Ok, let me state the obvious first; I'm a huge Metal Gear Solid mark. I still remember playing the original back on the NES in '87. Back then I didn't know what to make of it, but eventually I got hooked to it. And a few months later I looked in an issue of Nintendo Power, and there was a listing for "Metal Gear II" I was elated. But in the end, we in the States ended up with a horrifying parody of Metal Gear entitled Snake's Revenge.

Meanwhile in Japan, lucky MSX gamers were treated to a real Metal Gear 2. In fact, I never even knew the game existed until 1998, and when I finally was able to get an MSX emulator to work on my computer, I did everything I could to play it, but since I couldn't read Japanese, I had to wait a few years for a translated version to come out.

Eventually when the Solid series came out, I learned the truth about the NES versions of Metal Gear, that Kojima was not involved with the project. Same can be said about Snake's Revenge, but that is just too obvious.

One thing, however, that Kojima loves to do with the Solid series, is to come up with a Director's Cut version. When Metal Gear Solid: Integral came out for the Japanese PlayStation (and eventually the PC,) the game included extra virtual missions and a relatively useless photo mode (useless unless you are perverted.) Metal Gear Solid 2: Substance was able to add more than just VR missions, including five new sub missions (Snake Tales,) as well as a demo theater where you can replace any of the characters with another one of your choice. Nothing is better than watching Raiden fall off of Federal Hall instead of Solidus.

But this time, I think even Kojima knows he took the Director's Cut concept to a whole new level! With Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence, we are treated with two (or three, if your lucky) discs of Metal Gear bliss.

The first disc, Subsistence, can be considered a game in itself. Not only does it include the full Snake Eater game, but it includes a demo theater that shows the whole movie without playing. In addition, you can watch some of the scenes independently, so for those who didn't cheat against The End and adjust the PS2 clock a few years to actually see how he died of old age.

But it's the second disc, Persistence, that gives new meaning to Director's Cut! For starters, we now have Metal Gear Online! That's right, Metal Gear is finally available to play against other players on the ‘net. Now I haven't had the chance to try it yet, but I am so committed to re-purchase a network adapter just to enjoy MGO.

But in the meantime, I am able to enjoy refighting all the Cobras again. Nothing beats reliving that amazing final battle between Jack and The Boss, which I still consider one of the best end battles of all time. And for those who just to enjoy watching the story, the Special Theater is worth the price of admission alone. Featuring some of the funniest MGS parodies I've seen (well almost, since Project Snake is still the end all-be all of MGS parodies), these videos are well worth watching. For those who hate Raiden, your wish is granted with Metal Gear Raiden, a hilarious Terminator/MGS 3 spinoff where Raiden is sent to kill Jack in order to prevent Les Enfant Terribles with disastrous results. How disastrous? Picture Raiden in a jail cell with Volgin, and you you'll see what I mean.

But what matters the most to me is that Kojima has FINALLY released true US versions of the original Metal Gear and Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake. Compared to previous translated versions, the English is spot on, with no broken dialogue or Engrish whatsoever, and they still play as good as they have in the past!

However, since I wasn't able to get the Limited Edition, I didn't receive the third disc, Existence. But from what I heard I wasn't missing much, as it includes just all the cut scenes as a three hour movie, which I could already see in the Demo Theater mode on Subsistence. But what I wish I could get is the special disc available for preorders only, featuring a behind the scenes video of the making of the entire series. Just hearing what Kojima thinks about Snake's Revenge is peaking my interest.

What is scary is that with Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots coming out for the PlayStation 3 next year, I shudder to think of what that Director's Cut will include. Can you imagine the first three Metal Gear Solid titles running on PlayStation 3 hardware?

CURRENTLY PLAYING: Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence (PS2), Metal Gear Ac!d 2 (PSP)

WAITING FOR: Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion (Xbox 360)