MGS4 Coming to the Xbox360

[xcalibur]

01 January 2008 -- XboxFamily.com claims that a Konami distribution representative said that Metal Gear Solid 4 is coming to the Xbox 360. Speaking at a distribution meeting, the Konami rep allegedly informed XboxFamily.com that MGS4 had been in development for the Xbox 360 since early 2007 and will be released for the 360 between 12 to 14 months after the PS3 version hits shelves.

XboxFamily.com contacted Microsoft’s PR manager John Porcaro via email and received a response.

http://n4g.com/xbox360/News-96217.aspx

Amazing, if this is true then there will be almost no reason to get a PS3

Here's another link for those of you who are sceptic.

http://xboxfamily.com/xf/index.php?option=...d=1123&Itemid=2

 

[EarthBound]

Im sure by the 12-14 month period between the PS3 launch then the 360.The PS3 SOULD have a few handful of good games.

If not your right.

 

[Neko]

LOL!
Fake!
They won't wait over a year for the 360 version to be released if they already started porting it a long time ago....

 

[Ace Gunman]

If it's true, I knew this was coming. The rumors (official rumors, not just the ones circulated by fanboys...) have been popping up for a while now. However even if this specific article is false, it's still going to happen, mark my words.

 

[Gaisuto]

LOL!
Fake!
They won't wait over a year for the 360 version to be released if they already started porting it a long time ago....

Resident Evil 4, Unreal Tournament 3. It's called "Timed Exclusive." It's not common, but it does happen.

 

[Ryoku]

If they release it around the same time PS3 version is released, this would hurt the PS3 so bad. If they're planning on waiting around a year just to release the 360 version, it won't hurt the PS3 that much since there will be people who just can't wait to play it and will cave in to buy a PS3. Especially if it's a year. Unless there's some kick a** online multiplayer aspect. Then gg sony.

If this article is true anyway.

 

[Icarus]

I don't think it'll ever come out to Xbox360. Konami just can't betray their hardcore fans and risk it doing such thing. They know that they would get so much hate if they actually release it on Xbox 360. So for their sake, I hope this is just a rumor. Besides, anyone actually heard of XboxFamily.com before? I've never did so we don't know how credible this source is and people shouldn't hype this.

 

[shaunj66]

n4g.com? XboxFamily.com?

I'll wait until IGN or someone confirm it

 

[Ace Gunman]

I don't think it'll ever come out to Xbox360. Konami just can't betray their hardcore fans and risk it doing such thing. They know that they would get so much hate if they actually release it on Xbox 360. So for their sake, I hope this is just a rumor. Besides, anyone actually heard of XboxFamily.com before? I've never did so we don't know how credible this source is and people shouldn't hype this.

While this particular rumor is probably false it has been reported by credible gaming reporters with a history of breaking stories before anyone else that there are rumblings within the industry. Apparently Microsoft has been propositioning Konami and Square-Enix in order to get Final Fantasy XIII and Metal Gear Solid 4 on the Xbox 360. The reports state that everyone and anyone involved have had to sign non-disclosure agreements, so the whole topic is hush-hush. Also, it was stated that Konami and Square are open to the deal, it just comes down to how much Microsoft is willing to pay them.

Now onto the "hard facts", Microsoft has no shortage of money, as we all know. They paid $50 MILLION dollars just for the rights to have GTAIV's exclusive downloadable content; and that was just for some bonus missions. So it's fairly clear that if they want something, money is no object... and they want this. Next off it's not a betrayal of the fans since Metal Gear Solid 1 came to PS1 and PC and GameCube. MGS2 came to the PS2, PC, and Xbox. So as you can see it's hardly out of the ordinary for an MGS game to appear on other consoles.

Then couple that with the fact that while Kojima-san may want it exclusive to the PS3, it's not his call. He makes the game, but Konami owns it. If the Konami executives say "We're porting this to the 360", he has no say in the matter. Another example would be Nintendo and Miyamoto; he may have created Mario, but Nintendo can do anything they want with the character, because they own the rights. Stan Lee may have invented the X-Men, but if Marvel so chose they could put Cyclops in a pink tootoo and rename him "Captain Jerkface". Also, at least 3 high powered Konami executives have stated multiplatform was still a possibility.

