Metal Gear Solid: Rising
Encyclopedia
is an upcoming action
video game under development by Kojima Productions
as a spin-off to the Metal Gear
series. The game is in development for Microsoft Windows
, PlayStation 3
and Xbox 360
. The series' regular tagline, "Tactical Espionage Action", will be opted out for this entry in favor of "Lightning Bolt Action" to describe the protagonist's abilities in gameplay. The word is Japanese
for "thunder and lightning." Rising is an interquel set between the events of Sons of Liberty
and Guns of the Patriots
.
, the katana-wielding ally of series mainstay Solid Snake
. Like previous titles in the Metal Gear series, Rising is a stealth action game
. Creative producer Shigenobu Matsuyama notes that gameplay will focus on two key elements: swordfighting, and a style of stealth that is more fast-paced and action-oriented than in previous titles.
A key gameplay feature for the game is titled , which involves "cutting" through enemies and "taking" parts from the bodies of dismembered cyborgs and robots. Things which can be taken include life, energy, parts, ammunition, items, and occasionally information. For example, in the E3 2010 trailer, Raiden tears a battery — in the form of a glowing mechanical spine — from a dismembered cyborg enemy, which he then crushes after absorbing energy from it to heal himself.
"Cutting" entails sophisticated swordplay that lets players engage in third person melee combat, as well as precisely slash enemies and objects "at will" along a geometrical plane using a "free slicing" mode. Virtually any object in the game can be cut, including vehicles and enemies, though elements of the environment were intentionally limited to structures such as pillars and walls to better facilitate gameplay. The free slicing mode is similar to other aiming modes in previous Metal Gear Solid titles, but produces a special targeting reticule in the form of a transparent blue plane which can be rotated and moved, tracing orange lines across the surfaces of objects to indicate exactly where they will be cut; it can also be used to enter a bullet time
state, giving players the opportunity to precisely slash targets during moments of action, such as slicing through a falling target from multiple angles before it hits the ground. These features can be employed strategically, for example disabling opponents, finding weak points and gaps in armor, severing support columns to collapse ceilings or walls onto enemies, deflecting enemy fire, or cutting through objects to remove enemy cover. This is particularly important when facing cyborgs and robots, as cutting through different areas of their bodies will allow you to take different mechanical parts from within.
Although Raiden's main weapon will be his high-frequency blade, he will also have "sub-weapons", Kimura revealed; gameplay footage has briefly shown Raiden wielding a dagger in his left hand.
Risings stealth elements will emphasize Raiden's considerable speed and agility through what Matsuyama describes as "hunting stealth." Unlike the "waiting stealth" of previous titles, in which players remained hidden and avoided combat, players in Rising will instead quickly stalk their enemies and use acrobatic maneuvers to stay out of sight while closing in. This ties in with the game's zan-datsu feature, allowing them to prey upon enemies to obtain weapons, items, and energy.
Director Mineshi Kimura
has stated that Rising would carry on the series tradition of encouraging players to progress through the game without killing, noting that there is a moral difference between attacking cyborgs or robots and attacking human beings, and that there's a "certain virtue to simply disabling your enemies instead of killing them." While it was considered important to give the players freedom to do what they want, Matsuyama has indicated that players will never be rewarded for killing human opponents, and that the game will be designed so that players are never forced to do so.
and player character
of Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty, into his cyborg ninja persona, first seen in Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots. Metal Gear Solid: Rising takes place during a point in the series' chronology at which Raiden has already begun his transformation into cyborg form, albeit with a different and somewhat more cruel appearance from the one seen in Metal Gear Solid 4, and will show how Raiden changes from his "Rising self" into his "MGS4 self." Matsuyama has also hinted that Raiden's past as a child soldier may be elaborated on, and that his personal weaknesses as a human, such as his resolve, will be explored.
While Kimura has been unable to reveal concrete details about the game's plot, teasers have depicted Raiden's body with portions of the body armor missing, and in his Metal Gear Solid 4 armor with sword drawn, crouching on the back of what appears to be Crying Wolf. The E3 2010 trailer depicts Raiden fighting a humanoid enemy equipped with a cybernetic exoskeleton similar to those worn by Metal Gear Solid 4's Beauty and the Beast Corps, which also bleeds the same artificial white blood that Raiden uses. Gameplay sequences also showed him fighting human PMC
soldiers.
