Key Highlights:
- The Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance public demo is now available through PlayStation Network and Xbox Live.
- The demo showcases Raiden’s HF Blade, Blade Mode, Zandatsu and defensive parrying.
- Players encounter cyborg soldiers, Gekko units and Blade Wolf during the playable section.
The public demo for Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance is now available on PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, giving players an early look at Raiden’s sword-based combat before the full game launches in February.
Konami released the North American demo through PlayStation Network and Xbox Live on 22 January 2013, followed by Europe on 23 January. The trial covers part of the game’s opening chapter and had previously been available through selected copies of Zone of the Enders HD Collection.
Raiden’s HF Blade is the demo’s primary weapon. Blade Mode allows players to slow the action and manually control the direction of Raiden’s sword strikes, making it possible to target individual enemy body parts and weak points.
Blade Mode also enables Zandatsu. Cutting through an enemy’s highlighted target and completing the Zandatsu action restores Raiden’s health and fuel-cell energy.
The demo introduces the game’s parry system, which requires Raiden to attack towards an incoming enemy strike. A correctly timed parry blocks the attack, while more precise timing can trigger an immediate counterattack.
Raiden also encounters several enemy types during the trial, including cyborg soldiers and Gekko unmanned gears. The playable section culminates in a boss battle against the AI-controlled LQ-84i, better known as Blade Wolf.
RPGs and grenades can also be collected as limited-use sub-weapons, but they supplement Raiden’s sword combat rather than replace it.
The screenshots below show the same combat systems and enemies featured in the downloadable demo.
Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance launched for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 in February 2013. Blade Wolf later received a standalone DLC campaign exploring events from the character’s perspective.