It's also more than likely that they will, as it's not financially feasible for a 3rd party publisher/developer to stay exclusive to one console with the current generation. Here's just a handful of the games that made the jump to multiplatform this generation: Assassin's Creed (originally a PS3 exclusive), Grand Theft Auto IV (the GTA series typically was a timed-exclusive for Sony), Devil May Cry 4, Final Fantasy XI, Resident Evil 5, Unreal Tournament 3 (timed-exclusive), Eternal Sonata (timed-exclusive for the Xbox 360, so it works both ways), etc, and so forth. It has also been stated that MGS has to sell 1 million copies on day 1 just to make a profit. And even though there's several million PS3 users out there, it's a stretch to think 1 million of them would rush out to buy MGS4 on day one. It's a popular game, but it's not Halo-level popularity.

Oh yes, and then there's the final nail in the PS3-exclusive coffin: not too long ago Konami delayed MGS4 and their official message on the matter was that it was being delayed to "provide even greater enjoyment for more customers worldwide". There's only one way to provide a game for more customers, and that's to be available on more systems.

In closing, every single thing points to the game going to be multiplatform eventually, although I suspect it will be a timed-exclusive for the PS3. And as an extension of that suspicion, I believe the reason they can't officially announce it is because MGS4 is a system seller, but if hardcore MGS fans with no PS3 and a 360 get wind of that, there's no way they're going to plop down however much for a PS3 when they already have a console that can play the game.

 

[philco1]

Who cares ... You buy whatever system suits your gaming needs. If you want to play shooters then buy a 360 ... if u want to play JRPG's then buy a PS3 ... Its that Simple!!! In my opinion, the PS3 will retain a better library of games than the X360.

I have my PS3 and I love it!

The X360 will have its limitations in the future while the PS3 will not, but by that time, the 360 will be around 5 years old and guess what ... We will see another Crap Box out on the market. Microsofts biggest mistake was not including an HD drive in their system.

Moreover, their next biggest mistake was not allowing us to use Linux on their system hence, the 360 is getting hacked up the arse. Just look at the new 24C3 presentations and watch how they Owned up the 360 in order to put linux in it. Now that the 360 is hacked, I'll laugh my *** off when someone hacks live and creates one massive botnet with all the 360's. Note that this is relatively easy since all 360's run the same piece of crap hardware!

 

[phoood]

Oh this is great.

^^

 

[mario5555]

n4g.com? XboxFamily.com?

I'll wait until IGN or someone confirm it

More like Kojima himseld as far as I see it. He won't compromise his game into a lesser state. And if it goes to the X360 you can most definitely see the game on being on 3 (or more dual layered DVDs) as opposed to one BD.

But until it comes from him personally, all these rumors and pipe dreams are just that. Rumors.

Until I see Halo 3 and Bioshock coming to the PS3, is when I'll believe MGS4 is going elsewhere. (I might eat my words, but I'll stick with my guns on what I believe at the present moment.)

I don't think it'll ever come out to Xbox360. Konami just can't betray their hardcore fans and risk it doing such thing. They know that they would get so much hate if they actually release it on Xbox 360. So for their sake, I hope this is just a rumor. Besides, anyone actually heard of XboxFamily.com before? I've never did so we don't know how credible this source is and people shouldn't hype this.

While this particular rumor is probably false it has been reported by credible gaming reporters with a history of breaking stories before anyone else that there are rumblings within the industry. Apparently Microsoft has been propositioning Konami and Square-Enix in order to get Final Fantasy XIII and Metal Gear Solid 4 on the Xbox 360. The reports state that everyone and anyone involved have had to sign non-disclosure agreements, so the whole topic is hush-hush. Also, it was stated that Konami and Square are open to the deal, it just comes down to how much Microsoft is willing to pay them.

I dunno where that Square rumor came from either...unless everyone has minute recall Sony has a minor interest in Square and have had for a very long time. And as far as FF13 goes, it was built on the white engine, which was specifically designed to run and optimized for the PS3. The other multiplatform title Square is doing is NOT reason enough to suggest they are going to make an official FF game for any other system other than Playstation.

Again unless something has changed majorly and Sony doesn't mind.....yeah right.

