Microsoft held a special Gears of War 2 reception at E3 on Monday, giving eager journalists a chance to play the game's multiplayer modes and test their mettle against other journalists. We're proud to say that we managed quite well against our competition, slamming active reloads all the while, though that's perhaps beside the point. You all want to hear about Gears 2, not about how awesome we are at it. Read on for our hands on impressions.

Don't misinterpret that headline -- David Hayter, who has voiced the role of Solid Snake since ... well, since Solid Snake could speak, doesn't need you to submit your fan fiction to help piece together the plot of the supposedly upcoming Metal Gear Solid movie (though we're sure he would find your homemade Otacon/Sniper Wolf erotic literature wildly fascinating).

According to a recent IMDB post from Hayter himself, he needs fans of his work and of Kojima's epic series to email a certain Sony Pictures rep and politely suggest that Hayter be the one to pen the film's script. He's got the credentials to do so, having written screenplays for the first two X-Men movies and the upcoming adaptation of Alan Moore's Watchmen. We can also assume that he's played the game he would be adapting, giving him a significant edge over most screenwriters of ludologically-inspired films.

Update: A winner has been selected and contacted via e-mail. Congrats!

So this "Hideo Kojima" guy totally ruined our copy of Metal Gear Solid 4. He had the nerve to scribble all over it in permanent marker. It looks like he ... signed it? Yuck!

His signature has obviously tarnished our copy. It's worthless now, so we're giving it away in this latest edition of Joyswag: Garbage Edition. Go ahead, take it away from us. We don't want it! Bah!

To enter this giveaway, leave a comment expressing your earnest desire to collect our garbage. Comments must be left before 5PM EST on Monday, June 23rd. Only one comment per person per calendar day -- or else! One winner will be selected in a random drawing. Grand Prize Winner will receive a copy of Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots (signed by Hideo Kojima and Yumi Kikuchi) for PS3 (MSRP: $60). Click here for complete Official Rules. Eligibility is restricted to the legal residents of the 50 United States (including DC) and Canada (excluding Quebec). You must be 18 years or older to enter.

For another chance to win an autographed copy, visit PS3 Fanboy.

Following yesterday's game of musical executive chairs inside Microsoft's Interactive Entertainment Business – wherein Shane Kim ordered a brand new chair for his newly created office of corporate vice president of Strategy and Business Development, while Phil Spencer adopted Kim's old chair as the new general manager of Microsoft Game Studios – Next-Gen spoke with the two execs about their new roles. Unsurprisingly, Kim is the focus of the interview, and he offered a handful of forward-facing statements, fitting with his new strategic role.

When asked if MGS could publish another title as popular as Halo 3, Kim says the chances are "really good" explaining, "We've got the talent, we've got people who are always on the lookout for new ideas and talent, and most importantly we have the commitment and the will to create those hits." Even more telling, Kim puts that new title to use, addressing the strategy of appealing to a new mainstream market: "For us, our opportunity is much like the industry's opportunity: How do we make what we do mass market? How do we make it a mainstream form of entertainment?" Sounds like Kim was bumped upstairs to help Xbox get some of that Wii money, no?

Oh no, isn't one gallery devoted to video game packaging (packaging!) enough? Well, it would be, had we not sensed your overwhelming and debilitating desire to see the contents of Metal Gear Solid 4's European Limited Edition. Check out the gallery if you're keen to meet our newest friend, LE PAL.

I have a confession to make: this is my first serious attempt at playing a Metal Gear Solid title. Back at GDC 2007, my editor Chris Grant kept making references to the flash video Metal Gear Awesome. I was admittedly confused, and he thus dropped everything to show me the video. It took me a long time to appreciate all the humor.

Cut to present day. Like war, a lot has changed. I tried playing the MGS remake Twin Snakes on hard mode, only to succumb to frustration two hours later. For today's Metal Gear Solid 4 release, I brushed up on Metal Gear lore, exhausted Wikipedia, and commissioned one of our writers to give me a crash course in the series. I got my copy last night, installed the game, and I was ready to play.

This is Metal Gear Solid 4, through rookie eyes.

In case you were thinking of skipping the approximately 8-minute install (which also translates to 4 or 5 cigarettes for our aged hero) and making a sandwich, consider the little bit of humor you'd be missing. If you're still undeterred and plan to ignore the game while it installs, check out our gallery for the sagacious and spoiler-free advice.

While some of it is a bit mundane, there are some rather humorous tidbits scattered about. For instance, how does one take a break every 15-minutes when cut-scenes run longer than that? [By pausing, you troll! - Ed]

Hideo Kojima stopped by New York City's Virgin Megastore in TImes Square to meet and greet fans at the Metal Gear Solid 4 launch. We got a number of signed copies ... maybe one will go to a lucky reader (if we feel generous enough!). Check out our gallery below, or some highlights, after the cut.

