Metal Gear Acid is Konami's contribution to the PSP's library of games in Japan, and it brings Solid Snake to Sony's recently released portable system. The game was first shown at this year's E3 and it left some players wondering how the classic stealth action franchise would fare as a card game. After spending some time with the game, we're pleasantly surprised to say the answer seems to be "really well, actually." While it breaks from the traditional Metal Gear mold with its card-based game mechanics, the unique game seems to be an original and equally compelling experience.

　　Solid Snake's latest mission takes him to Lobito Island in the year 2016.

　　Metal Gear Acid takes place in 2016 on Lobito Island, located in the fictitious Tejan Republic of South Africa. You once again take the role of Solid Snake, who, this time, has been called upon out of his retirement by Cmdr. Roger McCoy, a man working for the CIA and a longtime friend of Metal Gear Solid's Col. Campbell. Your mission is to get hold of "Pythagoras," a secret project that was in the works at a lab facility on Lobito Island. The United States had already sent in a Special Forces team named the HRT squad to get Pythagoras, but they were annihilated by a military group that was protecting the island.

　　Although it doesn't officially negotiate with terrorists, the United States needs the Pythagoras to save the lives of 517 passengers on board a hijacked jumbo jet. One of the captives is Sen. Hatch, who's expected to become the next president of America. The only thing that the unidentifiable hijacker is demanding is the Pythagoras, and it's up to you as Solid Snake to get the Pythagoras to save the lives of the hostages. You'll be helped out on the mission by a navigator named Alice Hazel, who, much like you, received help from Mei Ling in MGS. However, Alice has a few extra perks. Aside from her military training, Alice comes packing psychic powers and she can tell you exactly what direction to head in on your missions. You'll also meet a female soldier named Teriko Freedman in the middle of the game, who's the only survivor of the HRT squad that was sent to the island. You'll get to play using both Snake and Teriko after a certain point in the game.

　　The graphics in Metal Gear Acid are top-notch and look nearly as great as Metal Gear Solid 2 on the PlayStation 2. While this isn't too surprising given the similarity in both systems' graphics power, the game still packs a pretty powerful punch the first time you see it. Unfortunately, the game doesn't feature any voice acting, but the music is the same great quality as MGS2.

　　Metal Gear Acid makes use of the same concepts and basic structure as the Metal Gear Solid series, but there have been some new twists added. You'll still need to advance in the game while trying to avoid being detected by enemies. If you're spotted, you need to hide somewhere until the enemy alert is down. If you've been following our previous coverage on Metal Gear Acid, you probably know by now that it doesn't follow the traditional format seen in the Metal Gear Solid trilogy on the PS2. Instead, Acid plays like a turn-based strategy game that features a card-game interface for its menu. Almost everything that you do, from shooting enemies to equipping armor, is done by selecting six cards that are randomly loaded on the bottom of the screen. You can set your deck up with the cards you prefer before you enter each stage, which gives you some control over what you can do.

　　Metal Gear and card battling go surprisingly well together.

　　You can draw up to two cards, each with its own unique effect, per turn by default. For example, a claymore card will let you plant a claymore mine on the ground, a SOCOM card will let you shoot at an enemy or certain objects such as oil barrels and security cameras, and a ration card can heal you. There are also cards that can be equipped on empty slots located at the upper right side of the screen. Some of the cards will have an immediate effect as soon as you put them on, like a mine detector that lets you see all the planted land mines on the map, or a stealth device that lets you stay invisible from enemy eyes for a limited time. Other cards are reactionary and yield effects when an enemy attacks you, such as an armor card that halves the damages from an enemy, or dodge cards that let you dodge attacks from designated directions. Equipped cards that react to enemy attacks are only good for a single use, but you can equip more than one of the same kind at any given time. You have two equipment slots by default, but you can expand them up to nine slots by using special items.

Pick a Card, Any Card

　　You'll move around the map by selecting any card at hand. For example, you can choose to use a bandage card to stop your bleeding, or if you don't have a need for it, you can use it to move a few spaces on the map instead. You're allowed to move up to three spaces per card, with the exception of a few special cards that are dedicated to moving longer distances. After you move, you're prompted to choose the direction that you face, which is a vital part of the gameplay since you can only attack enemies in the direction that you're facing. Direction is also important when you're attacked by enemies. You'll take more damage if you're attacked from behind, and some defensive cards will only protect you from attacks coming from a certain direction.

　　Amazingly, Acid looks nearly as good as the Metal Gear Solid games on the PS2.

