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Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance

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So i just played this game and i have things to say about it.

You know, and just to get it out there, i'm coming at Revengeance with a distant appreciation for Metal Gear, but not really liking the part where you have to play them.

I guess a lot of Metal Gear fans are still really angry about how tonally different Rising is from the MGS series, and it's maybe a valid argument. The game is way more Platinum than it is KojiPro, and if you've played Vanquish, you've probably got a sense for what the vibe here will be. It's super, super dumb, but not dumb in a Metal Gear kind of way. On the other hand, it's also very specifically not a "Metal Gear Solid" game, there is no promise of it being a Metal Gear Solid game.

Anyways, i really like it. I think it's overall a much more uniformly excellent game than Platinum's other recent release. (The super cool, but ultimately very flawed Anarchy Reigns.)

In a pure matter of how far you can stretch the systems, Revengeance is probably one of the more straightforward brawlers Platinum has made. There isn't really room for technical improvisation like there is in Anarchy Reigns, nor is there the sheer bottomless wealth of systems and combos that Bayonetta offered. It is, however, still a much deeper and more interesting brawler than mostly anything else out there.

The big defining element here is the blade mode, the idea that you're cutting enemies in half to... something something nanomachines, health and energy, extra customization points. It's very cool, it's awesome, i like it. There's loads of destructible items in the environments, and there's the whole collection game about using your radar vision to identify certain targets who have data chips in their hands, and then cutting off those hands to collect them, that's awesome.

The general flow of the combat is to weaken or stagger an enemy with normal attacks, and then finishing them off with the blade mode. There's actually no combos on the light attack, it's pure button mashing, but the heavy attacks do have some simple combos available depending on the selected secondary weapon. Different special moves are unlocked as you progress, including a really quite important dodge attack that isn't ever really explained.

That's a fairly annoying problem with the game, because while there's a help menu that will list off all your currently available specials and combos, and VR training missions that explain some other various things, they somehow managed to miss explaining any of the defensive minutia of the game. (Which is all very non-standard to make things even more confusing.)

The parry system is never explained, the dodge is never explained, the color-coded heavy enemy attacks aren't even explained. (Based on my own experience, how it worked out is that orange should be parried, yellow should be dodged, and i believe red is simply unblockable? Speaking of which, the yellow and orange are far too similar in color.)

There's also a super mode that is unlocked during a boss fight, and it's somewhat crucial for fighting that boss, but the tutorial that explains how to use that super mode is unlocked after that fight ends.

So yeah, there's some kind of dumb stuff like that.

The camera is also pretty bad, it's really just quite terrible.

Interestingly, unexpectedly, the game also has some relatively fleshed out stealth gameplay. It doesn't seem to ever require that you play that way, but there are some distinct rewards for trying to play stealthy, and stealth kills make some of the other goals, like civilian rescues and collecting the left hands, much easier. There's also some token Metal Gear elements there, you have a bunch of sub items to facilitate stealth. (The cardboard box, of course.)

Codec conversations are in the game and there's just insane amounts of it, multiple new conversations after every battle, and even more that are contextual to the battles themselves. I guess all this codec stuff is the other big token holdover from Metal Gear. (Also, the walk and talk codec conversations can be fast-forwarded. They're mostly used to hide loads, but once the load has happened, you can skip the rest.)

Anyways, I really like it, but i'm not a Metal Gear fan. I think this is a game that will probably just really piss off people who are.

It tries to deal with the fact that Raiden murdering so many dudes is kind of counter to the messages and themes of Metal Gear, and then never really makes a convincing counter-argument for Raiden being the hero the end of the game wants you to feel he is. There are some things towards the end of the game that are handled in a really clumsy and repulsive manner. Being that it's the canon continuation of Metal Gear, it's sure to make fans irate.

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I love this game. It's super fun and totally mental.

I guess a lot of Metal Gear fans are still really angry about how tonally different Rising is from the MGS series, and it's maybe a valid argument…

Anyways, I really like it, but i'm not a Metal Gear fan. I think this is a game that will probably just really piss off people who are.

I don't know why you say this. That's not at all consistent with the reactions I've been seeing, namely Metal Gear fans (like myself) going apeshit for this game. Although my experience is mostly limited to the Something Awful forums.

As a Metal Gear game, it's maybe not up to the highest standards of the series, nor is it the best Platinum brawler either. The unique blend of those two things is something really wonderful, though. It's a killer match.

