Developed in collaboration by PlatinumGames and Kojima Productions, Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance is a spin-off title that follows the official continuity of the Metal Gear Solid series. Deviating from the Tactical Espionage Action, the main gameplay element is now fast-paced and stylish sword action that requires fast reflexes and impeccable timing. In this review of the demo I will go over some narrative elements and one of the defining gameplay features.
Revengeance is one of the few games in the official continuity that is not written by the series creator, Hideo Kojima. Instead the job was given to relatively new writer at Kojima Productions, Etsu Tamari, who has written various supplemental story material for the Metal Gear universe. These include Briefing Files in Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker and Metal Gear Solid 4 Database.
As I listened to the cutscenes and Codec discussions in the demo, I immediately got the feeling that Tamari really understands what appeals to the fans of Metal Gear. The way he writes about the current state the world, technology, and historical events etc. is very compelling.
The story itself essentially carries on where MGS4 left off. Important story elements such as the SOP system and the PMCs are referenced in Revengeance and the player is explained how the world has changed in few years, all in concise and understandable manner. Players seeking additional information can indulge themselves straight away in the numerous and long, yet optional, Codec conversations.
Without spoiling the story too much, listen to the part where Raiden shows no remorse to the terrorists, addressing them as mere vending machines. This will be a major theme in the storyline. I get chills thinking about the foreshadowing done in this scene.
There is only one gameplay feature I will address in this review, because it is the most important cornerstone of the entire gameplay experience.
Parrying is a context and timing sensitive defensive move that will deflect enemy attacks and give you a chance to counter attack. These are the conditions required to perform a Parry:
? An enemy must be performing an offensive move
? The player must input the direction from which the attack is coming from
? Light Attack must be pressed at the same time
When these conditions are satisfied, Raiden will go into Parrying stance that will last approximately for one second and has a slight recovery animation if the attack does not connect. If timed at the last possible moment, Raiden will automatically counter attack during the Parrying stance, leaving the enemy very vulnerable.
Here is the design process behind these conditions:
? By making Parrying context sensitive (Enemy must be attacking), this requires the players to watch out for enemy attacks
? By making the directional input a necessity, this requires the player to observe from which direction he will be attacked
? By mapping the Parrying on Light Attack, this requires precise timing from the player and discourages repeated inputs a.k.a. button smashing.
There is no dedicated dodge move in Revengeance, but Raiden has numerous offensive moves that have evasive properties, such as the Swaying Slash or dash attacks. Ninja Run will automatically deflect projectiles, allowing the player to approach enemies safely and swiftly.
The Parrying mechanic is very satisfying once you realize how it changes the standard slash-em-up formula. Instead of relying constantly on dodge roll invincibility frames, you now feel like a modern day samurai, deflecting attacks left and right and relieving the enemies from their heads, spines and all manner of bodily fluids.
This concludes my brief review of the demo. Hopefully it provided some of you helpful insight on the game.
Revengeance is one of the few games in the official continuity that is not written by the series creator, Hideo Kojima. Instead the job was given to relatively new writer at Kojima Productions, Etsu Tamari, who has written various supplemental story material for the Metal Gear universe. These include Briefing Files in Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker and Metal Gear Solid 4 Database.
As I listened to the cutscenes and Codec discussions in the demo, I immediately got the feeling that Tamari really understands what appeals to the fans of Metal Gear. The way he writes about the current state the world, technology, and historical events etc. is very compelling.
The story itself essentially carries on where MGS4 left off. Important story elements such as the SOP system and the PMCs are referenced in Revengeance and the player is explained how the world has changed in few years, all in concise and understandable manner. Players seeking additional information can indulge themselves straight away in the numerous and long, yet optional, Codec conversations.
Without spoiling the story too much, listen to the part where Raiden shows no remorse to the terrorists, addressing them as mere vending machines. This will be a major theme in the storyline. I get chills thinking about the foreshadowing done in this scene.
There is only one gameplay feature I will address in this review, because it is the most important cornerstone of the entire gameplay experience.
Parrying is a context and timing sensitive defensive move that will deflect enemy attacks and give you a chance to counter attack. These are the conditions required to perform a Parry:
? An enemy must be performing an offensive move
? The player must input the direction from which the attack is coming from
? Light Attack must be pressed at the same time
When these conditions are satisfied, Raiden will go into Parrying stance that will last approximately for one second and has a slight recovery animation if the attack does not connect. If timed at the last possible moment, Raiden will automatically counter attack during the Parrying stance, leaving the enemy very vulnerable.
Here is the design process behind these conditions:
? By making Parrying context sensitive (Enemy must be attacking), this requires the players to watch out for enemy attacks
? By making the directional input a necessity, this requires the player to observe from which direction he will be attacked
? By mapping the Parrying on Light Attack, this requires precise timing from the player and discourages repeated inputs a.k.a. button smashing.
There is no dedicated dodge move in Revengeance, but Raiden has numerous offensive moves that have evasive properties, such as the Swaying Slash or dash attacks. Ninja Run will automatically deflect projectiles, allowing the player to approach enemies safely and swiftly.
The Parrying mechanic is very satisfying once you realize how it changes the standard slash-em-up formula. Instead of relying constantly on dodge roll invincibility frames, you now feel like a modern day samurai, deflecting attacks left and right and relieving the enemies from their heads, spines and all manner of bodily fluids.
This concludes my brief review of the demo. Hopefully it provided some of you helpful insight on the game.