Game / Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance

You could quite justifiably go up and down the score board with Metal Gear Rising. It’s a game that, in the hearts of the dedicated Platinum fans and action game elite, has all the makings of a perfect score experience, yet possesses the challenge, obscurity and downright weirdness to turn away even the most devoted of Metal Gear fans.

I’m quite relieved to report, then, that this Metal Gear diehard sits towards the upper end of that scale.

For a gamer like myself Rising’s biggest battle is simply getting used to it.  It’s a difficult game to play at the best of times, and it’s pretty happy with itself for that. It boasts a unique combat system that emphasises the offensive; ridding the player of a trusty block button and instead demanding you time precise parries to avoid damage. Raiden, the game’s cyborg protagonist, is always meant to be on the attack, building up three-digit combos faster than Kratos or Dante could ever dream of, rarely allowing himself a moment to actually, y’know, breathe.

The hardcore have evidently embraced this bold design with glee – Metal Gear Rising establishes its own identity with its breath-taking pace. That said, those that have devoted mind, body and soul to the series up until now aren’t necessarily guaranteed satisfaction here, as it’s a strictly ‘no n00bs’ experience. One single lick from the enemy can throw your entire plan of attack off, clumsily stumbling around trying to find a rhythm again while gigantic foes pound down and mechanical monstrosities, crush, torch and maim you. This is an unforgiving experience which many, quite rightly, won’t find fault with, but some will undoubtedly be disappointed.

For a long time, I was one of those strugglers. I tackled Rising on Hard and got a good third into the game before deciding I needed to start again and really master the basics if I was going to have any hope of enjoying this outing. That parrying system can be a harsh mistress – a few milliseconds off can be the difference between a stunning counter attack or the foot of a Metal Gear in your face. It doesn’t help that many enemy attacks stun Raiden, making the waggling of the left stick a consistent and tiring feature. 

But for all of these trials and tribulations there is a tremendous payoff. The feeling of uncontrollable, unrelentingly vicious power that Rising gives you when you’re getting along with it is unbeatable. Watching enemies helplessly twist and turn as you dance your blade up and down their torso, only to slice them into hundreds of tiny pieces at the end, is a hypnotising high. Here those jaw-dropping cutscenes from MGS4 truly come to life and that’s really what Rising is all about.

Learning the ins and outs of Rising can be one of the game’s biggest battles for the uninitiated. The result is a game that doesn’t quite deliver on the series’ usual standards but instead breaks new ground.