The writing is in the Metal Gear vein, full of heavy-handed moralizing, editorializing and sermonizing. (And ultimately not necessarily being coherent.) Looking at the text of your spoiler (which isn't really spoiling anything), I think you're giving regular Metal Gear too much credit. It's full of clumsy shit out of left field, and in my opinion, it routinely fails to back up its loftier theses.

The style of gameplay is very appropriate for Metal Gear. If you look at the progression of the series, it's essentially an action figure simulator. Snake starts off simply in the MSX games (though he comes with an amazing suite of accessories from cardboard boxes to IR goggles to cigarettes), and gradually gains increasingly superfluous features as the series goes on.

Initially he can punch shit, and by the second game, he can crouch and crawl through ducts. Before you know it, he's got the kung fu grip (CQC), can hang off of ledges (and do pull-ups), roll around in a barrel, play dead, slither around on his butt… the list goes on. It ends up being kind of absurd by the time you get to MGS4.

You only need the barest subset of his features and accessories to progress. It's all there because it's fun in its own right and adds to immersion. Like, I can't imagine a predominantly first-person Metal Gear, simply because if you couldn't see your character doing all the cool stuff, then what would be the point of any of it?

A "character action" game, like what Platinum is known for, is the mainstream genre that most shares this action figure ethos. And I have to say, this new Raiden figure has some sick-ass moves and weapons and stuff.

The game is far from perfect; your point about how poorly it explains some of its key systems is so true. You can see a lot of spots where things might have been better had this incarnation of the game not been on such a tight schedule. But man, I'd much rather have this Revengeance than nothing. Even if it's not a great Metal Gear, it's a great tribute to Metal Gear.

Also, the way the hard rock vocals kick in during the boss fights is so great. I'm always stoked to the max when that happens.

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I'll be picking this up at some point

 

I've heard its only 4-5 hours long which seems crazy to me as i turned the demo off as it was dragging so much, far to much talking for an introduction to an action game. Bayonetta's intro threw you into that crazy fight on the falling clock face, when you start that game who haven't got a clue whats going on and what you are doing and it is awesome!

 

The codec stuff dragged on for ages to. i know you don't have to listen to them, but i'm not wired that way, i'll begrudgingly listen to all of them with a sour look on my face.

 

What small amount of time i spent with the demo i didn't like the camera, and i didn't understand the parrying tutorial either, considering i've heard it absolutely essential to the second half of the game) do you press x and push towards the enemy at the same time? I couldn't even tell if i succeeded or not. It's the type of thing they should make you do in VR 5 times over before the game starts. Like in sleeping dogs when you learn a new move and then routinely beat the living shit out of those poor guys in the dojo :)

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I'd like to add to my already overlong thoughts that one thing I admire about the Metal Gear series is that the games try to make a point, or at the very least explore a theme. It doesn't sound like much, but it's a big deal when you think about how rarely games do anything of the sort. I don't think they're ever wholly successful in this endeavor, but it's still something I appreciate.

As crazy as it is, I think MGS2 comes the closest to working in that regard.

Revengeance falls somewhere in the middle, I think. Its ruminations on freedom, violence, moral relativism and… all the other stuff that gets jumbled up in there are not very cogent.

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I don't know why you say this. That's not at all consistent with the reactions I've been seeing, namely Metal Gear fans (like myself) going apeshit for this game. Although my experience is mostly limited to the Something Awful forums.

 

Yeah, I was just about to type something similar. I'm a massive MGS nerd (I even bothered to get ALL the achievements in MGS 2 and 3 HD), but my main concern is if it's a good game or not. I don't mind if it's different, just so long as it's good. Nice to hear that it is, btw!

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I really just have not seen anybody who claims to be an MGS fan speak about the game except to complain. (Until now, i guess.)

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The parry system is never explained, the dodge is never explained, the
color-coded heavy enemy attacks aren't even explained. (Based on my own
experience, how it worked out is that orange should be parried, yellow
should be dodged, and i believe red is simply unblockable? Speaking of
which, the yellow and orange are far too similar in color.)

 

Arrrgh! That is a deal breaker.

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I played the demo and it was actually really good. Excellent production values and graphics, engaging cutscenes, and an interesting continuation of the Metal Gear Solid lore — looks like after MGS4 things move towards human-shaped robot PMCs, a logical next step after the partially organic ones in MGS4.

While it's a side-story, I guess this is how Kojima envisions the post-MGS4 world so in that respect it's still interesting to see. The next proper MGS game(s) might not even take place after MGS4 so it might be the only glimpse we get in the remote future. A lot of work has clearly been done to satisfy the story needs of MGS's existing fans.

