Resonance and Metal Gear Solid Master Collection Vol. 2 review roundup: reinvention versus preservation

Two games arrived on August 27 with opposite jobs. Resonance: A Plague Tale Legacy has to prove its series can survive a new lead and a much sharper appetite for combat. Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 2 has to move old games onto new hardware without sanding away what made them strange.

Critics broadly like both. Each sits in the low 80s on OpenCritic, but those matching averages hide different arguments. Resonance reviews range from 7/10 to 10/10 among the outlets surveyed here. Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 2 lands in a tighter 8/10 to 9/10 band. One inspires debate about creative direction; the other about the quality and value of preservation.

At a glance

Those ranges need context. A 7/10 review of Resonance can admire its combat, puzzles, and story while objecting to its pace or technical state. An 8/10 for Metal Gear can call the package essential for fans and still question why a collection this anticipated feels thin.

Resonance: A Plague Tale Legacy reviews

Resonance is an action-adventure prequel from Asobo Studio, published by Focus Entertainment. It follows Sophia and replaces much of the earlier games' vulnerability with direct melee combat, mythological puzzles, and large cinematic set pieces. OpenCritic records an 82 average from 87 reviews, with 83 percent of critics recommending it.

The strongest notices treat that change as liberation. GamingBolt gave it 9/10 and called it an "absolutely fantastic adventure," praising the combat, set pieces, characters, story, and central mysteries. The review goes further, suggesting this may be the series' best entry. Horror Fuel awarded 10/10, though its reviewer wished some characters had received more time and a larger role in the story.

Other critics liked the same ingredients without accepting the whole dish. Push Square scored it 7/10. Liam Croft praised the story-focused campaign, meaningful combat upgrades, puzzles, visual highlights, and PS5 haptics. The deductions were concrete: a very slow opening, severe frame-rate trouble in places, and visuals that can look fuzzy or blurred.

Eurogamer's three-star review found the new combat and less intrusive puzzling effective, then pushed back hard against the latter half. Its verdict says the game's descent into repeated suffering "takes its toll." That is a criticism of tone rather than mechanical competence, and it matters because A Plague Tale has always asked players to spend a long time in misery. Resonance may move faster, but some reviewers feel it still leans too heavily on trauma.

Rock Paper Shotgun identifies the deeper problem. Its review calls Resonance a competent action-game spinoff that "loses what made its predecessors unique." Asobo's decision to remove Amicia, Hugo, and the signature rat swarms creates room for Sophia and a new combat system. It also removes the exact things some players associate with the name A Plague Tale.

What reviewers agree on

The consensus is stronger than the score spread suggests. Sophia works as a lead. The environments are handsome. The shift toward sword fighting is functional and often exciting rather than a clumsy bolt-on. Puzzle design also earns repeated praise, especially when the game trusts players to read spaces and symbols instead of feeding them every answer.

The friction sits around pacing and identity. Resonance opens slowly, then grows much louder. For critics who wanted Asobo to escape the old formula, that arc feels confident. For those who valued helpless stealth and the grim intimacy between Amicia and Hugo, it can feel like a polished action game wearing a familiar surname.

Technical performance is the least philosophical concern. Push Square's account of frame-rate drops and muddy image quality is a warning for console players, even if those problems did not erase the reviewer's enjoyment. It is also the kind of issue that can change after launch, so anyone sensitive to uneven performance should check current platform reports before buying.

Who is Resonance for?

Resonance looks best suited to players who enjoyed the world of A Plague Tale but wanted more control in a fight. It asks less patience for stealth failure and gives Sophia a more assertive toolset. Players hoping for another game built around rats, vulnerability, and the relationship at the heart of the first two entries should reset their expectations.

The numbers say this experiment worked. The reviews say it worked at a cost. That tension makes the game more interesting than a clean 82 implies.

Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 2 reviews

Konami's second Master Collection gathers Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots, Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker, and the Game Boy Color title Metal Gear: Ghost Babel, alongside books, soundtrack material, and other extras. Its release ends Metal Gear Solid 4's long confinement to PlayStation 3. OpenCritic lists an 83 average from 33 critics.

That MGS4 port dominates the conversation. Polygon's roundup says there is "only one thing most reviewers" care about: making Guns of the Patriots playable again. That sounds dismissive of Peace Walker and Ghost Babel, but it accurately describes the historical weight of the package. Peace Walker has been available elsewhere. MGS4 spent eighteen years tied to unusual hardware.

