Although the publisher may be calling it a "leak," Konami has just dropped a ton of information regarding Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes including details on carry-over content for Phantom Pain and a new pricing structure for the next-gen versions. Fans of the MGS franchise will want to pay attention, because these latest details provide further clues as to just how interconnected Ground Zeroes and Phantom Pain are.
For starters, Konami has further detailed the limited time DLC for Ground Zeroes that will carry over into Phantom Pain. The DLC comes packaged in with first run retail copies of Ground Zeroes and is a timed exclusive for digital copies, and it includes additional resources for the Mother Base area in Phantom Pain.
Although players will see the early inception of Mother Base in Ground Zeroes, the area will apparently play a pivotal role in Metal Gear Solid V: Phantom Pain. As far as gameplay is concerned, when players rescue VIPs and prisoners of war in Ground Zeroes those characters will become staff members in Phantom Pain's Mother Base.
In addition to the Phantom Pain crossover DLC, Konami also revealed the new iDroid second screen app for Ground Zeroes. With the app, players will have a working replication of Big Boss' in-game communications device that they can use for maps, to call in air support, and play cassette tapes found in the game. Second screen experiences are all the rage in this early part of the next-gen console cycle, so it only makes sense that Metal Gear Solid feature one as well. The iDroid app will be available for iOS and Android platforms.
And finally perhaps the biggest news to come from Konami's press release is confirmation that Ground Zeroes' price has been cut on next-gen systems. Rather than a $10 mark-up for the PS4 and Xbox One versions of the game (retail and digital), Konami has decided to keep Ground Zeroes at the more palatable $30 price point for all versions except for current-gen digital. Those versions will be $20.
It's unclear why Konami decided to abandon their initial pricing plan, but we wouldn't be surprised if it had to do with the game's short completion time. Many gamers were finding it hard to justify a $40 purchase on a product that reportedly only offers a handful of content.
Clearly, Konami and Kojima Productions want fans to know that Ground Zeroes and Phantom Pain are a tandem gameplay experience. One informs the other — thus the DLC tie-ins. And now, with a cheaper price point, perhaps even more gamers will give Ground Zeroes a try.
Will you be picking up Ground Zeroes? Did the price cut change your opinion of the game?
Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes launches March 18, 2014 for the PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One.
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