I went through a few phases when I caught wind of this game. The first phase came when I initially heard about it—1 went crazy over the idea of a Metal Gear game on the PSP. The second phase was when I found out it was card based. I admit, I was a bit skeptical at first and I was disappointed that Konami could possibly ruin such a great series. Fortunately, I was wrong. The final phase involved me renting the game and trying it out. It was a lot of fun from beginning to end. Well, the visuals were amazing, and I was blown away by the almost PS2 quality graphics. The camera can get "stuck" behind obstacles, but it's a rare problem and certainly not a serious one. The only thing I thought was lacking was the absence of an opening cut-scene. I loved the ones in the Metal Gear Solid games, and I waited for awhile to see if anything would pop up; but all I was rewarded with was a little clip of someone playing the first level. There are little clips of old games from the MGS series, as well as other works by Hideo Kojima. These are activated by using special character cards. Luckily they appear everywhere in the game. Some are very rare, but others are included in your beginning deck. Fortunately they all contain a cut-scene in one form or another. I liked the cut-scenes, and sometimes I would waste a card so I could watch one. The graphics were superb, and the textures and detailed environments were great. The normal cut-scenes in the game itself consisted of drawings. I found nothing wrong with this — it was a nice touch in my opinion. Not great music, as it was basically the same stuff heard in old MGS games; but the quality was definitely better than what I'm used to on a portable. The FX were good, and the music did a very good job contributing to the "feel" of the game. But there was something missing here— voice-acting. Maybe I'm expecting a bit too much from the PSP, but I feel it would have made the game complete in a final sense. Overall, the sound was good, but I think it could have been better. When I picked this one up, the game play worried me the most. It's ironic, because it's the most important aspect of pretty much any game. However, the game play was innovative, and very fun once I got into it. Once you acquire better cards it gets better and better. The only bad thing I have to say about it, is that it had somewhat of a slow start. In the beginning, you are forced to cope with a somewhat boring deck of cards— a deck of completely balanced cards catered to the beginning player. That's not a bad thing, but I would have liked some interesting cards in there that really grabbed my attention. The special character cards I mentioned earlier are there, but they pale in comparison to the ones acquired later. Once you progress a bit further, you get interesting cards that are both effective and fun to use. Then the game play shines. However, it doesn't help when you are forced through a boring set of tutorials at the beginning. I have no problem with tutorials, but it's annoying if you already know what to do. A skip option would have been nice, but I hopelessly mashed buttons in an effort to get past this mundane feature. There is a lot of potential in the versus mode in Metal Gear AC!D, and it's great fun with a friend. Another great feature is the card collecting. There are regular, silver, and gold cards, and I believe there are 200 cards available in the North American version. You can play old levels with differing objectives to unlock new cards and collect extra packs along the way. You also acquire points after every mission that can be spent on cards. Collecting them can be very addictive, and easily boosts the re-playability of this game. A great game with superb graphics, game play and re-playability. Good sound as well. It will appeal to anyone looking for a turn based game on the system, and Metal Gear Fans too. FPS gamers might not like it as much however. Rent or Buy? I rented it myself, beat it, and then spent the rest of my time collecting cards. I recommend you rent it first, and see if you like it. If you do, and you have a friend that does, it is a must buy. The multi-player is extremely addictive. I got my money's worth on this one.