OhmygodhotnessIwannaPLAYyou. Check out the highlights for today:

Joystiquery
Born for Wii: new column reimagines franchises on the Wii
Law of the Game on Joystiq: May the Enforce Be With You
Readers pick best webcomic: Team Fortress Pooh
Ready at Dawn talks abandoning the PSP, piracy and being original
What you need to know before playing Metal Gear Solid 4
Wii Fanboy Weekly: June 5 - June 11

News
Mario Super Sluggers features new characters, super moves
GameFly's Austin center 'officially' open, servicing seven states
Neverwinter Nights 2 expansion in the works
No Ken or Ryu in the Street Fighter movie
High Voltage details The Conduit, plans Q1 2009 release
Yoink! Adventure game reuses Oblivion's graphics
Wal-Mart corporate confirms $100 PS3 gift card -- YES, even the MGS 4 bundle
Dark Sector demo spins into Xbox Live
Hellgate: London programmer claims staff leaving 'in droves'
Spyro, Guilty Gear coming to Xbox Originals
Oregon Trail now available for mobile phones
Live-action Turok movie in the works
Criterion softens PC 'Paradise' with ambient occlusion
Ubisoft wants to up its game: be on par with EA, Activision Blizzard
NCsoft says Tabula Rasa is doing fine
New screens, video, 'tech demo' for Telltale's Strong Bad
Konami cancels Japan MGS4 launch events after Akihabara tragedy
Wii storage for 'geeks and otaku', says Nintendo marketing director
We have 360 Unreal Tournament III screenshots
Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix beta starts June 25
Unreal Tournament III on Xbox 360 begins fragging away July 7
Hancock game trailer sets new standard for movie tie-ins
Turbine working on console MMO

Rumors & Speculation
Analysts predict big jump in May game sales
Analyst blames Xbox RRoD on MS-designed graphics chip
Rumor: MTV ad 'leaks' new Rock Band tracks
Rumorong: Ready at Dawn not going Wii-exclusive

Culture & Community
Metal Gear Retrospective: Part Five is all in your hands
Konami Code works in Google Reader
Onion unveils WoW expansion World of World of Warcraft

Konami has canceled its three Tokyo launch event planned for Metal Gear Solid 4 following the tragic events in the tech-savvy Akihabara district yesterday when 25-year old Tomohiro Kato killed four people and injured ten more (via AP). One of the events was to be in Akihabara.

Konami cited "safety of participants in mind" as its reason for the cancellations. The launch events planned for U.S. will proceed as planned, according to a representative.

[Via PS3 Fanboy]

A hero's true worth lies in his ability to overcome the greatest of villains. Metal Gear Solid's slithery protagonist, Snake, has conquered not only the greatest of villains, but the weirdest mustache-twirlers gaming has ever seen.

Be sure to click on the above gallery and join us as we examine our favorite fearsome foes, kooky killers and big bosses.

The once-dormant Ask Joystiq has returned for a special Metal Gear edition. If you have any burning questions, unsolved gaming mysteries, or just a desire for musings from our knowledgeable cadre of writers, drop us a line at ask AAT joystiq DAWT com (and yes, we write it that way for a reason).

I want to get the MGS Essential Collection before I get Metal Gear Solid 4 but what exactly is in it? I mean for example does it have the Subsistence edition of MGS2 or MGS3? What does directors cut mean? Does it mean they cut from the original games? Please help me!
– Manuel G.

Need a refresher on Kojima's forthcoming masterpiece? Check out our game page for all things Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots. Seriously, this is everything we've written on the game. Bookmark the page, as we'll be constantly updating with new content in the lead-up to MGS4's worldwide launch next week.

Note: The MGS4 page also benefits from not having comments and is therefore spoiler free. That said, we will do our best to monitor the comment system, at our own risk, and delete spoilers. Still, we're human, so be careful when treading through comments, on any website, for the next few weeks.

To those who do post spoilers: Expect to see a banhammer slam into your forehead.

[Via PS3 Fanboy]

This article contains enormous spoilers, just so you know.

Playing Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty again, after all these years, has had an interesting effect on my opinion of it. Which is to say, I actually like it now. I'm tempted to compare it to a maturing, fine wine, a substance I'm sure was heavily consumed during the game's development, but the truth is that Sons of Liberty remains every bit the unhinged and convoluted mess I remember it to be. A mess that, with patience and even the slightest idea of what you're getting yourself into, becomes considerably easier to navigate. Wait ... does that make me the wine?