All that said, I won't be buying it. The gameplay is completely along the lines of something like Bayonetta or the earlier Devil May Cry games, in that it's fucking hard. I don't mind hack-and-slash, but I prefer the more accessible approaches of games like God of War and Darksiders. This on the other hand is proper hard-as-knackers shit. The boss fight in the demo was so difficult I was practically in tears of frustration and turned the console off in a huff. ;(

So basically, if you love MGS's storytelling and hardcore hack-and-slash games, this is likely a great buy. Hell, even if you don't care about the story this is probably still a great buy. But if you're expecting anything even vaguely like the past MGS games' gameplay you'd better throw those expectations out the window.

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Arrrgh! That is a deal breaker.

Why?

It's missing a few crucial details to be sure, but it's literally like two or three things. The game does a reasonable job laying out mostly everything else. I mean, it's a Platinum game, so it still does a better job of explaining itself that most other games in the genre. It is in that context that it was weird they somehow missed explaining such important things, especially when they're handled in a non-standard manner.

Parry: Hold X and a direction towards an enemy, you usually have pretty generous windows for the input. Repeat to also block follow up attacks.

Dodge: Buy it from the customization thing and then hit X+A, or X+A and the desired direction. (The fact that it's described as an attack makes it quite confusing, but it's an attack with a ton of invincibility frames.)

Then the color coding thing that i already detailed. (If the enemy's attack isn't color coded, just do whatever to block/avoid it.)

I also don't think the game explains the lock-on or how you can swap targets with the right stick, but it's kind of clunky anyways. If you're fighting big groups, you're almost better off trying to manage the camera yourself.

You can also move while in blade mode if you start a ninja run, hit Y, and then LT while sliding across the ground. (Not as useful as you might expect, it just feels really cool.)

The ninja run also deflects bullets, but i'm pretty sure that's a thing the game does say.

(For the PS3: A = X, X = Square, Y = Triangle.)

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I am colour blind and have real problem with spectrums in particular. Golden Axe: Beast Rider had a similar colour system and it was rendered even more unplayable as a result.

 

I will still probably play it, because it is Platinum, but I might just borrow it from someone instead of paying for it.

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I am colour blind and have real problem with spectrums in particular. Golden Axe: Beast Rider had a similar colour system and it was rendered even more unplayable as a result.

I will still probably play it, because it is Platinum, but I might just borrow it from someone instead of paying for it.

Oh shit, well that would totally do it. That sucks.

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Man. That blows. How long until game devs take the time to put a high-contrast palette into games? I bet its a tiny outlay for the number of people it would reach.

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My god is this game a hot mess. I'm not really enjoying it, I just wish it was over now.

Finished. That was a load of balls, if I had payed money or this game I would've been mightily upset. Some nice ideas surrounded by garbage, the game just tries to do to much and fails almost all of it. Every heard of editing?

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Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance is a wonderful ride. It does, however, have a monkey trap you have to overcome. 

 

There is a jar with an opening just big enough to slip your hand into, and inside that jar there is a big ball of "taking all the stuff this game says and does terribly seriously". It is tempting to reach in there and grab that ball as everyone loves taking games terribly seriously. But then you're stuck! Your hand clutching this enticing ball won't come out of the jar. Struggle as you might you cannot escape and you will lament the terrible fate engineered by the perverse minds at Kojima Productions and Platinum Games. 

 

But you just have to let go. 

 

Let go of "taking all the stuff this game says and does terribly seriously". Then you'll be free to romp around in the big stupid playground they've built for you. If you can't have fun slicing Gatorade-powered cyborgs into a thousand pieces or flipping a 50ft robot into the air while off-brand nu-metal rises to a screaming crescendo then I pity you; next you'll be saying that there's something wrong with Asura's Wrath (scummy DLC true ending notwithstanding). 

 

While it's neither the best Platinum Games character action / orgy of absurdity or the best Metal Gear Kojima-babble fest, Revengeance is still pretty damn great with mechanics deep enough to reward at least a couple playthroughs. 

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Oh man, i've been sitting on a copy of Asura's Wrath, i need to play that.

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I quit Asura's wrath :) the sound mixing was horrendous. I turned the subtitles off because I find them hugely distracting and because I don't have a problem with my hearing. Couldn't hear half of what people were saying during the cutscenes... Of which their are billions. My favourites were the trailers for each chapter depicting the most interesting moments of gameplay you haven't experienced yet, thanks asura! Now I don't need to play your game!

The whackiness in revengance and asura are the best thing thye have going for them. It's just a lot of the other design decisions that don't sit with me.

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Haha. Looks like when you go around as Young Snake wearing civilian camo in MGS4.

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