Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance Xbox 360 Review - PAGE 1

Yet again a Metal Gear game has left me a humbled, broken shell of a gamer. I'm not sure why I continue to treat myself with such little respect. Perhaps it's due to my deference for the monument that is the original Metal Gear Solid, but nevertheless here I am having completed Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance. “Why,” I question the heavens, “Why, oh Kojima, do you continue to treat me so?” There's no response, but quietly, mockingly, Kojima smirks.

Sure, it's developed by Platinum Games instead of Kojima Productions, but Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance still retains the soul of the brand, and by “soul” I mean to imply all that esoteric, preachy nonsense Kojima loves so much. Platinum's unique touch is there too, in abundance, and the two design philosophies clash in quite astonishing ways. Yes, Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance is certainly a Metal Gear title, but almost forcedly so.

Imagine Kojima sitting behind Platinum Games, his hands guiding Platinum's as it tries to mold a replica Metal Gear title out of clay. Kojima tries his best, but Platinum is way too handsy and just wants to add boobs and samurai swords and robots and explosions. Kojima's guiding hands are strong, but not strong enough. As the finished product is unveiled, Kojima fakes a smile, but a steady rain of tears is all too clearly noticeable.

Welcome to Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance, beautiful in its blasphemy, a troubled action title that never quite finds itself.

It Slices, It Dices

Platinum's clearest voice rings out through gameplay, naturally. The studio responsible for Bayonetta and Vanquish certainly has an inspired outlook on what action games should be, and the combat system they designed for Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance is, if anything, unique. “Ambitious” would describe it just as well, as the game's Zan-Datsu system that allows for dynamic slicing is remarkable. In concept, Revengeance's combat system of combinations, counters, customization and quick time events is brilliant – intense, exhilarating and beautifully cinematic. In practice, however, everything comes together rather like awkward, waterlogged puzzle pieces that don't quite fit.

Revengeance's combat problems start with the camera. Surely everyone's tired of hearing about terrible cameras, but it needs to be said that this one is worth calling out. Whether you’re sneaking up behind an enemy and the camera won't clip to the proper angle to allow for a one-hit quick-time kill, or the trying to master the dizzying adjustments required for moment-to-moment combat, the camera controls and automatic adjustments just aren't where they need to be for precise movements. From the beginning of the game to the final boss fight, the camera proves Raiden's greatest adversary.

Yet the heart of Revengeance's combat problems lie in its heavy reliance on reaction speed from the player, and a lack of visual clarity and conveyance. In other words, it's extremely difficult to tell what you should be doing and exactly when you should do it. For instance, countering attacks often results in one hit kill opportunities, but if you miss a counter it's unclear whether you simply mistimed it or there was no actual counter-attack opportunity. Boss fights are especially notorious at this, though calling an ally on the codec can help you glean hints on occasion. Similar visual cue issues revolve around Zan-Datsu, where occasionally a symbol will glow indicating a cutting opportunity, yet it won't activate properly or the distance is too far to for the sword to reach.

Worse yet, punishment in Revengeance comes quickly and without pity. While health recovery is plentiful (just a Zan-Datsu slice and then the consumption of a spine away), getting caught in a problematic situation can drop your health especially fast, leading you to consume semi-rare health packs like candy. Compound that with an awkward camera and there are moments of such astonishing frustration that I almost couldn’t breathe. It can be so frustrating you might pop a blood vessel in your forehead or break a controller out of pure spite.

Again, when working properly, Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance's combat can be gloriously compelling. Nothing feels as exhilarating as tripping up a bipedal cyborg, slicing off its arm with Zan-Datsu, and then countering an attack to finish it off in one clean hit. This sort of rhythm takes some acclimation, especially because Revengeance doesn't have a particularly comprehensive tutorial system. Even after hours of play there remains an inkling that you might not fully understand or grasp. When the stars align and the katana slices three cyborgs in half with one swipe, the feeling is incomparable to experiences in other games.

A few loose ends need to be addressed. While QTEs are quickly becoming a joke in modern gaming, Platinum Games does their best to utilize them in creative ways. In-combat QTEs reward you with Zan-Datsu opportunities, matching stale gameplay with cinematic action sequences. Revengeance also tries to encourage stealth play, but to be honest, it all feels rather forced and not fleshed out in any regard. Compound that with an awkward camera and at best stealth can be used for a few free kills, unless you’re on a third playthrough and map traversal has already become second nature.

Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance's combat is highly problematic, but that's in large part due to its highly cinematic and extremely fast-paced nature. The challenge is innate, and while I'd love to say this is all intentional on Platinum’s part, that's obviously not the case. Some of it is simply sloppy design, as is the lack of visual cues and unclear animations (Grr, final boss!), and the rest is just a lack of coding execution, like with the camera. That said, I'd rather Platinum aim for gameplay that's extraordinary and unique and not quite get there, rather than settle for something ordinary. 

Snake's Skintight Sneak Suit

Speaking of visuals, wow, Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance has got plenty of them. Okay, all snark aside, there's a good side to Revengeance and there's a best-in-heavy-shadows side. As with everything else about the game, the visuals feel like two personalities clashing together; everyone is getting their hand in the other's cookie jar and no one is getting exactly what they want out of it.

In-engine Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance looks brilliant in motion. Raiden, the enemies he fights, and a majority of the combat animations (disregarding the actual gameplay behind them) are spectacularly rendered. The ways Raiden deflects bullets while running is a delight, getting kicked in the face by a Gekko's creepy, overly muscular leg has never felt so visceral, and the assortment of lighting effects that bouncing off sword slashes and clashes is as good as any fireworks show.

Yet what's far and away the most visually stunning aspect of the game is without a doubt the Zan-Datsu cuts. Near anything beyond the environment itself can be cut with Raiden's completely dynamic blades. Chopping enemies into various bits and pieces is a norm in the game. These pieces flop and slide around, and yes, have textures for their inner bits, and while the physics behind is rather archaic, the slicing process itself is incomparably impressive. There's really nothing like it in other games.

The trade-off for the ultra-intense lighting effects and crazy Zan-Datsu visuals is an unfortunately bland environment. Dusty desert browns and city grays, dark sewers and industrial tunnels – it's an unfortunate compromise. I'm okay with it though, because it's all easily ignored. Raiden runs through most settings in a matter of seconds, jumping from battle to battle until he arrives at each level's boss battle, which is typically much more visually impressive. The environmental artists prioritized their time wisely.

Revengeance's second, darker personality is seen in the game's plentiful cutscenes. It's a Metal Gear game after all; if you weren't expecting an overabundance of cutscenes, you're in the wrong place, mister. Perhaps it's due to the huge quantity of cutscenes the development team was required to produce, but they are extremely unpolished and quite low quality. Even compared to in-engine textures, framerate and coloring, the cutscenes are frankly quite poorly done. Give me slow-walking Raiden talking on the codec over these bland cutscenes for narrative delivery any day.