Matsuyama has stated that one of his goals for Rising is to put a greater emphasis on gameplay while featuring a less complicated story with shorter cutscenes than previous titles. His intent is to provide an experience that will be fully enjoyable to players who have not experienced its predecessors, and so it will function more as a self-contained story and will likely not lead directly into the plot of Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots.
The game was first hinted during Hideo Kojima's keynote presentation at the 2009 Game Developers Conference
in San Francisco. His presentation followed the long development process of the Metal Gear franchise up to Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots and eventually leading up to the future with the final mission title being "The Next MGS" with Cyborg Raiden standing next to the title.
Prior to the announcements of the game, Kojima Productions featured a countdown timer on their website, having weather going from cloudy to extremely heavy rain with thunder and lightning, until the day that Rising was announced, leading to sunny weather. At the conclusion of the countdown, the site was replaced with image of a brick wall featuring a splash-screen graphic for Metal Gear Solid: Rising.
The game was officially announced at E3 2009 at the Microsoft press conference. A teaser trailer was released by series' director Hideo Kojima, although he will be serving only as executive producer for the game. The game was initially only announced for the Xbox 360 but was later confirmed for the PlayStation 3 and Microsoft Windows platforms. According to the "Kojima Productions Report" podcast the game will use a brand new game engine
, rather than the MGS4 engine. It was also announced that Kojima will be involved with the game but will not have a large input, as 100% of his input is with Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker
for the PlayStation Portable
.
The cover artwork for the game was leaked on Xbox Live on June 10, four days before E3 2010, but was soon taken down and replaced with the official logo. During Microsoft's E3 press conference on June 14, Hideo Kojima introduced the game's lead designer, Mineshi Kimura, who unveiled a new trailer which included cutscene and gameplay footage and introduced the concept of . In a follow-up interview with Famitsu
, Kimura and producer Shigenobu Matsuyama discussed the title's new style and gameplay elements, as well the traditional stealth and "no kill" elements of the Metal Gear series that would be retained. Kimura and Matsuyama again presented the trailer on June 16 during Konami's E3 press conference, then took stage, further clarifying the game's "take" mechanic and again emphasizing that the game will contain stealth elements. Kimura noted that he wanted Raiden to be able to move like he did in the MGS4 trailers, and to show "the stealth of the sword, and the strength of not even losing to the gun, and the fear and power you have with this blade."
Concern has risen over the game's realistic depictions of human dismemberment during player-controlled sequences, a hard limit for Japan's Computer Entertainment Rating Organization
, which may necessitate censorship in the domestic Japanese release of the game. As a result, the version of the E3 2010 trailer available for viewing on the game's official Japanese website has had such scenes removed.
At TGS 2010 Sony announced that the PlayStation 3 version of Metal Gear Solid: Rising will be playable in 3D.
In January 2011, several pieces of concept art for Rising were displayed at Yoji Shinkawa
's two-week exhibit, The Art of Yoji Shinkawa, hosted by the Konami Style Shop in Tokyo. The artwork included various illustrations of Raiden and other cybernetically enhanced characters, vehicles and equipment, scenery, and a hand-painted model of a feminine cyborg carrying a sword and a robotic infant. Several pieces of the concept artwork were also featured in merchandise sold at the exhibit.
In November 2011, it was announced over Twitter
that Shigenobu Matsuyama had moved to a different division within Konami and that Yuji Korekado had taken over as the game's lead producer.
New information concerning Rising is currently scheduled to be premiered at the 2011 Spike TV Video Game Awards on December 10, 2011, and in the December 2011 issues of the PlayStation Official Magazine - UK
and PSM3
.
