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Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty vs Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker

Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty is an action-adventure game from Konami (2001) while Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker is an action-adventure FPS game (2010).

Quick answer: Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty has the higher Metacritic, 96 to 89.

Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty

2001 · Konami

96Metacritic

Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker

2010 · Studio not listed

89Metacritic

What each one is

Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty is filed under Action-Adventure. In contrast, Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker under Action-Adventure and FPS.

Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty

Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty is a 2001 action-adventure stealth game developed and published by Konami for the PlayStation 2. Directed, produced, designed, and written by Hideo Kojima, it is the fourth mainline game in the Metal Gear series, the eighth chronologically, and the sequel to Metal Gear Solid (1998). The game was originally released in November 2001 for North America and Japan and March 2002 for Europe, while an expanded edition, titled Metal Gear Solid 2: Substance was released the following year for the PlayStation 2, Xbox and Windows. A high-definition remaster, titled Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty - HD Edition, was first released in 2011 for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 as part of the Metal Gear Solid HD Collection compilation, with a PlayStation Vita port releasing the following year, and versions for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows and Xbox Series X/S following in 2023 as part of Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 1.

Description from Wikipedia

Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker

Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker is a 2010 stealth game developed by Kojima Productions and published by Konami. It is the seventh Metal Gear game written, directed, and designed by Hideo Kojima, and the fifth installment of the Metal Gear Solid series, as well as the fourth Metal Gear game made specifically for the PlayStation Portable, following Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops. A remastered version of the game titled Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker — HD Edition was later released for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 as part of the Metal Gear Solid HD Collection in North America and Europe and as a stand-alone retail release in Japan. The HD Edition of the game was included in the Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 2 compilation for Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Switch 2, PlayStation 5, Windows, and Xbox Series X/S on August 27, 2026.

Description from Wikipedia

Story, characters and reception

Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty
Plot

Setting Sons of Liberty takes place within an alternate history of events, in which the Cold War ended during the late 1990s. The game's story focuses on two narratives that occur around and near New York City the first in 2007, two years after the events of Metal Gear Solid ; and the second in 2009. The game's plot is the fourth chapter of an overarching plot concerning the character of Solid Snake. (Wikipedia)

Characters

Main article: List of characters in the Metal Gear series The main protagonist of Metal Gear Solid 2 is a young rookie agent named Raiden . He is supported by his commanding officer, the Colonel , and Rosemary , his girlfriend. Allies formed on the mission include Lt. (Wikipedia)

Reception

Reception Critical reception Metal Gear Solid 2 received "universal acclaim" according to review aggregator website Metacritic , where it is one of the highest-rated games on the website, and remains the highest-rated exclusive on the PlayStation 2. Game Informer gave the game a score of 10/10, while GameSpot gave the game a 9. 6 rating, stating, "It boils down to this: You must play Metal Gear Solid 2 . (Wikipedia)

Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker
Plot

Peace Walker begins on November 4, 1974. Big Boss is running his own mercenary unit in Colombia after leaving the United States, following the death of The Boss during Operation Snake Eater ten years prior. A mysterious paramilitary group equipped with a startling quantity of quality weapons, called the "Peace Sentinels", has been deployed in Costa Rica . (Wikipedia)

Characters

The game's returning protagonist is Big Boss , otherwise known as Snake ( David Hayter / Akio Ōtsuka ), who is leading a new mercenary group called Militaires Sans Frontières (commonly abbreviated as MSF). He is assisted in this endeavor by MSF deputy chief Kazuhira Miller ( Robin Atkin Downes / Tomokazu Sugita ). They are eventually joined later in the game by Sandinista rebel leader Amanda Valenciano Libre ( Grey DeLisle / Romi Park ) and her younger… (Wikipedia)

Reception

Critical reception Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker On Metacritic , the game holds a score of 89, indicating "generally favorable reviews". It was given a perfect score of 40/40 in the May 5, 2010 issue of Japanese magazine Weekly Famitsu ; making it the fourteenth game to achieve a perfect score, as well as the first title for the PSP. PSM3 awarded the game 91%, commenting on the game's ability to "take the best bits from every Metal Gear Solid game – the… (Wikipedia)

At a glance

Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of LibertyMetal Gear Solid: Peace Walker
GamingPickz Score——
Steam rating——
Critic aggregate96/10089/100
PriceUnknownUnknown
Install size——
Steam DeckUntestedUntested
Released20012010
DeveloperKonami—

Prices and Steam ratings are read live and move over time.

Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty vs Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker, point by point

Each facet side by side. A round is marked won only where a figure settles it; feel and "which is better" carry no mark, because no number we hold decides them.

  1. Genre and premise

    Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of LibertyAction-adventure game
    Metal Gear Solid: Peace WalkerAction-adventure FPS game

    What each is filed as. Each game describes itself in full above; we do not judge a premise.

  2. How it plays

    Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of LibertyNo descriptive tags
    Metal Gear Solid: Peace WalkerNo descriptive tags

    The tags players apply most, in order of votes. A read on feel, not a verdict.

  3. Reception

    Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty ✓Metacritic 96
    Metal Gear Solid: Peace WalkerMetacritic 89

    Metacritic's critic aggregate, from the game's Wikipedia reception where it was never on Steam.

  4. Price

    Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of LibertyUnknown
    Metal Gear Solid: Peace WalkerUnknown

    Read live from Steam and subject to change.

Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty takes 1 of the marked rounds to 0. That is only what a number can decide, not which you will enjoy more.

Which to pick, by what you want

  • The better reviewed of the two: Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty (Metacritic 96)

Difficulty and who each is for

By the tags players apply, Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty is middle-of-the-road on difficulty. Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker is middle-of-the-road on difficulty.

Common questions

How different are Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty and Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker in scope?

Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty lists little scope data. Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker lists little scope data.

Is Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty or Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker better?

Neither carries enough reviews for us to score it reliably, so we do not call a winner. The table above shows what each does have.

Which is cheaper, Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty or Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker?

One or both do not have a current listed price, so a straight comparison is not possible. See the table above.

Should I get Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty or Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker?

Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty has the higher Metacritic, 96 to 89. It also depends on what you want: the "which to pick" section above calls out which is cheaper, lighter on storage, better on a Steam Deck and the safer bet by weight of reviews.

Do you rank one above the other for a fee?

No. Neither game, nor anyone else, pays for placement or a verdict here. The order and every figure come out of the same public data the rest of the site uses.

All comparisons

How we compare, and what we will not do

The GamingPickz Score is a composite of player sentiment (adjusted for sample size), the critic aggregate and popularity, computed by the same code every ranked list on this site uses. The Steam rating label is Valve's own, reconstructed from the positive percentage and review count. Prices are read live. We do not write an opinion of which game is "better": we report the numbers and say which wins each measurable question above.

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