Raiden (Metal Gear) - Creation and Development

Creation and Development

According to series creator Hideo Kojima, the decision to make a new character replace Solid Snake for most of Metal Gear Solid 2 stemmed from the developer's desire to develop Snake from a third-person perspective instead. Kojima also stated that Raiden's character and its perception by the audience were important to the overall feel of the story. The idea of having a second main character was inspired by the Sherlock Holmes short stories and novels in which the narrator was not the title character, but his friend Dr. Watson. Kojima affirmed that Snake was the game's protagonist instead of Raiden. Yoshikazu Matsuhana, assistant director for the project, was uncertain about this decision; he considered Raiden a "weak-looking character", but decided to follow Kojima. The codename "Raiden" was based on a local battle plane used by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service, the Mitsubishi J2M Raiden. It was initially planned to be written in katakana as "ライデン", but was changed to the kanji form "雷電" because of the original resemblance to Bin Laden's "Laden" in katanana, "ラーディン". The relationship between Raiden and Rosemary was inspired by Kojima's own experiences; their names, Jack and Rose, are a reference to characters in the film Titanic. Raiden in Metal Gear Solid 2 is considered to be a representation of the player through the experiences between the player and the character during the game.

Kojima received much fan mail; one letter was from a girl who stated she did not want to play a game with an old man. He took this into consideration; he and his team designed a character more appealing to women, resulting in Raiden's appearance. Designer Yoji Shinkawa noted that he and the other character designers took a great deal of inspiration for Raiden's appearance from the bishōnen archetype. Because Raiden was a new character the staff designed him carefully, giving him white hair to symbolize his introduction. Shinkawa further noted that Raiden ended up with an overall feminine appearance. His outfit (the Skull Suit) was difficult to design until the staff decided on a "bonelike" concept. Shinkawa wanted to make Raiden sexually appealing, emphasizing the tightness of his clothing.

Konami kept Raiden's starring role in Metal Gear Solid 2 secret until the game's North American release, going so far as to replace Raiden with Snake in teaser trailers and other preview materials. Although Raiden appeared in several preview trailers in his scuba gear, his presence was not emphasized. Raiden's appearance in the game was announced to the Japanese press on the day of the game's release in North America.

Kojima noted that fan response to Raiden's character was both positive and negative. While accepting considerable negative feedback, Kojima and his team liked the character. Therefore, they made him comic relief from the videos in which Raiden tries to become the main character from Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots. In response to positive response in Japan, the character of Raikov was created for Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater as a parody of Raiden. While noting that Raiden would not be a playable character in Metal Gear Solid 4 Kojima confirmed his appearance in the game to website 1UP.com, stating that fans would like him by the end. For this title, Raiden's new design was a response to the criticism that only his face remained in his cybernetic body. Shinkawa, himself, was surprised by the way he came to illustrate Raiden. The staff noted that Raiden's debut in the Metal Gear Solid 4 trailer received notably positive responses; several video-game magazines promoted the game with Raiden's screenshots. Kojima echoed similar comments, indicating that he wanted to expand the character with another game. Raiden's first fight against Vamp in the game caused difficulty to motion and voice actors because of carefully planned movements performed by the two fighters. The staff was nevertheless satisfied with the outcome, considering it one of the best battles in the game.

When Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance was known as Metal Gear Solid: Rising, former producer Shigenobu Matsuyama hinted that Raiden's past as a child soldier would be elaborated and his weaknesses as a human would be explored. Matsuyama wanted Raiden to have as strong a role in the game as in Metal Gear Solid 2, leading him to become the game's main character. Director Mineshi Kimura noted that he wanted Raiden to be able to move like he did in the Metal Gear Solid 4 trailers, wanting 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". Matsuyama stated that they would focus on Raiden's strong will and physical strength, so he would be enjoyable to control. The series' former tagline, "Tactical Espionage Action," was replaced by "Lightning Bolt Action" to fit Raiden; the word raiden (雷電?) is Japanese for "thunder and lightning". Raiden's design was changed during the game's development, leading to different promotional images of him. Developers stated that while Raiden "has grown up" in comparison to previous Metal Gear games, he is still conflicted with his life as a child soldier in a past civil war, leading him to be a "dark hero".

In the Japanese versions of the games Raiden has been voiced by Kenyu Horiuchi, who felt he could understand the character's pain; despite becoming a cyborg, Raiden still acted like a human. Quinton Flynn was selected to voice Raiden in the English adaptation of the series by casting director Kris Zimmerman, who had previously worked with him. Flynn remembers having a long time to develop the character, being instructed by Zimmerman to use an older voice from a character he previously voiced. Flynn stated that Raiden was one of his favorite video-game voice characters, and explained a notable difference between his roles in Metal Gear Solid 2 and Metal Gear Solid 4.