Metal Gear Solid 4 trophy patch: The 6 hardest trophies - and how to get them

7th Aug 2012 | 16:22

Loyal fans of Metal Gear Solid 4 have been waiting over four years for virtual silverware to be added to the game, making yesterday's trophy patch arguably the most anticipated update of all time. There are some incredibly tough challenges for those seeking the Platinum, but also a few quirky awards based on Kojima's trademark humour. We've listed what we consider the six hardest trophies, plus four of the easiest to get you started on the way to becoming a Legendary Hero.

Flashback Mania - Viewed all flashbacks.

The Metal Gear Solid games are legendary for the length of their cutscenes and MGS4 is no exception, with long interludes between acts and a concluding sequence that clocks in at over an hour in total! During certain scenes an X prompt appears in the corner of the screen, at which point hammering that button reveals flashbacks to related events in the past.

The difficulty here is that these prompts only appear briefly, so you'll need to watch almost every cutscene in close detail - miss one and you'll have to try again on another run. There are also audio flashbacks that occur during regular gameplay, mainly during Act 4, and it has not yet been confirmed if these are also required for the trophy.


SUNLIGHT! - Obtained the Solar Gun.

To unlock the Solar Gun you need to defeat the FROG Unit and all four of the Beauty and the Beast Unit bosses non-lethally. This can be done using non-lethal weapons (those shown in blue) to empty the enemies' Psyche bar, which is the thin line that appears below their Health bar.

During these fights you also need to collect the dolls that appear after each boss takes on their Beauty form, and in the case of the FROG Unit find the doll in the garage you reach after the battle. Once you complete a playthrough will all five dolls in your possession, the Solar Gun will unlock after the credits have rolled. The Solar Gun harnesses the power of sunlight to fire non-lethal shots and can be charged to blast enemies through the air, dropping all of their items and knocking them out.


Sounds of the Battlefield - Obtained all iPod tracks (excluding tracks obtained via password).

Although on the surface this sounds like your average collectibles trophy, it's actually without doubt the hardest award to obtain in MGS4. This is not down to the 30 tracks you can find during the course of the game, but the two songs you unlock by earning certain emblems.

The first track is "Big Boss" by Norihiko Hibino, unlocked by earning the Big Boss emblem. To get this emblem you must not only finish the game on the hardest Boss Extreme difficulty, but you need to do it with no deaths, no alerts, no kills, no recovery items, no stealth suit and no bandana items. Oh and do the whole thing in under 5 hours too, an impressive feat even for the legendary hero Snake.

The second, "Snake Eater" by Cynthia Harrell, is even tougher as it is acquired by earning all 40 emblems available. This will take a minimum of EIGHT complete playthroughs due to the mutually exclusive requirements of the different emblems, including the Chicken emblem that alone involves dying over 50 times and taking more than 35 hours to complete the game.


I am THE expert on weapons - Obtained all weapons (excluding weapons obtained via password).

There are 69 different weapons in total to collect, although 7 of these don't count toward this trophy as they can also be unlocked by using passwords in the menu. These do not all have to be found on the same playthrough, as long as the same save file is used to carry progress over to subsequent runs.

Some of these weapons are found on the battlefield, some are unlocked by earning certain emblems and others must be purchased directly from Drebin. These are pretty expensive and include the Tanegashima shotgun which goes for a cool 1,000,000DP, although that weapon is also required for the Divine Wind trophy so will be a worthy investment.

If you're strapped for points, Drebin offers a discount of 20% on Wednesdays and Sundays according to the PS3 internal clock (which can always be 'tweaked' if needed) and a whopping 50% off during Act 5, so big purchases should be saved for then.


Infinite ammo - Obtained the Bandana.

Stealth Camouflage - Obtained the Stealth Camouflage.

Completing the game and fulfilling certain conditions will unlock these two secret items, which make subsequent playthroughs a lot easier. Finishing the game without killing anyone grants you the Bandana, which gives infinite ammo for your weapons while it's equipped, and completing the story without triggering a single ALERT phase awards the Stealth Camouflage, which makes Snake completely invisible.

Alternatively both of these items can be purchased from Drebin, but as they cost 5,000,000DP each you're much better off unlocking them legitimately. Earning the Big Boss emblem will automatically award both of these items, and as neither of them can actually be used during a Big Boss run this would be a useful way to acquire them.

Click on to find the four easiest trophies to get you started...


Hands Up! - Held an enemy soldier at gunpoint and performed a body check.

You can hold up a lone soldier by sneaking up behind them, then holding L1 to aim an equipped weapon at their back. Get it right and Snake will issue a challenge, causing them to freeze and raise their hands. Release L1 and press Triangle after approaching them to start frisking for items.

While Snake is searching the soldier, press Triangle whenever the prompt appears to recover items from them, and the first time you do this the trophy will unlock. Be wary about pressing Triangle while your hands are near the enemy's crotch, as this will cause Snake to give them a tweak that knocks them unconscious.


Handle with Caution - Broke off the most important part of a statue.

Early on in Act 1 of the game, you enter the Red Zone and see a pair of statues straight ahead. If you approach the pedestal and press Triangle, Snake will blend in by reaching across and grabbing the next statue's private area.

Press Triangle a few more times here and Snake ends up breaking off the unfortunate marble man's wang! No doubt there will be red faces and an awkward explanation to make next time you speak to Otacon.


Hurt me more! - Shocked an enemy soldier using Mk. II/III.

While making your way to Otacon during Act 1, you will receive the MG Mk. II unit. By equipping this item from the L2 menu you can then move it around - if you look closely you can see Snake is 'driving' it using DualShock controller!

Press X to activate the unit's stealth camo, then sneak up behind an enemy soldier. Hold L1 to ready your electric shock followed by R1 to whip it into the enemy's back, providing a zap that knocks them unconscious.


Drum Can Addict - Knocked an enemy soldier flying using a Drum Can.

A little further into Act 1, you'll enter a new area and find Johnny 'Akiba' Sasaki having some pretty bad stomach problems while hiding in a Drum Can. Once he's run away, Snake inspects the Can and, presumably after lighting a match, adds it to his inventory.

After equipping the Drum Can from the L2 menu, you can hit X to lay down on your side and start rolling. There are plenty of enemies immediately nearby to knock over, but don't start rolling until you get close to them otherwise Snake will get sick and emerge from the Can to throw up!

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