Now onto the "hard facts", Microsoft has no shortage of money, as we all know. They paid $50 MILLION dollars just for the rights to have GTAIV's exclusive downloadable content; and that was just for some bonus missions. So it's fairly clear that if they want something, money is no object... and they want this. Next off it's not a betrayal of the fans since Metal Gear Solid 1 came to PS1 and PC and GameCube. MGS2 came to the PS2, PC, and Xbox. So as you can see it's hardly out of the ordinary for an MGS game to appear on other consoles.

Ace, your hard facts aren't as solid as you'd like for them to be. I'm not disputing the MS and GTA stuff, however MGS1 wasn't released on PC until way after it's console release and I don't think it had any kind of impact whatsoever, other than looking pretty and a FPS view there was no reason to release it. And as far as the GC "remake" (which is what it is) it was done as a favor from Kojima to Miyamoto, so he would consider putting Snake in Smash Bros. (which as we all know has happened) and so Nintendo would have a Metal Gear "exclusive" on their system.

MGS2, was a case of money and nothing else, it was released 8 months later, not many people bought it (they all got one of the PS2 versions) so again not a big deal. And what was missing from the Xbox while I'm on the subject.....oh yeah MGS3: Snake Eater. Why the ommission you ask? Well cause the sales (as I just alluded too) of the Xbox version tanked, and Kojima basically told them "I told you so", as he had no interest in making or even being involved (other than supervisory, like he was on Twin Snakes) on the Xbox port.

Then couple that with the fact that while Kojima-san may want it exclusive to the PS3, it's not his call. He makes the game, but Konami owns it. If the Konami executives say "We're porting this to the 360", he has no say in the matter. Another example would be Nintendo and Miyamoto; he may have created Mario, but Nintendo can do anything they want with the character, because they own the rights. Stan Lee may have invented the X-Men, but if Marvel so chose they could put Cyclops in a pink tootoo and rename him "Captain Jerkface". Also, at least 3 high powered Konami executives have stated multiplatform was still a possibility.

Nothing much to add here except for commenting on your first and last sentences.

No it's not his call, but he's their golden boy and they don't want him leaving and taking his talent elsewhere. Secondly, the only reason any discussion of a port was ever brought up was because of the user base of the PS3 vs. 360, they were scared it wasn't going to make back it's money they invested in its development. Period. End of story. I dunno how the systems sold this holiday season, as to whether it unfounded their fears or not, but those are the FACTS, of the reasons behind their decisions.

It's also more than likely that they will, as it's not financially feasible for a 3rd party publisher/developer to stay exclusive to one console with the current generation. Here's just a handful of the games that made the jump to multiplatform this generation: Assassin's Creed (originally a PS3 exclusive), Grand Theft Auto IV (the GTA series typically was a timed-exclusive for Sony), Devil May Cry 4, Final Fantasy XI, Resident Evil 5, Unreal Tournament 3 (timed-exclusive), Eternal Sonata (timed-exclusive for the Xbox 360, so it works both ways), etc, and so forth. It has also been stated that MGS has to sell 1 million copies on day 1 just to make a profit. And even though there's several million PS3 users out there, it's a stretch to think 1 million of them would rush out to buy MGS4 on day one. It's a popular game, but it's not Halo-level popularity.

Assassin's Creed was never CLEARLY stated as being a PS3 exclusive Ubisoft played coy with reporters who intepreted it was PS3 only due to the demonstration they were shown (which was on the PS3), like you or I actually believed GTA4 was going to stay as any kind of exclusive (not much of an argument there), DMC4 was the biggest suprise by far, but it's Capcom, heck even the Xbox exclusive Lost Planet is going over to PS3, Okami is going to Wii, but then again we're talking about Capcom so nothing from them suprises me.

And for the sake of completion Mercenaries 2 was announced as a PS3 exclusive by a magazine and stealing a page from Ubisoft, Pandemic skirted the issue of a mutiplatform release until after their deal with EA (for publishing rights, this was before the buyout, btw) was finalized. And again it was all about the big fat paycheck, otherwise why would they bother to make a PS2 port....

