Swords fly in a preview of Konami's upcoming action game at E3 2012.
LOS ANGELES—Metal Gear has been one of Konami's biggest brands since the release of Metal Gear Solid for the Sony PlayStation in 1998. The series is returning in its newest chapter, a game that breaks away from the story of Solid Snake and his bizarre family and looks at Raiden, the unlikely hero of Metal Gear Solid 2 and the cyborg killing machine of Metal Gear Solid 4.
Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance explores Raiden's story in between the games, looking at how he became a cyborg ninja. I got some time with the game at Konami's booth at E3 2012.
Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance is being developed by Platinum Games, the makers of Bayonetta and the upcoming Anarchy Reigns. It's a different pedigree from series creator Hideo Kojima's Kojima Productions, and while Kojima is serving as executive producer, the game's style is far different from the "tactical espionage action" of Metal Gear Solid.
Solid Snake was a super soldier, but he was still a man who could fall after getting shot a few times and who couldn't hope to fight off a dozen armed men at once. This resulted in the emphasis on stealth that defined the series. Raiden's a cybernetically enhanced ninja with a blade that can cut through anything, so the game is less about stealth and more about cutting things.
I took control of Raiden in a virtual reality training simulation that served as the game's tutorial. I was quickly introduced to "Blade Mode," a time-slowing mode I could activate with the top left trigger to let me slice enemies rapidly. The right analog stick guided my sword, which in Blade Mode could perform dozens of super-fast cuts on any target. The mode drains fuel, which was replenished by picking up nano-repair packs from enemies, so I couldn't run through the entire game as a super-fast death machine.
When out of Blade Mode, the game controlled more like Bayonetta than Metal Gear Solid. Gone are the deliberate menus for switching weapons and complicated aiming processes. Instead, the square button performed vertical slashing attacks, the triangle button performed horizontal slashing attacks, and other buttons became available depending on the situation of the battle to activate quick-time events for stylish kills. Solid Snake never counted combos when fighting enemies, but Raiden smoothly moved between several enemies, attacking them with dozens of sword slashes.
The demo culminated in a fight with a Gekko, the walking, moo-ing mechs from Metal Gear Solid 4. I found a missile launcher, but I had more success attacking the mech with my sword. A few strategic parries and dodges and several attacks in Blade Mode reduced the Gekko to scrap parts. I mopped up the last few guards and the demo was over.
Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance is much more action-oriented than Metal Gear Solid, and fans of the stealth genre will probably find themselves disappointed. However, the action was fast and smooth, and slicing apart guards and robots in Blade Mode is satisfying. Considering Platinum Games' history with violent, combo-heavy action games (the founders worked on games like Devil May Cry), this could be a fun game that explores the world of Metal Gear with gallons more blood than the series is used to.
Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance comes to the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 in early 2013.
For more, see All Hands on Mech: An E3 2012 Tale of Love and Obsession, as well as After 25 Years, Metal Gear Maestro Warns, 'Innovate or Die.'
