It's pretty hard to improve on an already great thing. Remember Coke II? Yep.

That considered, Konami has managed to best its greatest release yet with "Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence." Similar to what producer Hideo Kojima and company did with "Metal Gear Solid 2: Substance," "Subsistence" is basically the same game they released more than a year ago with some major tweaks and additions.

The original "MGS3" was a great game by today's standards: incredible visuals, a top-notch plot and intense gameplay added up to a superb release. That "Snake Eater" was such a great game to begin with made a lot of gamers scratch their heads at the prospect of changing things. Leave it to Kojima to prove everyone wrong.

After years of listening to gamers complain about the archaic camera system of the "MGS" series, Kojima finally decided to do something about it — enter "Subsistence" and its new, fully 3-D camera system. Rather than be forced to play the game from an arguably awkward top-down perspective, constantly switching to first-person mode to survey surroundings, players are now free to turn and adjust the camera every step of the way. Not only does this allow for a better view of Snake's surroundings, but also the game somehow takes a few less hours to work through — no lie.

"Subsistence" is a dual-DVD package, with the first disc filled with the same "MGS3" gamers played through in late 2004. The game is here in its entirety, complete with the new camera and a few new camouflages to dress Snake up in.

Where the title really soars is on disc 2, known as "Persistence." Almost like a bonus features disc you'd typically find with a special edition film, "Persistence" is filled with all of the extra goodies Konami decided to throw in with the game.

But these are not mere accessories. "Persistence" dives into completely new territory for the "MGS" series, offering its first ever online mode. Finally, players can hop online and duke it out in various "Metal Gear" inspired modes. There's the typical death match and capture the flag (in this case, a Kerotan frog), but online truly soars when gamers try out the sneaking mission.

The sneaking mission pits one lone gamer against a team of soldiers, somewhat similar to the lauded multiplayer mode of "Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow." The loner plays as Snake, charged with the mission of stealing a microfilm from the team of soldiers. Snake has a few advantages over the soldiers in the way of camouflage but certainly has his work cut out for him. It's challenging, gut-wrenching and fun — exactly what fans have come to expect from the "Metal Gear Solid" series.

And while the sneaking mission is faithful to traditional "MGS" gameplay, the rest of the online modes just don't scream "Metal Gear." They are certainly enjoyable but basically feel like every other online gaming option out there. There are twists on the gameplay here and there, mainly in the ability to hide in boxes and leave dirty magazines out to distract guards.

Perhaps the biggest problem with "Metal Gear Online" lies in the game's controls. Movement is relatively decent, but the traditional inventory system of "MGS" stumbles terribly. As a match goes on and players accumulate numerous weapons, it becomes increasingly difficult to scroll through the many options available. In the heat of a firefight, players don't necessarily want to spend 30 seconds pulling up the weapons list and cycling through it. More often than not, an attempt to switch weapons ends in death at the hand of a shotgun — a frustrating problem indeed.

Also included on "Persistence" is Duel Mode, which allows players to face off against all of the "MGS3" bosses under varying difficulty levels. The disc is rounded out with additional "Snake vs. Monkey" mini-games (oh joy!), ports of the two original MSX "Metal Gear" games and a series of parody films in the secret theater. The secret theater cinematics are fairly amusing but are really only worth one viewing at most. And while it's pretty cool to be able to play through the two original "Metal Gear" games, the antiquated gameplay has a rather difficult time holding up against today's standards.

Yes, "Metal Gear Solid 3" is a few years old at this point. But the new camera system, online gameplay and oodles of bonus features manage to breathe some life into an otherwise stagnant game. This is the arguably the way "Snake Eater" was meant to be played, just a few years later. Chalk one more up for Kojima.

Rating: 5 out of 5