Action game
Action game is a video game genre that emphasizes physical challenges, including hand–eye coordination and reaction-time. The genre includes diverse subgenres such as fighting games, shooter games, and platform games, which are widely considered the most important action games, though some...
video game under development by Kojima Productions
Kojima Productions
is a Japanese video game development studio under the guidance of game designer Hideo Kojima. The company is a subsidiary of Konami, and is located in Roppongi Hills in Roppongi, Tokyo. The studio had just under 100 employees in 2005 but has since grown to over 200 people for the development of...
as a spin-off to the Metal Gear
Metal Gear
Metal Gear is a series of video games.Metal Gear may also refer to:*Metal Gear , bipedal tanks appearing in the Metal Gear series-Metal Gear video game series:...
series. The game is in development for Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
, PlayStation 3
PlayStation 3
The is the third home video game console produced by Sony Computer Entertainment and the successor to the PlayStation 2 as part of the PlayStation series. The PlayStation 3 competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
and Xbox 360
Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
. The series' regular tagline, "Tactical Espionage Action", will be opted out for this entry in favor of "Lightning Bolt Action" to describe the protagonist's abilities in gameplay. The word is Japanese
Japanese language
is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...
for "thunder and lightning." Rising is an interquel set between the events of Sons of Liberty
Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty
is a stealth action video game directed by Hideo Kojima, developed by Konami Computer Entertainment Japan and published by Konami for the PlayStation 2 in 2001....
and Guns of the Patriots
Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots
is a video game developed by Kojima Productions for the PlayStation 3 console. The game was directed by Hideo Kojima and made its worldwide release on June 12, 2008, ten years after the release of Metal Gear Solid and twenty years after the North American release of Metal Gear.Guns of the Patriots...
.
Gameplay
Players assume control of cyborg ninja RaidenRaiden (Metal Gear)
, whose real name is , is a video game character in the Metal Gear series of stealth games by Konami. Created by Hideo Kojima and designed by Yoji Shinkawa, Raiden was introduced in the series as the main playable character of Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty...
, the katana-wielding ally of series mainstay Solid Snake
Solid Snake
Metal Gear, initially released in 1987, introduces Solid Snake, the rookie recruit of the elite special-forces unit FOXHOUND. Snake is sent by team leader Big Boss into the rogue nation Outer Heaven to rescue his missing teammate Gray Fox and discover who or what the "METAL GEAR" mentioned is, and...
. Like previous titles in the Metal Gear series, Rising is a stealth action game
Action game
Action game is a video game genre that emphasizes physical challenges, including hand–eye coordination and reaction-time. The genre includes diverse subgenres such as fighting games, shooter games, and platform games, which are widely considered the most important action games, though some...
. Creative producer Shigenobu Matsuyama notes that gameplay will focus on two key elements: swordfighting, and a style of stealth that is more fast-paced and action-oriented than in previous titles.
A key gameplay feature for the game is titled , which involves "cutting" through enemies and "taking" parts from the bodies of dismembered cyborgs and robots. Things which can be taken include life, energy, parts, ammunition, items, and occasionally information. For example, in the E3 2010 trailer, Raiden tears a battery — in the form of a glowing mechanical spine — from a dismembered cyborg enemy, which he then crushes after absorbing energy from it to heal himself.
"Cutting" entails sophisticated swordplay that lets players engage in third person melee combat, as well as precisely slash enemies and objects "at will" along a geometrical plane using a "free slicing" mode. Virtually any object in the game can be cut, including vehicles and enemies, though elements of the environment were intentionally limited to structures such as pillars and walls to better facilitate gameplay. The free slicing mode is similar to other aiming modes in previous Metal Gear Solid titles, but produces a special targeting reticule in the form of a transparent blue plane which can be rotated and moved, tracing orange lines across the surfaces of objects to indicate exactly where they will be cut; it can also be used to enter a bullet time
Bullet time
Bullet time is a special and visual effect that refers to a digitally enhanced simulation of variable-speed photography used in films, broadcast advertisements, and video games...
state, giving players the opportunity to precisely slash targets during moments of action, such as slicing through a falling target from multiple angles before it hits the ground. These features can be employed strategically, for example disabling opponents, finding weak points and gaps in armor, severing support columns to collapse ceilings or walls onto enemies, deflecting enemy fire, or cutting through objects to remove enemy cover. This is particularly important when facing cyborgs and robots, as cutting through different areas of their bodies will allow you to take different mechanical parts from within.