FF11 was NEVER in any way, shape or form an EXCLUSIVE for any platform, it was a MMO, period. And made to make money (even though the early going's were rough the thing made money for them hand over fist after it took off, so another bad example. There was not many platforms it wasn't on for that matter (only Nintendo afaik)

MGS might not be of Halo caliber, but hardcore MGS fans are ferverent and loyal. Heck even a buddy of mine who never played an Metal Gear game in his life is buying it day one. I believe it was be a system seller, and I also believe it will do good numbers, and since the Euro and US releases were delayed to add in extra goodies we're going to get the best version (for once) right out of the gate. I believe it will do good sales, and if word of mouth is good will make back their money and then some. Halo has it's detractors and so does MGS, so you know, no game is the perfect game (at least not yet) but I do think it will do well IMHO.

Oh yes, and then there's the final nail in the PS3-exclusive coffin: not too long ago Konami delayed MGS4 and their official message on the matter was that it was being delayed to "provide even greater enjoyment for more customers worldwide". There's only one way to provide a game for more customers, and that's to be available on more systems.

Not reading much into that are we....as I just pointed out (if you look at any of the delayed versions for any of the previous games they've always have come with extra features not available in the regions where the game launched first and then eventually re-released with those missing extras in the first territory to make extra sales, Konami is sneaky that way. And no I don't believe that was a veiled comment to confirm that the 360 version is the one they are polishing up on. Silly Rabbit.

In closing, every single thing points to the game going to be multiplatform eventually, although I suspect it will be a timed-exclusive for the PS3. And as an extension of that suspicion, I believe the reason they can't officially announce it is because MGS4 is a system seller, but if hardcore MGS fans with no PS3 and a 360 get wind of that, there's no way they're going to plop down however much for a PS3 when they already have a console that can play the game.

Again it's a possibility, but you and I both know (or maybe you don't or don't want to believe it to be so) money talks whether from companies that want the games on their systems or from gamers who buy enough copies to make it not be worth the time it would take to port it over. Maybe they have been working on a port, maybe they haven't been, I'm not in a position to speculate, only to take the evidence at hand and what has come before and make a educated judgement as to what MIGHT happen.

But one thing I do know is I'm getting mighty tired of fans on both sides fighting a war of ignorance, just because some yahoo from johnnysupergamer.com knows something from the janitor who works at konami and read a memo in the trash from the producer of DDR from Kojima's cousin who's might know something. Sounds facetious and far fetched.....yeah, and that's what I think of everytime I hear this nonsense that seems to rear it's ugly head every few weeks.

 

[Ace Gunman]

I dunno where that Square rumor came from either...unless everyone has minute recall Sony has a minor interest in Square and have had for a very long time. And as far as FF13 goes, it was built on the white engine, which was specifically designed to run and optimized for the PS3. The other multiplatform title Square is doing is NOT reason enough to suggest they are going to make an official FF game for any other system other than Playstation.

Again unless something has changed majorly and Sony doesn't mind.....yeah right.Â

The Final Fantasy XIII and Metal Gear Solid 4 rumors came from the same source, and the same article. Before I go any further, I must ask you to trust me that there is a source, I just didn't save the link when viewing it months ago. At the time I had assumed it would be everywhere, but it wasn't really picked up on by the larger game media sites. So it's not as readily available as I would like. As difficult as it is, I ask only that you trust that I have a source, and that both journalists involved are historically reputable.

Ace, your hard facts aren't as solid as you'd like for them to be. I'm not disputing the MS and GTA stuff, however MGS1 wasn't released on PC until way after it's console release and I don't think it had any kind of impact whatsoever, other than looking pretty and a FPS view there was no reason to release it. And as far as the GC "remake" (which is what it is) it was done as a favor from Kojima to Miyamoto, so he would consider putting Snake in Smash Bros. (which as we all know has happened) and so Nintendo would have a Metal Gear "exclusive" on their system.

MGS2, was a case of money and nothing else, it was released 8 months later, not many people bought it (they all got one of the PS2 versions) so again not a big deal. And what was missing from the Xbox while I'm on the subject.....oh yeah MGS3: Snake Eater. Why the ommission you ask? Well cause the sales (as I just alluded too) of the Xbox version tanked, and Kojima basically told them "I told you so", as he had no interest in making or even being involved (other than supervisory, like he was on Twin Snakes) on the Xbox port.

