Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain is guaranteed to be the overall game of the year, according to Konami's Jon Edwards. In a new interview, Edwards, a marketing exec, talks about why he thinks the open-world stealth-action game is going to be the game to beat this year during awards season.

"Basically, it is the most engrossing and stunning game of the year," Edwards told MCV.

"...Anyone who has spent any amount of time with it has been blown away by its depth, scope, and ambition. It is one of those games where people go: 'I wonder if I can do this?' and they inevitably can," he added. "Many games claim to be sandbox, open-world affairs, but Metal Gear Solid V does offer incredible freedom. Yes, there are missions, but it is truly up to you how they are tackled.

When we have shown it to the press, the interesting thing is that they don't discuss just the missions or what they played, but how they did it. You get people swapping different stories, and discussing how they beat certain elements." Edwards added that with every new Metal Gear Solid title, creator Hideo Kojima "moves closer" to building a game that can match the scope and detail he imagines. The Phantom Pain is the culmination of this effort.

...It's the game of the year--guaranteed."

Also in the interview, Edwards was asked about the future of the Metal Gear Solid series--whether Kojima is involved or not. "Metal Gear Solid is a key Konami franchise," he responded. "The company has already committed to future iterations, which we look forward to."

http://www.gamespot.com/articles/its-the-game-of-the-year-guaranteed-konami-says-ab/1100-6430162/

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Would you mind seeing a new MGS game without Kojima? Or Panchiko?

By future iterations, they mean smartphone games. Let's face it. Metal Gear is what it is because Kojima has been at the helm for each entry. Without him, the series is bound to start devolving into something nobody asked for. Konami hasn't proven themselves capable of staying all that relevant these days with basically any non-Metal Gear series they have.

Certainly a Game of The Year contender, but to say it IS Game of The Year is arrogant as hell.

Of course they are going to stick with the Metal Gear franchise, it's really all they have left. Now I guess it's time to play the waiting game on whether we are going to see another competent console iteration.

I have no doubt there will be more MGS games I just wonder if they'll be any good.

Yep of course it will be. duh. BUT! What will they do in the future...

Without kojima, I dont expect more good MGS titles so for me it ends with MGS5.

Im not saying I don't think the game will get GoTY awards, but Konami saying it 4 months before the end of the year is kind of awful

I was excited to see how confident he is about this game... Really looking forward to it.