Reception
Raiden's replacement of fan favorite Solid Snake in Metal Gear Solid 2 proved controversial, and GamesRadar considered the event a reason to dislike the series overall. The same site criticized his role in Metal Gear Solid 2 several times, and called his inclusion one of the worst aspects of the game. In September 2004 Shoeless Wayne Santos of GameAxis Unwired wrote a fake interview, in which Hideo Kojima expressed regret for creating the character. While calling Metal Gear Solid 2 one of the biggest disappointments in video-game history, UGO Networks' Marissa Meli cited Raiden's debut as a key problem with the game. Meli also commented on Raiden's androgynous design, placing him 12th in a list of the "Most Androgynous Video Game Characters". The book Playing with Videogames states that Raiden's inclusion was to surprise Metal Gear fans who, instead of playing as Snake, played as his opposite. Writer James Newman commented that fans' reactions were highly negative, as though their expectations had been "betray" by Kojima. He compared Raiden to the controversial Star Wars character Jar Jar Binks. Trailers for Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eraser (in which Raiden is mocked) were considered by Newman to be Konami's comic response to fans' disapproval.
Nevertheless, the character received a positive response from some writers. Eurogamer's Tom Bramwell enjoyed Raiden's role, commenting that his interactions with the other characters also helped expand Solid Snake's character. His introduction was given an award for "Biggest Surprise" by GameSpot in 2001, while Dave Meikleham from GamesRadar listed his appearance as one of the biggest plot twists in a video game since the trailers did not show him. Meikleham also called Raiden a "surprisingly likeable character" and found his dynamic with Solid Snake appealing. Before joining Kojima Productions Ryan Payton stated that he was not disappointed by Raiden's introduction, and liked the fact that the Metal Gear Solid 2 team kept his identity a secret. Raiden's English voice actor Quinton Flynn was surprised by fans' response to the character, but commented that it also attracted new fans to the series. Regarding response about Raiden replacing Snake as the main character, Flynn thought that fans were angry at the idea that Raiden would replace Snake for all subsequent games. Raiden's relationship with Rosemary was also listed as the most awkward part of the Metal Gear series by 1UP.com, with writer Scott Sharkey speculating about Hideo Kojima's life since the director claimed the relationship was autobiographical). Play editor Nick Jones listed the scene in which Raiden is nude as his fourth-favorite moment of the franchise, calling it the "one of the funniest moments in gaming history." In a February 2010 Famitsu readers' poll, Raiden was voted the 42nd-most-popular video-game character.
Response to the character was mainly positive in subsequent games. Raiden's redesign for Metal Gear Solid 4 has been praised for reducing his androgynous appearance, thus making him more appealing. UGO placed Raiden's design in that game 18th on its list of "The Most Stylin' Alternate Costumes". Gavin Mackenzie from Play listed it seventh on his "top 10 inappropriate outfits", stating that the costume was "cool" but had unnecessary accessories. It has also been compared with Gray Fox's cybernetic-ninja design in Metal Gear Solid. Similarly, the GameSpot staff stated that Raiden "is definitely the inheritor of the quasi-unkillable Cyborg Ninja inheritance" when he made his first appearance in a Metal Gear Solid 4 trailer. His actions in the trailer were applauded by GameSpot, who labelled it "wordlessly awesome" and compared his stunts with those in the film Casshan: Robot Hunter. In another trailer, writers from Cheat Code Central referred to his fight against Vamp as the "undeniable highlight" as such scene would make player wish to use Raiden in the game. Game Informer placed him on "The Snubbed List" in response to his new design since it made fans like the idea of a new Metal Gear game solely focused on his character. His encounter with Vamp in this game was labelled one of the "most memorable cinematics" of the series by GamePro because of Raiden's change of fighting style from his debut as he "redeems his girlish image", while IGN listed it as the 80th-best moment in video-game history for similar reasons. Additionally, IGN's Jesse Schedeen listed Raiden as one of the "gaming icons" and most valuable players of 2009, in response to his role in an upcoming Metal Gear title. Dave Meikleham of GamesRadar wrote an article entitled "Why Metal Gear Solid: Rising will make you love Raiden", explaining why fans who disliked the character would find his character and role appealing in Metal Gear Solid: Rising. His new design was also analysed by GamePro's Pattrick Shaw, who commented that Raiden "was in one hell of a fight". In September 2012, manga artist Hiro Mashima drew an illustration of Raiden in anticipation of the series' following games. He mentioned having had difficulties illustrating the character.
Read more about this topic: Raiden (Metal Gear)
Famous quotes containing the word reception:
“To the United States the Third World often takes the form of a black woman who has been made pregnant in a moment of passion and who shows up one day in the reception room on the forty-ninth floor threatening to make a scene. The lawyers pay the woman off; sometimes uniformed guards accompany her to the elevators.”
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