Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots

Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots
Developer(s)	Kojima Productions
Publisher(s)	Konami
Series	Metal Gear
Release date(s)	June 12, 2008
Release type	PlayStation 3 exclusive
Genre(s)	Action, Adventure, Stealth
Mode(s)	Single-player
GameID(s)	BLES00246 (IRD), BLJM67001 (IRD), BLUS30109 (IRD), NPEB02182, NPUB31633 Demo NPEB90116, NPJB90149, NPUB90176 Database NPEB00027, NPUB90126, NPJB90113
Quick links	Check Compatibility Open Issues Search Google Wikipedia Page

Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots is the sixth Metal Gear game directed by Hideo Kojima and is set five years after the events of Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty, the story centers around a prematurely aged Solid Snake, now known as Old Snake, as he goes on one last mission to assassinate his nemesis Liquid Snake, who now inhabits the body of his former henchman Revolver Ocelot under the guise of Liquid Ocelot, before he takes control of the Sons of the Patriots, an A.I. system that controls the activities of PMCs worldwide. The game received universal acclaim, garnering perfect reviews and Game of the Year awards from several major gaming publications, including GameSpot, which claimed that the game was "technically flawless". The game has been considered one of the best games of the seventh generation of console gaming and among the greatest of all time. Its release caused a boost in sales of the PlayStation 3, where it sold over six million copies worldwide.

Configuration

Options that deviate from RPCS3's default settings and provide the best experience with this title are listed below.

GPU configuration

Setting	Option	Notes
Framelimit	60	Cutscenes (specifically pre-recorded cutscenes) are difficult to skip if the FPS is too high (when pausing to skip a cutscene it unpauses very quickly on its own), capping the FPS to 60 will fix this issue.
ZCULL accuracy	Relaxed	Improves performance.
Write color buffers	On	Fixes bright scenes while in-game. Expect a small performance hit and decrease in stability when enabled (UPDATE: Read known issues section below).

Advanced configuration

Setting	Option	Notes
Accurate RSX reservation access	On	Improves performance, and should help with stability.
Firmware libraries	Switch to LLE	libvdec (required to properly play FMV cutscenes)
RSX FIFO accuracy	Atomic	Helps with stability, eliminates RSX violation crashes.
Vblank rate	240	Improves performance. Maxing out the vblank slider in this game has no effect on game speed, feel free to experiment with the values. Going past 600hz tends to have negligible fps gains while increasing the rate of crashes, so best to not go past 600hz.

Known Issues

Freezes/softlocks

The game is very unstable and will frequently crash within seconds even when using SPU LLVM & Accurate Xfloat Off.

Visual,Audio and In-Game Instabilities - Fixed by PR 12746

There's currently a regression that causes instability while in-game if Write Colour Buffer is enabled in GPU tab. Don't use this setting as recommended in the configuration section above until the issue is fixed.

Special Notes

In order to mitigate the freezes while in-game you'll need to add the cellSpurs urgent commands hack canary patch manually and enable it via RPCS3's patch manager. You'll find instructions on how to apply canary patches here, this patch is only compatible with PS3 Firmware version 4.87, 4.88 and 4.89. There's also a canary patch Crash fix that addresses crashes related to error code 0x68, consider enabling that too if you're experiencing them.

Workaround for non-PlayStation controllers

The game has a segment requiring use of the SIXAXIS tilt functionality, which is currently only usable with actual PlayStation controllers. You may be able to work around this on a non-PlayStation controller, such as an Xbox controller, by moving the right analog stick in circles when the game tells you to tilt/shake the controller.

Patches

Anchors:
  MGS4_Widescreen_Notes: &MGS4_Widescreen_Notes "Enable \"Stretch to Display Area\" option to take advantage of this patch. The interface will be stretched and cutscenes will use the standard field of view."
  MGS4_Widescreen_NotesEx: &MGS4_Widescreen_NotesEx "Enable \"Stretch to Display Area\" option to take advantage of this patch. The interface will be stretched and cutscenes will use the increased of view which may cause visual bugs."