I'm sorry, that was my mistake. I should have been more specific. I wasn't bringing those up as pure evidence that MGS4 will be on the Xbox 360. What I meant by those examples was to merely illustrate that Metal Gear Solid, as a series, is not Sony's and Sony's alone. They have at times branched off to other consoles, usually for the same reason I put at the forefront of my argument: more consoles = more money. Basically Konami has, and may again choose to go multi.

As for MGS3, I'm aware the sales of MGS2 on the Xbox were less than stellar. But that was because even in North America at that time the Xbox was just "the hardcore system". To the majority gamer group on the console at the time, if it wasn't Halo or KotR, it didn't matter. However, this generation is much more diverse. In fact, at this point (I've counted) the Xbox 360 actually has more RPGs (and JPRGS) than the PlayStation 3. Don't get me wrong, I'm not trying to start a console war debate. I just want the record to show that the Xbox 360 user base and game library is a huge evolutionary leap over that of the original.

Nothing much to add here except for commenting on your first and last sentences.Â

No it's not his call, but he's their golden boy and they don't want him leaving and taking his talent elsewhere. Secondly, the only reason any discussion of a port was ever brought up was because of the user base of the PS3 vs. 360, they were scared it wasn't going to make back it's money they invested in its development. Period. End of story. I dunno how the systems sold this holiday season, as to whether it unfounded their fears or not, but those are the FACTS, of the reasons behind their decisions.

He may be their golden boy, but it's as you said, the money is the reason for multiplatform. Ultimately the loss of millions of dollars versus upsetting Kojima-san... money will win. Money always wins, and in this case, that may be a good thing for all gamers.

FF11 was NEVER in any way, shape or form an EXCLUSIVE for any platform, it was a MMO, period. And made to make money (even though the early going's were rough the thing made money for them hand over fist after it took off, so another bad example. There was not many platforms it wasn't on for that matter (only Nintendo afaik)

We seem to be more-or-less on the same page with the other examples, so I'll skip them. Some of those were examples of titles going multi, and some, like Final Fantasy XI, were examples of how the Xbox 360 can acquire a Final Fantasy game. Yes it's an MMORPG, and we could argue about semantics all day, but at the end of the day FFXI was a numbered Final Fantasy title from S-E, and that makes it a heavy hitter. How is that important to MGS? It is in the simple fact that it proves the impossible can be done.

MGS might not be of Halo caliber, but hardcore MGS fans are ferverent and loyal. Heck even a buddy of mine who never played an Metal Gear game in his life is buying it day one. I believe it was be a system seller, and I also believe it will do good numbers, and since the Euro and US releases were delayed to add in extra goodies we're going to get the best version (for once) right out of the gate. I believe it will do good sales, and if word of mouth is good will make back their money and then some. Halo has it's detractors and so does MGS, so you know, no game is the perfect game (at least not yet) but I do think it will do well IMHO.

I agree, it is a system seller. I wasn't comparing the quality of the games, just their ability to sell. 1 million in a day just isn't a realistic number for a game like Metal Gear Solid. It's not that it isn't an amazing series, it's that the majority of PS3 owners in North America? They're playing Madden, not elaborate Japanese games. And the majority of UK gamers? FIFA. We who are interested in games of this sort, as well as RPGs and such, are a minority in NA and the UK in that respect.

Not reading much into that are we....as I just pointed out (if you look at any of the delayed versions for any of the previous games they've always have come with extra features not available in the regions where the game launched first and then eventually re-released with those missing extras in the first territory to make extra sales, Konami is sneaky that way. And no I don't believe that was a veiled comment to confirm that the 360 version is the one they are polishing up on. Silly Rabbit.Â

That one is pure speculation, I admit. But the way they said it, my gut tells me it's a veiled comment. Although my gut can be wrong, but I'm sticking to that interpretation for now.

Again it's a possibility, but you and I both know (or maybe you don't or don't want to believe it to be so) money talks whether from companies that want the games on their systems or from gamers who buy enough copies to make it not be worth the time it would take to port it over. Maybe they have been working on a port, maybe they haven't been, I'm not in a position to speculate, only to take the evidence at hand and what has come before and make a educated judgement as to what MIGHT happen.

