Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance Review



The Metal Gear Solid series is a well-known and well-loved series in the gaming industry. So of course fans were angry when Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance was announced because it diverted from the gameplay style of the Metal Gear Solid games. While I’m all for Metal Gear Solid’s stealth gameplay, Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance (MGR:R for the rest of the review) supports a totally addicting, complex, but completely rewarding battle system. It’s fast-paced, challenging and insanely brutal. In MGR:R you take control of Raiden, a cyborg ninja who is working for a Private Military Company or PMC. He is set out to protect a Prime Minister and after a failed mission, a newly restored Raiden sets out for some unfinished business. The main storyline is about taking down a corporation that includes many government officials who are kidnapping orphans and taking their brains so they could be turned into killing machines against their will. Raiden, who had been involved in similar treatments as a child, wants to stop those responsible. This is the main conflict of the game, but as the game progresses, there are some twists and turns as well as some interesting moments. The story is never dull and actually adds A LOT of social commentary about war, greed, money, power and beliefs in America as well. We’ve seen things like this done before, but it doesn’t take away from the game. I’m more of a fan of Platinum Games than I am of the Metal Gear series. They brought their Hack and Slash charm over to this series and it’s sensational. Other games they have made include: Madworld, Vanquish, Anarchy Reigns and the amazing Bayonetta. Right off the bat, I knew that this game had to be good, but I didn’t realize how good the game would actually be.

The combat is fluid.  There are a few sweet mechanics in the combat system worth noting.  First off, the free slicing mechanic that has been hyped up since the game’s reveal known as blade mode is executed wonderfully.  On the Xbox 360, by pressing the left trigger, you enter blade mode which slows everything down allowing the player to target specific areas and then letting them slice it up.  After damaging an enemy enough, you can use blade mode to sever highlighted body parts.

This will leave enemies limbless and open for finishing blows.  While not always effective in certain battles, it gives you the upper hand most of the time.  Ninja dash is another awesome function.  It can be used in and out of battle.  While using ninja dash, Raiden traverses through the level in super speed.
You can also use it to climb walls, through small spaces and you can also escape enemy attack with it.  In my playthrough, I never realized how great ninja dash was until I got towards the end of the game.  Some battles would have been a lot easier if I utilized its functions earlier.  AR mode is a mode I hardly used, but it’s similar to detective mode in Batman: Arkham City.  It tells you where to go if lost and it shows where health items and hidden pathways may be.

There is another mechanic called Zandatsu which is basically a finishing move.  If you are strong enough or after cutting through enough of your enemy you can extract a core from that enemy which automatically regenerates your health and fuel meter (Blade Mode Meter). This is a real life saver on the later missions.  The final mechanic is known as “Ripper Mode” which is the equivalent to Dante’s Devil Trigger in DMC.  When your Blade Mode meter is full, by clicking both sticks, Raiden becomes the ripper and he can cut through ANYTHING with super strength.

This game is no walk in the park and for that, you should do the VR training missions.  There are five tutorial missions that will be unlocked throughout the course of the game and about 20 VR missions that must be found throughout the story mode.  The VR missions in my opinion are much tougher than the actual storyline, but they also help you practice for the story missions that will grade you!
The VR missions include clear conditions such as: Eliminate all enemies within the time limit, eliminate enemies only using Zandatsu and much more.  The benefit of VR missions is that they give you credit to upgrade Raiden, but they don’t give you that much compared to the story mode.  In story mode, you’re awarded credit for each kill, big combos, the amount of Zandatsu used per battle and the time it takes to complete a mission.

Each battle is graded and at the end of the mission, each battle is averaged together.  After each mission, you’re taken to a customization screen where you can upgrade Raiden’s blade, health, fuel meter, learn new skills, change his costume and more.  Even though you can customize his health, there are permanent upgrades that must be found hidden in each level.  The plus side is that once you’ve upgraded Raiden, you can replay missions with the upgrades added in so you can try to beat your score.

One thing that I have to praise MGR:R for is that it has terrific set pieces.  Some of the most chaotic moments are where the game truly shines!  The boss battles are really good too. The boss characters are pretty diverse and each provide a very unique experience.

The downside is that each battle basically consists of finding a pattern and repeating it to defeat the boss.  Apart from that, the boss battles were one of my favorite moments.  I compare MGR:R to Ninja Gaiden because of its insane combat, but I have to say that MGR:R is more like NInja Gaiden in hyperspeed.  It’s a lot faster and crazier.

From a visual standpoint, MGR:R is one of the most beautiful looking games that I’ve ever seen.  The game while being played is displayed in such great detail that sometimes I actually died because I was taking in the beauty of the game.  The cutscenes are masterfully done as well in terms of visuals.

We’re in a time period where games are looking better and better.  Just like Far Cry 3 blew many away by its visuals and just like Tomb Raider seems to be doing, MGR:R proves that visuals can really be top-notch.  Developers can learn a few things from Platinum Games who clearly cared about making this game look perfect.

A few things bring MGR:R from reaching perfection.  First, it’s pretty tough.  I played on Normal, but some of the later battles are just brutal “I want to throw my controller across the room” battles.  This is coming from someone who beat DMC: Devil May Cry on every difficulty with a SSS rank on the Nephalim, Son of Sparda and Dante Must Die difficulties.  There is a steep learning curve, but by mastering the controls, MGR:R is a VERY rewarding game.

The last boss in particular had me start over at least 20 times.  The game is relentless and that’s just on normal.  I fear the hard difficulty and the unlockable Revengeance mode.  Another annoying thing is the camera.  I must say that it’s not ALWAYS that bad, but when it is, it could be your death.  Sometimes the camera is more of a killer than Raiden and the enemies he faces.  The BIGGEST problem I have with the game is not even with anything gameplay related.



My biggest problem is that the game is just way too short.  My normal playthrough only took 4 hours and 30 minutes to complete all eight missions and two missions only took about 15 minutes altogether.  The game screams replay-ability in terms of the other difficulties, the VR missions, and collectibles, but the game is just too short.  While I enjoyed it, I just don’t think the game is worth $60 dollars for the amount of time it takes to beat the game.

MGR:R is a great return to the Metal Gear Universe even though it’s an entirely different experience.  Some fans may not like the changes made to the series, but as a whole, MGR:R is an outstanding action game that should be played by gamers.  Despite its short campaign length and a few other technical shortcomings, MGR:R is a welcome addition to the series.  If there ends up being a sequel, I can’t wait to see what else Platinum Games has up its sleeves.

Positives
- Amazing Combat
- Gorgeous  Visuals
- Entertaining Story

Negatives
- Very Short Campaign
- Slightly Annoying Camera
Score 8.5/10
Replay Value: Moderately High


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