PPU-9712144d93487f0b62e39f55e175af783b58af72:
  "Disable shadows":
    Games:
      "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots":
        BLUS30109: [ 01.00 ]
    Author: TriggerHappy
    Notes: "Disabling shadows can give a significant performance boost."
    Patch Version: 1.0
    Patch:
      - [ be32, 0x1358B8, 0x4E800020 ]

PPU-33e09a0bd8fa2a3b28780a3feeb7b0e018bae381:
  "21:9 Aspect Ratio":
    Games:
      "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots":
        BLUS30109: [ 02.00 ]
    Author: TriggerHappy
    Notes: *MGS4_Widescreen_Notes
    Patch Version: 1.0
    Patch:
      - [ be32, 0x3D426C, 0x3FF0A3D7 ]
      - [ be32, 0x3D4274, 0xBFF0A3D7 ]
      - [ be32, 0x0F1230, 0xC1BE8040 ]
      - [ be32, 0x3D4020, 0x3FA3126F ]
  "21:9 Aspect Ratio (Cutscenes)":
    Games:
      "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots":
        BLUS30109: [ 02.00 ]
    Author: TriggerHappy
    Notes: *MGS4_Widescreen_NotesEx
    Patch Version: 1.0
    Patch:
      - [ be32, 0x3D426C, 0x3FF0A3D7 ]
      - [ be32, 0x3D4274, 0xBFF0A3D7 ]
      - [ be32, 0x0F1230, 0xC1BE8040 ]
      - [ be32, 0x0F1B6C, 0xC1BE8040 ]
      - [ be32, 0x3D4020, 0x3FA3126F ]
  "32:9 Aspect Ratio":
    Games:
      "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots":
        BLUS30109: [ 02.00 ]
    Author: TriggerHappy
    Notes: *MGS4_Widescreen_Notes
    Patch Version: 1.0
    Patch:
      - [ be32, 0x3D426C, 0x4039999A ]
      - [ be32, 0x3D4274, 0xC039999A ]
      - [ be32, 0x0F1230, 0xC1BE8040 ]
      - [ be32, 0x3D4020, 0x3F52B021 ]
  "32:9 Aspect Ratio (Cutscenes)":
    Games:
      "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots":
        BLUS30109: [ 02.00 ]
    Author: TriggerHappy
    Notes: *MGS4_Widescreen_NotesEx
    Patch Version: 1.0
    Patch:
      - [ be32, 0x3D426C, 0x4039999A ]
      - [ be32, 0x3D4274, 0xC039999A ]
      - [ be32, 0x0F1230, 0xC1BE8040 ]
      - [ be32, 0x0F1B6C, 0xC1BE8040 ]
      - [ be32, 0x3D4020, 0x3F52B021 ]
  "Disable shadows":
    Games:
      "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots":
        BLUS30109: [ 02.00 ]
    Author: TriggerHappy
    Notes: "Disabling shadows can give a significant performance boost."
    Patch Version: 1.0
    Patch:
      - [ be32, 0x132354, 0x4E800020 ]
  "Remove fog":
    Games:
      "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots":
        BLUS30109: [ 02.00 ]
    Author: TriggerHappy
    Notes: "Does not provide any performance benefit."
    Patch Version: 1.0
    Patch:
      - [ be32, 0xEAA08, 0x4E800020 ]
  "Reduce stage quality":
    Games:
      "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots":
        BLUS30109: [ 02.00 ]
    Author: TriggerHappy
    Notes: "Removes some transparency related effects from stages. Provides a small performance boost."
    Patch Version: 1.0
    Patch:
      - [ be32, 0xFA7EC, 0x4E800020 ]
      - [ be32, 0x10FAEC, 0x4E800020 ]
  "Disable HUD":
    Games:
      "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots":
        BLUS30109: [ 02.00 ]
    Author: TriggerHappy
    Notes: "Removes the ingame HUD. Useful for videos and screenshots."
    Patch Version: 1.0
    Patch:
      - [ be32, 0xF0410, 0x60000000 ]
  "Disable spawned effects":
    Games:
      "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots":
        BLUS30109: [ 02.00 ]
    Author: TriggerHappy
    Notes: "Removes some effects such as explosions and smoke. Provides a moderate performance boost."
    Patch Version: 1.0
    Patch:
      - [ be32, 0x12BCFC, 0x2B8A0004 ]
  "Unlock FPS":
    Games:
      "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots":
        BLUS30109: [ 02.00 ]
    Author: TriggerHappy
    Notes: "Allows you to play the game at 60fps or higher without modyfing the vblank frequency."
    Patch Version: 1.0
    Patch:
      - [ be32, 0xDB720, 0x4E800020 ]

