Metal Gear Rising Revengeance
Reviewed By Stephen Pastic
Let me confess something right at the outset - I am a massive fan of the Metal Gear series. However, going into Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance (MGR), I was only too aware that this game is a VERY different beast from its heritage. Taking a much more action based approach to a series traditionally known as a stalwart of the stealth genre was bound to turn a few heads...my own included.
Developed by Platinum Games (of Bayonetta/Vanquish fame) in conjunction with Kojima Productions, MGR is set several years after the events of Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots. Players are cast in the shoes of Raiden from MGS 2 and 4, who has since begun working for a private military company known as "Maverick". The game begins as Raiden is working security for an African head of state who quickly gets ambushed by a group of cyborgs working for a rival PMC known as "Desperado", and it is at this point that players are thrust into things.
At its most basic, MGR is a third person 'hack and slash' title reminiscent of other games such as Bayonetta, Ninja Gaiden and God of War. Alternating light and heavy attacks form the meat and potatoes of combat, and before long players will be slicing up enemies and environments alike. The most unique selling point of MGR is its cutting mechanic - most things in the game world can be sliced (including supporting structures of bridges, for example), and the majority of these - enemies included - will respond as to which plane the cut was made....more on this in a moment.
Furthermore, whilst holding R1, players can execute Raiden's "ninja run", which allows him to quickly move around both battles and the environment (in a similar way to Assassins Creed's free running) at a blistering speed, making for some beautiful opportunities for epilepsy inducing combat.
Graphically and sound wise, MGR is impressive - in keeping with the heritage of Platinum Games' own Bayonetta, players can expect the screen to often be filled with plenty of stunning visual effects and animations in the midst of a battle. Furthermore, MGR is chock full of impressive set piece moments and boss battles which will often cause even an uninterested bystander to do a double take. "Boring" is definitely not a word that regularly applies to this title.
For fans of the Metal Gear series, it must be made clear right from the get-go that MGR has little to do with its prior titles save for some recurring enemy types, as well as a shared history (particularly with regard to Raiden). For those expecting the kind of complex narrative and social commentary inherent in the Metal Gear Solid titles, you are unlikely to find it here - whilst sharing a couple of thematic links (which almost threaten to become deeper at first glance), MGR is by far the wackiest installment to date. Ludicrous visual action is order of the day, and whilst the plot certainly has its moments, it bears little resemblance to the main series which spawned it.
Okay, let's cut straight to the chase (with an awful pun, no less) - the most notable point of difference over similar titles gameplay wise is MGR's "blade mode". Whilst holding L1, time slows as the camera moves behind Raiden in a similar style to Dead Space/Gears of War. From here, players see a reticule which allows them to slice along any direction with the right stick. Most enemies will require a little softening up with regular attacks initially, but once that is done players can then lop limbs off both human and mechanised enemies with razor sharp precision. Aside from being just a cool gimmick, these mechanics prove invaluable in combat situations, particularly on harder difficulties.
Ideally, players will make full use of MGR's "Zandatsu" (cut and take) combat mechanics - by softening any enemy up to a sufficient point, Raiden can aim for a specific place to cut in order to rip out the repair systems of enemies (which both look like and are placed like a spinal cord) in a gory finisher which replenishes both the player's health and blade meter.
Whilst I was initially impressed the first time I pulled this off, my first worry was that it would get old really quickly. This is one of those rare times I was happy to be proven wrong - not only does it continue to look cool as hell, it also becomes a fundamental part of moment to moment strategy in the midst of a fight. Struggling for health in the middle of a fight? Quickly eviscerate that lone soldier off to the side and get back into it! It should be pointed out that whilst getting a feel for these systems does take some time, it quickly becomes second nature and players will be pulling moves such as this off without any kind of measured thought.
Players also have access to a "new game plus" mode where they can take all of their upgrades into a new game, and even resume on a harder difficulty setting. Initially, only easy, normal and hard are available - but upon completing those, players can also unlock very hard and revengeance difficulties.
MGR tonally reminds me of Japanese animation. Whilst I don't have a huge familiarity with anime as a whole, MGR is loaded to the brim with utterly mental (not to mention implausible) action sequences which bear little semblance to any kind of use of the word "realism". For the most part, boss fights are pretty damn impressive, even if the context is a little ridiculous at times. Additionally, moment to moment battles rarely ever feel stale, and some further variance is provided via a simple upgrade system where players can unlock new weapons and combos, as well as general health/fuel cell upgrades. The series regular "codec" communication system also makes a return, with players being able to call supporting characters for either advice or further exposition.
As a further point of difference to the other installments in the series, whilst gameplay is occasionally interrupted by cut scenes or codec calls, they are nowhere near as frequent or lengthy as they are in the Metal Gear Solid games - story is definitely in the backseat compared to action here.
There are a couple of minor sticking points, however - first and foremost, the game is REALLY short. Whilst there are additional VR missions to collect and unlock throughout the game, I was shocked to find that my save game file currently reads eleven hours, despite the fact that I have completed it on easy, normal and hard. Granted, I'm pretty sure this is purely gameplay time that it tracks (as opposed to counting story elements toward the total), and it never outstays its welcome - still, one can't help but think the balance of quality over quantity may be a little skewed.
The final act too, feels a little underwhelming at least narrative wise. Whilst I could appreciate the far 'wackier' tone throughout, the conclusion feels somewhat out of place - particularly with regard to the last boss. Still impressive visually and gameplay wise, it definitely felt like the weakest part of the game outside of that.
At the end of the day, I was very pleasantly surprised with this release. I knew not to expect storytelling on par with the series proper, but what I didn't expect was an action game of this caliber featuring gameplay mechanics which I would love to see tweaked and implemented in other titles of the genre.
Game: Metal Gear Solid: Revengeance
System: PS3
Developer/Co-Developer: Platinum Games/Kojima Productions
Publisher: Konami
