Metal Gear Solid 5: Awakening

This article will help you to complete the prologue in Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain. We’ll be avoiding the cut scenes and sparing you commentary on the story, but in case you need a helping hand, we’ll be there to guide you through. It shouldn’t be too difficult, however, as most of what you’ll see and do in the prologue is merely an introduction for what’s to come.

The prologue will contain some interactive cut scenes where you have to move your head around, customize your avatar, and even nod every now and then. Things won’t really pick up until it’s time to move, and then players can expect to do some crawling. Follow Ishmael through the hospital corridors as instructed, but mostly you’ll just be taking in more of the story.

You won’t really start to play a major role in the movement until you have to follow Ishmael through the door just after the smoke grenade is thrown down the hallway. Crouch and follow your guardian angel, and then go prone while staying on his six. After another cut scene, stay prone and crawl under the bed and toward the open door.

After watching two people get gunned down by the helicopter, follow Ishmael through the hall, obeying the on-screen instructions and sprinting to safety. This will take you to a hospital stairwell, and you’ll have to descend until you see a barred corridor with more than a dozen people huddled together. If you continue down the stairs further than that you’ll be met by the enemy.

When you find yourself back in control you’ll be prone in a room with six beds, each of which has a curtain around it for privacy. There will be enemy soldiers at the opposite end of the room, and Ishmael will be across on the right side. You’ll be on the left, and this is really the first time you need to evade detection on your own.

Your foe is going to start checking beds on the left, and you’ll need to crawl forward and underneath one of them. When the soldier is leaving the bed next to the one you’re hiding under, crawl forward before he can reach you. It’s all timing, but it wasn’t nearly as difficult as we had figured it would be. When it’s all over you’ll be backtracking into the hallway you just came from, again going prone, but this time so that you can blend in with the dead bodies on the floor. Just lay there and wait it out.

Enjoy another cut scene, and then make your way back into the stairwell and once again begin to descend. Flames will eventually block your path, but you’re headed through a door on the level just prior. Stay right on Ishmael’s tail here, allowing him to neutralize the guard and finally get you armed with suppressed pistol.

You first target is actually a fire extinguisher that’s sitting on the wall a short distance down the hallway. Shoot it to put out the fire, and then get back to Ishmael. There will be two soldiers around the corner from your position, and it’s your first chance to nail two precision headshots in The Phantom Pain.

Shortly after scoring your first kills you’ll be separated from your guardian angel, and now is the time that you get to test out your stealth skills. Move to the right and drop down off the balcony, going prone and crawling under the debris to move further to the right side of the room. You can try to sneak by the soldiers, but we wanted to test out the shooting mechanics and just started popping fools right, left and center. Take note that many of the enemies who are down are not necessarily dead, but rather seriously wounded. Keep Rule #2 – The Double Tap in mind, finishing off your adversaries so that they can’t alert their pals.

This will lead you to another long cut scene, but after it’s done you’ll be engaging one of your enemies while riding away on horseback. Take the shotgun and start rocking your pursuer, making sure to hit them before they can get to close. If you allow them to close the gap they’ll be able to attack you, and you don’t want that. Truth be told it’s not that hard, and eventually you’ll trigger a final, prologue ending cut scene.

Continue to Metal Gear Solid 5: Phantom Limbs, or return to our Metal Gear Solid 5 Walkthrough and Guide.