PPU-bbf4c85f1c01e182e7f96d34f734772c4430a426:
  "21:9 Aspect Ratio":
    Games:
      "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots":
        NPUB31633: [ 02.00 ]
    Author: TriggerHappy
    Notes: *MGS4_Widescreen_Notes
    Patch Version: 1.0
    Patch:
      - [ be32, 0x3C3EDC, 0x3FF0A3D7 ]
      - [ be32, 0x3C3EE4, 0xBFF0A3D7 ]
      - [ be32, 0x0EFAF0, 0xC1BE8040 ]
      - [ be32, 0x3C3C90, 0x3FA3126F ]
  "21:9 Aspect Ratio (Cutscenes)":
    Games:
      "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots":
        NPUB31633: [ 02.00 ]
    Author: TriggerHappy
    Notes: *MGS4_Widescreen_NotesEx
    Patch Version: 1.0
    Patch:
      - [ be32, 0x3C3EDC, 0x3FF0A3D7 ]
      - [ be32, 0x3C3EE4, 0xBFF0A3D7 ]
      - [ be32, 0x0EFAF0, 0xC1BE8040 ]
      - [ be32, 0x0F042C, 0xC1BE8040 ]
      - [ be32, 0x3C3C90, 0x3FA3126F ]
  "32:9 Aspect Ratio":
    Games:
      "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots":
        NPUB31633: [ 02.00 ]
    Author: TriggerHappy
    Notes: *MGS4_Widescreen_Notes
    Patch Version: 1.0
    Patch:
      - [ be32, 0x3C3EDC, 0x4039999A ]
      - [ be32, 0x3C3EE4, 0xC039999A ]
      - [ be32, 0x0EFAF0, 0xC1BE8040 ]
      - [ be32, 0x3C3C90, 0x3F52B021 ]
  "32:9 Aspect Ratio (Cutscenes)":
    Games:
      "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots":
        NPUB31633: [ 02.00 ]
    Author: TriggerHappy
    Notes: *MGS4_Widescreen_NotesEx
    Patch Version: 1.0
    Patch:
      - [ be32, 0x3C3EDC, 0x4039999A ]
      - [ be32, 0x3C3EE4, 0xC039999A ]
      - [ be32, 0x0EFAF0, 0xC1BE8040 ]
      - [ be32, 0x0F042C, 0xC1BE8040 ]
      - [ be32, 0x3C3C90, 0x3F52B021 ]
  "Disable shadows":
    Games:
      "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots":
        NPUB31633: [ 02.00 ]
    Author: TriggerHappy
    Notes: "Disabling shadows can give a significant performance boost."
    Patch Version: 1.0
    Patch:
      - [ be32, 0x130BF4, 0x4E800020 ]
  "Remove fog":
    Games:
      "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots":
        NPUB31633: [ 02.00 ]
    Author: TriggerHappy
    Notes: "Does not provide any performance benefit."
    Patch Version: 1.0
    Patch:
      - [ be32, 0xE92C8, 0x4E800020 ]
  "Reduce stage quality":
    Games:
      "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots":
        NPUB31633: [ 02.00 ]
    Author: TriggerHappy
    Notes: "Removes some transparency related effects from stages. Provides a small performance boost."
    Patch Version: 1.0
    Patch:
      - [ be32, 0xF90AC, 0x4E800020 ]
      - [ be32, 0x10E3AC, 0x4E800020 ]
  "Disable HUD":
    Games:
      "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots":
        NPUB31633: [ 02.00 ]
    Author: TriggerHappy
    Notes: "Removes the ingame HUD. Useful for videos and screenshots."
    Patch Version: 1.0
    Patch:
      - [ be32, 0xEECD0, 0x60000000 ]
  "Disable spawned effects":
    Games:
      "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots":
        NPUB31633: [ 02.00 ]
    Author: TriggerHappy
    Notes: "Removes some effects such as explosions and smoke. Provides a moderate performance boost."
    Patch Version: 1.0
    Patch:
      - [ be32, 0x12A59C, 0x2B8A0004 ]
  "Unlock FPS":
    Games:
      "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots":
        NPUB31633: [ 02.00 ]
    Author: TriggerHappy
    Notes: "Allows you to play the game at 60fps or higher without modyfing the vblank frequency."
    Patch Version: 1.0
    Patch:
      - [ be32, 0x000d9fe0, 0x4E800020 ]