　　Another vital factor in Metal Gear Acid is that each card comes with a number printed on its upper right corner, a value referred to as "cost." The cost signifies how long it will take for you to come to your next turn. For example, if you pick two cards on your turn that total 27, your enemies can move any combination of actions that total 27. So your foes could theoretically take three turns if they only take actions that total nine per turn. Powerful cards tend to have a larger number printed on them than the less-useful cards do, so it's important to have a balanced deck rather than a deck that features only the strongest cards in the game.

　　If there are no cards that you like in your hand, you can choose to discard two of them and take out two new cards from your deck during your turn. You can also choose to consume your unwanted cards by using them to walk around, but it's not smart to do that with powerful cards since you can only walk up to three steps regardless of the card's cost.

　　One of the keys to success in Metal Gear Acid is keeping a good overall balance when you're picking your cards. For example, there's a special card in the game that allows you to draw up to four cards during your turns. While this is obviously convenient, there are also some downsides. Being able to use more cards per turn means that you can defeat enemies around you with four consecutive attacks. However, it'll also leave you wide open afterward, since you'll have accumulated four cards' worth of costs. Another downside is that the game allows you to only take out two new cards from your deck at the end of each turn, so if you keep using your cards too much, you'll run out of them and you'll have to wait a few turns to draw enough out of the deck.

　　As we mentioned earlier, in addition to Snake, you'll be able to play as a second character named Teriko after you reach a certain point in the game. Once Teriko is in the game, you can play out some very interesting strategies that weren't possible in the action-oriented MGS series. For example, you can have Snake and Teriko positioned to the left and right sides of a T-shaped corridor, and then have one character tap the walls to get the enemy's attention and have the other character ambush the enemy from behind.

　　Surprise! Snake isn't the only character you'll be controlling in Metal Gear Acid.

　　Since Metal Gear Acid features a card-game system, there's a certain amount of luck involved when compared to normal strategy games, and you might not always be able to get the card you need at the right time. Thus, you're not guaranteed to have a weapon on hand, so you'll have to be more careful about being discovered by enemies than you were in Metal Gear Solid. If you have to fight a solider, you'll need to prepare yourself with the right cards and make sure that you kill the enemy before he can call out for backup. If you get surrounded by enemies, it's very unlikely that you'll be lucky enough to draw enough weapon cards and ration cards to win your battle against them, especially since you can only pack up to four cards of the same kind in your deck.

An Ace up the Sleeve

　　MGA adopts a stage-based system, and you have to fulfill the objectives for each stage in order to advance to the next. So far, the objective for all except a few stages has been to reach a goal at the end of the map. After beating each stage, you're ranked according to a number of factors, such as how many costs you've consumed and how many times the enemies have discovered you. You earn points according to your grade, and you can exchange your points with cards in a shop menu that you can access between each stage.

　　So far, Acid's storyline seems just as engrossing as that in the MGS games.

　　You can buy these cards randomly in packs of three, or you can buy them individually at a higher price. If you want to get more cards before advancing, you can go back and challenge previous stages and rack up some extra points. The mission objective when playing previously beaten stages is usually to defeat all the enemies on the map, which is an interesting twist from the objectives that you will have encountered when first going through the stages.

　　As a strategy game, Metal Gear Acid requires a decent amount of time to play through each of its stages. Some of the stages can take well over half an hour, since they span multiple maps. Dying in a mission with multiple maps will take you to its very beginning. Fortunately, your character automatically resurrects after 30 costs as long as your partner is still alive, which is a lot nicer than having to play a stage all over again.

　　One thing that Metal Gear Acid definitely inherited from its action-game cousins is the series' intense storyline. You don't know who or what to believe, and there's an air of mystery to the proceedings that will pull you in. What is the Pythagoras? Why does the hijacker want it? Why were you called out just to help out on a hijacking case? Getting answers to these questions will motivate you to see the adventure through to the end.

　　From the looks of things, Metal Gear Acid will be entertaining for fans of both the Metal Gear series and turn-based strategy.

　　If you're thinking of getting an import of Metal Gear Acid, you'll definitely want to have a good understanding of the Japanese language so you can read the details on each of the cards as well as enjoy the game's storyline. In addition, if you want to get the most out of the game, you're going to want to import yourself a copy of the Japanese version of Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater. Metal Gear Acid offers some interesting ties to the third entry in the series on the PS2. You'll be able to input passwords you get from Snake Eater into the game and even link to the game via the PS2's USB port and the PSP's USB cable. All told, Metal Gear Acid packs a lot of appeal that's worth a look to fans of Metal Gear and strategy games. There's no word on a US release at this time, although we expect it should hit at some point next year. Look for more on the game in the coming months.