And did it ever. Always blending grit and camp, the demonstration reeked of Kojima. Inside, actors donning armed forces uniforms stood at attention, and quickly began walking through a militaristic briefing. It was all in Japanese, so I grasped little--until the end, when sirens began to sound out, indicating a spy in our midst. One "audience member" was soon escorted to a back room at gunpoint. After the echo of pistol shots and the sound of a slumping body died away, the room began to be "shelled" via the impressive sound system before us. We were under attack, apparently, and so was my hearing capability. Crackling gun shots ringing out, smoke seeping into the room, we hit the Metal Gear Solid 4 demo running.

To preface my impressions, the material I experienced was essentially the level previously demonstrated by designer Hideo Kojima. While I can't add much in the way of raw information, what I can do is confirm that his demonstration was accurate. Metal Gear Solid 4 plays as cool as it looks.

The fluidity of the game is what impresses most. Sneaking around as Snake has never felt this smooth. The triangle button handles the majority of movement actions--a light tap presses you up against a wall or sends you over a ledge for a hanging drop. Shifting stances, popping off shots around corners, diving for cover--all are easily accomplished and mastered within minutes. You will have no trouble dodging bomb shells and taking out enemies as you move through the dusty Middle Eastern environments.

Holding the triangle button down activates the much-touted optic camouflage, grabbing the texture that Snake is currently occupying and applying it to his suit. As was seen in the videos, the effect is a great touch. Inching along on the ground like a worm, enemies don't have a clue--in fact, when one walked up to my hidden, immobile Snake, he walked straight through my well-textured legs without so much as an exclamation.

Clipping issues aside, the game seems to be in quite a polished state. Enemy AI was predictably simple, but not moronic, actively seeking me out when an alarm had sounded, as in any other MGS game. The sound work especially stands out. Each weapon is distinctive, and the report of a fully-automatic rifle packs a solid punch. Staring down the iron sights in first-person view mode, with the volume on high, it felt like I could have been at a firing range. Home theater fans take notice--this is one to crank.

Combat seems to be emphasized a bit more in this iteration of Metal Gear, and the controls have evolved to accommodate this welcome shift. The L1 button raises Snake's weapon to a shooting position, with R1 serving as the trigger. Rotating the camera is a simple affair, and the only frustration was in a moment of close-quarters combat, surrounded by multiple enemies--never a good spot to find yourself in when it comes to MGS. The auto-aim instantly turns you into Jack Bauer, snapping the reticle from enemy to enemy as you peek out from behind a wall. Turning off the assist is where the fun begins. Sniping the back of a soldier's head from 30 yards with a silenced rifle was a joyfully sadistic experience.

One concern born of the previous trailers was the question of just how open the levels would be. To answer: Darting between buildings and leaping across ledges, I was surprised by how many nooks and crannies were available to hide the lumpy Old Snake. So many indeed that I began to get lost, and soon ran smack into an enemy, nearly sending me back to the start of the level. After taking him out with a flurry of back-handed knife slices--which, thankfully, draw copious amounts of blood, rather than lamely "stunning" the victim--it was alert time. I was being hunted.

At one point in my escape I found myself holed up behind a barricade, with only wall to my back. Soldiers pouring in after me, I made a stand, popping off shots with the silenced submachinegun. Grabbing a grenade, I tossed it over the barricade, to a satisfying explosion. One unlucky soldier began to scream out. He had caught fire, and was now rolling around on the ground in agony. I put him out of his misery and moved on through the barren city, camouflaged as a checkered wall.

So far, Metal Gear Solid 4 is living up to its billing of as a system-seller. This must come as a welcome relief to Sony, which needs it badly given the lackluster keynote address of earlier today. While some fans found the third game difficult to get into--myself included--the increased action, captivating setting, and pure polish of this fourth game is likely to bring us all back.

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