Who would have guessed back in 1987, when the first Metal Gear game was released, that we would be here almost 30 years later talking about another entry in the continuing story? There have been nine Metal Gear games to date, and the presumably last installment, Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, ends the series with a fitting crescendo.

Waking up from a nine-year coma, you play as Venom Snake, the leader of a mercenary group who seeks revenge for his fallen comrades and eventually stumbles upon more than he expected. That’s the basic synopsis of The Phantom Pain, and to go any further into detail would make your head spin and ultimately put you in something akin to a real-life coma. You’ll want to know, however – especially if you are a die-hard Metal Gear gamer – that the story in The Phantom Pain takes place in 1984, before the original Metal Gear. It acts as a prologue to the original, setting the stage for it while fleshing out the story and adding to the legend of its main character.

The Phantom Pain’s presentation is based on an open-world approach, and as such, it expands the world of Metal Gear like never before. You now have the choice of order to complete your missions and how to approach them, both of which will have repercussions with the outside world and how it will interact with you. The opening segment is long-winded and will test your patience as it crawls (and you do too, literally, across the floor upon being woken from your coma), but eventually explodes into an edge-of-your-seat cinematic car chase that kicks the game into high gear. Before you know it, you’re on a horse, roughing the terrain of Afghanistan during the Soviet-Afghan War and trying to get answers without getting shot.

It wouldn’t be a Metal Gear game without sneaking around, and The Phantom Pain lives up to its tagline of “Tactical Espionage Operations.” There’s the definite encouragement to avoid being spotted by enemies and engaged in combat, but should that happen (and it most always does), there’s no shortage of weapons on hand to keep you alive. The fighting and shootouts are as exhilarating and intense as any other game can deliver. It’s a pulse-pounding experience when you get spotted, and that adrenaline rush is addictive, too. It is absolutely critical that you master the controls and know how to switch out weapons and reload quickly. One false move and you’re Sunday morning toast. Making this even more challenging is the fact that the control setup is often clumsy, leading to drastic mistakes that aren’t caused by misjudgment.

Overall, Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain is a crowning achievement and perfect exclamation point to finish the beloved series. Between the carefully plotted story, beautiful graphics and inclusion of open world gameplay, this is a finale worthy of a bow.

For more, visit konami.jp/mgs5/tpp/certification.php5.