TechRadar rated the collection 4.5/5. Its clearest praise is wonderfully specific: "Peace Walker is still an unsung masterpiece," MGS4 is finally free from "PS3 prison," and Ghost Babel is a strong bonus. The review also praises the technical work. Its reservations are about selection and age. The games are not as strong collectively as those in Volume 1, only one bonus title is included, and MGS4's old flaws remain visible.

GameSpew gave it 8/10 and reached a similar verdict. The publication calls the collection a must-have for series fans, with Metal Gear Solid 4 and the bonus material as the chief attractions. It also reports minor audio and control issues. That is an important distinction: the games have not been ruined, but this is not a museum-perfect restoration either.

DualShockers awarded 9/10. Its review describes MGS4 as "the real star of the show," while still treating Peace Walker as one of the two headline games. UnGeek also settled on 9/10, arguing that the package finally makes MGS4 and Peace Walker accessible on current platforms. It acknowledges that their drawbacks stand out more now, but finds their strengths easily outweigh them.

Noisy Pixel's 9/10 pull quote is the neatest summary of the positive case: this is "a faithful preservation package" that frees MGS4 while giving Peace Walker and Ghost Babel another chance to shine. Preservation is the operative word. Konami has not rebuilt these games or tried to disguise their age. The value comes from access, stability, and respect for the original work.

Where reviewers agree

Metal Gear Solid 4 is the reason to buy the collection. Critics may differ on the game's marathon cutscenes, tangled politics, and determination to answer questions nobody else would attempt, but they agree that moving it off PS3 is a major preservation win. Improved image quality and modern platform support make this the most convenient official version.

Peace Walker is more than filler. TechRadar's praise reflects a wider critical affection for its compact missions and base-building structure, even though its handheld origins remain obvious. Ghost Babel is the surprise extra: a smaller, older game that gives the package texture and keeps it from becoming a two-item launcher.

The complaints are also consistent. Volume 2 is slim. Some expected more side games, while others wanted deeper restoration work. Minor technical quirks persist. MGS4 itself remains unwieldy, packed with exposition, and inseparable from the obsessions of 2008. A good port can preserve a game's flaws as faithfully as its strengths.

Who is Master Collection Vol. 2 for?

Existing fans get the easiest official route back to Old Snake's final mission. New players should start earlier in the series rather than treating Volume 2 as an introduction; MGS4 assumes a working knowledge of characters and events spanning decades. Peace Walker is friendlier in structure, but its story also lands better with context.

The review range is narrow because critics largely agree about the package. The included games are worth preserving, the ports do the essential job, and the selection could be more generous. The argument is over whether access to MGS4 alone justifies the price, not whether MGS4 deserves to be accessible.

Two approaches to living with the past

These releases make a useful pair. Resonance changes a series to keep it moving. Master Collection Vol. 2 tries to keep old work intact while making it playable now. Critics reward both strategies, but the weak points come from opposite directions.

Resonance risks losing its identity by changing too much. Metal Gear risks feeling slight by changing too little. Asobo earns praise for a bolder combat system and criticism for leaving behind the vulnerability that defined its earlier games. Konami earns praise for restraint and criticism because restraint can look like a lack of ambition.

Neither average tells you which concern will matter to you. If a slow opening, uneven performance, and a sharper action focus sound tolerable, Resonance offers the fresher surprise. If you want an accessible archive of singular stealth games and can live with old design habits, Metal Gear is the safer purchase.

The verdict from critics

Resonance: A Plague Tale Legacy is the more contentious success. Its 7/10 to 10/10 spread comes from disagreement about tone, performance, and whether reinvention weakens the series' identity. The consistent praise for Sophia, puzzles, combat, and presentation suggests the new foundation is sound.

Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 2 is the steadier recommendation. Scores from 8/10 to 9/10 reflect broad agreement that MGS4's return is overdue and handled well. The package is thinner than some wanted, and small technical issues keep it from feeling definitive, but it restores three distinctive games to active circulation.

After playing either one, Perthro can hold the part an aggregate cannot: your own record. Track what you are playing, rate it on a five-star scale, or write the version of the review only you can write. Perthro is free on the App Store for iPhone and requires iOS 17.0 or later. For discussion, visit the community, and for help, use support.