Although Raiden's main weapon will be his high-frequency blade, he will also have "sub-weapons", Kimura revealed; gameplay footage has briefly shown Raiden wielding a dagger in his left hand.
Risings stealth elements will emphasize Raiden's considerable speed and agility through what Matsuyama describes as "hunting stealth." Unlike the "waiting stealth" of previous titles, in which players remained hidden and avoided combat, players in Rising will instead quickly stalk their enemies and use acrobatic maneuvers to stay out of sight while closing in. This ties in with the game's zan-datsu feature, allowing them to prey upon enemies to obtain weapons, items, and energy.
Director Mineshi Kimura
Mineshi Kimura
is a Japanese video game designer currently employed by Kojima Productions. He has worked on every console title in Hideo Kojima's Metal Gear Solid series and will make his directorial debut with Metal Gear Solid: Rising.-Works:...
has stated that Rising would carry on the series tradition of encouraging players to progress through the game without killing, noting that there is a moral difference between attacking cyborgs or robots and attacking human beings, and that there's a "certain virtue to simply disabling your enemies instead of killing them." While it was considered important to give the players freedom to do what they want, Matsuyama has indicated that players will never be rewarded for killing human opponents, and that the game will be designed so that players are never forced to do so.
Plot
Metal Gear Solid: Rising chronicles the series of events that resulted in the transformation of Raiden, the protagonistProtagonist
A protagonist is the main character of a literary, theatrical, cinematic, or musical narrative, around whom the events of the narrative's plot revolve and with whom the audience is intended to most identify...
and player character
Player character
A player character or playable character is a character in a video game or role playing game who is controlled or controllable by a player, and is typically a protagonist of the story told in the course of the game. A player character is a persona of the player who controls it. Player characters...
of Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty, into his cyborg ninja persona, first seen in Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots. Metal Gear Solid: Rising takes place during a point in the series' chronology at which Raiden has already begun his transformation into cyborg form, albeit with a different and somewhat more cruel appearance from the one seen in Metal Gear Solid 4, and will show how Raiden changes from his "Rising self" into his "MGS4 self." Matsuyama has also hinted that Raiden's past as a child soldier may be elaborated on, and that his personal weaknesses as a human, such as his resolve, will be explored.
While Kimura has been unable to reveal concrete details about the game's plot, teasers have depicted Raiden's body with portions of the body armor missing, and in his Metal Gear Solid 4 armor with sword drawn, crouching on the back of what appears to be Crying Wolf. The E3 2010 trailer depicts Raiden fighting a humanoid enemy equipped with a cybernetic exoskeleton similar to those worn by Metal Gear Solid 4's Beauty and the Beast Corps, which also bleeds the same artificial white blood that Raiden uses. Gameplay sequences also showed him fighting human PMC
Private military company
A private military company or provides military and security services. These combatants are commonly known as mercenaries, though modern-day PMCs refer to their staff as security contractors, private military contractors or private security contractors, and refer to themselves as private military...
soldiers.
Matsuyama has stated that one of his goals for Rising is to put a greater emphasis on gameplay while featuring a less complicated story with shorter cutscenes than previous titles. His intent is to provide an experience that will be fully enjoyable to players who have not experienced its predecessors, and so it will function more as a self-contained story and will likely not lead directly into the plot of Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots.
Development
Game Developers Conference
The Game Developers Conference is the largest annual gathering of professional video game developers, focusing on learning, inspiration, and networking...
in San Francisco. His presentation followed the long development process of the Metal Gear franchise up to Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots and eventually leading up to the future with the final mission title being "The Next MGS" with Cyborg Raiden standing next to the title.
Prior to the announcements of the game, Kojima Productions featured a countdown timer on their website, having weather going from cloudy to extremely heavy rain with thunder and lightning, until the day that Rising was announced, leading to sunny weather. At the conclusion of the countdown, the site was replaced with image of a brick wall featuring a splash-screen graphic for Metal Gear Solid: Rising.
