“Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance” retains much needed difficulty, violence

By Zack Gill
Copy Editor

In Platinum Games’ “Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance,” players jump across missiles in mid-flight in order to reach a clocktower, which they proceed to slide down the side of while avoiding lasers, until finally they reach their destination – the back of a robotic tank-esque weapon the size of Mira Costa’s Fisher Gym. And all this is in the first 10 minutes.
The “Metal Gear Solid” series of video games is known for its ridiculous and overwrought plot lines (which include individual cinematics that exceed the hour mark) as much as it is for its signature stealth gameplay. “Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance,” a spin-off and sequel to “Metal Gear Solid,” ditches the stealth but retains the insanity, leading to the wackiest and most manic action game since the release of Platinum Games’ own “Bayonetta” in 2010.
“Metal Gear Rising” begins in conflict-ridden 2018, a few years after the conclusion of “Metal Gear Solid 4.” The future it depicts is very near to our present: nations clash over oil, African regimes rise and fall, and private military corporations occupy various exotic locales. Of course, it isn’t exactly like the present day, as private military corporations (PMC) almost exclusively employ cyborgs, technologically modified soldiers that use drugs and computerized implants to subdue their emotions and enhance their combat skills.
Protagonist Raiden is one of those cyborgs, in the employment of the PMC Maverick. After cyborg samurai assassins slaughter a politician he was sworn to protect, Raiden and his Maverick crew investigate a rival PMC with nefarious intentions, including biotech experimentation.
The game is nearly nonsensical, like everything “Metal Gear” creator Hideo Kojima is involved with. Luckily, players need not be familiar with the decades-long timeline of the “Metal Gear” series. Although “Rising” references “Metal Gear Solid 4,” players should not avoid “Rising” due to unfamiliarity with the series.
In fact, they should adamantly pursue the game, because action games of “Rising”’s caliber and difficulty are in the process of becoming an endangered species. “Rising”’s gameplay is focused around two brutal, incredibly satisfying mechanics that complement one another. The first mechanic is simple: Raiden’s sword (because Raiden isn’t just a normal cyborg – he’s a ninja cyborg) can cut through a lot of different things. Players can use the left trigger button to enter a mode that allows them to have direct control over the sword, which gives them the power to cut up the game’s (very) destructible environments and the limbs of their foes.
The second key mechanic, “Zandatsu” takes Raiden’s swordplay even further. Raiden’s cyborg body does not heal itself, so he must steal the “nanopaste” (essentially the blood) of his enemies. He does this by executing his Zandatsu – after players fill a meter by completing successful attacks and entering into direct control over Raiden’s sword, a red box appears above the torsos of some enemies. Players can then slice through this box, after which Raiden proceeds to rip his enemies’ spines out for their nanopaste. Yes, this game is almost deplorably violent. Characters are disemboweled, frayed and bled. Players can use Zandatsu to perform many ridiculous, visually stunning, airborne combos.
“Metal Gear Rising” is brilliant in its simplicity. Its control scheme is simple to learn, yet difficult to master. Players attack, block and parry with the same button and string together combos using only two more buttons. Levels consist almost entirely of encounters with enemies, simple platforming and comically indulgent boss battles against various cybernetic monstrosities or the series’ titular “Metal Gears,” advanced robotic tanks. The game is also short – its campaign can be completed in roughly eight hours – but it features Virtual Reality missions and a complex ranking system, so as to allow levels to be replayed for high scores. “Rising” is also difficult. Players will die repeatedly, but the game does not punish them for their mistakes, providing copious checkpoints.
With its gratuitous amounts of violence and ocassional instances of staggering difficulty, “Rising” is certainly not intended for the faint of heart. However, this doesn’t detract from the player’s enjoyment of the game. This makes it the best game that has been released this year, so far. “Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance” is rated “M for Mature” and is available now for the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3.