Hideo Kojima doesn’t shy away from absurdity. This is abundantly clear in Death Stranding, which features babies in jars and flying whales; or Metal Gear Solid 3’s laughably long ladder climb that feels neverending. But no Kojima game is as over-the-top as Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance, which recently celebrated its 10th anniversary on February 19, 2023. Although this action adventure didn’t garner much attention back in 2013, it has slowly racked up a cult following over the years thanks, in part, to its action, humor, and ridiculousness. But what makes Metal Gear Rising so special, even a decade later?
Hackin’ and Slashin’
While it does take place within the Metal Gear series, Revengeance plays much differently, with a focus on fast-paced action instead of stealth. You can get through certain sections stealthily, but Revengeance leans into melee combat, allowing protagonist Raiden to slash enemies to bits with his katana.
Every single time your sword connects with an enemy, it feels devastating, giving each attack plenty of weight. The satisfying combat never gets old, even against weaker enemies, proving that developer PlatinumGames is a master of its craft.
One of the best things about the game’s combat is the parry function, which — when timed properly — allows Raiden to counter enemy attacks. The timing is certainly hard to master, but once you do, you’ll be at an advantage. By default, Revengeance is tremendously challenging, even on lower difficulty settings, but the parry system is there to make things go more smoothly ... if you learn to use it.
On top of the parry system, Revengeance has one of the coolest mechanics ever, in the form of its Blade Mode. This allows you to slow down time to slash in whichever direction you’d like by using the analog stick. This gives you control of the direction of your slices, which offers lots of variety. You can quite literally slice your opponents in hundreds of pieces under the right circumstances, which is simultaneously fun and absurd.
After you deactivate Blade Mode, you then get to watch all the pieces crumble down to the ground in the most anime way possible. It’s seriously one of the best video game mechanics ever and is something we haven’t seen replicated even 10 years later.
Abundantly Absurd
Sure, the fundamental combat is top-notch, but the game’s wacky combat scenarios, over-the-top action, and humor all work together to make this game memorable.
Massive battles against skyscraper-sized robots are a dime a dozen in Revengeance, serving as set pieces, as well as enemies. In many of them, Raiden frequently runs up the side of the robot or climbs on top to unleash attacks, which gives the game a major sense of scale. Funnily enough, Raiden is actually able to parry these gargantuan robots, making him feel more like a superhuman badass.
In between the battles are a slew of little funny moments that help offset the generally serious tone throughout. These are moments like Raiden wearing his Loco Poncho (yep, a cyborg with a poncho and sombrero), or some of the hilariously bad voice acting at times. One of the best moments is when Raiden is temporarily under the enemy’s control and he lets out an eerie laugh that feels simultaneously cynical, menacing, and downright hysterical.
Even the game’s name “Revengeance” is funny, capturing the game’s campy tone.
Metal Gear Rising is a game that likes to subvert expectations. So, it’s fitting that the final boss is against ... a man — Just a ripped presidential candidate named Armstrong. No robots or cyborgs, or anything like what you’ve fought thus far. That, in and of itself is what makes it so funny and enjoyable, as Armstrong is presented as more formidable than a building-sized Metal Gear. And it’s an incredibly difficult battle, too.
Despite its cult following, Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance has yet to receive a remaster or sequel playable on modern consoles. Developer PlatinumGames did release a blog post celebrating the game’s 10th anniversary, accompanied by new art, leaving fans disappointed about any potential sequel/remaster reveals.
Earlier in 2023, Raiden voice actor Quinton Flynn teased something related to the game on Twitter, but it now seems like that tease was in reference to the new art rather than a remaster or sequel.
We’ve still got our fingers crossed for the return of Metal Gear Rising in some fashion.