But one thing I do know is I'm getting mighty tired of fans on both sides fighting a war of ignorance, just because some yahoo from johnnysupergamer.com knows something from the janitor who works at konami and read a memo in the trash from the producer of DDR from Kojima's cousin who's might know something. Sounds facetious and far fetched.....yeah, and that's what I think of everytime I hear this nonsense that seems to rear it's ugly head every few weeks.

Seems sort of silly to have gone through this whole song and dance of a debate if we ultimately agree with most of the points.

While I'm certain in my gut it's coming, I know objectively and realistically that it's only a maybe situation. Additionally I'd like to note that I'm not an MGS fan. I have no interest in one particular side of the console war, or the battle for control of FFXIII and MGS4. My interest is purely academic, I keep an eye on the situation because it's entertaining and a good topic of discussion.

While I do have a bit of an ulterior motive, it's a noble one: I believe that all 3rd-party titles should be multiplatform. Leave the 1st and 2nd party titles to be the soldiers of the console war. 3rd party elitism is something that needs to end. Can't we all just get along?

 

[BoneMonkey]

its fake

 

[Reduxed]

maybe COULD happen

 

[CockroachMan]

Indeed.. I'll wait for IGN,Gamespot or a bigger site to confirm it.. I've heard that Konami wanted to make MGS4 multi-platform cause it's development was getting to expensive and the PS3 was not selling well.. but Kojima wanted to keep it a PS3 exclusive..

 

[MC DUI]

Eh either way I won't be getting the game, I don't have the patience to be any good at Metal Gear Solid games, I'm detected everytime within the first 10 seconds of playing and end up running around for 10 minutes trying to hide.

 

[xcalibur]

Eh either way I won't be getting the game, I don't have the patience to be any good at Metal Gear Solid games, I'm detected everytime within the first 10 seconds of playing and end up running around for 10 minutes trying to hide.

I kinda had the same issue when I first played MGS 3.
I don't like MGS 3 because the top down view doesn't really work well in the jungle...
As for MGS 4, it was the only reason I would ever get a PS3 and now I'm glad I won't have to.

I hope what Ace is saying is right and that this will be a "timed" exclusive. That would make the most sense.

 

[Gaisuto]

Eh either way I won't be getting the game, I don't have the patience to be any good at Metal Gear Solid games, I'm detected everytime within the first 10 seconds of playing and end up running around for 10 minutes trying to hide.


I kinda had the same issue when I first played MGS 3.
I don't like MGS 3 because the top down view doesn't really work well in the jungle...
As for MGS 4, it was the only reason I would ever get a PS3 and now I'm glad I won't have to.

I hope what Ace is saying is right and that this will be a "timed" exclusive. That would make the most sense.


They released an updated version of MGS3 called Subsistance which added a full camera you could control. It was a lot better.

QUOTE(CockroachMan @ Jan 1 2008, 05:25 PM)Indeed.. I'll wait for IGN,Gamespot or a bigger site to confirm it.. I've heard that Konami wanted to make MGS4 multi-platform cause it's development was getting to expensive and the PS3 was not selling well.. but Kojima wanted to keep it a PS3 exclusive..

Resident Evil 4 guy (Forgot his name) swore his job that RE4 would remain as a GameCube exclusive. Look what happened. The publisher has the final say over the developer.

 

[Icarus]

Konami definitely likes to make games for Sony. Seriously, they've made MGS3 exclusively[I remember there were rumors about this was going to be ported to PC as well], they've made 4 exclusive MGS games for PSP[Acid 1-2 and Portable Ops, PO+]. The MGS 1 and 2 PC ports were just very very poorly made[especially MGS2] and they did get a lot of hate when they did those ports. Also, Konami is a Japanese company and they sure care about the Japanese audience more than the American audience. I am pretty sure they've got much more money from Sony than what Microsoft offered them. Sony knows how important this is and they're going to do anything to keep this title PS3 exclusive.

About the GTA extra content. I'm also pretty sure that it's going to come out for PS3 eventually. Rockstar also likes Sony, they've always made GTA games timed exclusive for PS2 and I don't see any reason why they wouldn't do the same for GTA4, but for Xbox360 this time.