PPU-c937999ea44fb6260455b85c9f25eea55b1208b9:
  "21:9 Aspect Ratio":
    Games:
      "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots":
        BLES00246: [ 02.00 ]
    Author: TriggerHappy
    Notes: *MGS4_Widescreen_Notes
    Patch Version: 1.0
    Patch:
      - [ be32, 0x3D426C, 0x3FF0A3D7 ]
      - [ be32, 0x3D4274, 0xBFF0A3D7 ]
      - [ be32, 0x0F1230, 0xC1BE8040 ]
      - [ be32, 0x3D4020, 0x3FA3126F ]
  "21:9 Aspect Ratio (Cutscenes)":
    Games:
      "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots":
        BLES00246: [ 02.00 ]
    Author: TriggerHappy
    Notes: *MGS4_Widescreen_NotesEx
    Patch Version: 1.0
    Patch:
      - [ be32, 0x3D426C, 0x3FF0A3D7 ]
      - [ be32, 0x3D4274, 0xBFF0A3D7 ]
      - [ be32, 0x0F1230, 0xC1BE8040 ]
      - [ be32, 0x0F1B6C, 0xC1BE8040 ]
      - [ be32, 0x3D4020, 0x3FA3126F ]
  "32:9 Aspect Ratio":
    Games:
      "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots":
        BLES00246: [ 02.00 ]
    Author: TriggerHappy
    Notes: *MGS4_Widescreen_Notes
    Patch Version: 1.0
    Patch:
      - [ be32, 0x3D426C, 0x4039999A ]
      - [ be32, 0x3D4274, 0xC039999A ]
      - [ be32, 0x0F1230, 0xC1BE8040 ]
      - [ be32, 0x3D4020, 0x3F52B021 ]
  "32:9 Aspect Ratio (Cutscenes)":
    Games:
      "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots":
        BLES00246: [ 02.00 ]
    Author: TriggerHappy
    Notes: *MGS4_Widescreen_NotesEx
    Patch Version: 1.0
    Patch:
      - [ be32, 0x3D426C, 0x4039999A ]
      - [ be32, 0x3D4274, 0xC039999A ]
      - [ be32, 0x0F1230, 0xC1BE8040 ]
      - [ be32, 0x0F1B6C, 0xC1BE8040 ]
      - [ be32, 0x3D4020, 0x3F52B021 ]
  "Disable shadows":
    Games:
      "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots":
        BLES00246: [ 02.00 ]
    Author: TriggerHappy
    Notes: "Disabling shadows can give a significant performance boost."
    Patch Version: 1.0
    Patch:
      - [ be32, 0x132354, 0x4E800020 ]
  "Remove fog":
    Games:
      "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots":
        BLES00246: [ 02.00 ]
    Author: TriggerHappy
    Notes: "Does not provide any performance benefit."
    Patch Version: 1.0
    Patch:
      - [ be32, 0xEAA08, 0x4E800020 ]
  "Reduce stage quality":
    Games:
      "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots":
        BLES00246: [ 02.00 ]
    Author: TriggerHappy
    Notes: "Removes some transparency related effects from stages. Provides a small performance boost."
    Patch Version: 1.0
    Patch:
      - [ be32, 0xFA7EC, 0x4E800020 ]
      - [ be32, 0x10FAEC, 0x4E800020 ]
  "Disable HUD":
    Games:
      "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots":
        BLES00246: [ 02.00 ]
    Author: TriggerHappy
    Notes: "Removes the ingame HUD. Useful for videos and screenshots."
    Patch Version: 1.0
    Patch:
      - [ be32, 0xF0410, 0x60000000 ]
  "Disable spawned effects":
    Games:
      "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots":
        BLES00246: [ 02.00 ]
    Author: TriggerHappy
    Notes: "Removes some effects such as explosions and smoke. Provides a moderate performance boost."
    Patch Version: 1.0
    Patch:
      - [ be32, 0x12BCFC, 0x2B8A0004 ]
  "Unlock FPS":
    Games:
      "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots":
        BLES00246: [ 02.00 ]
    Author: TriggerHappy
    Notes: "Allows you to play the game at 60fps or higher without modyfing the vblank frequency."
    Patch Version: 1.0
    Patch:
      - [ be32, 0xDB720, 0x4E800020 ]

OVL-a86de0a3c096dc8299a8b8a50b8feb6fa1e1d2ea:
  "Disable snow effect":
    Games:
      "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots":
        BLUS30109: [ 02.00 ]
    Author: TriggerHappy
    Notes: "Removes  the heavy snow effect on the shadow moses stage."
    Patch Version: 1.0
    Patch:
          - [ be32, 0x302A1400, 0x4E800020 ]

