In the old MGS games, sure, Snake would smoke, but it wasn't that big of a deal. For one, because of the graphical properties of those games, the smoking wasn't rendered in high detail. Even then, it wasn't a good thing to expose kids to smoking, but the games were so good that we could excuse this aspect.
In MGS4, the smoking is meant to look as cool and bad-ass as possible. During the initial loading sequence, players are treated to a highly detailed animation of Snake smoking in all it's coolness.
Personally, I hadn't had a cigarette since I tried them in my teens. However, after playing this game, I suddenly found I had a powerful urge to smoke. I was drinking with friends two days after I started playing MGS4, and I asked for a drag off of someone's cigarette. Since that time, I'm up to two packs a day, and I've noticed a significant decline in my lung capacity and general health.
I'm usually not so impressionable, but I believe that the image of Old Snake smoking, with his strong looks and musculature, has profoundly affected my mindset. I realize that smoking is unhealthy, but I feel like my subconscious mind has already been programmed. I hate to think of all the young MGS fans who have taken up smoking as a result of this game.
