.

So two thoughts. I have the novel and I think this is better told as a game. So I'm thinking I should...

#1 - Get the Essentials pack and play 1
#2 - Bag the whole endevour

I'm not sure which it is right now. Hunting down a PS1 memory card isn't easy. It just reads odd as a story. Not sure I'm truly getting the story well enough in this form.

Guess what... it plays odd as a story too!

You should get MGS2: Substance so that you can play the skateboarding mini-game, as I'm pretty sure it's the linchpin that holds the entire series' story together.

I started with MGS2 and loved it for all the things a lot of people hate it for, but I was pretty lost. It's a pretty different story with a different cast of characters, for the most part, from MGS1, but then when I got to the end I didn't understand why the old dude's voice was suddenly Leonardo from the 80's Ninja Turtles cartoon or why his right arm was all weird and bulgy. I played Twin Snakes when it came out and then played MGS2 and I was still lost, but at least now I knew who all the characters were and understood all the little jokes throughout. And I also understood how intentionally similar the two games are.

MGS2 requires MGS1 the way MGS1 requires Metal Gear 2. You won't be completely lost, but there will be some stuff you won't fully understand. It's not nearly as bad as MGS4, which basically requires an understanding and familiarity with the entire series, from Metal Gear 1 all the way through Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops.

I completely forgot that there was a PC version for both MGS1 and 2 with enhancements to both.

http://www.amazon.com/Microsoft-D42-00001-Metal-Gear-Solid/dp/B00004VP4B...