The game was officially announced at E3 2009 at the Microsoft press conference. A teaser trailer was released by series' director Hideo Kojima, although he will be serving only as executive producer for the game. The game was initially only announced for the Xbox 360 but was later confirmed for the PlayStation 3 and Microsoft Windows platforms. According to the "Kojima Productions Report" podcast the game will use a brand new game engine
Game engine
A game engine is a system designed for the creation and development of video games. There are many game engines that are designed to work on video game consoles and personal computers...
, rather than the MGS4 engine. It was also announced that Kojima will be involved with the game but will not have a large input, as 100% of his input is with Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker
Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker
is a video game produced by Konami and Kojima Productions that was released for the PlayStation Portable in 2010. Peace Walker is the fourth Metal Gear title for the PSP, although it is only the second to be considered part of the series' main canon, following Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops...
for the PlayStation Portable
PlayStation Portable
The is a handheld game console manufactured and marketed by Sony Corporation Development of the console was announced during E3 2003, and it was unveiled on , 2004, at a Sony press conference before E3 2004...
.
The cover artwork for the game was leaked on Xbox Live on June 10, four days before E3 2010, but was soon taken down and replaced with the official logo. During Microsoft's E3 press conference on June 14, Hideo Kojima introduced the game's lead designer, Mineshi Kimura, who unveiled a new trailer which included cutscene and gameplay footage and introduced the concept of . In a follow-up interview with Famitsu
Famitsu
is a line of Japanese video game magazines published by Enterbrain, Inc. and Tokuma. Currently, there are five Famitsū magazines: Shūkan Famitsū, Famitsū PS3 + PSP, Famitsū Xbox 360, Famitsū Wii+DS, and Famitsū Wave DVD...
, Kimura and producer Shigenobu Matsuyama discussed the title's new style and gameplay elements, as well the traditional stealth and "no kill" elements of the Metal Gear series that would be retained. Kimura and Matsuyama again presented the trailer on June 16 during Konami's E3 press conference, then took stage, further clarifying the game's "take" mechanic and again emphasizing that the game will contain stealth elements. Kimura noted that he wanted Raiden to be able to move like he did in the MGS4 trailers, and to show "the stealth of the sword, and the strength of not even losing to the gun, and the fear and power you have with this blade."
Concern has risen over the game's realistic depictions of human dismemberment during player-controlled sequences, a hard limit for Japan's Computer Entertainment Rating Organization
Computer Entertainment Rating Organization
The is a Japanese entertainment rating organization based in Tokyo. rating video game content in console games with levels of rating that informs the customer of the nature of the product and for what age group it is suitable...
, which may necessitate censorship in the domestic Japanese release of the game. As a result, the version of the E3 2010 trailer available for viewing on the game's official Japanese website has had such scenes removed.
At TGS 2010 Sony announced that the PlayStation 3 version of Metal Gear Solid: Rising will be playable in 3D.
In January 2011, several pieces of concept art for Rising were displayed at Yoji Shinkawa
Yoji Shinkawa
is a Japanese artist. He is most famous for his character, environment and mechanical designs for the Metal Gear and Zone of the Enders series....
's two-week exhibit, The Art of Yoji Shinkawa, hosted by the Konami Style Shop in Tokyo. The artwork included various illustrations of Raiden and other cybernetically enhanced characters, vehicles and equipment, scenery, and a hand-painted model of a feminine cyborg carrying a sword and a robotic infant. Several pieces of the concept artwork were also featured in merchandise sold at the exhibit.
In November 2011, it was announced over Twitter
Twitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
that Shigenobu Matsuyama had moved to a different division within Konami and that Yuji Korekado had taken over as the game's lead producer.
New information concerning Rising is currently scheduled to be premiered at the 2011 Spike TV Video Game Awards on December 10, 2011, and in the December 2011 issues of the PlayStation Official Magazine - UK
PlayStation Official Magazine (UK)
The Official UK PlayStation Magazine is a now-defunct magazine, launched in November 1995 to coincide with the launch of the PlayStation console. It ran for 108 issues, with the last hitting news stands in March 2004. The first issue sold 37,000 copies...
and PSM3
PSM3
PSM3 is a video game magazine specialising in all Sony video game consoles and handheld gaming platforms. PSM3 is published by Future Publishing, a UK-based publishing company....
.