Canary Patches

PRX-rbYkgZMgx8Prd7WUAA39oYAdWcNo-0:
  "cellSpurs urgent commands hack - 4.87":
    Games:
      "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots":
        BLES00246: [ All ]
        BLUS30109: [ All ]
        BLJM67001: [ All ]
        NPUB31633: [ All ]
        NPEB02182: [ All ]
    Author: elad335
    Notes: "Workaround for freezes in Metal Gear Solid 4.\nThis patch applies to a firmware file for all games!\nUsage outside of Metal Gear Solid 4 is for debug purposes only.\nYou must have firmware version of exactly 4.87 in order to use it.\n\nKnown to affect:\nMetal Gear Solid 4"
    Patch Version: 1.0
    Patch:
      - [ be32, 0x182B8, 0x38000002 ]

PRX-oM7itnHHZPcaVx6KRGhZcv0o4gJj-0:
  "cellSpurs urgent commands hack - 4.88":
    Games:
      "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots":
        BLES00246: [ All ]
        BLUS30109: [ All ]
        BLJM67001: [ All ]
        NPUB31633: [ All ]
        NPEB02182: [ All ]
    Author: elad335
    Notes: "Workaround for freezes in Metal Gear Solid 4.\nThis patch applies to a firmware file for all games!\nUsage outside of Metal Gear Solid 4 is for debug purposes only.\nYou must have firmware version of exactly 4.88 in order to use it.\n\nKnown to affect:\nMetal Gear Solid 4"
    Patch Version: 1.0
    Patch:
      - [ be32, 0x182B8, 0x38000002 ]

PRX-WHnKAK6U9UApL2YMgjU3c5ozpTUM-0:
  "cellSpurs urgent commands hack - 4.89":
    Games:
      "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots":
        BLES00246: [ All ]
        BLUS30109: [ All ]
        BLJM67001: [ All ]
        NPUB31633: [ All ]
        NPEB02182: [ All ]
    Author: elad335
    Notes: "Workaround for freezes in Metal Gear Solid 4.\nThis patch applies to a firmware file for all games!\nUsage outside of Metal Gear Solid 4 is for debug purposes only.\nYou must have firmware version of exactly 4.89 in order to use it.\n\nKnown to affect:\nMetal Gear Solid 4"
    Patch Version: 1.0
    Patch:
      - [ be32, 0x182B8, 0x38000002 ]

PPU-33e09a0bd8fa2a3b28780a3feeb7b0e018bae381:
  "Crash fix":
    Games:
      "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots":
        BLUS30109: [ 02.00 ]
    Author: TriggerHappy
    Notes: "workaround for 0x68 crash"
    Patch Version: 1.0
    Patch:
      - [ be32, 0x1409F8, 0x60000000 ]
      - [ be32, 0x140A10, 0x60000000 ]
      - [ be32, 0x140A44, 0x60000000 ]
  "Flickering textures fix":
    Games:
      "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots":
        BLUS30109: [ 02.00 ]
    Author: TriggerHappy
    Notes: "Workaround for flickering ground textures"
    Patch Version: 1.0
    Patch:
      - [ be32, 0x0EAAC8, 0x60003000 ]

PPU-c937999ea44fb6260455b85c9f25eea55b1208b9:
  "Crash fix":
    Games:
      "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots":
        BLES00246: [ 02.00 ]
    Author: TriggerHappy
    Notes: "workaround for 0x68 crash"
    Patch Version: 1.0
    Patch:
      - [ be32, 0x1409F8, 0x60000000 ]
      - [ be32, 0x140A10, 0x60000000 ]
      - [ be32, 0x140A44, 0x60000000 ]
  "Flickering textures fix":
    Games:
      "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots":
        BLES00246: [ 02.00 ]
    Author: TriggerHappy
    Notes: "Workaround for flickering ground textures"
    Patch Version: 1.0
    Patch:
      - [ be32, 0x0EAAC8, 0x60003000 ]
      
PPU-bbf4c85f1c01e182e7f96d34f734772c4430a426:
  "Crash fix":
    Games:
      "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots":
        NPUB31633: [ 02.00 ]
    Author: TriggerHappy
    Notes: "workaround for 0x68 crash"
    Patch Version: 1.0
    Patch:
      - [ be32, 0x13F298, 0x60000000 ]
      - [ be32, 0x13F2B0, 0x60000000 ]
      - [ be32, 0x13F2E4, 0x60000000 ]
  "Flickering textures fix":
    Games:
      "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots":
        NPUB31633: [ 02.00 ]
    Author: TriggerHappy
    Notes: "Workaround for flickering ground textures"
    Patch Version: 1.0
    Patch:
      - [ be32, 0x0E9388, 0x60003000 ]